Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez hiring A-list singers for their wedding

[homomo 23,883]

58 minutes ago, tylerjs said:

 

it’s about principle. it’s way different performing for them personally at their wedding. it’s an incredibly intimate and personal gesture—one that directly signals the performer and the host are close in some platonic way. to be friendly or interact socially in any way with people as abhorrent as him is a direct statement on the company one chooses to keep and who they choose to be sociable with. I don’t care how much money they have—if our worldviews on things like economical equality, natural preservation, human rights, etc do not align, then we are not interacting in any way, professionally or otherwise. period. people today are very quick to just say “it’s not that deep, stop being performative”, when in reality what’s happening is people are vocalizing their worldviews and saying “hey, that person has a pretty messed up view of the world, so I’m going to choose not to associate with them as much as possible to ensure that I maintain my own values, and so that others do not incorrectly associate me with their incongruent worldviews.” Like…you literally are the company you keep. If you’re not a good person, I am not being the “bigger person” and just being chill with you and keeping it transactional. we are not interacting and that is literally that. the money is so irrelevant, and couldn’t be further from the point. the right thing, the moral thing, the genuine display of integrity would be to decline the invitation and stand firm on not associating with those who are critically lacking morality. f*ck the goyard and the check. do the right thing.

 

49 minutes ago, vanna shintuyu said:

Someone else said it better

This kind of black and white thinking just shoves people into moral boxes where you're either on side A or side B. There’s no room for nuance in this kind of framework.

Just because your personal moral code doesn’t align with something doesn’t mean it’s betrayal. People are acting like performing at a man’s wedding is an attack on everything she’s ever stood for. We’ve watched her perform for corporations, presidents, and billionaires before, some aligning with and against her fans moral compasses.

Gaga herself is also a billionaire. She's done brand deals and collaborated with shady corporations before. She’s part of those circles now whether we like it or not. But at the same time, we know where she stands. Gaga isn't evil. She has spent years openly fighting for mental health, LGBTQ+ rights, survivors of trauma, and backed it up with real action.

At the end of the day, Gaga showing up, singing three songs, and leaving with a cheque is not an endorsement of Jeff or his worldview. It’s a performance, just like Pfizer/Nurtec, Apple promo, Dom Perignon, Intel, White House appearances, and even the software people ball. We can care about integrity without acting like every gig is a political manifesto.

Do I think this is a good idea? Hell no. But nuance is needed where it's necessary.

[homomo 23,883]

1 hour ago, tylerjs said:

 

it’s about principle. it’s way different performing for them personally at their wedding. it’s an incredibly intimate and personal gesture—one that directly signals the performer and the host are close in some platonic way. to be friendly or interact socially in any way with people as abhorrent as him is a direct statement on the company one chooses to keep and who they choose to be sociable with.

Also this is completely false.

We’ve seen Beyonce and Rihanna perform at billionaire weddings and corporate events with nothing more than a professional relationship. Same goes for Jennifer Lopez and even Mariah Carey. I’ll even throw in Coldplay’s wedding gig in India, they weren’t friends with the couple, the family just liked the band and paid to book them.

These kinds of performances aren’t intimate gestures. They’re expensive bookings. That’s it.

[TheOriginalOne 10,348]

If anyone on the mod team here has connections please pass on the message telling her not to do it and through out that ugly ass cybertruck while she’s at it

[Gagasdisease 164]

3 hours ago, tylerjs said:

 

it’s about principle. it’s way different performing for them personally at their wedding. it’s an incredibly intimate and personal gesture—one that directly signals the performer and the host are close in some platonic way. to be friendly or interact socially in any way with people as abhorrent as him is a direct statement on the company one chooses to keep and who they choose to be sociable with. I don’t care how much money they have—if our worldviews on things like economical equality, natural preservation, human rights, etc do not align, then we are not interacting in any way, professionally or otherwise. period. people today are very quick to just say “it’s not that deep, stop being performative”, when in reality what’s happening is people are vocalizing their worldviews and saying “hey, that person has a pretty messed up view of the world, so I’m going to choose not to associate with them as much as possible to ensure that I maintain my own values, and so that others do not incorrectly associate me with their incongruent worldviews.” Like…you literally are the company you keep. If you’re not a good person, I am not being the “bigger person” and just being chill with you and keeping it transactional. we are not interacting and that is literally that. the money is so irrelevant, and couldn’t be further from the point. the right thing, the moral thing, the genuine display of integrity would be to decline the invitation and stand firm on not associating with those who are critically lacking morality. f*ck the goyard and the check. do the right thing.

