Surely there needs to be an Indie Teenpop Award

[koganbot]

Surely there needs to be an Indie Teenpop Award. Eligible for the award will be: (1) performers who are going for a teenpop sound but are on indies or who are strictly MySpace or CDbaby, (2) performers who are somewhat or formerly teenpop but are also going for a somewhat indie sound, whether they're on indies or not, (3) performers who are not necessarily eligible under 1 and 2 but whom we talked about on the teenpop thread for who knows what reason and who aren't obviously too old or too NOT teenpop and who can be rationalized as having indie elements or who just, you know, seem eligible.

Also, they need to be pretty good. You can be teenpop by association. You can be indie by association. I've put qualifying criteria after the performers' name.

These are potential nominees, but I will hear arguments as to who else should qualify and who else should be disqualified. Here's a list:

Lily Allen (3)
Fefe Dobson (1)**
Flyleaf (3)
Jonas Bros. (2)
Jena Kraus (3)
Marit Larsen (2)
Brie Larson (2)
Lillix (2)
Megan McCauley (2)
Meg & Dia (1)(2)
Hope Partlow (1)**
Marion Raven (1)*
Sammy & Sasha (1)
Skye Sweetnam (2)
Lucy Woodward (1)(2)

Some of these should be bumped by performers who are more obviously eligible. I decided that Jonas Bros.' kiddie-punk tendencies and the fact that they're promoted by Girlie Action make them eligible until we can find someone more eligible. I decided that the fact that Megan McCauley was so obviously goth up to 2 minutes ago makes her a wee bit indie, but she is quite bumpable as well. Probably all the others in category 2 are bumpable except Brie, and the category 3's as well. It's hard to argue that Marit is teenpop anymore, though she has the pedigree. And Flyleaf's teenpopness can be challenged, and Skye's and Lillix's indieness (though I don't know how secure Lillix's status is at Warners, now that Maverick is no more).

skyecaptain will most likely provide more nominees.

*Yup, Marion is on an indie; she broke with Atlantic, who never released her album in the U.S., where she now lives. E.P. due in about a week, alb due next year.

**Getting dropped by your label makes Fefe indie, I'd say, or at least the fact that she has no label and her unreleased music is being bandied about the Net. But I'm not counting Christina Milian since I'm assuming she'll make her way back to a major, and her music is out there on a major. I don't know if I should count Hope Partlow, either, since the only music we know of hers came from a major label and I don't know if she's got any new current music. In January she said, "I needed to get out of the house so I got a job! I'm a waitress at a local restaurant!! I'm really loving it!" In March she said, "I will be back on tour, hopefully to promote a brand new album."

I will decide a final list of contestants sometime or other. There will probably be 12, unless there are 16. I don't know when I will actually get around to this.

Comments

Re: Second Stage at the Indie Awards

[dickmalone.livejournal.com]

Second Daphne and Celeste but I'd say no on BYOP--they're so far toward punk they're barely even indie, really. I mean they're still indie but since this is ostensibly some sort of genre-specific thing I don't know how you could really judge them against the other folks listed. Maybe other people find them poppier?

Re: Second Stage at the Indie Awards

[koganbot]

Well, the question isn't whether something is "too damn indie" - and for our purposes, punk can be indie, since punk helped create indie - but whether it's "too damn not teenpop." And the one song Smoosh song I've heard - "Rad" - makes them eligible, almost Aaron Carterish. They talk about being on soccer teams!

Wait, are Daphne & Celeste still a current act, and are they on an indie? I didn't specify, but the award is for current performers, not for Hall of Famers (and anyway, D&C were major label in the Britland, though nonexistent here). Oh, looking at Wikipedia, there may be tentative plans for doing something, but I couldn't tell if either of the women is really putting much energy into the idea of a reunion. There has to be recent product for the duo to be eligible. "Daphne and Celeste are currently considering a comeback, after top Euro DJ Ötzi released a 2006 mix of 'Ooh Stick You!' This has yet to get a release, however it has had dancefloors bouncing all across Austria."

Re: Second Stage at the Indie Awards

[koganbot]

Also, the fact that Lex made Smoosh his entry (representing the USA) in the Pop World Cup makes them teenpop. I should have listed them. Speaking of Hope, let's not forget Hope 7 (except they're probably not good enough for the top 12/16).

If we can get a good enough list of 12 that excludes Skye and Lillix and Marit, I would be happy. Flyleaf are borderline for being not teenpop enough, and adding that to the fact that they're now major label probably should make them ineligible - their album is on Octone, the promo said it was distributed by Sony BMG but Billboard didn't seem to concur, but now they've signed a joint deal with Octone, J Records, and RCA, the latter of which is owned by Sony BMG.

Re: Second Stage at the Indie Awards

[skyecaptain.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I guess D&C is hall of fame for all intents and purposes. By "too damn indie" I did, in fact, mean "too damn not teenpop" (with Smoosh kinda borderline).

Re: Second Stage at the Indie Awards

[poptasticuk.livejournal.com]

D&C are definitely not a current act and I think they were major label in the UK at least.