Vanity Fair:
Taylor Swift’s recent missive to Apple—the one that caused the tech behemoth to reverse course, once again demonstrating her world-beating pop power—came after some late-night soul searching, the singer tells Vanity Fair writer Josh Duboff, in the magazine’s September cover story.
“I wrote the letter at around four A.M.,” Swift says. “The contracts had just gone out to my friends, and one of them sent me a screenshot of one of them. I read the term ‘zero percent compensation to rights holders.’ Sometimes I’ll wake up in the middle of the night and I’ll write a song and I can’t sleep until I finish it, and it was like that with the letter.”
As whiny as I find her music, this story shows a very self-aware young woman who knows what she wants.
Whoa wait a minute. Exactly how do you find her music whiny? Her music sounds like a woman who doesn’t take crap from people and stands up for herself. That’s whiny?
“As whiny as I find her music”– unnecessary.
I’d use “childish” instead of “whiny.” I reserve the latter for 30ish male pop singers who try to sound like needy pre-teens.
Glad to know she’s more grown-up than her songs are.
Was it necessary to undermine her before making your point? Is this young, and arguably strong, woman really that much of a threat to your sense of self?
Undermine? No. I think he’s making a dichotomy here. He doesn’t have to like her work in order to praise her business decisions. I feel the same way.
Considering how many commenters on previous posts actually used their dislike of her music as a lazy excuse to dismiss her public negotiation with Apple, this is a legitimate distinction to make.
He undermines her talent before complementing her business savvy and resolve. He simply could have said “I do not prefer her music but…” He did not, he specifically used a pejorative to undermine her skill as a musician. The author did not so much as state his opinion as make a value judgement. Calling her whiny was, as pointed out above, unnecessary. This type of comment fits with the type of misogynistic language typically used to undermine successful women. Even if it was unintentional, he cut her down a peg before giving her a complement. In the context of the article, would it have been difficult to simply complement her skills and resolve?
Would it have been difficult for you to simply accept his opinion of her work as such?
Or are you simply determined to undermine him?
It’s really quite simple.
Shawn like her stance but not her music.
I think I agree. I’m not sure because I think she may have had a knee jerk reaction because of how big Aplle is. I, for one, don’t think Apple ever had any bad intentions.
You should be embarrassed. You sound like such a bitch
Yes, actually, you would need to apply that adjective to a male artist… several. “Whiny” is applied way too often to assertive women complaining about something but if a man does it, he’s telling it like it is. I personally think Taylor is telling it like it is, and telling “some man” to hit the road because she has the power. Definitely doesn’t sound whiny. How many male artists and female artists would you consider whiny? I will bet you $100 that a majority are female, just because of biases within your own head and not because of the content of the lyrics.
And Jason is allowed to critique that critique.
Shawn called her music whiny, when there is actually no evidence of that. “Whiny” is pejorative and loaded. To you it may be apt, to me it’s not. Shawn has totally detracted from the article by giving an opinion that is unnecessary and inflammatory.
So, because our opinions of Swift’s music are different, you consider mine invalid?
I didn’t use the word “whiny.” That was the writer of the original post. I would indeed use that word to describe what you and Jason have written here, however.
No I consider your opinion invalid because it’s not proven. Singing about standing up and not taking crap is not “whiny” or “childish”. It is, however, an ad hominem attack if you try to call me or Jason whiny because you cannot support your opinion.
Moeskido doesn’t have to support his opinion. Why would he have to? It’s his opinion, not much more to it than that. You disagree, so be it.
Shawn’s comments are not necessarily pejorative, based on what he wrote he thinks she sounds whiny, that could be a vocalization whiny.
Regardless, Shawn doesn’t say he disapproves of her. Whether it’s appt or not is, in this case, irrelevant, because too many assumptions are being made here.
Not all opinions are equality valid. I could say Taylor Swift to me sounds like a death metal scream and my opinion would have no merit. Ask yourself why a woman singer is who sings about standing up for herself and not taking crap is considered whiny.
The thing is, I think Shawn is saying he thinks her music sounds whiny, not that she is whiny because she stood up for herself. I think you are misunderstanding his intentions and meaning.
Do you mean a whinny? Now you are stretching it. I cannot fathom what you are trying to justify here, I see only one interpretation here.
I’m not trying to stretch anything.
Based on what he wrote “As whiny as I find her music” he either thinks her MUSIC is whinny or whiny. In ether case, he is talking about her music, as he said himself. Not her stance.
I am also talking about her music. That’s what her music is about. I still have no idea what you say “vocalization whiny”
I mean she sounds whinny to Shawn when she sings. As in shrill, you know vocally? Regardless, I am not a fan of her music either. Her sound doesn’t appeal to me. Her stance towards musicians getting paid during the trial period was good though. I think we are all in agreement here on that. But we certainly don’t all have to agree to like her music, is that what you are saying?