While it is usual for artists to sing about social issues or incidents that have affected them deeply, there are quite a few who have used their own personal tragedies to profit from. At what point should such a factor stop being considered art and expression and considered instead of a blatant exploitation of one’s public outpouring of grief through music. Is it ethical to sing about someone’s death and end up making millions or should such situations be restricted to one’s personal life only. There are many who don’t exactly feel remorse from profiteering from tragedy. Here are 13 such celebrities who used tragedy for profit or promote their careers.
The Temptations used a member’s death to boost their album. Rodger Penzabene was 22 when he joined the group. He was a good songwriter and two of his most noted songs were “I wish it would rain” and “I could never love another” written after he found out his wife was having an affair. A week after the release of “I wish it would rain” Penzabene committed suicide. The group made the song the main hit of their album naming it also “The Temptations wish it would rain”. The album was a huge success.
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There were several reports of Joe Jackson being a hard taskmaster and manager of Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. Some also reported the singer faced years of abuse at the hands of his father. Days after Michael Jackson died in what was a shock to the entire music industry and fans worldwide, Joe Jackson used the prevailing media mood to promote his new record label. He was observed several times brushing off questions about Michael’s death preferring to peddle his record company instead.
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One rarely hears about this archaic hip-hop group of the eighties but they influenced many rappers that came on the scene after them. One of their most famous songs that spoke about molestation and indecent abuse was “Millie pulled a gun on Santa”. The song was written by De La Soul member Posdnuos after one of his friends revealed that she was constantly molested and abused by her father. The song is one of the more famous rap storytelling songs till date.
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He is undoubtedly one of the best directors of his time with his most famous hits being E.T, “Saving Private Ryan” And “Jurassic Park” but what many don’t know is that as a child, he suffered his parents going through a nasty divorce. This element was reflected in his movies where the father figure was absent or workaholics who had no time for their children. This was what Spielberg also blamed his father for considering him responsible for the divorce. However, after his reconciliation with his father, he began portraying a positive father figure that is visible in such movies like “Catch Me If You Can” and “War of the Worlds.”
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Eric Clapton does not need any introduction. As one of the greatest songwriters and guitarists in modern music, he also enjoys a position in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 1992, Clapton released his famous single “Tears in Heaven” written to express the tragedy of his 4-year-old son Conor who died in 1991 when he fell from an apartment window. However, in 2004, he stopped performing the song because he felt he wasn’t able to share an emotional connection with it anymore. By that time, the song had already won three Grammy awards and was ranked among Rolling Stones 500 greatest songs of all time.
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As one of the best rappers of his time, he is no doubt talented in spite of his love-hate relationship with fans and media. Kanye was deeply affected by his mother’s death in 2007 and struggled with the aftermath of depression. He went on to dedicate his concerts to her and released the song “Only One” featuring Paul McCartney that he claimed his mother sang to him through his daughter. A few months later he revealed that he was in the process of making a video game depicting his mother traveling through the gates of heaven with the tune of “Only One” as the background music. Many found that weird.
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Is there something as sharing too much of your personal life in public or do celebrities love doing that for the media attention? Neil Young released the song “The Needle and the Damage Done” in 1972 which depicted heroin addiction among his musician friends which had the potential of destroying their image. Young’s inspiration for the song came from his bandmate Danny Whitten who was also a heroin addict.
Whitten’s struggle with addiction would end in Young firing him from the band. He was invited by Young to play on his Harvest Tour but was fired that night when Young gave him money for a flight back to New York. That very night, Whitten was found dead of an overdose of diazepam and alcohol. Young confessed he felt responsible for his death.
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The only thing that made Diddy famous in the nineties was Biggie’s Albums that he sold. After Biggie Small’s death, Diddy released two Biggie Smalls albums where Diddy showcased his own rap prowess in a number of songs. He went on to keep referring to Biggie’s death in a number of songs and even produced a movie on Biggie Smalls titled “Notorious”
Many observed how Diddy was exploiting Biggies death to improve his career. The most notable voice was 50 Cents who said “Enough is enough … Biggie’s name should never have become Diddy’s Black Card … When was the last time Diddy was really biggin up his brother, not biggin up his bank?”
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Courtney Love gained the rights of Kurt Cobain's estate after his death. Although Cobain was against anything mainstream, Love went on to allow Converse to produce a line of Cobain inspired shoes. In 2007, she also auctioned several of his belongings that included his flannel shirts. To make a fast buck, she also sold a 25% stake in the Nirvana Album. Love soon lost the rights to Cobain's estate to his daughter Frances Bean Cobain.
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Among the most shameless celebrities who profited from the tragedy was Yoko Ono. Eversince Lennon’s death Yoko Ono has tried to profit in any way she could. In 1981, she displayed his bloodstained spectacles on the cover of her album “Season of Glass” released 6 months after his death. She even sold replicas of the glasses and his shirt he was wearing the day he was shot. In 2009, Ono used John’s bloodstained bag and belongings to create a display which you can see for a huge fee at the New York Rock “N” Roll Hall of Fame.
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Paul Walker fans were distraught at his death in 2013 but that didn’t stop filming of the Fast and Furious 7. With CGI and Paul Walker’s brother as a double, the studio completed the movie which ended with the ending tune being Wiz Khalifa’s “See You Again”
The song somehow became an anthem for Paul Walker and the Fast and Furious franchise achieving thousands of views on YouTube. The song lined the pockets of Wiz Khalifa and the studio and if truly was a tribute to Walker; the proceeds should have gone to his daughter instead.
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Eminem battled addiction of almost every kind after the release of Encore in 2005. Things worsened after the death of his friend Proof in 2006 where he could think of nothing except drugs. In fact, he almost died of overdose had his daughter not found him in an intoxicated state.
Thereafter Eminem went on to release the album “Relapse” that would have several references to his addiction and near death experiences. Two of his songs on the latest album “Revival” also speak about what would have happened if he died. Eminem has also verbally battered his mother Debbie in his songs where he got the crowd to chant in one of his concerts F*** you Debbie.
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The night Chris Brown beat Rihanna almost senseless was a deplorable low in Brown’s life where police photos also surfaced of a battered Rihanna. It was surprising that Brown’s career didn’t end after that.
One year after that night, Rihanna paired up with Eminem to release the single “Love the Way You Lie” which was a song about abusive relationships. Eminem himself no stranger to the same approached Rihanna to sing the chorus. The song was a huge success that even resulted in a Part II.
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