Fan Fare
Entertainment behind the scenes
Lady Gaga has monsters, Cheryl Cole has soldiers
The British singer, who is not the global phenomenon that is Lady Gaga, has written a message to her fans following her embarrassing fallout with the makers of the U.S. version of “X Factor”, who apparently did not want her on the judging panel having initially said that they did.
Cole’s website was silent throughout the fiasco which dominated British tabloid headlines for days, but she has finally broken her silence with a missive posted on Sunday reassuring the world that she is fine despite the setbacks and has been spending time with her friends, family and “doggys”. Well, in fact she doesn’t mention any setbacks, but merely describes the last few weeks as “the weirdest”.
What struck me about the post was her reference to her fans as “my little soldiers” who “mean the world” to her. It recalls Lady Gaga’s description of her most avid followers as “little monsters”, a term of endearment which hints at a relationship beyond the normal star-fan connection. Some people view this axis as unhealthy, and liken it to a personality cult, whereas many of the millions of fans in question embrace Gaga and say she is an inspiration to them. Will Cole be able to replicate this kind of bond with her devotees?
“X Factor” hits wrong note
Britain’s “The X Factor” has struck a bum chord, even before the main knock-out phase of the hugely popular TV show begins. Judge Cheryl Cole has incensed thousands of viewers with her selection of three finalists from a shortlist of eight contestants. Hopeful Gamu Nhengu, 18, was rejected by Cole, despite impressing with her audition and being among the early favourites to win the show.
One reason for the strength of the reaction — nearly 90,000 people have already leant their support to a Facebook page supporting Zimbabwe-born Nhengu — is that Cher Lloyd went through to the finals, despite being able to sing barely a note due to a sore throat. Katie Waissel also succeeded, despite failing to impress many who watched the show at the weekend. Only Cole’s choice of the accomplished Rebecca Ferguson was universally popular.
X Factor dictates UK charts … again
There appears to be one factor and one factor only in dictating chart success in Britain at the moment, and that factor is X.
Alexandra Burke, last year’s winner of the talent TV contest, performed her new song “Bad Boys” recently on the popular show and stormed to the top of the UK charts with the fastest-selling single so far this year. The 185,000 copies sold was more than twice the total shifted by Robbie Williams, who is making his long-awaited comeback.
