Post by davidhr on Aug 18, 2015 8:51:52 GMT -5
Once again, Lara’s increasingly hyper-active FB site was the focus of the news this past week, led by the ‘game’ Lara’s team had promised ((). It consisted of having fans identify various of Lara’s songs based on a few snippets of music; it ran for some eight and a half minutes and covered 22 titles. You may have seen the results elsewhere, but if you haven’t, they’re shown below, along with the associated album:
Immortelle (Nue)
Tout (Pure)
Humana (Pure)
Si tu m’aimes (Carpe Diem)
Conquered (A Wonderful Life)
Tango (Nue)
Je me souviens (Neuf)
Yeliel My Angel (Lara Fabian – English)
Danse (Le Secret)
Caruso (En tout intimite)
Make Me Yours Tonight (Selection)
Rio (Nue)
Nuit magique (Toutes le femme en moi)
Love by Grace (Lara Fabian – English)
Papa Can You Hear Me (Lara’s version was on Un regard neuf)
Toccami (Mademoiselle Zhivago)
Review My Kisses (A Wonderful Life)
J’ai Zappé (Pure)
Tue es mon autre (Nue)
TLFM (Toutes les femme en moi)
The Alchemist (with Russel Watson) (Amore Musica)
Quand je ne chante pas (Ma vie dans la tienne)
For those not familiar with Lara’s duet on The Alchemist, an imaginative video is available at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_wonNG3SfI
From a personal perspective, the ‘game’ was quite enjoyable, at about the right level of complexity, including both well-known, often-sung compositions, and a few more obscure - but not too obscure. As can be seen from the above list, most of the studio albums were represented, with the exceptions being her first album (Lara Fabian – French) and Every Woman In Me (EWIM), the thought presumably being that they were less familiar to Lara’s fans, with less of a distribution. There was a nice mix of languages as well.
The promised ‘intruder’ was Barbra Streisand, who was singing “Papa Can You Hear me”. I must admit it fooled me
.
The presumption was that many of Lara’s fans would know all those songs (even though the ‘snippets’ were not overly revealing), and it was correct – out of the 1478 participants (the number given by Lara’s team in the French version of their posting), 1286 gave the proper responses, or 87% (or if one uses the number they provided in English, of 1748 participants, then 75% were correct). Either way, a tie-breaker was needed, and it was associated with individual estimates of how many people would have viewed the video on youtube for ‘Quand je ne chante pas’ by the day following the contest’s end. It turned out to be 108,681; congratulations to the two winners who got closest to this number. Their prize is a personalized, signed copy of ‘Ma vie dans la tienne’ when it is released. But the real prize for all contestants was the fun the game engendered (and so Lara’s team commented that “everybody had won”).
One would have to say this was a successful venture into the world of ‘on-line contests’ on the official site. And from the fan comments, people are looking forward to more ‘opportunities’ in the future, which Lara’s team has promised will occur.
That was just one of the entries Lara or her team posted this past week. Others included:
**Lara posted a photo (from Florence D'elle), of ‘two of herself’ holding an old-fashioned rotary phone. She was dressed both as a ‘chic’ hostess in black leather, and a maid with white apron, available at:
www.facebook.com/353946178085395/photos/a.353954938084519.1073741828.353946178085395/681481725331837/?type=1&theater
The associated caption read, “What do you think about my new "smartphone"? The only thing ‘smart’ about it, of course, was the way Lara was dressed. She also included a comment, “Pourtant, il est ‘portable’. Surtout quand quelqu'un le porte." [Moreover, it is "portable". Especially when someone carries/wears it] (a play on the words ‘portable' and ‘porte’). Fans’ strongly approved of the way Lara appeared in the photo. While that may have been the main point of this entry, one can also deduce a hint of Lara’s dissatisfaction with the demands of modern technology [real ‘smart’ phones], a la the song ‘Un ange est tombe’ from ‘Le Secret’. [But, it must be noted, the line from that song “You live, you die on your Facebook page” is now striking closer to home than when she first wrote it…
].
