Juice Wrld died today and I keep seeing people say he was a legend. The same thing when Chester Bennington died. You may personally be a fan but none of these people are legendary. They weren't even household names. Paul McCartney is a legend. Jimi Hendrix was a legend. Let's stop tossing this word around and save it for those who deserve it.
shareAnother word the media keeps using when some nobody that anyone has heard of dies is "iconic" or "influential."
I blame the 2000s. This is when the media started designating no talents or mediocre celebrities like Biggie Smalls and Aaliyah "legends" just for dying early.
Biggie wasn't "no talent" or "mediocre", though. He also didn't die in the 2000s.
Your personal opinion doesn't equate to fact, though. He's still talked about and an influence to artists to this day.
There are many musicians and artists I can't stand, but can still admit they are/were talented.
I think the point is, more people heard about Biggie after he died. Only his fans knew him before that, but that isn't legendary.
shareHis fans, or anybody that read magazines, watched tv or listened to the radio, yes.
Some people hadn't heard of him, agreed, but he was definitely known among more than just his fans.
A legend would be someone who's heard of far and wide, and he just wasn't that mainstream for that to qualify. I was a teenager when he was at his peak, and I was barely aware of him. I highly doubt he was a global phenomenon. He only had hits from one album. like a lot of rappers in the 90s, he would have faded into non-existence. I wasn't a fan of rap, but I knew who Tupac was. There is a difference between being a shooting star and a legend.
shareWas also a teenager at his peak I heard of him from the kids at school and his constant air-play.
You knew Tupac, him and BIG have gone down in history together though
I read mags watched tv listened to the radio etc
Never heard of him until this post.
Apparently not the channels or magazines that discuss rap, or the radio stations that played it.
I also watch tv, read and listen to music, but haven't heard of everyone in the genres I don't pay attention to.
That said, all I was saying was he wasn't a nobody when he was alive and played a big part in the whole industry.
You're missing the point. I hate rap but I know who Snoop dog is for eg even though he isn't a legend either.
I like a lot of music which isn't mainstream played by people who actually gave talent. But even if they died it still doesn't make them legends.
Being big in your own circle is fine but it's not the making of a legend.
For the sake of keeping the argument tight, how about...
Tupac: legend
Juice Wrld: non-legend
(Snoop Dogg: non-legend though some would want to make a case)
At the end of the day there's only one thing that's truly a legend and that's a foot.
Snoop has been around for like 30 years, so it's natural people would have heard of him. He's been involved in every form of media, even Martha Stuart Show.
Since everybody should have heard of them (OR be a fan) to qualify as a legend, this would mean the OPs question is moot as there are none.
I didn't say he died in the 2000s. I said that in the 2000s, this is when the media started arbitrarily calling people talented, whereas before they didn't.
Your personal opinion doesn't equate to fact, though. He's still talked about and an influence to artists to this day.
I was just going off the example you used. You mentioned the media propping people up in the 2000s because they died, and cited Biggie and Aaliyah. You could have meant that the media decided to start propping up Biggie +8 years after he died for no reason, though.
Soulja boy didn't change music, though. Some people think he's talented, I can't think of any artists who've been influenced by him though. The people who are/were influenced by him obviously think he's scary talented, though.
Generally influence does equal talent, though, yeah. It's entirely a matter of opinion, though. On the other hand, if they weren't good, and nobody thought they were good, people wouldn't try to emulate.
Agree so much. This can be applied to any faucet of life, not just musicians though.
Like when I was in highschool, for example, there were a handful of deaths.
They went from being the school bullies and assholes to everyone talking about how great they were and how everyone will miss them and how the world is a darker place..yadda yadda.
Nah. If you're a fuckin prick alive, you're just a dead prick when you pass. Harsh, but oh so true.
When I was in high school there was a guy who was in a gang. I remember him telling us how a few months earlier he stabbed a guy and stole his car. A few years later he was at a house party and someone shot him in the head because he was going to testify against someone in court. Suddenly people started saying how great he was and how he was trying to get his life back together. I even recall reading in the newspaper how his mom claimed he was never in a gang. Sure, mom.
shareJohn McCain is a perfect example of this. The guy was a warmonger and deep in the oil companies pockets, and all of this was well known. As soon as he died, the only thing that is remembered is that he was a POW. I'm sorry he was a prisoner of war, but that doesn't give you a pass for starting wars for money.
shareMan, they're gonna use "Legend" for Justin Timberlake and Justin Beiber. Somehow they will be in the same league as Michael Jackson...
shareThe same people who will call Bieber and Timberlake legends won't even know who Michael Jackson is.
shareMichael is already being forgotten by the younger generation. Sad...
shareIf he's getting forgotten then he's not a legend.
That said, I don't think anyone is forgetting MJ. The young generations were never alive when MJ was a superstar, so they can't possibly remember him, let alone forgetting.
Kids are still getting exposed to MJ songs tho'. Even my 5-yo kid knows his songs from Despicable Me 3.
Justin and Justin ARE legends, but that doesn't mean they are bigger than the biggest pop star ever.
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