Is the public ready to accept a Whitney Houston comeback?

Ignorant · 12-04-2006, 10:19 AM

Especially since she dumped the one thing that many people said was holding her back (I don't agree, however)... Bobby Brown??

I know she still has a legion of fans out there who adore her and have been praying for her, but can she still make an impact on the pop & R&B music scene after everything that she's been through? Has it ever been done before?

I think if she hires a good PR staff and stylist, she can do it... put on some weight, get her hair done, get her smile back and then do the interview circuit on Oprah, Diane Sawyer, Today, etc. and maybe perhaps, actually admit to her drug use, the public will be very forgiving and ready to embrace her again.

However, after all of the external stuff is taken care of, the biggest question will be the one thing that has carried her since Day 1... her VOICE. Does she still have it? She doesn't need to dress half-naked in order to compete with the Beyonces, Ciaras, Rihannas, and Britneys out there. She's the matriarch of this shit.

Or is her career completely dead?

Ixtlan · 12-04-2006, 11:11 AM

A quality album will cure all that ails her.

So if the new material is dope...The public will absolutely fall in line.

Ignorant · 12-04-2006, 11:32 AM

So you don't think her image and PR are just as important?

I don't think she can just release a great album with no big marketing push.

Ixtlan · 12-04-2006, 12:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ignorant

So you don't think her image and PR are just as important?

I don't think she can just release a great album with no big marketing push.

She's Whitney Houston.
Everyone's been quietly pushing for her comeback.
She's done enough already that fans are waiting.

I don't think she'll need as big a push as an unknown commodity would.
Standard label backing along with a great album will do.

Ignorant · 12-04-2006, 02:40 PM

See, I think she would need more simply to convince the old fans who are still "on the fence" and draw in the newer ones, because it's been like a decade since she's had a hit... audiences change drastically in that time... you see MJ hasn't had the same success since his Thriller and Bad days... I think if she became more personable with the public and forthcoming about her life and ordeals, then it would put her back on top... if she only received the SOP, then she'd stay in the middle of the pack or people wouldn't care as much.

Ixtlan · 12-05-2006, 01:15 PM

Thing is, Jacko's always alienated Black audiences.
He's almost as hated as OJ Simpson by White folks...
Hell, who's left to sell records to?

His comeback faced tougher odds. Even then he still sold 17 million on his last three full-length projects. Even the last one sold 2 million. That's horrible for Jackson's standards, but a very successful album otherwise.

Houston is still beloved amongst her own to start.
That's 2 million she can count on. As for crossover success?
That'll be harder to come by, but again a great album can be penance for a wayward artist.

Ignorant · 12-08-2006, 12:06 PM

^See, that's what I'm talking about... the pop world. Whitney crossed over in '87 with "I Wanna Dance With Somebody." She's used to doing 4-5 million an album.

During the '90s, MC kinda put a dent in her market share, but she's not as viable as she once was, either... so really Whitney doesn't have to compete with anybody in the pop world... except maybe the younger princesses like Britney and Beyonce. In the R&B world, she'd have to compete with MJB. But Whitney's VOICE has always been her golden egg, while MJB's is style and pain.

So while the R&B market is practically a given, she's gonna need work to lure the pop fans back.

Ixtlan · 12-08-2006, 12:32 PM

That's where the material comes in Igs.
I think people will be much more forgiving if the album is lights out.
That won't necessarily cure all that ails her image, but it'll be a step in the right direction.

Ignorant · 12-08-2006, 02:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ixtlan

That's where the material comes in Igs.
I think people will be much more forgiving if the album is lights out.
That won't necessarily cure all that ails her image, but it'll be a step in the right direction.

I hear you on the material... but come on, pop fans are swayed by other things besides musical quality... if she's still seen as "washed-up," "damaged goods" or what have you, nobody's gonna wanna check for her in the first place... the critics may rave, but that won't get their attention...

The Dixie Chicks are on a lot of people's "hate list" because they actually had the nerve to exercise their freedom of speech and criticize George Bush... some radio stations have even boycotted their music, so that will definitely hurt their sales, despite a worthy release... I don't think WH is as maligned as they are, but her antics and the infamous Diane Sawyer interview have hurt her image severely... there are gonna be some people who'll hear her song on the radio, never minding how great it is and still say "fuck this crackhead b*tch!" I don't know.