**Another posted photo of herself, this one from Emanuele Scorcelletti on the ‘Lara Fabian est ton autre’ site, available at:
www.facebook.com/166959643357708/photos/a.427040584016278.96818.166959643357708/646239385429729/?type=1&theater
came along with the caption, “"And so...Fear was gone
I knew there was nothing else
I'd ever want.."
A weekend full of love to all of you...
Again the fans applauded Lara’s appearance, although she was considerably less dressed than in the former picture! Lara previously has noted that she had to get over some of her fears of an inadequate body image for her to take photos of this nature.
**Then there was a video at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P39lprCXnF8&feature=youtu.be
of an Italian medley Lara did with V. Niclo, B. Giabiconi and G. Lenorman earlier this year at ‘La fête de la musique’ in Nice, shown on French TV. It came along with the caption: “How about a trip all together to Italy today?”
The highlight on the video was the opening number, a portion of ‘La Solitudine’. Since ‘youtube views’ became an issue this past week, one can note that the original duet of this song with Laura Pausini (available at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CebvCWsoU1I) remains one of Lara’s most popular videos ever, ranking, in effect, fourth for her with over 10 million youtube views (!).
For the record, her most popular youtube video is ‘Je suis malade’ from the “With Lara From Love’ TV show which has more than 32 million views (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIIL5p7_WKk). That is followed by two videos of ‘Je t’aime’ from the ‘Lara Fabian Live’ DVD of the ‘Nue’ show in 2001 totaling over 30 million (highlighted by the fan participation); and then the official video of ‘Je t’aime’ with over 17 million.
**A choral group version of ‘I Will Love Again”, performed by CSUN Acasola (young singers) visible at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcGNhhtDkOQ&feature=youtu.be
received a ‘shout-out’ from Lara’s site, with the comment, “Wow ! What a nice performance and arrangement ! Well done guys!..”.
It certainly is quite creative.
Continuing the theme of youtube popularity, it is interesting to note that Lara’s most popular viewed version of this song on youtube is her Spanish language video for ‘Otro Amor Vendrá’, with more than 1,200,000 views, at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfFRwUHKVeA
while another version of that same Spanish language video ranks third, with over 400,000. The same official video in English has only some 220,000 views [‘Quand je ne chante pas’ has almost half of that already]. Does this suggest a (largely untapped) Spanish audience?
**Lara’s team posted a picture of Lara with fans, at:
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/a.215378125170359.50343.201065806601591/963096097065221/?type=1&theater
They asked, “Have you already had the chance to have your picture taken with Lara? If yes, and if you agree that it can be published, please send it to the following address: photo@odacity.eu
Team Lara
Lara’s team also included the comment, “To all those who write not yet having had an opportunity to take a photo (and logically, it is the very large majority), we are here to create opportunities. It is just necessary also that you help us, by coming to the events (like the next previews - for the Prague concert movie) and concerts. Otherwise it will be difficult. (The broadcast ‘Star à domicile’ – where Lara went to a fan’s home – no longer exists). Team Lara.”
Some fans did write back and note that their past attempts to get a photo taken with Lara at concerts had not met with much success. Lara’s Team responded by saying that they will be there to help.
This request for photos is not without precedent – Lara included pictures from fans in the backdrop of ‘Wind Beneath My Wings’ in the ‘Tout les femmes en moi font leur show' tour (and DVD), as can be seen at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5O8LTzikX0
One wonders if they have something of a similar nature in mind for the upcoming album/bonus, although it may be too late. However, there will be a tour in 2016, so maybe they could ultimately be used in conjunction with that.
Perhaps this might also be a good time to mention that the last time fans responded to a call to provide Lara with visuals was shortly after her tour cancellation in early 2014, when she asked for videos from ‘Le Secret’ concerts. The idea was that since no DVD filming had ever been done, she could use the fan videos to put together some remembrance of it. There were a large number of submissions, with an especially great volume coming from the Russian fans – yet nothing was ever heard of this project again. Granted, the time for ‘Le Secret’ appears to have passed – and we know Lara doesn’t like to look back – but is there not something worthwhile in all that material that could one day see the light of day? We note that other singers have taken to using fan videos to produce DVDs, even commercial ones of concerts several years old (e.g., en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luna_Park_Ride).
