mkdevo

if you could name one and only one band or artist that you would define as 'selling out', who would it be?

for me - santana.. absolutely loved them when they were a tight latin rock band... but now that they're "Carlos featuring Today's Hottest Pop Stars", i cringe... such a shame...

Brain Stew

Nelly

I have never really liked him, but he seems to be part of the breed of rappers responsible for bringing rap to TRL. Compared to most skilled musicians and even rappers he is a joke. E-I, E-I, Uh Oh. Skilled lyrics indeed

JestersTear

To me, the term "selling out" means that you state that you will never do something, but then do it anyway because someone waves enough money under your nose. You've sold your stated beliefs for money.

Using that definition, Metallica is the glaring choice. Before Cliff Burton died, the band constantly said "screw MTV, screw radio airplay, we don't need it, we won't make a video, we won't pander to pop radio, all we need is our fans."

Then Cliff died. They did "... And Justice For All" which had already been written, and started the sell-out process by making their first video.

Then they brought in Bob Rock to produce their next studio effort. When they brought him in, they said it was for the express purpose of making Metallica more radio friendly. They wanted to make music for those preppie scumbags that despised them back in the days of Master of Puppets when fans like me were sticking by them.

Groucho

My bandmates and I consider any musician more successful then ourselves a sell out.

cungar

Aerosmith -

The Aerosmith of the 70's were one of hard rocks most genuine articles. Tough, crude, arrogant and they knew how to boogie AND rock.

The Aerosmith of the 90's and 00's is prepackaged formula crapola singing songs written by hitmakers.


Test: Put on Last Child and then Don't Wanna Miss a thing and tell me they aren't the world's biggest sellot.

OtherAdam

No Doubt- they used to be ska, but ever since the last 2 albums, I don't know what they are doing...

custom001

Avril Lavigne

JestersTear

And of course, the one band that you can never accuse of being sellouts - Kiss. Gene and Paul have always been brutally honest that they're not in this for the music, they're in it to screw hot chicks and make a lot of money.

Brain Stew

I guess you could say that Kiss and Rolling Stones are sellouts.

I never really listened to Kiss, and I'll excuse the Stones because I enjoy their music a lot.

the aftermath

No.

Selling out means the artist used to have artistic integrity, which Nelly never had in the first place.

Mopower

She was a sell out from day 1.

Mopower

Creed. First album when no one knew who there were was awsome.
Staind. Same as above.

Hiro11

I disagree on Aerosmith (their last album and parts of Pump and Permanent Vacation are terrific) and No Doubt (one of the best pop bands around right now "Underneath it All" is a ridiculously good single).

My vote:

Rod Stewart: greatest mod vocalist produces excellent work as part of the Faces, three classic solo albums, moves to LA and starts making total shite. He has sucked so bad for so long that people forget how genuinely great he was.

DodgingCars

Smashmouth & Sugar Ray

sherm42

Totally disagree. The music of the last album is more in the spirit of their first album than Saturn or even Tragic Kingdom. Besides, No Doubt never stated that they ever had a specific style of music.

mwj

I love Led Zeppelin, but using their music to sell cars is pathetic.

DodgingCars

I agree to a point. I don't think changing your style necessarily makes you a sell out -- only if it's done to sell more records.

With that said, Gwen certainly changed her image too -- and it certainly bordered on trying to present an "image" than being real. But, who knows.

sherm42

Certainly true. I have to admit that I didn't really see some of her looks coming back during the first album. I sure did love her schoolgirl plaid skirt look. Damn sexy.

TeeSeeJay

Then the Goo Goo Dolls win the sell-out contest.

JestersTear

They might be great songs, but Tyler & Perry have taken to whoring out the band to whatever "hot act" is currently running around. Come on, playing halftime at the Superbowl with Spears and N Sync?

Their willingness to do this has caused a lot of tension in the band, as the other 3 guys really don't like the direction the band is going in, but they realize that Perry & Tyler are the leaders of the gravy train.

In my opinion, Aerosmith was brought back from obscurity by Run DMC, and that taught them to stay latched on to whatever is popular to try and keep the spotlight.

inri222

Metallica

Troy Stiffler

Hendrix is such a sellout too.

I don't think that the band members have much to do with selling limited rights for stuff like that.

raiders757

For me "Sell Out" has a few meanings. I'll go with the "We will never cave in to corporate greed to sell records to the masses" version of "Sell Out".


The winner of this is hands down, Metallica. I'm not jumping on the bandwagon here. I have believed this from the day the "One" video hit the air waves on MTV (A long time ago). If you were not around for Metallica in the beginning, you might not understand exactly why making a video would piss a few fans off enough to call them sell outs. It's kind of hard to explain, unless you were a fan of thrash metal back in the day. The video was just the first small step. It was when they got Bob Rock to produce thier "Black" album, that the sell went into full effect. Yes it was a decent hard rock album, but that's what the problem was. Metallica was not a hard rock band, they were a thrash metal band. To make an album like that, was to turn your back on your most loyal fans. The very same fans that got them where they were at that point and time. To say they wanted to reach out to a broader audience, was just the same as saying "Well thanks for the support guys, but you are no longer good enough for us, and we have no use for you anymore. We want to appeal to fans more along the sheepish variety. So thanks anyways for everything you have done for us up to this point, and a big F-You from the band, it was a nice ride, but were moving on to bigger things, and in order to do it, we must dumb down our music for the masses, and get rid of you true head bangers, for some screaming little MTV kiddies. You guys would just make us look bad, and just get in the way. Later Metal scum, hello mindless MTV viewers. You guys understand don't ya'?"

