Was the fanbase too young for Joanne ?

[Oriane 18,987]

33 minutes ago, Gagadonna said:

You don't have to have experienced something to understand and appreciate it. 

Of course. I personally love Joanne and I understand the lyrics, but I don't feel them. I know it will take a whole other meaning to me when I get older.

[SwissMonster 27,829]

I am 19 and definitly not to young to understand and like Joanne 

Its just a mixture of opinions and habits. Many people in this fanbase love these bops and catchy music, and there is nothing wrong about it + people knew her for this style so it’s not surprising some people didn’t like Joanne. But saying it’s cause of the age is almost an insult for us 

„Death, illness, pain, heartbreak, relationships to her family and friends“. I had this things too in my life and I know a lot of people IN MY AGE are struggeling with this too (more then most of the 25-30+ people I know). And I also don’t agree(speaking ESPACIALLY about this fanbase), that this are exceptions. I think many young people here have had such difficult times in their life. One of the points why many people love and admire Gaga. It’s just unfair to treat every under 30 as not mentally ready for Joanne.

[Doot 2]

As many people in this thread have already pointed out, it has nothing to do with age. It has everything to do with the fact that Lady Gaga’s entire brand was built on theatrical dance music with clever lyrics and big hooks. 

After ARTPOP, it seems like she intentionally shifted her image and sound as some sort of course correction to get the public to view her in a different light. The focus that Cheek 2 Cheek and Joanne put the spotlight on in pretty much everything was “Yes, I can sing!”. I mean, you can spot it in almost every performance these days, especially with the JWT. Compare previous versions of Alejandro to the JWT where it was all “ALEJANDROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!“

It can be frustrating as a fan because we’ve known she could sing since day one, but in regards to her career, to me it seems fairly obvious this is all an attempt to repair her image and solidify her as talented (which we been knew). 

So I think Joanne didn’t resonate as much with a lot of people because its simply not tailored to the fanbase which she had built up until that point. Not to say her fans didn’t like it, I have come to appreciate it and enjoy almost every song on it, but for me personally, I was incredibly underwhelmed at first. 

I’m a fan of hers, not just her music, so I’ll be here forever, but I think people should accept that every single artist is going to release an album that will not connect as much as previous or future ones. That’s just how it goes. She will undoubtedly have another album at some point in her career that has a similar lukewarm reaction, just like she will with more amazing ones. 

 

 

 

Also, let’s stop talking sh*t about people wanting dance music, as if people who like dance music are somehow lesser than people who listen to country/folk/pop. 

Music is music, and everyone relates to different things. One genre is not inherently better than another. 

[A Hybrid 10,959]

I’m 15 and Joanne is my favourite

[Dunk96 2,526]

I'm 22 and I truly appreciated everything about the Joanne album and era. It really showed a stripped back acoustic side of Gaga which was amazing,but at the same time she also took the stripped back vibe and added her own flare to it,which was unbelievable.

[Oriane 18,987]

1 hour ago, River said:

Most of the fanbase were around 18 years old when JD was released and now they are almost 30 and above..

Polls in GGD can't show the real average of age because 30+ people don't use forums anymore..

What do they think of Joanne though ?

The OP was focusing on the fanbase I see (here, LM.com, Twitter, most stans I see are around 20 and the general consensus is that TFM and BTW are her best albums).

[holy scheisse 20,310]

46 minutes ago, KING said:

THIS! Also I believe those who became fans during/after ARTPOP weren’t aware of Gaga being the type of artist to always change her soundofmusic.mp3 so Joanne probably caught them off guard as well as the GP and monsters. 

Eh I've been a fan since the beginning and she had never changed her sound that drastically tbh. Except for cheek to cheek which I didn't like, either.

[Edonis 25,961]

26 minutes ago, Doot said:

Also, let’s stop talking sh*t about people wanting dance music, as if people who like dance music are somehow lesser than people who listen to country/folk/pop. 

Music is music, and everyone relates to different things. One genre is not inherently better than another. 

This 100%. There are certain people on this forum that like to verbalize their opinion that more electronic/dance-ier music is somehow sonically less superior to folk/acoustic numbers which is absolute bullshit and would discredit the majority of Gaga’s entire message when she first came to the scene. There are obvious merits to both, but implying that one genre of music is less mature or worthy of praise because it’s not stripped back and acoustic is ignorant. 

[PrincessDiez 532]

28 minutes ago, Rumours1977 said:

Okay, so what exactly do you disagree with in my previous post? 

That she's not a great lyricist perhaps

[Doot 2]

4 minutes ago, Edonis said:

This 100%. There are certain people on this forum that like to verbalize their opinion that more electronic/dance-ier music is somehow socially less superior to folk/acoustic numbers which is absolute bullshit and would discredit the majority of Gaga’s entire message when she first came to the scene. There are obviously merits to both, but implying that one genre of music is less mature or worthy of praise because it’s not stripped back and acoustic is ignorant. 