Ok, but what did Jeff Bezos do? 

[MountainMonster 350]

10 minutes ago, Gagasdisease said:

Ok, but what did Jeff Bezos do? 

This is the rough outline from Google:

1. Worker Treatment: 

Harsh Workplace Culture:

Amazon has been criticized for its high-pressure, demanding work environment, with some employees reporting long hours, intense pressure, and a lack of work-life balance. 

Low Wages and Penalties:

Concerns have been raised about low wages for warehouse workers and penalties for things like taking bathroom breaks or being sick, which are seen as devaluing employees. 

Competitive Environment:

Amazon's internal culture has been described as encouraging employees to compete with each other rather than collaborate, potentially leading to a lack of teamwork. 

2. Business Practices: 

Anti-Competitive Behavior:

Amazon's dominance in e-commerce and its potential to stifle competition have been questioned. 

Small Business Destruction:

Critics argue that Amazon has actively undermined small businesses that try to compete with its delivery services, even when those businesses wouldn't pose a direct threat to Amazon. 

Counterfeit and Plagiarized Products:

Concerns have been raised about Amazon's role in selling counterfeit or plagiarized products on its platform. 

Tax Avoidance:

Bezos and Amazon have been criticized for potentially using legal loopholes to avoid paying taxes. 

3. Environmental Impact: 

Packaging Waste: Amazon's vast shipping operations generate significant packaging waste, which can end up in landfills or waterways. 

4. Other Criticisms: 

Manipulation and Influence:

Some argue that Bezos uses his wealth and influence to manipulate situations, potentially to his own benefit. 

Lack of Philanthropy:

While Bezos has launched some philanthropic initiatives, critics argue that his contributions are not commensurate with his wealth. 

Harsh Leadership Style:

Bezos has been described as having a harsh and demanding leadership style, with some reporting that he can be verbally abusive towards employees. 
 

I would add his relationships with the current administration and the wastefulness of his recreational and non-scientific space trips. 
 

I’d prefer Gaga didn’t do anything with him, but I wouldn’t hold it against her if she did. She can take his money and do some good with it, since he doesn’t seem to want to do that. 

[Guillaume Hamon 6,302]

7 hours ago, homomo said:

Gaga has and still does promotions for Google, Apple, and even Big Pharma. So people need to stop cherry picking their battles on this. 

Did they tho? For every Collab she did with a brand folks gave their opinion. The big pharma one was the most questionable one ethically therefore got her the most backlash.

 

7 hours ago, homomo said:

This is just the logic here for some reason, where if she breathes near certain people, it’s apparently betrayal.

7 hours ago, homomo said:

most of us here reply to threads without nuance and understanding...

People are acting like performing at a man’s wedding is an attack on everything she’s ever stood for.

Betrayal idk but too bad yes.

Relentlessly talking against bullying/ about the importance of kindness for nearly 15 yrs to then go sing at a man mistreating thousands of employees would be non-sensical indeed.

That's not "lacking nuance or understanding" to see the obvious contradiction it would be.

Edited May 7 by Guillaume Hamon

[nATAH 46,618]

wouldn't gaga be too busy anyway?

[Sarah H 3,486]

45 minutes ago, nATAH said:

wouldn't gaga be too busy anyway?

I think most people could squeeze in singing at a wedding for a few hours if they were getting paid millions 

But I'm not sure I believe this rumour anyway, especially as it's already been denied. 

Edited May 7 by Sarah H

[MadArchitect 838]

the A-list in question: Katy perry 

[River 113,382]

didn't ya'll just celebrate rich famous celebrities in expensive clothes in a shitty gala, caring only about their little fragile ego and their 15 min of fame while the world is burning, wars are going on, people lost their homes, can't eat or drink for months now? but Gaga doing her job as a singer, even singing for people she's not agrees with, is wrong.. the hypocrisy lol

If there's someone who's out of touch, is you guys

 

[homomo 23,883]

2 hours ago, Guillaume Hamon said:

Did they tho? For every Collab she did with a brand folks gave their opinion. The big pharma one was the most questionable one ethically therefore got her the most backlash.