** Lara’s final personal message this week, “Thank you to all! Wherever you are, on vacation, home or work, have a beautiful week! Kisses! Returning from vacation? Have a great week! “ It came along with a picture from ‘Operation Fan Club Lara Fabian’, of Lara dressed in casual clothes, at:
www.facebook.com/OperationFanClubLaraFabian/photos/a.693405060766693.1073741856.673991206041412/766686913438507/?type=1&fref=nf
**And lastly, the comment (from Lara’s team), “Starting the day with a big smile like Lara?” with another chic photo of Lara posted from the Lara Fabian Deutschland site,
www.facebook.com/larafabiandeutschland/photos/a.255601841230694.1073741828.255401654584046/319882908135920/?type=1&theater
As can be seen from several of these posts, Lara has taken to using photos (of her) directly from some of the fan sites. Undoubtedly that will encourage them to provide more, and is indicating to them that she is paying attention - both positive reinforcements.
In other news, though still on Lara’s social media, she paid homage to Giancarlo Golzi, an Italian drummer and songwriter who died August 12, 2015 of a heart attack at the age of 63, available at:
He was first associated with the Italian rock group Museo Rosenbach, with whom he recorded the album ‘Zarathustra’. He then was a founding member of the group Matia Bazar. He was also artistic director of the ' Accademia di Sanremo , dedicated to young people who wish to participate in the Italian Song Festival in Sanremo (and maybe this in particular caught Lara’s attention).
Despite the growing number of views for the video of Lara’s new single, the song itself has not really gained any traction on the French or Belgian charts. On the more general question of album sales, her highest ranking, currently, is her self-titled first English album which is #16 in Russia on iTunes. In case there was any doubt, this indicates that Lara still has considerable appeal and commercial possibilities in Russia. As noted by the MZ FB site, Charts in France just published an interview with Madonna concerning her refusal to appear any more in that country (http://www.chartsinfrance.net/Madonna/news-98477.html). Because it mentions Lara, and has implications for her, it is translated below:
------------------------------------------------------------------
Madonna doesn’t want to sing anymore in Russia: “Why go there where to be gay is a crime?”
Madonna will kick off the tour "Rebel Heart Tour" on September 9. But for the first time, the singer will not go to Russia, three years after being threatened after the government [decrees] for her support of the homosexual community. She explains!
Between Madonna and Russia, communication is cut. In August 2008, during her "MDNA Tour" in Moscow, the Queen of Pop had used her concert to publicly support the Pussy Riot punk singers before delivering a speech in favor of the gay community, this time in St. Petersburg. "The gay community, homosexuals have the same rights [...] to live with dignity, with respect and love. Show your love and your respect for the gay community!" she launched onstage while the crowd had waved rainbow flags. A veritable affront to the government of Vladimir Putin, who had put in place anti-gay legislation. Following her taking this position on stage, the interpreter of "Ghosttown" was sharply attacked by Russian politicians, sued by groups of ultra-nationalist activists and threatened with going to jail.
I don’t think I would go again to Moscow
"Maybe Putin is gay. That would be the problem," she had even stated last year. Her troubles with Russia have also pushed Madonna not to program concerts there as part of her new tour "Rebel Heart Tour". "I do not think I should still go to Moscow or St. Petersburg," said the singer of "Living For Love", conscious of not being welcome in return. "But even better. Why would I want to sing in a place where being gay is a crime?" she underlined, firmly, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. During a concert for Amnesty International, Madonna had announced that 87 of her fans were arrested in Russia for "gay behavior".
