As IF Times

link Kanye West, Black Keys, Wiz Khalifa Lead 2011 Woodie Award Nominees – Music, Celebrity, Artist News | MTV.

If you get the feeling that nary a week passes without someone receiving some kind of award at some prestigious awards show, you may be right.   In the old days, if someone got nominated for an Oscar for acting, it was sold as a big deal.  The red carpets, the hairdos, the dresses and the heartfelt acceptance speeches all contributed to a sense of prestige and dignity to the Oscar ceremony.   Corporations took note of all the commercial possibilities surrounding this event and essentially cloned it with more and more august award shows.  In addition to the venerable Oscars, we now we have:

The American Music Awards

The Country Music Awards

The Emmy Awards (daytime)

The Emmy Awards (primetime)

The Grammy Awards

The MTV Video Music Awards

The People’s Choice Awards

The Tony Awards

The Golden Globe Awards

The SAG Awards

The Comedy Awards

The AVN Awards

and now the Woodie Awards

Well this is all great, especially the last one.  All awards are prestigious and recognize excellence somehow in their field of entertainment.  For the record, the AVN awards are given out for excellence in the adult film business.  The Woodie awards is to my knowledge, not related.   I suggest that these shows all originate in the minds of people in the formal wear rental business, but also people renting red carpets, hairstylists and of course the Tabloid publishers.  Not to mention those employed in the business of writing original acceptance speeches.  A very rough math calculation of  at least 14 award shows multiplied by 20 to 30 winners/speeches  per show yields enough work to keep a cottage industry of speechwriters going. 

Apart from the very important social significance of these prestigious  awards,  the ongoing symbioitic dynamic of  narcissism /voyeurism that exists in the entertainment world is amply on display.  There never seems to be enough adulation for entertainers but there also appears to be infinite demand by fans.  Imagine being fortunate enough to entertain people for a living, get paid gazillions of dollars to do so, have international fame and then to get an award supporting your greatness!  It’s amazing anyone goes to school at all to become doctors or scientists.  

Years from now, as the accomplishments of entertainers are under review by future generations, comparisons will be made as to the greatness of each personality, in what else, a lifetime achievement award show.  Many people will have accomplished many goals in their field and some may even be talented enough to score awards in different disciplines.  When all is said and done however, your career is incomplete if you haven’t been fortunate enough to get a Woodie.

link Black Eyed Peas a glittering bore at Super Bowl – Soundcheck – The Orange County Register.

It’s a revelation  to see that others are just noticing for the first time what has been in front of them from the outset.  The  Black Eyed Peas are vastly overrated.  Sure they had a hit or two a while ago, but as entertainment, the sell by date happened shortly thereafter.  However, the point here is not to diss the group.  I’ll candidly admit that I”m not the demographic that they play to. 

The issue is the tiresome way in which ‘artistes’ feel compelled to make political commentary to a captive audience without their consent.  It’s as if there’s a clause in their contract somewhere that they have to slide in some  message as a means of legitimizing their position as cultural spokesmen rather than simply being the hired entertainment.   What if you hired a clown for your children’s birthday party and he slipped in a message mid-juggle about global warming or comment on the middle east?  The most famous recent crooner to incorporate politics into his act is of course, Bono.   No one can escape his ‘events’ without being lectured about world hunger or world peace.   This annoyance is practiced by many acts from Cher at one end to the likes of Elton John and the Eagles at the other end.   The most famous recent example of this was the formerly popular group, The Dixie Chicks when one of them very publicly insulted a sitting president.   They feel compelled to use their platform as entertainers to push whatever political or social message they happen to champion.  There are venues for this: write an editorial to the New York Times; go on Letterman.  It does not say on the handbills advertising their concert,  “Performing  their greatest hits and views on child poverty!”.   People pay to see their prodigious singing talent, not a musical version of Hardball with Chris Matthews.

At the Superbowl halftime, while melifluously belting out her catchy tunes, Fergie skillfully slipped in a message to President Obama,

‘…Obama, let’s get these kids educated / Create jobs so the country stays stimulated…’

Like most messages from liberal entertainers, this one, while sounding positive is actually negative.  The notion that it is up to political leaders to educate children falls into the same overflowing bin as all of the other delusional liberal ideas.  It is not the government’s job to look after every aspect of our lives.  In this case, the responsibility for children’s education lies squarely with parents, not with the state and not with the President.   Adults generally would know this, but the impressionable minds of the audience that The Peas may cater to will absorb the idea that “it’s the government’s job”, serving to indoctrinate another generation of entitlement sheep.  Thankfully, it’s likely nobody picked up this little social message because of the general cacophony of noise in the stadium.  

How about they just stick to the advice offered by the title of the last Dixie Chicks’ album;  Shut Up and Sing.