Ke$ha Represents Everything Good and Bad About Pop Music

I watching The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien (emphasis on the Conan part) and his musical guest was Ke$ha, who, if you live under a rock, has the #1 song in the country (I think) or most downloaded or...something like that. Anyways, Tik Tok is a smash and it's really catchy. So catchy that I like it though I was ashamed of myself for it. That first line (wake up in the mornin' feeling like P.Diddy) is possibly one of the most fantastic lyrics ever written and I love it. But as I was watching his frantic dancing yet enjoying the synth beats of 'Tik Tok' a thought occurred to me. Ke$ha (who's name I have misprounouncing for a long time, and was continually corrected by my students) pretty much embodies everything people hate and love about pop music today. So, now I present to you Ke$ha: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

The Good

Okay, first of all, I love that Tik Tok song. Her music is infectious and totally listenable. Almost all of the songs on 'Animal' her new CD that came out on Tuesday, are very listenable and catchy. In fact, I like more of the songs on the album than I thought I would ('Kiss N Tell' and 'Blinded' being the best) and every song is distinct yet the record fits together nicely. A lot of her songs are about partying, and she's literally teaching a whole new generation who Mick Jagger is, but a few are about stuff that's not just about partying, taking off clothes, randomly hooking up, or extracting revenge, which are all key elements to hit pop songs. On 'Blinded' she tells the guy that she likes that he must be blind to not see how good she is for him and 'Dancing With Tears In My Eyes' is about tying to party away a nasty breakup, but being unable to do so. Every now and then she can balance somewhat deep things and superficial things.

Another good thing about Ke$ha, which all pop stars definitely need to do nowadays, is that you has a pretty distinct personality and style. She does her thing, essentially. Pop stars have to make themselved stand out and she does this well. She's pretty forward and frank in interviews about her name, her past, her shenannigans and everything in between. She also seems to have pretty good interview skills, as opposed to the stoic Lady Gaga (love her, but sometimes she just seems stiff in interviews).

The Bad

Speaking of Lady Gaga, Ke$ha is getting lots of comparisons to her, but I'm afraid it's like comparing a watermelon and a raisin. Lady Gaga can actually sing, she's produced five #1's, she speaks out for deep causes and she's clearly on track to be an 'artist' more than any of the other pop stars in today's world. Ke$ha can sing fine without the vocorder and the 808s but she relies on the production of her songs. This is an overwhelming theme in all music these days and it's sort of worrisome. Singers out there should have talent. Plus, her live show on Tonight, while lots of fun, was sort of cheesey. Being a solid performer, thanks to the Gaga is important in people loving you. In some interviews she is adament that she is a 'musician' yet I really don't see her playing any instruments. I think Ke$ha wants to be a lot of things to a lot of people, but for now she's still the new girl in town.

While she's extremely distinct, I'm starting to wonder if I can blame excessive eye makeup trends on her (though I think they started in England). Also her lyrics, while meant to be frank and fun, make her sound more and more like the female version of 3OH!3 which is not necessarily a good thing (except 'Don't Trust' me is still an infectious song).

The Ugly

I look at this picture and I do not see her making some sort of statement, being glamourous or doing anything worthwhile. I look at it and say to myself, "This girl needs a bath. NOW."

Despite of my criticisms of her, I downloaded 'Animal' and it's good music to run to. I still can't decide if Ke$ha is a one hit wonder or not. If she wants longevity, I hope she knows she will have to reinvent herself a lot.