Lara Fabian or Conchita Wurst will go to Russia
Very committed to the fight against discrimination, Madonna has therefore decided to boycott Russia for this new tour. Like her, to support the gay community, Kylie Minogue refused to sing there." I am extremely saddened to see that it is in regression and that they go backwards, like in Russia. Since the law was passed I have not been back. I had offers but I refused them "she confided to Pure Charts. Same story for Cher who refused to become the ambassador of the Olympic Winter Games in Russia last year. Other artists, like Lara Fabian, however, believe that one must not penalize the public: "The aim of an artist is to continue to pass her values through the music."
"Of course I want to go to Russia. We have received a lot of invitations, and we'll see if they fit my schedule. But of course it will not be the same as when I come to Paris. On both sides, we know it. The people who invite me know it well. But I will go. It is only a matter of time. I have many fans in Russia and I want to meet them," Conchita Wurst had even declared, in an interview on Pure Charts, confident in not having received any threat from the Russian government. Julien GONCALVES
-------------------------------------------------
Lara has several possibilities for performances in Russia this coming fall, including the New Wave Festival in Sochi (for which so far she is not listed - the junior version of this festival for singers 12 years and younger took place just this past week), and another Krutoi gala in Moscow. Of course she’ll also be busy with her new album in France and Belgium. Despite Lara’s comments about keeping the Russian fans in mind, one has to think that the political situation in that country is largely responsible for the failure of the next ‘Mademoiselle Zhivago’ album to appear, despite our having already heard a number of songs that could well be from it. We’ll see how this continues to be handled…
Interesting photos of the week: from LFIAG Select:
www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=149735658695815&set=gm.446237425563125&type=1&theater
two from Lara Fabian – PHQ, of a somewhat opposite nature:
www.facebook.com/353946178085395/photos/a.353954938084519.1073741828.353946178085395/730375780442431/?type=1&theater
www.facebook.com/353946178085395/photos/a.353954938084519.1073741828.353946178085395/728751690604840/?type=1&theater
and from the Lara Fabian & Emmanuel Moire: LE duo page,
www.facebook.com/LaraFabianetEmmanuelMoireLEduo/photos/a.199122136821054.50267.160613337338601/933528410047086/?type=1&theater
As is obvious from the above, in these ‘dog days’ of August, most of the news is now coming via Lara and her team. Hopefully their efforts will continue!
David
Immortelle (Nue)
Tout (Pure)
Humana (Pure)
Si tu m’aimes (Carpe Diem)
Conquered (A Wonderful Life)
Tango (Nue)
Je me souviens (Neuf)
Yeliel My Angel (Lara Fabian – English)
Danse (Le Secret)
Caruso (En tout intimite)
Make Me Yours Tonight (Selection)
Rio (Nue)
Nuit magique (Toutes le femme en moi)
Love by Grace (Lara Fabian – English)
Papa Can You Hear Me (Lara’s version was on Un regard neuf)
Toccami (Mademoiselle Zhivago)
Review My Kisses (A Wonderful Life)
J’ai Zappé (Pure)
Tue es mon autre (Nue)
TLFM (Toutes les femme en moi)
The Alchemist (with Russel Watson) (Amore Musica)
Quand je ne chante pas (Ma vie dans la tienne)
For those not familiar with Lara’s duet on The Alchemist, an imaginative video is available at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_wonNG3SfI
From a personal perspective, the ‘game’ was quite enjoyable, at about the right level of complexity, including both well-known, often-sung compositions, and a few more obscure - but not too obscure. As can be seen from the above list, most of the studio albums were represented, with the exceptions being her first album (Lara Fabian – French) and Every Woman In Me (EWIM), the thought presumably being that they were less familiar to Lara’s fans, with less of a distribution. There was a nice mix of languages as well.
