Celebrities are key gatekeepers of culture in our society Essay Example

based solely on talent "The power of the voice-its depth and range, qualified the singer for star status"( Marshall, P David, 1997. P.

153) Marshall argues that with the introduction of technology and reproduction, the concept of authenticity has been complicated. Authenticity is based on "how the celebrity expresses the emotionality of the music and his/her inner emotions, feelings and personality and how faithful the performer is to the intentions of the musical score" (Marshall, P David, 1997. P.153) )By adopting Marshall's analytic approach to the study of contemporary pop idol 'Eminem' (nee Marshall Mathers), the extent of the authenticity of the star in relation to his success, can be explored.

Eminem is a singer with a strong set of values and beliefs, this is heavily expressed within his music. There is constant reference to his upbringing throughout the musical lyrics; the star grew up in the deprived suburbs of East Detroit, having attended various schools and being raised by a teenage mother reliant upon drugs and alcohol. His background has obviously affected what he writes, and for many of his fans, this is one of his greatest appeals.What makes Eminem an incredible cultural gatekeeper, is his ability to adopt a black style of music and become a success at doing so "Hip hops biggest star is white" (observer seaun o' hagen). Eminems success however, was not achieved lightly. As a young male he was profoundly interested in rap at a street level.

Despite his great talent, the singer was often excluded due to racial indifference "You're a white boy, what the fuck are you rapping for" (yale uni student paul gilroy") This did not prevent the

first white boy to use rap as a voice for the disposed white urban poor "He was doing something radical, claiming white poverty was equal to black poverty" (william shaw observer). Eminem was finally recognised for his musical talent by hip hop producer Dr Dre, when he heard the singer freestyling on a Los Angeles radio station.'Marshall' was made into a star, successfully adapting to the predominantly black style of music. Before the phenomenon of Eminem, White America and Britain were limited in their association with rap and black music.

Eminem widened the niche market for rap music, commercialising it to white races. Jimmy Lovane, Eminems record company president claims his success is a signal that white culture is over and race is disappearing in America as a marker of identity "today its about class, not race, and hip hop is one of the reasons" ( edward helmore observer)Paul Gilroy suggests Eminems huge cross over success has helped to unite a segregated America "White America is a whole lot blacker thought it was"(seaun o hagen observer)Eminem expresses a lot of emotionality within his lyrics, reflecting an authentic aura surrounding the celebrity "He is one of the few voices that is telling the truth about the implosion of white family life". His songs are fuelled by anger and hate and often toward women and gays, as much as any sense of social protest. Much of this anger derives from his early infamous singing career where he was ignored and excluded because he was white "The lyrics I wrote got angrier and angrier" (Edward helmore )Many of the lyrics in Eminems songs reflect his feelings and lifestyle

"He comes at you with a torrent of language that sucks up and spits out the detritus of popular culture while marrying it to the rage, hurt and, occasionally love that are at the core of his favourite subject, his own life" ( edward helmore ) He also tends to use characters and a method of story telling, within many of his songs i.e.

the song 'Stan' features a psychotic character who tells a story through the reading of letters within the song. However, the meanings within the lyrics of the singers songs are often misconceived and taken too literally, thus the influence Eminem has had on children's thinking has been phenomenal. When he entered the pop world, the authorities and parents alike were in uproar over the singing sensation 'Eminem' with his rude and obscure lyrics and offensive attitude, he was even labelled "the most dangerous threat to American children since polio" (seaun o hagen)by the president George Bush.There is great concern over societies ability to distinguish from the real. Baudrillard argues "the distinctions between object and representation, thing and idea, are no longer real" (Gamson J, 1994. p ) an audience's perception of the celebrity is distorted, as there is a lack of media consciousness.

Eminem has been heavily criticised by a number of self-appointed guardians of decency, for his homophobia, race baiting and mother hatred. Yet it is hard to establish when the singer is playing a part or whether he means what he is saying. It is a complex issue for the outsider to disentangle his words, life or music from one another.An example of this is by studying his perceived

relationship with homosexuals and Elton John.

Despite, Eminems critical references to homosexuals within his songs, he requested that Elton John the very famous gay artist, perform the backing vocals on his song 'Stan'. Elton John told the Times newspaper "As a gay artist, I'm asked by a lot of people 'but what about the content of Eminems music?' I think there is far more humour on the album than people think. It appeals to my black sense of humour"(times website)Eminem is a complex cultural gatekeeper as he not only has a great influence over the general public and controlling of what they listen to, but also over the music industry itself. He plays a key decision-maker; owning his own record label 'shady records'; producing new bands '50 cent' and constructing their image.

The singer has recently starred in his first movie '8 mile', a story about a young mans struggle to find the strength to transcend the boundaries of life. The film is based on Eminems music style and received rave reviews selling 750,000 copies of the soundtrack in the first week. Adopting Marshall's analysis, Eminems film success is arguably due to the authenticity of the characters in relation to Eminems life. His success in the film industry suggests the singer now exerts an influence in future film projects; thus his complexity as a cultural gatekeeper increases.