Ixtlan · 12-08-2006, 04:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ignorant

I hear you on the material... but come on, pop fans are swayed by other things besides musical quality... if she's still seen as "washed-up," "damaged goods" or what have you, nobody's gonna wanna check for her in the first place... the critics may rave, but that won't get their attention...

Most of the people in the pop culture arena are "damaged goods".
She'll be fine as long as that album's a smoker.
AND she can still light it up on stage.

Quote:

The Dixie Chicks are on a lot of people's "hate list" because they actually had the nerve to exercise their freedom of speech and criticize George Bush... some radio stations have even boycotted their music, so that will definitely hurt their sales, despite a worthy release... I don't think WH is as maligned as they are, but her antics and the infamous Diane Sawyer interview have hurt her image severely... there are gonna be some people who'll hear her song on the radio, never minding how great it is and still say "fuck this crackhead b*tch!" I don't know.

Carey's rebounded from a battered image hasn't she?

Mr. sickVisionz · 12-16-2006, 12:23 AM

Whitney Houston had an amazing voice. You can't deny that. I think that if she's coupled with good producers (which you know she will be cuz comeone, what r&b producer doesn't wanna work with a clean Whitney Houston?) she'll have sales and will make an impact.

I mean, you'll have some people that hate on her... but you're always gonna have haters.

Ignorant · 12-18-2006, 10:58 AM

My question is, does she still have the voice?

All that smoking might have ruined it... but I hear many singers smoke.

Ixtlan · 12-18-2006, 12:59 PM

Now that may be her biggest hurdle.

I think years of drug abuse helped MJB.
It gave her a smoky voice that's easily distinguished and has character.

Leila Night · 12-20-2006, 06:36 PM

I think Whitney would sell if she has an album that's more soul(ful) than pop. A good R&B artist will always sell, especially one with a history. If she came across as being through "pain," etc.
I miss real divas.

Mariah's comeback was a little dumb-blonde for me. I still enjoyed listening to her work...

Ixtlan · 12-20-2006, 10:06 PM

Soul traditionally isn't a very big-seller with a crossover audience...

I tend to agree though. I'd like to see her give us something of substance. A gritty record with all the teeth of her past material.

Ignorant · 12-21-2006, 11:08 AM

^Actually, traditionally it is... just not recently... Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, etc. were all huge sellers who had a strong soul sensibility. Motown pop wasn't the only thing that sold during the '60s.

I only remember Whitney having one strong soul album... and that was her debut. "How Will I Know" was like her only pop song on that album. The rest of her career has been pop.

Leila Night · 12-21-2006, 03:21 PM

Awwww.... How Will I Know is my favorite. Don't diss. ^_^

You know, I think the public is too lacking in attention to listen through an entire album. Mp3 has ruined the concept of an "album." People would much rather listen to catchy hooks and songs without substance.

I heard Lauryn Hill is back. Have you guys heard anything new by her?

Ixtlan · 12-21-2006, 11:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ignorant

^Actually, traditionally it is... just not recently... Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, etc. were all huge sellers who had a strong soul sensibility.

Sensibility being the operative word there.
Mayfield was dwarfed by the success of adjacent artists Wonder and Marvin Gaye. He was never as commercially viable.

Quote:

I only remember Whitney having one strong soul album... and that was her debut. "How Will I Know" was like her only pop song on that album. The rest of her career has been pop.

I'd never categorize Houston as a Soul artist.
Pop, as a term, has little meaning to me though. It's really not a genre.
More like the quiet little corner they push uber-popular artists or those who are difficult to categorize into.

Honestly, would Whitney Houston have been considered a Pop artist if she hadn't been as widely successful commercially? I doubt it.

I just want to see the more substantive Whitney from years past.
Soul or no, give me the "meat and potatoes".

Ixtlan · 12-21-2006, 11:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Leila Night

I heard Lauryn Hill is back. Have you guys heard anything new by her?

I haven't, but boy would I like to.

Her debut is easily one of the best R&B albums of the last decade.
Okay, I realize that isn't saying much, but you catch my drift.

Hot Shyt · 12-21-2006, 11:29 PM

^^If she comes with another album, i dont think it will compare to her last.

i dont think it will even come close to it.