I highly agree, it’s incredibly ignorant. 

I am a huge electronic music fan, and I always find the “I don’t care for mindless dance crap, I like classic rock like Springsteen etc etc” stuff so annoying. Like do you want a f*cking medal for that? I’ve found more solace and connections to dance music, Hell..even dance music without lyrics, than I have with some of the stuff people listen to and brag about as if it’s somehow superior to mine. 

[Doot 2]

14 minutes ago, Oriane said:

What do they think of Joanne though ?

The OP was focusing on the fanbase I see (here, LM.com, Twitter, most stans I see are around 20 and the general consensus is that TFM and BTW are her best albums).

I was 17 when Just Dance was released. 

Joanne is a good album, but yes, I will say that I personally think her first three albums were the best. Joanne, for me, just doesn’t have the same level of engagement as her first three works, but I still enjoy the album. I enjoyed Cheek 2 Cheek as well. 

Joanne should be judged on its own merit, not as compared to her previous albums. And that’s the biggest issue and misconception I see on this site:

simply because Joanne is sonically different than the rest of her discography, doesn’t automatically mean it’s a good. 

[Phoenix 17,395]

No. 

There is just nothing excitting, "smart" or replayable about it.

[Oriane 18,987]

18 minutes ago, Doot said:

As many people in this thread have already pointed out, it has nothing to do with age. It has everything to do with the fact that Lady Gaga’s entire brand was built on theatrical dance music with clever lyrics and big hooks. 

After ARTPOP, it seems like she intentionally shifted her image and sound as some sort of course correction to get the public to view her in a different light. The focus that Cheek 2 Cheek and Joanne put the spotlight on in pretty much everything was “Yes, I can sing!”. I mean, you can spot it in almost every performance these days, especially with the JWT. Compare previous versions of Alejandro to the JWT where it was all “ALEJANDROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!“

It can be frustrating as a fan because we’ve known she could sing since day one, but in regards to her career, to me it seems fairly obvious this is all an attempt to repair her image and solidify her as talented (which we been knew). 

So I think Joanne didn’t resonate as much with a lot of people because its simply not tailored to the fanbase which she had built up until that point. Not to say her fans didn’t like it, I have come to appreciate it and enjoy almost every song on it, but for me personally, I was incredibly underwhelmed at first. 

I’m a fan of hers, not just her music, so I’ll be here forever, but I think people should accept that every single artist is going to release an album that will not connect as much as previous or future ones. That’s just how it goes. She will undoubtedly have another album at some point in her career that has a similar lukewarm reaction, just like she will with more amazing ones. 

 

 

 

Also, let’s stop talking sh*t about people wanting dance music, as if people who like dance music are somehow lesser than people who listen to country/folk/pop. 

Music is music, and everyone relates to different things. One genre is not inherently better than another. 

But what surprises me is that all these years, as you've pointed out, she did many acoustic performances, she had ballads in every album, she always showed us she was more than just a pop girl with bops, with theatrics and crazy outfits. So what, did people not like this more "authentic" side of her all these years ?

Also, I don't know if the OP made you think I thought this way, but I don't think any genre is inherently superior to another. But the problem is, it's so much easier to "fake" musical talent with "catchy" sounds, electronic music, voice modifiers etc. There are a lot of musical artists right now who get popular with music that's just not good... But with more "authentic" genres, it's more difficult to do this. You can't hide behind a catchy beat, there's got to be some musical structure. My favorite albums in order would be Born this Way, ARTPOP and Joanne. And I'm not a fan of electronic music usually, but I think she used it very well in these albums. On the other hand, I think The Fame and The Fame Monster are weaker. Even Brown Eyes and Speechless feel less good than her most recent ballads.

[imnotyourbabe10 5,995]

32 minutes ago, Doot said:

Compare previous versions of Alejandro to the JWT where it was all “ALEJANDROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

One of the many gifts she gave us this era.  

She better not cut that song in any set list in the future.

 

OT: Her music has always been relatable in a variety of senses or settings.  We (and the general public) just have to be open minded to it/how to perceive her work and art.

[Edonis 25,961]

4 minutes ago, Doot said:

I highly agree, it’s incredibly ignorant. 

I am a huge electronic music fan, and I always find the “I don’t care for mindless dance crap, I like classic rock like Springsteen etc etc” stuff so annoying. Like do you want a f*cking medal for that? I’ve found more solace and connections to dance music, Hell..even dance music without lyrics, than I have with some of the stuff people listen to and brag about as if it’s somehow superior to mine. 

Same. I really don’t understand the snobbery some fans have. I’ve grown up around several kinds of music, and enjoy most genres out there (literally from metal to J-Pop) but, like, I don’t understand why so many members think that suddenly one form of music is more or less authentic. Or that it would be immature or absurd to want Gaga to return to her mainstream debut style of music. I didn’t electronic or dance music could only be a vehicle for shaking your ass at a club. Literally 80% of her mainstream career said otherwise, but okay I guess.