perfecto

this uncertainy as to how much a buyer is donating isn't good, they see £1.00 on the sleeve/sticker but spend £3.99. surely its better to give £4.00 to the charity directly knowing that none will be deducted for "costs" or "expenses". i hope some of the mothers and grannies wise up and do that instead.

look it doesn't look good no matter how hard many are trying to defend simon cowell. £1.00 from every £3.99 going to charity is low. where is the other £2.99 going too? 500k sales = £500,000 to charity £1,500,000 to cover "expenses"? you have got to be kidding me!! any rational person can see that is a hefy sum to cover "cost". simon is a savvy business man he is in control of this release under his label he sets the terms. it can be said objectively that he "could" be making some profit from this. we may never know but we can speculate as the figures don't seem right unless we get a full breakdown of the price. there is nothing wrong with questioning and discussing simon's motives over this matter, its not hate just trying to make sense of it all.

good to hear her back, with radio 1 Alist (you better playlist her!) support and some quality tv promo support like jross. she should do really well but some folk may be waiting for the album over buying the single. buy both fools.

i really like it and her, there is a great quality to her voice like its untamed but heartfelt at the same time. a breath of fresh air different from many other slicker pop voices that clog up the charts. its really good to have her back, the masterpiece of "lets start a band" is still epic for me. a rare perfect 10

add to the fact the era started in Septemper and is now over in January. what the hell!!?? an era that spans just 4 months. Epic are giving up on her, she made so much money for them in the past. and there is still potential with this album but no dedication or money?? shakira did so much promo for this but Epic that that was enough and didn't spend money to back her up. its alll about the spanish album now...question is how good will the lead single be? expectations are high cause of La Tortura, could shakira come up with another distinctive fusion track?

agree second vocal better. her voice has a different quality more womanly love the way she sings the spanish vowels in that traditional style. you can see the enlish language pop elements stripped away and thats good so it can be authentic. the spanish album is coming and thats shakira at her best!!

we'll see, we have to read the fine print on the single, all proceeds should be £3.99 not a penny less.

simon is using this situation, i just saw the ITN news they played a clip of leona's track as part of the item on his charity single. they didn't have to do that giving her promo on the news that not the point of the charity. the PR makes him sound like this God the nation should bow down and worship his goodwill efforts without questioning anything. but simon has his contacts with ITV after all he is their saviour of saturday TV and is using these contacts to promote and raise the profile of SYCO acts. shameless man. the whole point of charity is to give and not directly or indirectly benefit yourself too. just donate a million like sandra bullock and leonardo decaprio and have some integrity for once.

if simon gives a million pounds to the haiti charities then we'll all know about it!! max clifford would make sure simon gets even more exposure in the media plus its good PR for him. but as always simon is very calculating, and sees something he can use....using this charity to also generate awareness for his Syco acts and get another #1 number is why he is doing it. how much money will the single raise? also the question of pricing is crucial whether simon will sneak in a cut for himself as he will claim "to cover his costs". will it be £3.99 and only £1.00 to the charity? why not just donate a million personally like other celebs? why does he have to use an opportunity to benefit his acts too?

the main problem is as simon said himself its not about the music. its a business to him, its cynical and calculated. his acts are pure cash cows if they don't deliver then he is ruthless and drops them. another problem is that its no longer a level playing field, reality driven acts get so much exposure not just on his shows but thanks to simon's contacts in the media. their material is often weak or lazy cover versions, do they deserve #1s? over other better more credible songs that had to do it the hard way. i can't believe that even the bbc and radio 1 pander to simon too by featuring and playlisting some of his terrible singles. they are all helping promote his tv programmes even though they are on a rival channel. BUT it gets worse, cause now we have a section of the population who are used to reality tv acts and expect to get their pop music that way. like some teenagers that have been watching since they were children. simon has his hooks in deep in the UK music industry and every year it will grow with a new batch of cash cows that weren't good enough to get a record deal on their own merits unlike most pop acts. what RATM was freakishly hard to pull off, taking him on and denying him #1s is so tough but interesting to see ;)

thing is jedward are a joke, maybe at first they were amusing cause they can't sing and can't dance and pissed off simon cowell. but the joke is no longer funny many people got sick of seeing the same thing on x-factor BUT then they get signed! what kind of message is it sending signing up acts that so obviously can't sing and dance, but then again its not about the music at all, louis walsh is trying to profit from their gimmickery. if any campaign can take them on these desperate fame wannabes then good luck to them.

simon trying to make it more credible by having beyonce and gaga but ladies stay away from this!! leave it up to simon's syco acts to sing another forgettable cover. question is how shady is he going to be with the donation will it be on £1.00 per physical single but he will sell it (always over priced) for £3.99 pocketing some money for himself too.

come on MITT!! i hope shakira is fighting amanda ghost hard :arrr: to get this released! shakira has said in interviews her favourites on the album are mon amour and men in this town. its also the fans favourite in shakira.com online poll so release it you fukkers!!