Now, there is no problem to me, if you want to change your musical direction a little, but in Metallicas case it was different. They preached to us about corporate greed, and how they would never cave in to it. For them to do so, was a total shock to me, as well as a disapointment. I really hoped it was just that one album, and would accept it if it was, but noooooooo. It was only the beginning. Not only did they sell thier souls to the corporate devil, but thier live show started seeming to be half assed and uninspired from the Black tour onward. Metallica used to be ten times better live than they are now. If you think they are good in concert now(which they aren't anymore) then you should have seen them when they were true to thier original fans. you would see what I mean. They are nothin but bubble gum now, half assin' thier way through the songs with no passion what so ever. (Havn't seen them on the new tour, so that may have changed, I would hope)

Then "Load"came out. It was around that time when hard rock/metal bands were calling themselves "grunge" instead of METAL, because, I guess ,admitting you were a metal band was not cool all of the sudden. Which in its' self was a sell out A.K.A grunge. (I also believe although they had a different sound, grunge was hard rock/metal music, and to sit there, and go"Oh were not a metal band (a la Soundgarden, whom I somewhat like), at the time was a huge sell out in its' self , on all those bands behalf. Every freakin' one of them. Sorry to go off track)
Where was I? Oh yea. LOAD. When that "Load" of crap came out, I was at a loss for words. Here is the band that could save real METAL with a really kick a** album. The one band that could pull these confused kids from the putrid spew these "grunge" bands were putting out, but noooooooooooooooo.

They put out an album full over overproduced, streamlined and not very inspired sounding crud, that somehow would appeal to the grunge kids yet still remain "hard rock". If they could have pulled another Master of Puppets etc out thier A**'s at that time, it would have kept real METAL alive in America. Instead they gave us exactly what comes from an A**. *****!!!

Then they followed it up with *****.
ReLOAD. I'm not even going to comment on that album.

Then they followed all that with a bunch of filler albums. Garage Revisited (or what ever it's called), S&M, etc.. During this entire time, I can't believe they didn't come up with new material. Instead they just put out cover songs, and live stuff, all just to rake in the $$$, and the newbreed Metallica fans mindlessly bought into it.

Now the ST. Anger album. I'm at a loss for words as to how bad this album sounds. They should *****-can Bob Rock right away. Something they should have done after the "Black" album. Well really they should have never got him at all. As for the music...

Well I'll save ya' even more spew, I've already been negative enough as it is. There is nothing I could add that hasn't already been said on this issue. I'll just say, I was very dissapointed, but not suprised they sold out yet again, and put out a NU-METAL(you know Korn, Stinkin' Park) album. What can I say? They have not only sold out once, but twice, and arguably three times.

I think I have made my case here. Metallica has got to be the biggest sell out of them all. At least in the rock music dept.

A close runner up has got to be Aerosmith.

Hiro11 "one of the best pop bands around right now "Underneath it All" is a ridiculously good single"

That's just it, Aerosmith was once, back in the day, not a POP band. They were a HARD ROCK band. Big, Big difference. POP music is a sell out from the get go. The pure definition of sell out is POP music, or as I like to call it Sheep Music.

The "I've become a Sell Out because my wife wants me to" award goes to OZZY Osbourne.

Well that just my opinion. I hoped not to make anyone mad, thats just how I feel. Now I will go listen to a band that will never sell thier fans out.

IRON MAIDEN!!! UP THE IRONS!!!

raiders757

Jesters Tear - "In my opinion, Aerosmith was brought back from obscurity by Run DMC"

Yes, this is a little true, but it should be noted, that Aerosmith did more for RunDMC and rap music as a whole, by doing that song, than it did for Aerosmith. Despit Aerosmiths minor setbacks, they were still a big name. Don't beleave that garbage they spew on VH1 about the "So called " bad times, it's just hype for the "Story". They sold out the arena in my town on the Done With Mirrors Tour, and it wasn't some club like VH1 claimed they were playing on that tour, it was an arena . Aerosmith was still a highly respected Hard Rock band , and wrap was not even close to as popular, in that day and age, as it is now. Aerosmith knew thier plan long before that Run DMC song. They used Run DMC, just as Run DMC used them, as a spring board to the masses on the minless MTV crowd. To only give credit to Run DMC is wrong. If anything Run DMC road Aerosmiths coat tails to MTV stardom.

It was truley the day the music died.

Michael T Hudson

Kelly Clarkson.