 

Betrayal idk but too bad yes.

Relentlessly talking against bullying/ about the importance of kindness for nearly 15 yrs to then go sing at a man mistreating thousands of employees would be non-sensical indeed.

That's not "lacking nuance or understanding" to see the obvious contradiction it would be.

If Gaga performing at someone’s wedding is now considered a betrayal because of how they treat their employees, then where exactly do we draw the line? Are we holding every artist to the same standard? Should they decline every private event if the host has ever been part of something questionable?

What about partnerships with luxury fashion brands that have a history of exploiting workers, especially those in third world countries? Or streaming services tied to union busting and wage issues? Music labels mistreating their artists? Or tech companies tied to data misuse? It’s everywhere. If we’re going to start drawing moral lines, we better be prepared to draw a lot of them, and apply them equally.

It’s fine to feel disappointed. That’s human. I’d even be a little disappointed if this whole thing ended up being true too. But pretending one event wipes away years of tangible work, activism, and compassion? That’s not accountability. That’s just moral theatre.

[weed 72,881]

if he makes a $1b donation to BTW Foundation I'll accept it 

[tylerjs 5,762]

10 hours ago, homomo said:

Also this is completely false.

We’ve seen Beyonce and Rihanna perform at billionaire weddings and corporate events with nothing more than a professional relationship. Same goes for Jennifer Lopez and even Mariah Carey. I’ll even throw in Coldplay’s wedding gig in India, they weren’t friends with the couple, the family just liked the band and paid to book them.

These kinds of performances aren’t intimate gestures. They’re expensive bookings. That’s it.

Nah, disagree. If it was me, and I was offered to do my job for someone who I didn’t fully agree with their worldviews ESPECIALLY in the public eye, I would simply decline. It IS that black and white. Dont sit here and talk to me like I don’t know what nuance is lol you just have a higher tolerance for working with people you don’t agree with morally and that’s your prerogative. Not mine tho. I’ve been content at my current job for a little under a year, and have recently discovered the owners are land-grabbing, money-hungry, evil Trump-supporting bigots. Do they sign my checks? Yes. Am I otherwise happy in my job? Sure. Am I quitting anyway in a few days on principle alone because I refuse to work for someone I disagree with morally? Also yes. like it really can be that simple if you just were that way, which you aren’t. 

[tylerjs 5,762]

4 hours ago, homomo said:

If Gaga performing at someone’s wedding is now considered a betrayal because of how they treat their employees, then where exactly do we draw the line?

 

It’s fine to feel disappointed. That’s human. I’d even be a little disappointed if this whole thing ended up being true too. But pretending one event wipes away years of tangible work, activism, and compassion? That’s not accountability. That’s just moral theatre.

I’ll answer these in order:

Are we holding every artist to the same standard? —Easy. Yes.
 

 Should they decline every private event if the host has ever been part of something questionable? —Easy. Yes. I do it, why can’t they?

What about partnerships with luxury fashion brands that have a history of exploiting workers, especially those in third world countries? —we should start doing this more. Stop working with them and find brands that do not have these histories, as they do exist. Start making the changes you wish to see.

 

Or streaming services tied to union busting and wage issues? -yep, we should be pushing for these companies to do better and major artists do have the power to go against them. It is something I believe they should all be doing, even Gaga. 

Music labels mistreating their artists? Or tech companies tied to data misuse? It’s everywhere. If we’re going to start drawing moral lines, we better be prepared to draw a lot of them, and apply them equally. —just because we have issues everywhere doesn’t mean we can’t start somewhere. Why does it matter if we’re not solving every issue just because we’re reacting to one? Give me a break lol. You can participate in activism in many ways, and just because you aren’t tackling every issue at once doesn’t mean you can’t work on one. 

 

[Addison Rae 16,042]

this would have to be like tens of millions to even be worth considering for gaga