Sell Out
Selling out is a big deal in our household, you must have principles that are impervious to material things. We admire artists that resist selling out, and our admiration deflates when someone we like does a car commercial (Acura, Andrew Bird, really?).
I am much more lenient on this than Rhett is. Musicians can no longer depend on record sales, so it doesn’t bother me so much if they take advantage of their popularity. Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeroes, kind of surprised me though, they seemed like such good anti-establishment hippies.
The Black Keys redeemed themselves a little bit by going on the Colbert Report and making fun of how badly they sold out. If you are going to screw up, embrace it.
This girl though, she knows how to do it right. Oh man, is she smooth, easing us into it bit by bit, making herself a brand name and an enigma all at once. First there was Coke Talk, which was mediocre, then came Dear Coke Talk, where we really got to see her wit, charm, and intelligence. Then there was Whore Talk, oooh the first inkling something was going on. Now she is employed by the Daily with Dear Coquette. This week she pulled off the coup de grace with her own collaborative jewelry line and an online boutique, where you can buy her limited edition pieces. She is selling out with such style I can’t really tell if she is, or not. Either that or she is fantastic at straddling some gray areas of my own ideals.
To cap off here is a hilarious video from a group that has yet to sell out. (I think)
In Retaliation 
March 22, 2011 at 10:06 pm
it’s not selling out if you stay true to your soul. they’re just buying in.
March 23, 2011 at 5:26 am
That sounds like something she would say, how am I supposed to know if they are staying true to their soul? I guess if they continue to produce quality it does not matter who they sell their product to. It seems like a very thin line and you would have to be very vigilant about the greed seeping like black tendrils of contaminated water into your soul.