Shakira got a Brit award nominaton!! i hope she hets a call to perform but she won't win so she should she go? its good she got recognised, but being objective 2009 was the year of lady gaga so i hope she wins it.

in april? :wacko: why so late? 3 months wait wth! shakira marketing in the uk has always been fukked up, its never slick like other a list acts. can't wait till she stops working with uk division of sony.

they are very manufactured, all x-factor acts are. they go through the process of being told what to sing, how to dance and what to say. their songs go through the machine to create a radio friendly "hit" but these safe forgettable tracks sound generic bland, watered down R'n'B music. actually ts not R'n'B if you compare it to the decade of true R'n'B of the 90s. none of them have distinctive stand out voices with any personality or quirks. they are the epitome of average. over hyped and over rated. another problem is their appeal is limited to teenage girls under the age of 16 maybe 98% of their fans are girls. and teenage girls are notoriously shallow and emotional when it comes to boybands. image and fancying them comes first. thats the hook. they are doing well cause they are filling a gap, we have a generation of teenage girls that have been successfully targeted with this boyband. i don't think anyone over 16 is really into them so don't be surprised by the response on here.

so amanda got her way....the most commercial track on the album, i have to defend gypsy a bit here even though i want MITT as the next single. i like it for what it is, its a warm and playful song, her voice is gentle and expressive nice vocal showcasing her voice. and im glad to see another video but IT BETTER BE GOOD!! the song needs it, no studio this time!! shakira playing a character like disney esmerelda would do me fine. the video could make the track really shine!! please be filimic or like a musical! as far as this being a hit? its all about radio 1 playlisting it. they won't playlist this, so it will struggle :rolleyes: also lyrically is it cool to be a gypsy? and stealing clothes is that also cool? no i don't think so either but somehow shakira gets away with it cause its innocent and her voice has a sweet quality when she sings it.

spoil the tradition of Xmas #1? you mean the tradition of seeing bland x-factor tracks at #1. whats xmasy about that? nothing! sony bosses make the money not simon, he works for them not the other way round. his label Syco has nothing to do with RATM track, some of the proceeds are going to shelter charity. if anything this proves next time maybe a xmas type track could take on x-factor brand cause the RATM campaign have shown it is possible to have a traditional chart battle for xmas #1.

i don't know if it should be a protest track like the RAGE campaign. but they can try cause some of us believe in freedom to challenge xmas #1s. it would be interesting to see another grass roots internet driven song up against tv driven acts. but knowing it is possible to take xmas #1 could create a batch of new xmas tracks by acts from a rival record companies. they should go for it! or a charity single by a group of artists coming together especially for xmas. it is possible to take on the x-factor song but they will need massive promo and PR to take simons latest goliath reality driven syco act cause next year he will spend even more to guarantee he is #1. the down side is too many efforts could dilute things and sales will be spread about and simon is banking on that happening rather than focusing on one track and giving it a big push.

why are you making it personal? you are falling for this simon cowell PR. he tried to make seem like an attack on joe but it isn't, simon is the one calling the people buying the track bullies. he is the one attacking any competition and freedom to challenge the xmas number #1. the man has absolute no shame in the way he uses and twist situations to benefit himself. why can't he and joe be satisfied with a number #2. FFS simon doesn't have a divine right to number #1s.

its not personal against joe, it didn't matter who it was. the song is a terrible lazy cover version and sums up the attitude cowell has towards music. its not about the music for him its about the business and money. joe should be upset with simon cowell lack of effort in giving him an original song. this campaign is about many things...taking on bland music, taking on reality tv influence on music, taking on simon cowell monolopy on #1 and wanting to see a chart battle. people are supporting and buying this for many reasons. the best way to teach smug simon a lesson is too challenge and ultimately deny him but it is so difficult to take on the x-factor brand, him and the most powerful man in PR with all his contacts in the media.

its a shame its a good album with great reviews but the US public aren't giving this a try n buy. GIU2M was a huge mistake to release, i think people are staying away after hearing that song and wondering if the rest of the album is like that. such a shame Epic didn't go with one of her quirky tracks instead. at the end of the day its about the fans, we know its good, its inventive, distinctive and typical shakira bonkers personality. the unbiased music critics see its worth and back us up so its all good musically, not a flop in that sense she should be proud of it. yeah long time is imo good. but it divides fans in a big way, many hate it with a passion. i've been getting into spy recently especially the production and verses but it has to be played loud. who else loves the first 20 seconds of Mon Amour?? clap along with the clapping

yeah its subtle and moody maybe too subtle, maybe that why its not really firing like she wolf but its a good quality song. some good news and some bad news.... shakira dropped out from radio airplay top50. but thanks to radio1 B list she is not decending on itunes. she has been hovering early to mid 30s but is now at #29. i hope it climbs from 40 come sunday. shakira will be on gmtv tomorrow, i hope she sings DIA or they play the video. she needs promo to make up for radio not embracing her. poor shakira always struggling with radio airplay here.

i don't know why but i'm not surprised and not bothered and not upset. this album is a goodbye present to Epic. those meddling fools deserve low profits!! goodbye fukkers

what we have here is an experiment an exploration by shakira into the electronic world. is it completely successful? no it isn't. i agree what is missing is warm, earthy, serious non electronic songs. however she nailed it with SW the single its got an injection of passion and weirdness and that makes it uncommercial but is very shakira. i agree about GIU2M i can't believe seeing shakira homogonized like this with an average timbland production plus rent a rapper. anyone could have sung that track where as SW could only be her. Epic thought by making a safe radio friendly track that she would sell but they have to believe in some of the more shakira like tracks in the album like MITT. Epic's timing wth this era has been terrible and they deserve getting SW underperforming. this only confirms that shakira's judgement to leave them is a sound one. shakira won't be affected by this album not doing so well, she has the spanish album as back up plus a 10 year deal with live nation, she is going nowhere!! the public are totally unsure about this album and its direction, so Epic need to keep pushing electronic tracks so the public get used to hearing shakira with this new sound. GIU2M and Gypsy are not good representations of the album. the spanish albums are always better, i hope its not so slick like SW.