One of the most pernicious myths about pop music is that singers with great voices are somehow more “real” than ones whose voices are merely very good. Certainly, vocals do count to some extent—but pop is not opera.
It’s about more than an impressive set of pipes. It’s about operating in a world of symbols and gestures: Making an image, embodying a narrative, taking audiences on a journey.
But for some reason, it feels cheap to admit this, and doubly cheap to admit it in the context of a televised singing competition, which relies heavily on selling the “All you need is a voice and a dream” angle. Which is why it was so refreshing to see Nicki Minaj of American Idol gleefully destroy the notion of a vocal meritocracy on Twitter recently:
What do You think guys? Is Nicki Minaj on or off point? Leave your comments below.
