Atlanta Music Scene Has Moved To WordPress
Slowly but surely, the Atlanta Music Scene blog has been transitioning to WordPress - a bigger and better blogging and commenting experience!
See you there, at http://blogs.ajc.com/atlanta-music-scene/
Home > Atlanta Music Scene > Archives > 2008 > January > 14 > Entry
Atlanta’s Akon Top Pop Artist
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The numbers are in, and Billboard magazine has announced them.
Drumroll please…The top pop artist of 2007 was none other than Atlanta’s own singer, songwriter and producer Akon (pictured above). Rounding out the industry publication’s Top 5 were Fergie (2), Justin Timberlake (3), Daughtry (4) and Carrie Underwood (5). And hometown observers will be happy to know that another Atlanta made it into the top 10, Akon’s artist T-Pain, who came in at No. 9 on the pop listing.
The pop designation, in particular, brings to mind an oft-debated question: What qualifies as a pop act or pop music these days? The general notion is that “pop” is simply short for popular — which can mean anyone or anything that’s selling well and getting frequent airplay.
But when Atlanta’s Usher had the best-selling CD of the year a few years back with “Confessions” - a CD, mind you, that topped Billboard’s CD and singles pop charts —and wasn’t nominated in any pop categories at the Grammys, the AJC music staff explored what it perceived to be a snub; and again, the meaning of pop.
Usher himself thought the pop Grammy omissions were curious, as he did Rolling Stone magazine tagging Justin Timberlake the New King of Pop (after Michael Jackson).
What’s your take on this? When you think “pop” do you think Britney and Justin? Akon and Usher? Or all of the above?
V-103 morning announcer Frank Ski weighed in on this a bit on the air, when he relayed the news from Billboard about Akon: “People here don’t even think of [Akon] as anything other than hip-hop or R&B. But around the world he is a global superstar. He’s a pop superstar…We’ve got to think bigger about what pop means.”
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By WTF?
January 14, 2008 11:14 AM | Link to this
Akon? I never would’ve guessed it. He’s a nobody!! Just like Frank Ski!!
By ozzfest
January 14, 2008 11:46 AM | Link to this
Who? I do not know any white people who have ever even heard of this guy. Give me CHILLI PEPPERS or give me death!
By whowhathah?
January 14, 2008 11:54 AM | Link to this
Stop the hateration and chill your hatorade…..apparently Akon is somebody in this ever changing society that we find ourselves thrust amongst….tolerance ensures we all “just get along” (?) ;)
By dont bite me bro
January 14, 2008 12:11 PM | Link to this
Mary J fights dogs.
By whowhathah?
January 14, 2008 12:18 PM | Link to this
Mary J no surprise there….whowhathah?
By JK
January 14, 2008 1:08 PM | Link to this
That’s ridiculous. Everyone knows that Atlanta’s most talented artist, far and away, is our own blues & jazz guitarist Barry Richman. Watch him play two sets and you’ll be his b—-h too.
By HeyNow
January 14, 2008 1:40 PM | Link to this
JK, sounds like you’d be anybody’s b__h1! j/k
Dubya Bush fights dogs!!!!!!!!
By urztruly
January 14, 2008 2:16 PM | Link to this
YA KNOW IT’S GREAT THAT AKON HAS HATERS BECAUSE IF HE DIDN’T HE WOULDN’T HAVE HAD THE MOTIVATION TO MAKE ALL THESE HOTT RECORDS AND BE “”THE # 1 ARTIST OF “2007, OR HAS THE PRIVLAGE TO WORK WITH PEOPLE LIKE “MICHEAL JACKSON”” (THE NAME SPEAKS FOR ITSELF)”,MUSIK COMING SOON SO LOOK FOR IT!!! SO FOR ALL YOU HATERZ, KONVICT MUZIK WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR THE NEGATIVE REMARKS AND SUPPORT AND WE WOULD LIKE TO WISH YOU A HAPPY NEW YEAR!! OH, AND BY THE WAY…. WAIT TIL YOU SEE WHATZ COMING NEXT!! HOLLA!!!
By dont bite me bro
January 14, 2008 2:18 PM | Link to this
Mary J. Blige fights dogs!
By urztruly
January 14, 2008 2:20 PM | Link to this
OH YEAH AND FRANK SKI IS A NOBODY AND HE THINKS HE KNOWS EVERYTHING AND BE WRONG HALF, IF NOT ALL THE TIME! I AGREE WIT YA ON THAT NOTE!! LOL
By WTF?
January 14, 2008 2:20 PM | Link to this
CHILD PLEASE!!! NOBODY’S HATING ON AKON, HE IS WAY TOO UNIMPORTANT FOR THAT!!! DON’T GET MAD JUST BECAUSE THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO COULD CARE LESS ABOUT HIM………HELL, THE WHOLE HIP HOP SCENE OF NOBODY’S!!! RIDDLE ME THIS…………….WHAT HAS HE (OR ANY OF THE OTHERS) DONE FOR ATLANTA? THE KIDS OF ATLANTA? THE ELDERLY OF ATLANTA? THE HOMELESS OF ATLANTA? I’LL TELL YOU………….NOTHING!! LIKE I SAID, HE’S A NOBODY!!!
By J
January 14, 2008 3:28 PM | Link to this
We all have OUTKAST atlanta so lets be thankfull 4 that
By It's A Shame
January 14, 2008 3:32 PM | Link to this
Artist have always been labelled by the charts for which they achieve the most record sales; unless, you are a black artist. Only if you were among the elite black (i.e, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, etc.) the “pop” label would get attached. Equality may have seen its share of improvements; however, it will never truly be achieved as long as one depends on “mankind” to achieve it. Although, I have no real love for Akon, it is very easy(and not a suprise) for the music industry to associate someone like Justin Timberlake with R&B; yet, Akon cannot be a “Pop” singer. The American way.
By neal kelley
January 14, 2008 4:06 PM | Link to this
is it because Akon comes from West Africa.. that we have all these haters… Give me a break.. he sold millions of records.. he deserve some respect.. And he struggled to get where he is.. Malcolm-X said ” it is not how high you go. But it is more important to take notice from the depths you have arisen from.” If it was Goodie Mob, OutKast or any other local American Group there would have been complaints..
As an African American and a Musician it is important to recognize talent..
By ThunderNoodle
January 14, 2008 4:10 PM | Link to this
I thought “Akon” was some sort of office supply company?
Gee, I miss The Who … .
By newteamgear.com
January 14, 2008 7:17 PM | Link to this
as long as he isn’t hurling people into the crowd or grinding with underage girls that is ok
By ozzfest
January 15, 2008 12:59 AM | Link to this
Akon is a con.
By TJ
January 15, 2008 8:51 AM | Link to this
Muse.. Justin Timberlake’s favorite band.
By Sha-Rock
January 15, 2008 5:05 PM | Link to this
First of all Happy New Year to all you HATERS Ya’ll don’t know @##%^ about Hip Hop or Pop. Akon had a great year congrads for that all ya’ll done is hate don’t know your nose from ya a@@. By the way HIP HOP artist have done much for the underserved than any artists out there besides BONO.Just this Xmas TI raised $160,000 for the youth of Atlanta. While being on House arrest now tell who are the KnowBodies must be the Haters. I have never written in these blogs but I must say HAPPY BIRTHDAY DR. KING!!!! We have arrived and I am proof of your DREAM. BIG Up AKon and All who do Positive. Make your Haters your Motivaters.