Just a few short weeks ago, Britney Spears released her much talked about ‘Hold It Against Me’ music video, the first single off her upcoming seventh studio album ‘Femme Fatale’ (out March 29th). In
Just a few short weeks ago, Britney Spears released her much talked about ‘Hold It Against Me’ music video, the first single off her upcoming seventh studio album ‘Femme Fatale’ (out March 29th). In
Just a few short weeks ago, Britney Spears released her much talked about ‘Hold It Against Me’ music video, the first single off her upcoming seventh studio album ‘Femme Fatale’ (out March 29th). In the big-budget Jonas Åklerlund-directed clip, the audience is treated to a look at Britney’s life in the spotlight; the story of a girl who’s been in the public eye since she was a child, who we’ve watched grow from an innocent school girl, to a bald-headed media mess, to the wiser, more put together woman we see now.
PHOTOS: The Man Behind Britney’s Video, Jonas Akerlund
In the video, Britney fights her twin, an obvious metaphor for the pop star’s personal battles; the internal struggle between what people see, what the media focuses upon and the actual person beneath the facade. In the end, it’s unclear which Britney is the good or evil one, or even who wins, but the point is not the outcome, but the personal exploration. ‘HIAM’ shows a new Britney, beginning again, starting fresh and reinventing herself. As many times as we watch an artist or celebrity fall, there’s always the possibility of the comeback, the opportunity to return to greatness.
There are many artists who have grappled with their own personal successes and/or failures through their music. As a creative person, what better way to explore the push and pull between the inner and outer influences that make up a celebrity and inevitably affect the personality beneath the star status? Take a look at some other artists who have outwardly battled personal demons through their artistic endeavors on the next pages.
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Michael Jackson
The biggest pop star in the world was also a man who consistently struggled with inner demons.
His personal struggles were not only internal, but greatly affected by world events that he couldn’t change yet felt the need to draw attention to.
In the ‘Man In The Mirror’ video, there’s footage from various major events such as nuclear explosions, the John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy assassinations, the Iranian hostage crisis and Live Aid.
Yet Michael is known to have had is fair share of personal struggles, from being beaten at a young age to growing up as an impressionable child star. He took prescription drugs to deal with various mental and physical ailments and changed his entire physical appearance. Michael consistently explored these struggles in his music, making for some of the greatest songs ever and encouraging self-awareness and responsibility from all of us.
‘I’m starting with the man in the mirror/I’m asking him to change his ways/And no message could have been any clearer/If you wanna make the world a better place/Take a look at yourself and then make a change.’ -‘Man In The Mirror.’
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Eminem
Em has taken the audience through a literal journey with him from ‘Slim Shady’ to ‘Relapse’ to ‘Recovery.’
Em has been blunt about troubles with his mother, his ex-wife Kim, his daughter Hayley, being a pop culture icon and battling with legal troubles and prescript
