I was talking to Shaz on the phone a couple of minutes ago. We got into this heated discussion about music. Specifically, we were talking about the distinction between boy bands and bands. I am aware that there are people out there who put down boy bands, claiming that they do not write their own music, which make them less “talented” compared to bands who composes their own stuffs. But I don’t know what gotten into me tonight that I had to get all emotional and up-tight about my dissatisfaction and kinda… blew up. Mind you, I'm talking about people who openly criticise boy bands and their talents. And just for the record, I have nothing against people who do not fancy pop music and etc.
ANYWAY... after we hung up, I calmed myself down and asked myself. Why? While trying to dig deep into my emotional bag, I put on a couple of old Backstreet Boys’ songs. Songs that were hits years and years ago. As soon as I heard BSB’s “Like a Child”, I was transported back to 8 years ago when I was 13. I remember connecting with that song, back when I was in form 1. I was crying on my bed, in my room, after breaking up with Kelvin Chee. And I swear I’m not being dramatic, but the song made me remember the feelings I felt at that time, at that moment. “Like a Child” talks about a guy who says he would break down like a child without that other person in their lives… I remember thinking, “If Kelvin sung me this song, I'd sooo go back to him.”… and that made me cry even more.
You see, the main point here is, when a song is good, it's good. If you listen to it, and it touches your heart, it touches your heart. Unless the singer is really bad, (and trust me, I know some boybands can sound really bad... but not all band singers sound good either!) I don't see why boyband music should be stomped on by people who claims they know so much about making music. Yea someone might have written most their songs, yea they probably didn't come up with the melody themselves, but hey... they are the people who puts out the end result.
Some may argue that boybands are common. That you can just pick out 5 young good looking males from a karaoke lounge and produce the exact sound as the Backstreet Boys, while you can't possibly use any Tom, Dick or Harry to produce another U2. So? Does that make them less worthy? Because they were just 5 lucky b*stards who got chosen out of the millions of other singing fools, their music should not be appreciated and given the credit they deserve eventhough their music do reach out to millions of people out there? Or is it because they did not write their music, so fans can't feel true emotions from the lyrics they're singing? - Let me ask you... Does U2 or Coldplay or Deep Purple or even The Beattles only sing sad songs? or only happy love songs? NO rite? I believe in one album, you've got a mixture of everything. Happy, Sad, Love, Lost, Pain, Craziness, etc. So are we saying that each album U2 produces, they really did experience all that they sung about? Lets say, they write about losing someone they love, do you think they really did loose someone?... IF NOT, hmm... Lets see... Is it just because they look older so its more likely that they might have felt those feelings of lost before, while the Backstreet Boys look like a bunch of rich youngsters who can't possibly understand the feeling of losing someone?
Now, how can u tell me that when a boyband sings a song, they don't really feel what they're feeling? Cuz I can tell you, even when "I" sing a boyband love song, I can feel like I mean every word. *sigh - feeling tired*
Its probably because I’m so imaginative that makes me love their music even more. I like imagining how perfect it would be if a guy sent/sung/dedicated a song to me, telling me that the lyrics are everything he wishes to tell me. *sigh* The thing about me is, when I listen to a song, I listen for its meaning. I’m not the type who judges a song based on its melody per se… It’s the words and the meaning that would really get me hooked. Especially songs that I feel I could relate to, or more so, songs that are simply... sweet and/or romantic, I could imagine myself being serenade by a special someone with. Boy band songs make me feel as if a love letter is being sung with beautiful music… or pages of a guy’s secret journal containing their heartaches, or simply their personal views of life… all spoken through music.
I don’t know what boyband music means to you, but through out my life, I have to say that I’ve been touched by countless boyband songs. From those that melt my heart or make me cry, to those that would simply brighten up my day just when I need ‘pick me ups’… People see them as dudes who don’t write or play their own stuffs, but I ‘listen’ to them because their music feeds my soul. Their voices are able to convince me that they know and do feel what they’re singing, and above all, their lyrics touch my heart. The sad ones make me feel as if someone out there understands the pain I’m going through, the happy ones make me feel as if they share my joy and it just makes me feel good, and there are those that just make me feel ‘love’… love that people claim to not exist anymore. Boyband songs are able to make me feel that… maybe there still are men out there who knows how to make their woman feel good with the right song containing all the flowery hard-to-believe-but-too-sweet-to-ignore type of words. I’m a sucker for a guy who can sing me a love song and mean its every lyric… Music is everything to me. Slow romantic boyband songs make me feel that… you know, maybe life isn’t that bad after all.
I know you'd think I'm drifting into some kinda lala land, and everyone is going to tell me that these are all fiction, fairytales or day dreams, but it is what makes me feel good. It’s what makes me feel that my mixed emotions could actually be understood. Now is that wrong? And again, just for the record, I'm not saying songs sung by bands do not make me feel this way... cuz they do. It's all about a good melody and great meaningful lyrics remember? And in my opinion, band music AND Boyband songs have those. So why put down boybands because they do not play their own instruments or pen their own songs? As a boyband, they have their own weight to pull... They're artists who places themselves into different emotional contexts to ensure that people can feel their soul in their songs, and some boybands deliver great GREAT work.
So don’t tell me boy bands and their music does not count. Stop dissing them just because they’re clean cut, good looking and ‘untalented’ in your opinion. That’s not all that they’re out there for. Just because their stuff doesn’t touch you or effect you emotionally or spiritually the way it does to me, it does not mean they’re unworthy. And if you're gonna start arguing that what they do is simply "not your type of music", don’t bloody listen to them. Who’s forcing you huh?
Ps: Sorry if I sounded offensive in any way. I'm in this very emotional phrase and I COULD be writing without thinking too much about what I'm saying, but I hope you catch the essense of it all.
** From the top of my head, here's a couple of Boyband songs I find pretty good.**
Backstreet Boys - Like a Child, What Makes You Different (Makes You Beautiful), I Promise You, Don't Wanna Lose You Now, All I Have To Give, I'll Never Break Your Heart, If I Don't Have You, As Long As You Love Me, Crawling Back to You, Incomplete, The Perfect Fan, I Need You Tonight, Show Me The Meaning of Being Lonely...
N'sync - Drive Myself Crazy, God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You, This I Promise You...
98 Degrees - This Gift, I do (Cherish You), Invisible Man...
All-4-One - Beautiful as You, I Can Love You Like That...
O-Town - The Painter...
Five - Until The Time Is Through...
Blue - Guilty...
Westlife - My Love, Close Your Eyes, Every Little Thing, Puzzle of My Heart, I Wanna Grow Old With You, Don't Say He's Too Late, Every Green, I Don't Wanna Fight, If I Let You Go, Fool Again...
Boyzone - Baby Can I Hold You, I Love The Way You Love Me, Love Me For a Reason...
A1 - Like a Rose, Everytime...
911 - The Day We Find Love, One More Try...
Code Red - I Gave You Everything, This is Our Song, If You Go Away, I Could Have Saved Your Heart...
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