DÈJA VU

I've been thinking about how the 80's haven't ceased to make their comeback just yet. It started in the late 90's with the Adidas trademark stripes on everything and then kept slowly creeping up on us until there was no more denying it and then suddenly we were all wearing leggings once again. OK, maybe not all of us, but all our girl friends. Believe me, I have nothing against men's leggings but you've got to have a killer physique to pull them off AND then of course, I DO live in Lima, Peru, where I get "Barney" yelled at for wearing purple jeans...Ah! The Third World!
Back to our main subject, regarding the 80's and stuff (yes, I said "stuff"), it is common knowledge music and fashion go hand in hand most of the time. From disco to rock to rap to the next thing, we've seen and heard it all happen. Gianni Versace was one of the first designers to take advantage of this by signing Madonna, Prince and Elton John among others to star in his ad campaigns and by having all of them front row at his shows. This also reminds me Gianni would have turned 63 this year had he miraculously avoided that fatal encounter twelve years ago.


MADONNA IN A 1995 VERSACE AD SHOT BY STEVEN MEISEL


OK, now seriously, back to what brought me to my blog once again. I was paying close attention at how Lady GaGa and, on a very different level (at least up to now), Adam Lambert were adding so much NEEDED glam to the musical scene. It had been a long while since we had seen such attention grabbing theatrics from pop newcomers, the trend had been quite the contrary lately, just remember when Britney came out, then Christina (though she was quick to break from her initial image), Mandy Moore, etc. They all pretty much filled the same pattern.
I think it's refreshing to see people who are willing to challenge an audience that had become numbed by a flatlined scene. Now, this only applies to mainstream pop, I'm in no way trying to ignore the fascinating and amazing talents of the likes of Roisin Murphy and others who HAVE been doing their own "thing", pushing musical and fashion boundaries for QUITE A WHILE but have gone unnoticed by the masses. I mean, Roisin has been wearing avant garde wardrobe (including shoulder pads) for a loooooooong time.



She's wearing a deer-shaped jacket for Christ's sake... (and I love it).



Anyway, this glam thing going on in music is once again VERY 80's. I was just humming "When You Were Mine", thinking it was a Cyndi Lauper original only to find out it was actually performed first (and written) by Prince. However, her version stood out, I think. I youtubed it immediately and found a live performance from the American Music Awards I was happy to recognize as one I had seen many times as a child. Now THAT was a true GENUINE performance. And to think it was over 20 years ago. I think that was probably more shocking back in the day than what our discussed boundary-pushers have done at the last award ceremony held two weeks ago.
It'll be interesting to see how this new wave of pop artists that are embracing louder images shall influence people around the world. Maybe they will let more people bring out their flashy side and enjoy fashion as the role-playing game it can be.
Cyndi Lauper SURE was an influence back in the day, we've seen that hair and make-up on the street, don't you remember?
Here's her UH-mazing performance at the 1985 AMA's for "When You Were Mine". Enjoy.