The promised ‘intruder’ was Barbra Streisand, who was singing “Papa Can You Hear me”. I must admit it fooled me
. The presumption was that many of Lara’s fans would know all those songs (even though the ‘snippets’ were not overly revealing), and it was correct – out of the 1478 participants (the number given by Lara’s team in the French version of their posting), 1286 gave the proper responses, or 87% (or if one uses the number they provided in English, of 1748 participants, then 75% were correct). Either way, a tie-breaker was needed, and it was associated with individual estimates of how many people would have viewed the video on youtube for ‘Quand je ne chante pas’ by the day following the contest’s end. It turned out to be 108,681; congratulations to the two winners who got closest to this number. Their prize is a personalized, signed copy of ‘Ma vie dans la tienne’ when it is released. But the real prize for all contestants was the fun the game engendered (and so Lara’s team commented that “everybody had won”).
One would have to say this was a successful venture into the world of ‘on-line contests’ on the official site. And from the fan comments, people are looking forward to more ‘opportunities’ in the future, which Lara’s team has promised will occur.
That was just one of the entries Lara or her team posted this past week. Others included:
**Lara posted a photo (from Florence D'elle), of ‘two of herself’ holding an old-fashioned rotary phone. She was dressed both as a ‘chic’ hostess in black leather, and a maid with white apron, available at:
www.facebook.com/353946178085395/photos/a.353954938084519.1073741828.353946178085395/681481725331837/?type=1&theater
The associated caption read, “What do you think about my new "smartphone"? The only thing ‘smart’ about it, of course, was the way Lara was dressed. She also included a comment, “Pourtant, il est ‘portable’. Surtout quand quelqu'un le porte." [Moreover, it is "portable". Especially when someone carries/wears it] (a play on the words ‘portable' and ‘porte’). Fans’ strongly approved of the way Lara appeared in the photo. While that may have been the main point of this entry, one can also deduce a hint of Lara’s dissatisfaction with the demands of modern technology [real ‘smart’ phones], a la the song ‘Un ange est tombe’ from ‘Le Secret’. [But, it must be noted, the line from that song “You live, you die on your Facebook page” is now striking closer to home than when she first wrote it…
].**Another posted photo of herself, this one from Emanuele Scorcelletti on the ‘Lara Fabian est ton autre’ site, available at:
www.facebook.com/166959643357708/photos/a.427040584016278.96818.166959643357708/646239385429729/?type=1&theater
came along with the caption, “"And so...Fear was gone
I knew there was nothing else
I'd ever want.."
A weekend full of love to all of you...
Again the fans applauded Lara’s appearance, although she was considerably less dressed than in the former picture! Lara previously has noted that she had to get over some of her fears of an inadequate body image for her to take photos of this nature.
**Then there was a video at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P39lprCXnF8&feature=youtu.be
of an Italian medley Lara did with V. Niclo, B. Giabiconi and G. Lenorman earlier this year at ‘La fête de la musique’ in Nice, shown on French TV. It came along with the caption: “How about a trip all together to Italy today?”
The highlight on the video was the opening number, a portion of ‘La Solitudine’. Since ‘youtube views’ became an issue this past week, one can note that the original duet of this song with Laura Pausini (available at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CebvCWsoU1I) remains one of Lara’s most popular videos ever, ranking, in effect, fourth for her with over 10 million youtube views (!).
For the record, her most popular youtube video is ‘Je suis malade’ from the “With Lara From Love’ TV show which has more than 32 million views (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIIL5p7_WKk). That is followed by two videos of ‘Je t’aime’ from the ‘Lara Fabian Live’ DVD of the ‘Nue’ show in 2001 totaling over 30 million (highlighted by the fan participation); and then the official video of ‘Je t’aime’ with over 17 million.
**A choral group version of ‘I Will Love Again”, performed by CSUN Acasola (young singers) visible at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcGNhhtDkOQ&feature=youtu.be
received a ‘shout-out’ from Lara’s site, with the comment, “Wow ! What a nice performance and arrangement ! Well done guys!..”.
It certainly is quite creative.
Continuing the theme of youtube popularity, it is interesting to note that Lara’s most popular viewed version of this song on youtube is her Spanish language video for ‘Otro Amor Vendrá’, with more than 1,200,000 views, at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfFRwUHKVeA
while another version of that same Spanish language video ranks third, with over 400,000. The same official video in English has only some 220,000 views [‘Quand je ne chante pas’ has almost half of that already]. Does this suggest a (largely untapped) Spanish audience?
