Neil Tennant, leader of the legendary band Pet Shop Boys, is clear that Taylor Swift is not – at least not yet – at the same level as music legends like Michael Jackson. The British musician was this blunt during a live interview with the newspaper Guardianin which he not only made it clear that he considered that the artist could not be considered an “icon” of music, but also stated that she did not have successes to justify such a status.
The legendary band, made up of Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, sat down with journalist Alexis Petridis in London for an interesting interview on the occasion of the launch of their latest studio album, and they answered all kinds of questions from the public; from anecdotes from his more than four decades of career to his opinions on how music has changed today.
Neil Tennant, in his interview with Alexis Petridis for The Guardian.
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Tennant talked about how during the ’80s and ’90s they were more aware and interested in what was happening with chart music, and even attended concerts by artists whose songs and sounds seemed out of the ordinary to them. However, today, everything seemed to be Taylor Swift.
“Today is Taylor Swift. Everything is Taylor Swift,” says Tennant, who admits that he has listened to her new album, The Tortured Poets Department.
For Tennant and Lowe, Taylor Swift does not have hits at the level of Michael Jackson.
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“Taylor Swift fascinates me as a phenomenon because she’s so popular, and I quite like the whole thing, but when we listen to the records, we both have the same feeling,” he explains, pointing to Lowe. “For such a big phenomenon… Where are the famous songs? What is the Billie Jean Taylor Swift?” he asks, incredulous.
As expected, his statements received all kinds of reactions from the public, including laughter. The journalist suggests that perhaps Shake It Off could be that Billie Jean, but Tennant looks at him in disbelief. “Is it?” Tennant asks. “Because even I know that could be the answer. But I heard it the other day and no, it’s not “Billie Jean”.
For Tennant, ‘Shake It Off’ is not ‘Billie Jean.’
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“Melodically… He has a great voice, there is great production work; but melodically they are two notes going up and down. In short, it is a fascinating thing,” he concludes. “I like that it brings together people from so many generations, but I think there is one disappointing thing: the music. Not the lyrics, the music.”
Obviously, his supporters in the audience were in complete agreement with Tennant’s views. Now, as soon as they become public, the veteran musician should be prepared for the reaction of the “swifties”, who do not usually take criticism of the American singer too well.
