carriefan14
Well-known member
Hey guys,
I was just thinking about where Carrie's career might be heading with this next era, in between projects, and how exciting these time periods always feel.
I thought it would be cool to look back and think about what 'worked' for Carrie over the years and what 'didn't work' so well (not that she has had many missteps at all in her uber-successful career!). I'm not just talking about songs or albums, I mean on the grand scale, which would include movies she's been in or any collaborations on anything she's lended to.
As a fan, what in your opinion has 'worked' and what 'didn't'?
As an example, mine would be
What worked
Songs about her faith - As evidenced by the massive success of Something in the Water and JTTW, I think anytime Carrie sings from her Christian standpoint, it works to massive commercial success...see also Silent Night, etc.
Calia/Workout app - I might be wrong because I dont have another athletic design company to compare it to, but I feel like creating the Calia brand with the fit52 app and the book worked well for her. It's something that fits with her own lifestyle and personality.
The 'Blown Away/TBC' double single moment. I feel like if nothing else gets remembered from Carrie's discography, the darker tones of BA and TBC will always stay bold and noteworthy to other people. It kind of put her in her own league as far as comparing to what other songs and albums were being produced in that 2012/2013 time period.
What didn't work
Carrie has had very few things that didn't pan out (and even when they don't 'work', they still have a way of somewhat sticking), but it's always surprising when something doesn't garner as much appreciation as you might think it will.
'Little Toy Guns' as a single - I think when all is said and done, LTG will not be remembered very well by anyone except her die hard fans. Even now, LTG kind of pales compared to the 'big hits'. I don't know what she wanted to say with this song, (spark a conversation about domestic violence or children, not sure) but I don't think it contributed to anything noteworthy. It was kind of an interesting choice to release it right after SITW, with its own music video and everything. It got the full single treatment, when better songs were passed up in the previous era.
The glitter tears/heaviness of the Cry Pretty album. I feel like people respected the music and the effort that Carrie brought to the Cry pretty era, but overall, for the masses, it was just too sad/heavy for them to really get behind, this the lower ranking of the singles on the charts compared to her previous albums (no Billboard number ones.) I was able to relate, but I feel like most did not linger on the album and it was kinda over as soon as Drinking Alone was about to peak. I don't know if the majority of people will be replaying the album 5 years from now. I dont think maybe the glitter tears/Instagram makeup inspiration behind the main theme was really understood by most. They were like, ooh pretty....moving on.
The pop-y/Avril Lavigne 2000s rock of the Play On album. I think people naturally gravitate more towards Carrie when she is singing country- inflected or influenced material like "Look At Me" and "Cowboy Casanova". But the more pop songs on her third album (yes, more pop than CC), like Unapologize, Change, Quitter, What Can I Say) just didn't have the appeal, and certainly not the long-term appeal that previous albums had (Play On lacked any "I Know You Won't"s or "Just A Dream"s, or "Flat on the Floor"s. Sonically, and lyrically, it was an album that didn't quite know where it fit, trying to appeal to as many as possible, and as a result lacked the big, universal impact her first 2 albums had. It also didn't help that Miranda and Taylor really hit their strides in the 2009/2010 period with their own styles (not to compare any of these ladies), but I feel like Blown Away picked up the momentum that got lost during the PO era.
Just my opinions! I'm curious to see where we are all going on this next ride, and look forward to discovering what other sides to Carrie we may still hear or see!
I was just thinking about where Carrie's career might be heading with this next era, in between projects, and how exciting these time periods always feel.
I thought it would be cool to look back and think about what 'worked' for Carrie over the years and what 'didn't work' so well (not that she has had many missteps at all in her uber-successful career!). I'm not just talking about songs or albums, I mean on the grand scale, which would include movies she's been in or any collaborations on anything she's lended to.
As a fan, what in your opinion has 'worked' and what 'didn't'?
As an example, mine would be
What worked
Songs about her faith - As evidenced by the massive success of Something in the Water and JTTW, I think anytime Carrie sings from her Christian standpoint, it works to massive commercial success...see also Silent Night, etc.
Calia/Workout app - I might be wrong because I dont have another athletic design company to compare it to, but I feel like creating the Calia brand with the fit52 app and the book worked well for her. It's something that fits with her own lifestyle and personality.
The 'Blown Away/TBC' double single moment. I feel like if nothing else gets remembered from Carrie's discography, the darker tones of BA and TBC will always stay bold and noteworthy to other people. It kind of put her in her own league as far as comparing to what other songs and albums were being produced in that 2012/2013 time period.
What didn't work
Carrie has had very few things that didn't pan out (and even when they don't 'work', they still have a way of somewhat sticking), but it's always surprising when something doesn't garner as much appreciation as you might think it will.
'Little Toy Guns' as a single - I think when all is said and done, LTG will not be remembered very well by anyone except her die hard fans. Even now, LTG kind of pales compared to the 'big hits'. I don't know what she wanted to say with this song, (spark a conversation about domestic violence or children, not sure) but I don't think it contributed to anything noteworthy. It was kind of an interesting choice to release it right after SITW, with its own music video and everything. It got the full single treatment, when better songs were passed up in the previous era.
The glitter tears/heaviness of the Cry Pretty album. I feel like people respected the music and the effort that Carrie brought to the Cry pretty era, but overall, for the masses, it was just too sad/heavy for them to really get behind, this the lower ranking of the singles on the charts compared to her previous albums (no Billboard number ones.) I was able to relate, but I feel like most did not linger on the album and it was kinda over as soon as Drinking Alone was about to peak. I don't know if the majority of people will be replaying the album 5 years from now. I dont think maybe the glitter tears/Instagram makeup inspiration behind the main theme was really understood by most. They were like, ooh pretty....moving on.
The pop-y/Avril Lavigne 2000s rock of the Play On album. I think people naturally gravitate more towards Carrie when she is singing country- inflected or influenced material like "Look At Me" and "Cowboy Casanova". But the more pop songs on her third album (yes, more pop than CC), like Unapologize, Change, Quitter, What Can I Say) just didn't have the appeal, and certainly not the long-term appeal that previous albums had (Play On lacked any "I Know You Won't"s or "Just A Dream"s, or "Flat on the Floor"s. Sonically, and lyrically, it was an album that didn't quite know where it fit, trying to appeal to as many as possible, and as a result lacked the big, universal impact her first 2 albums had. It also didn't help that Miranda and Taylor really hit their strides in the 2009/2010 period with their own styles (not to compare any of these ladies), but I feel like Blown Away picked up the momentum that got lost during the PO era.
Just my opinions! I'm curious to see where we are all going on this next ride, and look forward to discovering what other sides to Carrie we may still hear or see!