There are a lot of fallouts of the downturn in bubble gum pop music sales, but none greater than the depth at which Britney Spears is going to have to reach to command the same media attention as when she was the No. 1 catch for such celebrity shows as Extra, Entertainment Tonight and E! News Nightly. (Target audience: moron, female, usually home alone.)
I've been saying this ever since the Backstreet Boys got married, Justin went solo on N'SYNC and O-Town did whatever O-Town did to disappear: I can't wait for Britney's new album to come out! And I'm not even going to listen to the music. Like fellow Louisiana product Emeril, she's gonna have to crank it up a notch. And her photoshoot for W magazine is certainly a great start.
Perhaps it's blasphemous to compare Britney to Madonna (whom I saw live and thought was an extremely talented performer), but even though Spears isn't really a singer (you have to actually sing in front of live audiences to qualify, no?) I see a greater parallel there than, say, the other singer-dancer-whatever-celebrity-hot-ass hybrid of the day, J. Lo. Because Britney, to me, has that good-girl-with-a-bad-streak package played perfectly. She's got us watching for the inevitable release, the equivalent of a bookworm saying "fuck it" and going skinny-dipping.
And I am looking forward to Britney's Playboy layout in five years. It's coming and that's an absolute guarantee. Tastefully done, of course.
Other Web Finds:
The Sun's Top 10 Viral E-mails — The latest ridiculous pictures circulating the Internet, usually forwarded over and over by dolts with AOL accounts.
Watchblog — 2004 election news and opinions in a three-column blog format. Democrats blog on the left. Conservatives blog on the right. All others post down the middle.
Susan Smith's Personal Ad — The Smoking Gun finds an online personal ad created from prison by the woman who drowned her two children by running her car into a lake. She describes herself as "sensitive, caring, and kind-hearted."
Carnie Phillips' Playboy.com Interview — The former 300-pound Wilson Phillips fattie who posed nude for Playboy says one of the great benefits of having lost 150 pounds is that she doesn't get as tired during sex now.
Brooke Burke's Newest Stuff Photoshoot — Same gorgeous bod. Same fake bombs. New pics. A MILF hall of famer.
I think you nailed it with the comparison to Madonna; it's obvious that Britney's following her lead. Saw a headline the other day that Ms. Spears admitted she gave up her virginity. Smells like an effort to keep her name in the press.
Posted by B.O. at July 16, 2003 12:19 AM