The Hollywood Reporter did a very interesting cover article on Glee. The article is very long and involved, covering the inception of the show, and how FOX and the music partnerships developed, etc, so I'm not going to post it here, at least for now, but I will post the URL:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/hot-business-glee-75593?page=4
However, I do want to mention some tidbits I read in the article, and right now one of those tidbits has erupted into headline-grabbing material.
Both the band Kings of Leon and the guitarist Slash from Guns N Roses have made news recently for their loud refusals to allow their music to be used for Glee. Slash said that Glee is "worse than Grease" (whatever that means.) I don't know specifically what the Kings of Leon said. But in the article, Ryan lashed out at both of them. First he said, " F--- you, Kings of Leon,”...“They’re self-centered assholes, and they missed the big picture. They missed that a 7-year-old kid can see someone close to their age singing a Kings of Leon song, which will maybe make them want to join a glee club or pick up a musical instrument. It’s like, OK, hate on arts education. You can make fun of Glee all you want, but at its heart, what we really do is turn kids on to music." Murphy's response to Slash's statement was, "“Usually I find that people who make those comments, their careers are over; they’re uneducated and quite stupid.”
So of course the media outlets are having a field day with all of this. And a lot of the reader responses I've read were very negative towards Murphy. They feel his statements were over the top and egotistical, like every musician should bow down in worship to him and the show. They also blame Ryan for what they consider to be a poor first half of the season in terms of the writing and direction of the show.
But wait. There's more. It could have ended there, but the drummer from the Kings of Leon tweeted this a few hours ago, "“Dear Ryan Murphy, let it go. See a therapist, get a manicure, buy a new bra. Zip your lip and focus on educating 7yr olds how to say f–k.”
So then the media outlets, including Perez Hilton, ran with that. Ryan then released this statement, which ran on Perez's site: ""Just read Nathan Followill's Tweet…in which he implied I should ‘get a manicure and buy a bra.’ Wow. That's a homophobe badly in need of some education. I'm all for manicures, don't wear a bra. Would guess most gay dudes don't. But it's telling that Nathan can reduce a group of people to a mean-spirited cliché, in a time where young gay men are killing themselves all over the country because of hatred like this. That said, I would love to sit down with Nathan or any member of Kings and Leon, and tell them how on Glee we actually love their music, and support their artistry…but cannot condone or even laugh at their clear disdain of gay people."
The last word on the subject thus far has been an apology tweet by the drummer: "I'm sorry 4 anyone that misconstrued my comments as homophobic or misogynistic. I'm so not that kind of person. I really do apologize."
Maybe this will be the end of it; maybe not. Here's my take: I wish Ryan would have taken the high road to begin with. I'm not saying at all that he deserved that homophobic tweet. I just don't understand why he had to come on so strong. Does it really matter that much that a few artists won't give up their music? Did they deserve that level of disdain and the name calling? Murphy should have rose above the fray instead of putting a match to the gas can. He had a much better chance of being viewed as the mature one in the arguement if he had left out the vitriol and focused on the importance of music and the arts programs in schools. Unfortunately he did give people a good excuse to call him a hypocrite, by using inflamatory language in one breath, and then talking about being a role model for kids in the next.
Having said all that, however, I do understand Ryan's frustration. Say what you want about him, maybe he's a control freak, maybe he's on a ego trip, maybe he's power hungry, but I also firmly believe that Ryan Murphy is deeply committed to Glee...to the message of the show and to the power of the music, not just the fame and wealth that he has amassed because of it. Ryan Murphy is a music lover of the highest eschelon; he selects every single song that is used in the show, and he often has to fight tooth and nail for the rights to use a particular song. He also often has to shell out a lot of money. So I can imagine how hard it is for him when he knows exactly what song he wants to use in a certain scene, what song would be absolutely perfect in a given situation, and he can't use it because an artist won't give permission.
I'm obviously not a musician, so maybe if I was I would feel differently, but I have a hard time understanding why an artist or band wouldn't allow their music to be used. Okay, yes, artistic integrity, I can see that. But there are so many other factors to consider. How about reaching a wider audience. How about knowing that people of all ages are going to hear your music, people that may have been resistant because they thought they wouldn't like it, and then they hear it on Glee, and wow, they like it! How about the impact a particular song can make when used in a certain context or an emotional scene. It has been proven time and again that an artist or band can see a spike in their sales when one of their songs is used on Glee. Glee is causing fifteen year old kids to like "Singing in the Rain" and "Sweet Caroline," and fifty year old adults to like Rianna's "Umbrella" or Bruno Mars' "Just The Way You Are." Not everyone likes Glee, fair enough. Some think the show sanitizes or "vanillas" some songs. But its hard to argue with sales figures I think. And I think its also important to note that Ryan Murphy and crew appreciate the music. They are careful to preserve the quality, to stay as true to the original version as possible without sounding kareoke. And the actors/singers show their respect by trying to do justice to the material. Many of them have expressed nervousness at singing classics and big Broadway numbers like "Somebody to Love," "Don't Rain on My Parade," and "Rose's Turn." They are all music and theatre nerds. They want to do their idols proud.
Ryan Murphy has plenty of artists literally begging him to use their music in the show. Another reason why he could have been the bigger person in this fight.
gleekette
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