**Lara’s team posted a picture of Lara with fans, at:
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/a.215378125170359.50343.201065806601591/963096097065221/?type=1&theater
They asked, “Have you already had the chance to have your picture taken with Lara? If yes, and if you agree that it can be published, please send it to the following address: photo@odacity.eu
Team Lara
Lara’s team also included the comment, “To all those who write not yet having had an opportunity to take a photo (and logically, it is the very large majority), we are here to create opportunities. It is just necessary also that you help us, by coming to the events (like the next previews - for the Prague concert movie) and concerts. Otherwise it will be difficult. (The broadcast ‘Star à domicile’ – where Lara went to a fan’s home – no longer exists). Team Lara.”
Some fans did write back and note that their past attempts to get a photo taken with Lara at concerts had not met with much success. Lara’s Team responded by saying that they will be there to help.
This request for photos is not without precedent – Lara included pictures from fans in the backdrop of ‘Wind Beneath My Wings’ in the ‘Tout les femmes en moi font leur show' tour (and DVD), as can be seen at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5O8LTzikX0
One wonders if they have something of a similar nature in mind for the upcoming album/bonus, although it may be too late. However, there will be a tour in 2016, so maybe they could ultimately be used in conjunction with that.
Perhaps this might also be a good time to mention that the last time fans responded to a call to provide Lara with visuals was shortly after her tour cancellation in early 2014, when she asked for videos from ‘Le Secret’ concerts. The idea was that since no DVD filming had ever been done, she could use the fan videos to put together some remembrance of it. There were a large number of submissions, with an especially great volume coming from the Russian fans – yet nothing was ever heard of this project again. Granted, the time for ‘Le Secret’ appears to have passed – and we know Lara doesn’t like to look back – but is there not something worthwhile in all that material that could one day see the light of day? We note that other singers have taken to using fan videos to produce DVDs, even commercial ones of concerts several years old (e.g., en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luna_Park_Ride).
** Lara’s final personal message this week, “Thank you to all! Wherever you are, on vacation, home or work, have a beautiful week! Kisses! Returning from vacation? Have a great week! “ It came along with a picture from ‘Operation Fan Club Lara Fabian’, of Lara dressed in casual clothes, at:
www.facebook.com/OperationFanClubLaraFabian/photos/a.693405060766693.1073741856.673991206041412/766686913438507/?type=1&fref=nf
**And lastly, the comment (from Lara’s team), “Starting the day with a big smile like Lara?” with another chic photo of Lara posted from the Lara Fabian Deutschland site,
www.facebook.com/larafabiandeutschland/photos/a.255601841230694.1073741828.255401654584046/319882908135920/?type=1&theater
As can be seen from several of these posts, Lara has taken to using photos (of her) directly from some of the fan sites. Undoubtedly that will encourage them to provide more, and is indicating to them that she is paying attention - both positive reinforcements.
In other news, though still on Lara’s social media, she paid homage to Giancarlo Golzi, an Italian drummer and songwriter who died August 12, 2015 of a heart attack at the age of 63, available at:
He was first associated with the Italian rock group Museo Rosenbach, with whom he recorded the album ‘Zarathustra’. He then was a founding member of the group Matia Bazar. He was also artistic director of the ' Accademia di Sanremo , dedicated to young people who wish to participate in the Italian Song Festival in Sanremo (and maybe this in particular caught Lara’s attention).
Despite the growing number of views for the video of Lara’s new single, the song itself has not really gained any traction on the French or Belgian charts. On the more general question of album sales, her highest ranking, currently, is her self-titled first English album which is #16 in Russia on iTunes. In case there was any doubt, this indicates that Lara still has considerable appeal and commercial possibilities in Russia. As noted by the MZ FB site, Charts in France just published an interview with Madonna concerning her refusal to appear any more in that country (http://www.chartsinfrance.net/Madonna/news-98477.html). Because it mentions Lara, and has implications for her, it is translated below:
------------------------------------------------------------------
Madonna doesn’t want to sing anymore in Russia: “Why go there where to be gay is a crime?”
