The great pop music emergency of 2013
MANILA, Philippines - The year 2010 was massive for pop music. The US charts resembled an all-out melee of juggernaut digital singles vying for the No. 1 spot. The roundup had Rihanna’s Love The Way You Lie duking it out with Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance, Katy Perry’s California Gurls charting higher than Bruno Mars and his slew of Glee-ready singles. After the dust had settled, Ke$ha took the year-end No. 1 with her track Tik Tok, clocking in at almost 13 million digital downloads. No small feat for the relatively new singer and her first major single, emerging sick and sexy-fied at the top of what can be described as the most heated chart battle in recent music history.
Flash-forward a couple of albums, hip surgery and a divorce later, 2013 bears witness to the first full-on pop collision since Ke$ha’s 2010 chart coup. Katy Perry versus a one Gaga (comma) Lady. Both acts have achieved comparable superstar status in the pop music game; both amassing No. 1 Top 200 singles and sold-out world tours. The battle pushes Katy’s anthemic lyric-driven Roar versus the heavily synthesized assault that is Applause by Gaga.
Here at Supreme, we relish every opportunity to pit pop superstar versus pop superstar, fandom versus fandom, Little Monsters versus Katy Cats. Personal biases aside (#TeamGaga), a winner must be crowned. Whose pop idol offering will reign supreme? Let’s get cracking, shall we?
Katy versus Gaga
Katy Perry unleashed her track a full week before Lady Gaga was set to release her “Artpop†lead single. The same day Roar hit the airwaves, Gaga took to Twitter and declared “POP MUSIC EMERGENCY IS UNDERWAY 911†due to low-quality snippets of her single leaking to the Internet. Huh. Dramatic yet dubious, quipped many an Internet detective. Gaga averted her self-afflicted pop apocalypse by immediately releasing Applause on iTunes, 13 hours shy of Katy Perry. The convenient timing reeks of a personal pop vendetta, the sort of drama reserved only for the most obscure of Tumblrs, Coincidence or corporate machinations from the Haus of Gaga? You be the judge.
Needless to say, media outlets have been keen to pick up and play out the Billboard Hot 100 journey of both singles. MTV is calling it the best thing to happen to record charts in a long time. Meanwhile, the fandoms are going apesh*t on each other via Twitter. In a time where music sales have come to an all-time low, industry media and labels are capitalizing on the excitement.
From a storied perspective, Gaga seemingly has the advantage, having sold more albums and digital singles while Katy Perry’s massive success stems from her first and only album, “Teenage Dream.†But the last year found Gaga recovering from hip surgery (and also, the less-than-ideal sales of Born This Way #Burn) and the cancellation of her world tour. Whereas Katy Perry spent the entire time preparing for her 2013 sophomore effort, despite dealing with her divorce from Russell Brand and rumors of marriage proposals from John Mayer. Projectionists reported that sales from the clash could favor either pop diva.
Results are in
Almost a full month after the “POP MUSIC EMERGENCY†tweet, the results are in. Katy Perry has Gaga beat by a large margin of sales, also on both radio airplay and streaming. By the numbers, Roar performed a staggering 450,000 in digital for its first week, compared to Gaga’s mere 225,000. Katy Perry takes the first round.
But not without losses. Katy Perry and Lady Gaga rank No. 2 and No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 respectively. As of press time, Blurred Lines singer Mr. “Song of the Summer†Robin Thicke has maintained a hold on the No. 1 spot for 12 going on 13 straight weeks with no signs of slowing down. While Miley Cyrus holds the No. 3 spot away from Gaga with We Can’t Stop. All acts gaining steam on the charts from headlining the Video Music Awards last weekend. Between the two acts, Roar has the bigger chance to snag the Hot 100 No. 1.
Will it be a Pyrrhic pop feud victory for Katy Perry’s new post-divorce dream? Will Gaga continue her reign of pop shenanigans via Twitter and her army of #LittleMonsters?
Buzz and awe, but this can only be the beginning. Down the line, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry’s respective albums, titled “Artpop†and “Prism,†are to be released within a three-week span of each other. The pop feud of the year takes a backseat for now, but is sure to heat up the charts again later this year. Will Blurred Lines take it all the way home for No. 1 Billboard single for 2013? Or will one of the females pull a Ke$ha and come out with a sleeper hit?
One thing is certain: Béyonce is also scheduled for a fourth-quarter 2013 comeback and you know she’s going to bring it. Britney is rumored as well. We predict that it’s looking like hell or high water for the acts to follow. We can barely contain our excitement, it’s looking like a great time for pop music fans.
For now, we want to know what you think. Who do you think deserves the crown: Lady Gaga or Katy Perry?
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Tweet the author @martinpanduh.
