Why PI was a good choice as first single

[Chris Thomason 966]

since joanne released i actually like perfect illusion a lot more than i did. its like now i've seen the full picture i get it and can appreciate it more.

[kizurl 1,801]

2 minutes ago, kupo said:

 

But this is exactly why PI was a bad choice. Imagine if your friends--or the countless people out there like them--heard a song they actually liked when the lead single radio deal was in place. It would have generated tons more enthusiasm for both the album and the Gaga enterprise as a whole.

Instead, PI didn't click with people and killed the hype train before it ever left the station. There's no momentum now because of it. (this isn't to say a second or third single couldn't get things back on track--it's just harder without the lead single landing)

I get why some people are happy it was released as a single (it's always fun when one of your fave songs gets the single treatment and therefore gets airplay and a video, etc.) But, objectively speaking, it didn't really succeed at what a single is supposed to do: create hype and serve as promotion and marketing.

There is no way of predicting how well a lead single is gonna be received. Hell, if PI wasn't the lead, people would be going on at it being 'eaten up by the GP' etc. It's easy for us to say it isn't a good lead single in hindsight but at that time, they had to base it purely on intuition and context of song with the rest of the album. And i must say, if you forget the reception, PI is a pretty damn banger without treading on murky connotations like John Wayne or being mild adrenaline like DH. It had the right amount of punch and inclusivity imo.

[malazam 15,710]

Welcome to GGD! and I love the SNL outfit already!!!

[Gardevoir 9,926]

Am I the only one that see nothing wrong with Perfect Illusion? It's not any weaker than any of the other songs in my opinion. Intro is amazin'. Also my friends love this one. 

[Gagi 2,750]

31 minutes ago, danilov said:

:(( Sorry for not liking PI (at first!) But right now, my least played song is John Wayne (dont kill me again haha).

Yes I agree that PI is similar with her previous work. And also it has the right elements for a lead single. It just didn't clicked to me at the very first listen.

Don't excuse for somethin like that hunty

[danilov 288]

1 minute ago, Emigrante said:

Am I the only one that see nothing wrong with Perfect Illusion? It's not any weaker than any of the other songs in my opinion. Intro is amazin'. Also my friends love this one. 

well I wish I have more friends like yours.  Gaga is not as popular here (PHL) as before. They still see her as Fame-era Gaga. Most of my friends shrugged PI when it was released, or some just find it weird after first listen. Or, maybe, I don't really have any Monster friends here.

[danilov 288]

3 minutes ago, malazam said:

Welcome to GGD! and I love the SNL outfit already!!!

Been member for more than a year already, but I don't really post or comment because I've witnessed harsh monsters haha!

What outfit? The TV promo with Tom Hanks? Or were pictures release already??

[Gardevoir 9,926]

Just now, danilov said:

well I wish I have more friends like yours.  Gaga is not as popular here (PHL) as before. They still see her as Fame-era Gaga. Most of my friends shrugged PI when it was released, or some just find it weird after first listen. Or, maybe, I don't really have any Monster friends here.

They're not monsters. :P I played them PI and I kept talking about it for a while. It's also being played at my work place and in gay bars I attend to. 

[malazam 15,710]

Just now, danilov said:

Been member for more than a year already, but I don't really post or comment because I've witnessed harsh monsters haha!

What outfit? The TV promo with Tom Hanks? Or were pictures release already??

Oh... well, welcome to the non-virgin posting side then?

The TV promo with Hanks, she was SO FREAKING PRETTY THERE!!! PEOPLE WILL BE SHOOK!

[LilVenusian 579]

No. Dancin in Circles should have been the first single. PI is not edgy and not cute and has an ugly video. Everybody loves songs about female masturbation tho. Its a known fact.

[President Trump 3,508]

Wow ANOTHER "PI sucks" topic

[Leaf 2,429]

If it wasn't a single, you would all love it but it was a perfect illusion.

 

[kupo 201]

1 hour ago, kizurl said:

There is no way of predicting how well a lead single is gonna be received. Hell, if PI wasn't the lead, people would be going on at it being 'eaten up by the GP' etc. It's easy for us to say it isn't a good lead single in hindsight but at that time, they had to base it purely on intuition and context of song with the rest of the album. And i must say, if you forget the reception, PI is a pretty damn banger without treading on murky connotations like John Wayne or being mild adrenaline like DH. It had the right amount of punch and inclusivity imo.

Obviously, with any single release, you're having to base the decision on conjecture (which is why I've said in other threads I don't envy the position Gaga's team and Interscope are in: picking singles is hard!). But there definitely are qualities that you can weigh and trends to look at. Yes, nothing is surefire, but calling PI a "good" choice, when we basically have substantive evidence that it wasn't, seems strange (again, this is if we're measuring singles as marketing tools and not, like, "cool songs that get a spotlight").

And looking at radio trends and Gaga's past success, part of me understands why they went with PI (I mean, a song like "Sinner's Prayer" was never going to be a single), but then, part of me doesn't. John Wayne, A-yo, and especially Million Reasons all have qualities that sound much more at home on radio right now than anything about PI.

And, as I've discussed elsewhere, given Million Reasons performance on itunes compared to PI, it seems a pretty fair assessment to say: yep, they miscalculated. I'm not saying MR would be an absolute home run; we can't say for certain. But it does seem pretty clear that it probably would have performed better and had greater longevity than PI, and that would have been a boon for the album any way you look at it.

And again, I'm trying not to come at this from a personal place, but rather, an objective place that asks "what song would most likely have ensured greater mainstream success for this album and Gaga." And before anybody says "it's not about the charts!"--I don't disagree! But there's a difference between needing success and wanting it. I don't think Gaga needs that kind of commercial success: this album obviously meant a lot to her and she made the music she wanted to and that probably fulfills her as an artist. But she obviously wants the hits and huge album sales if she can get them. I mean, who wouldn't?