With so many celebrities pushing for space in the media it seems that there are those who are going to increasingly bizarre lengths to get noticed. 

In a week that has seen Taylor Swift dancing with a swastika-sporting young man (he said it was supposed to be a cross that got altered through the evening - yeah right!) and Puffy being spotted on a balcony with his baby mother, Kim Porter, T-Pain sporting a t-shirt showing an Internet leaked shot of Cassie sans clothing and even the Roc turning on each other as Beanie Sigel took shots at Jay-Z, it gets increasingly difficult to see what is a publicity stunt and what is real...

Of course there is no such thing as negative press - or at least if there is it can easily be spun around to something else.  The danger is in getting no press.  This is something that sources have reported LeToya Luckett is facing as Matthew Knowles is alleged to have been paying DJs to block her airplay in an effort to protect the status of Beyonce.  True or not, this tactic has backfired as the story has given some more publicity to LeToya and her single.  It seems that sometimes you can't win for trying.

The fact also seems that people don't want to hear too much good news as gossip sites seem quick to jump on the slightest negativity but few reported the opening of Mary J. Blige's Center for Women in Yonkers (we did!).  Still, you have to give the people what they want - even if it might just be dramatized and set-up to get the press baying.  Which reminds me - have you ever noticed how some 'reality TV shows' have a disclaimer saying that some scenes are for dramtic purposes only.  Does that mean they are set-up, staged and acted by the supposed 'reality stars?'  Like Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five - it makes you wonder...

 

Slim (Managing Editor – Grind Mode Media LLC)

© 2009. All Rights Reserved. All Original Works of WWW.Grindmodeconnect.com. No Duplication or Reprint without Written Permission. (11.02.09)

Grind Mode is not and has never been a 'blog' site.  However, in our work we are abviously aware of the bloggers out there and they often do a sterling job of uncovering information and there are those who are famous in their own rights.

However, as we are not in the same game as them we don't tend to get pulled into their world and so I, for one, was surprised to see just how serious some of these people take their blogs.  There are blog-beefs raging across the Internet as I write this with people throwing accusations, cutting off friends and generally putting each other down.  Who knew?  Isn't the blogging thing supposed to be a fun way to get your opinions out to the world? 

Fair enough if somebody is using their forum to publicly attack you and your credibility - but isn't that what defamation laws are in place for?  If somebody was calling Grind Mode out on a personal level I know that we would seek to get it dealt with legally. No need for running around throwing insults back.  If it is taking food out of the mouths of our children then there is no time to play. 

 While a little verbal sparring can be fun there comes a time when you have to realize that matters have gone far enough and deal with it through the correct channels.  Besides, an ongoing online beef is bad for business.  The readers don't really care about the bloggers' beefs - not to the degree of celebrities themselves at least.  This is where the line between journalism and celebrity can become blurred and people feel that they are a somebody.  It's funny though as life has an amazing way of bringing you back down to earth as soon as you start getting too full of yourself.  Not just bloggers, but everybody.  I know you can think of some names right now who are facing the fallout from the egos getting too big. 

 So the moral of the story has to be not to get carried away with who you are and remember there is always someone out there waiting for you to fall so they can take your spot.  Protect yourself of course, but at the same time try to continue through life with a little light-heartedness.  You should find you swerve most problems that way...

Slim (Managing Editor – Grind Mode Media LLC)

 

© 2009. All Rights Reserved. All Original Works of WWW.Grindmodeconnect.com. No Duplication or Reprint without Written Permission. (10.15.09)

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They say that bad press is better than no press at all - and in many ways this is true.  Even negative publicity keeps your name out there in the world and on people's lips.  You are then often given a chance to defend yourself against the accusations and negativity which only adds t your exposure.  However, there is such a thing as too much exposure - and I don't mean as in nudity...

Let's take the case of Rihanna right now.  She is undoubtedly the darling of many a media circle as even without any new music having been released she is seldom away from the spotlight.  Barely a day passes where her image isn't plastered onto websites as she steps out almost daily in a new or different outfit.  Of course this shows good work by her publicists and an amazing level of interest by the public in general.  But the question is, how much longer can our appetite for pictures of Rihanna's alternating fashions continue?

Now, don't get me wrong, I appreicate that Rihanna is a pretty enough woman and pictures of attractive people will always get attention but it is surely reaching somewhere near breaking point.  The gossip sites and magazines are chock-full of photographs of Rihanna with 'scintillating' headlines like 'Look at Rih Rih's new boots.'  There is only so much I (for one) can take of this kind of tedious over-exposure.  I understand it is not Rihanna's fault and, of course, she is not the only person whose name is rarely off the mopuths of the media irrespective of if anything is actually going on or not  - so please leave the death threats at home.  She is merely an example at thsi point in time of someone who is in danger of becoming over-exposed.  Over-exposure can then lead to boredom or even contempt.

Publicists make their money by keeping their subjects in our minds but these same publicists may also damage their employer's reputations by being overly pushy.  While working at Grind Mode I have come across plenty of examples of publicists who over-egg the pudding (as it were) with pushing their people.  Let me put it this way, I don't need twenty or thirty emails a week asking about an artist.  This form of over-exposure never makes it out into the public eye but is just as damaging to an artist as by harrassing the media you are in some respects biting the hand that feeds you.  No media coverage equals no exposure, which equals no audience connection and subsequent career decline.  I add this piece because I know we have a lot of artists and label people dropping past here at Grind Mode and it is something that many are afraid to address in the industry.  I tis not about a powerful black-listing in the game but more an irritation that anyone can feel if they are constantly plagued.

Before I go I would like to add that the vast majority of people who we deal with at Grind Mode do not have this oppressive, constant harrassment about them and I would like to thank those people who have worked alongside us over the years.  On behalf of everyone at Grind Mode I would also like to take a moment to thank all of our supporters, be they industry bigwigs, artists, PR people or even you, our respected readers.  Remember, if you're not in Grind Mode, you're not really grinding.

Slim (Managing Editor – Grind Mode Media LLC