The Student Room Group

As Justin Bieber can play musical instruments and Michael Jackson couldn't

Does that make Bieber a better artist/musician?
Listening to Justin Bieber makes me want to punch someone, while listening to MJ doesn't. Therefore, MJ is better. :qed:

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Absolutely not.
whether someone is a better artist is subjective. it depends on your tastes. for example, i dont think either of them are particularly good artists, but if you disagree with me then i respect that.
Original post by EmergencyBagels
i dont think either of them are particularly good artists


Same here.
Exactly

plus loads of people like Justin Bieber so he must be good
It doesn't matter how many instruments Justin Bieber can play it doen't make him sing any better
Reply 7
So? it's what you do with the instruments that matter. I've listened to a few of his songs and only 1 album of his is strictly acoustic, why doesn't he use his instruments more often if he's such a good musician?
Better/the best is so subjective.

Plus, music is a matter of taste.
Michael Jackson was an extremely talented singer and a hugely influential artist, who wrote, recorded and sold some of the most loved tracks of all time. He was also a very talented performer who was unique in style.... whereas Justin Bieber has an mediocre voice, and in my opinion he hasn't contributed anything unique to music. The voice is an instrument, and Michael Jackson probably knew much more about his instrument than JB knows about his.
Reply 10
If someone can't play piano, and another person can, then yes, that latter person is a better pianist.

But artist and even musician mean different things. Saying that someone is a talented artist suggests not just that they are grade whatever in this or that, or they can do a good cover of whatever on guitar, it means they have an understanding of music. They are original, can feel and 'see' music, they respect what music means and what it can do. Sometimes, if you're stretching it to extremes, all a brilliant musician is their music etc blah. In that respect, MJ ****s all over Justin Bieber.
Michael Jackson was a creative genius. The fact he composed such amazing music without being able to play any instruments is a testament to how good he was. Many songwriters and producers that worked with MJ, including the legendary Quincy Jones, have come out and said how surprised they were with his songwriting talent.

Technical ability/knowledge doesn't necessarily relate to creativity. The Beatles couldn't read sheet music, they just played what sounded good to them. James Brown, who wrote some of the funkiest music in history, deliberately didn't learn about intricate details of music composition because he felt it would be limiting to his ideas. Some of his songs break simple musical laws, but they still sound amazing.
(edited 10 years ago)

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