That may be so, but people can go on and on about music theory and what makes a great song, but all that matters in the end is if people listen to it. You can write the most technical and amazing composition, but if only a small group of people listen to it, then it doesn't matter that much. There are heaps of people who write amazing music and probably do it better than any mainstream artist. I certainly like more complex and deep music than a standard Mariah Carey song, but I bet you that 50 years from now more people will be listening to Mariah Carey belt out All I Want For Christmas Is You than they will some of the greatest song writers of the 20th and early 21st century.
It's the same thing with Taylor Swift. Average singer, average looks (IMO), average songs, typical lyrical topics, but yet people consider her an amazing songwriter because she knows how to write earworms. She already has 14 #1 songs. Yeah, mid-grade mass appeal stuff, but somehow she's the biggest thing around. At least Mariah Carey had one of the best voices in modern pop music and was quite attractive in her prime.
Consider the question "what are the five best hamburgers in the United States."
If the only metric that matters is "units moved," then the best five hamburgers in the country are 1. The McDonald's Cheeseburger; 2. The Big Mac; 3. The Whopper; 4. The McDonald's Quarter Pounder With Cheese; 5. Dave's Single.
It's interesting that when it comes to hamburgers, we can all agree that these are not the best five hamburgers. In fact, these are all examples of garbage food, and are some of the worst hamburgers on the planet.
I tend to see music the same way. Mariah Carey is the Whopper of music. People who listen to Mariah Carey while eating a Whopper give a shit about neither music nor food. They just want to consume product, and that particular product has the distinction of being the most readily available.
and do you think a mainstream publication is going to judge mainstream burgers or niche ones? They may not say that the most popular is the best, but it'll be on the ranking somewhere because people know it.
Also, I'd still make the argument that while Mariah Carey is run of the mill pop music, her vocal abilities are in the top tier. She has a 5-octave vocal range, which isn't all that common.
I mean, I think the list is garbage to begin with. I just find it interesting that Mariah Carey is one of the call outs for not belonging compared to the rest.
That may be so, but people can go on and on about music theory and what makes a great song, but all that matters in the end is if people listen to it. You can write the most technical and amazing composition, but if only a small group of people listen to it, then it doesn't matter that much. There are heaps of people who write amazing music and probably do it better than any mainstream artist. I certainly like more complex and deep music than a standard Mariah Carey song, but I bet you that 50 years from now more people will be listening to Mariah Carey belt out All I Want For Christmas Is You than they will some of the greatest song writers of the 20th and early 21st century.
It's the same thing with Taylor Swift. Average singer, average looks (IMO), average songs, typical lyrical topics, but yet people consider her an amazing songwriter because she knows how to write earworms. She already has 14 #1 songs. Yeah, mid-grade mass appeal stuff, but somehow she's the biggest thing around. At least Mariah Carey had one of the best voices in modern pop music and was quite attractive in her prime.
Consider the question "what are the five best hamburgers in the United States."
If the only metric that matters is "units moved," then the best five hamburgers in the country are 1. The McDonald's Cheeseburger; 2. The Big Mac; 3. The Whopper; 4. The McDonald's Quarter Pounder With Cheese; 5. Dave's Single.
It's interesting that when it comes to hamburgers, we can all agree that these are not the best five hamburgers. In fact, these are all examples of garbage food, and are some of the worst hamburgers on the planet.
I tend to see music the same way. Mariah Carey is the Whopper of music. People who listen to Mariah Carey while eating a Whopper give a shit about neither music nor food. They just want to consume product, and that particular product has the distinction of being the most readily available.
and do you think a mainstream publication is going to judge mainstream burgers or niche ones? They may not say that the most popular is the best, but it'll be on the ranking somewhere because people know it.
Also, I'd still make the argument that while Mariah Carey is run of the mill pop music, her vocal abilities are in the top tier. She has a 5-octave vocal range, which isn't all that common.
I mean, I think the list is garbage to begin with. I just find it interesting that Mariah Carey is one of the call outs for not belonging compared to the rest.