Madonna will kick off the tour "Rebel Heart Tour" on September 9. But for the first time, the singer will not go to Russia, three years after being threatened after the government [decrees] for her support of the homosexual community. She explains!
Between Madonna and Russia, communication is cut. In August 2008, during her "MDNA Tour" in Moscow, the Queen of Pop had used her concert to publicly support the Pussy Riot punk singers before delivering a speech in favor of the gay community, this time in St. Petersburg. "The gay community, homosexuals have the same rights [...] to live with dignity, with respect and love. Show your love and your respect for the gay community!" she launched onstage while the crowd had waved rainbow flags. A veritable affront to the government of Vladimir Putin, who had put in place anti-gay legislation. Following her taking this position on stage, the interpreter of "Ghosttown" was sharply attacked by Russian politicians, sued by groups of ultra-nationalist activists and threatened with going to jail.
I don’t think I would go again to Moscow
"Maybe Putin is gay. That would be the problem," she had even stated last year. Her troubles with Russia have also pushed Madonna not to program concerts there as part of her new tour "Rebel Heart Tour". "I do not think I should still go to Moscow or St. Petersburg," said the singer of "Living For Love", conscious of not being welcome in return. "But even better. Why would I want to sing in a place where being gay is a crime?" she underlined, firmly, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. During a concert for Amnesty International, Madonna had announced that 87 of her fans were arrested in Russia for "gay behavior".
Lara Fabian or Conchita Wurst will go to Russia
Very committed to the fight against discrimination, Madonna has therefore decided to boycott Russia for this new tour. Like her, to support the gay community, Kylie Minogue refused to sing there." I am extremely saddened to see that it is in regression and that they go backwards, like in Russia. Since the law was passed I have not been back. I had offers but I refused them "she confided to Pure Charts. Same story for Cher who refused to become the ambassador of the Olympic Winter Games in Russia last year. Other artists, like Lara Fabian, however, believe that one must not penalize the public: "The aim of an artist is to continue to pass her values through the music."
"Of course I want to go to Russia. We have received a lot of invitations, and we'll see if they fit my schedule. But of course it will not be the same as when I come to Paris. On both sides, we know it. The people who invite me know it well. But I will go. It is only a matter of time. I have many fans in Russia and I want to meet them," Conchita Wurst had even declared, in an interview on Pure Charts, confident in not having received any threat from the Russian government. Julien GONCALVES
-------------------------------------------------
Lara has several possibilities for performances in Russia this coming fall, including the New Wave Festival in Sochi (for which so far she is not listed - the junior version of this festival for singers 12 years and younger took place just this past week), and another Krutoi gala in Moscow. Of course she’ll also be busy with her new album in France and Belgium. Despite Lara’s comments about keeping the Russian fans in mind, one has to think that the political situation in that country is largely responsible for the failure of the next ‘Mademoiselle Zhivago’ album to appear, despite our having already heard a number of songs that could well be from it. We’ll see how this continues to be handled…
Interesting photos of the week: from LFIAG Select:
www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=149735658695815&set=gm.446237425563125&type=1&theater
two from Lara Fabian – PHQ, of a somewhat opposite nature:
www.facebook.com/353946178085395/photos/a.353954938084519.1073741828.353946178085395/730375780442431/?type=1&theater
www.facebook.com/353946178085395/photos/a.353954938084519.1073741828.353946178085395/728751690604840/?type=1&theater
and from the Lara Fabian & Emmanuel Moire: LE duo page,
www.facebook.com/LaraFabianetEmmanuelMoireLEduo/photos/a.199122136821054.50267.160613337338601/933528410047086/?type=1&theater
As is obvious from the above, in these ‘dog days’ of August, most of the news is now coming via Lara and her team. Hopefully their efforts will continue!
David
