Library Rock's Backpages

Right on the Monáe: Janelle Monáe, Gotye, Kimbra

Kate Mossman, New Statesman, 18 July 2012

THE FIRST RULE for writers – apply seat of pants to chair – works for musicians, too. Thirty years ago, the hairbrush and the bedroom mirror were the first and usually last point in the journey of the would-be pop star. Now that the studio is the bedroom and you or I could, with patience, learn to make a record that sounded like one by Quincy Jones, there are some fearsome talents out there playing the long game. Interesting things happen at the point where ambition meets anonymity. You can be a fully formed artistic product before the world even knows you exist.

Total word count of piece: 1318

Subscribe

Becoming a member is easy. Membership gives you access to all the thousands of articles in the library.

Click here to go to Subscribe page.

Click here for academic and other group subscriptions.