Pop, goes the girl

>> Musiqueplus VJ Anne-Marie Wittenshaw embraces the pap that rules the charts

by GENEVIEVE PAIEMENT

Anne-Marie Wittenshaw is living proof that one person's dream job is someone else's nightmare. As a Musiqueplus VJ covering the pop beat, you can imagine the conversations with your average guests-of-the-moment might amount to tedious soundbites--you can only go so deep with bands whose haircuts somehow manage to be worse than their music. Still, scores of young'uns idolize the glam life of a VJ, which they assume is filled with fascinating conversations with their favourite infinitely interesting musicians. Wittenshaw, a bilingual Concordia Communications grad, admits that while some interviews tend to be less than scintillating, she scorns the cynical naysayers, opting for a more optimistic opinion on pop--she gives it two thumbs up, sort of. The Mirror turned the tables on this chatty demoiselle of québécois music television and grilled her on the state of popular music, what it's really like to have to interview pre-teen heartthrobs and her top 10 CDs of the year.



Mirror: So, since being a VJ depends upon and revolves around it, what do you think about the state of pop music today?

Anne-Marie Wittenshaw: First of all, it's okay to like pop.

M: Do you think people are ashamed to admit they like pop music?

AW: Yes, of course they are!

M: Pop means so many different things to different people though.

AW: It's true. Like a PJ Harvey record might be popular, but it ain't "pop." But, like, dude! 'N Sync have got a dope song out right now.

M: Really? Which one?

AW: That pop song, it's called "Pop" and it's so good! As much as I'm listening to System of a Down and Tool and stuff like that, I also listen to these wicked commercial hip hop compilations that a friend of mine makes me and I'm a total addict of stuff like Missy Elliott, Jay-Z, Ludacris. I listen to them in my car and I'm like, "Yeeeeah!" And it's totally misogynistic, sexist, gross music, but I love it. I don't know why. And I love that "gitchy-gitchy-ya-ya," "Lady Marmalade" song from Moulin Rouge too. But the moral of this year is: it's okay to like pop--and Britney's got a hot ass. No, really, you know who's got a hot ass? Shakira's got a hot ass. She's got this going on. [She gets up and does a booty shake.]

M: So you think pop is doing well, that it's in a healthy state? A lot of people complain that it's not.

AW: Well, no. I don't think it's necessarily healthy. But how can you judge its health? You have to look at each particular scene. It's really fragmented. Like in the last couple of years, hard music has been coming back, which is really, really cool.

M: You mean like nü-metal?

AW: Yeah. But, I don't want to say that because I don't really like Disturbed and that kind of stuff, but they've got some good songs. Those guys are really the new pop music, all that stuff that plays on Cool FM, even if it's heavy, it's pop. But what I really mean by pop is sugar-sweet, bubblegum pop.

M: Like boy bands and the like. You're saying it's okay to like that stuff.

AW: It's okay to like it, it's okay to sing along--

M: And it's your job to interview these people. But what's more fun, interviewing one of them or an actual musician?

AW: Actually, I really don't enjoy interviewing them because they're not really musicians and often their image is more important than the music they're trying to sell, so they're very, very guarded. It's like interviewing Jennifer Lopez. "Don't talk about her boyfriend, Puff Daddy, her ass or her private life. And she doesn't write her own songs." So what the hell am I supposed to talk about with her? There's only so much you can do with that. It's like with the Backstreet Boys: "You can't talk to A.J. about his alcoholism for more than two minutes and you can't talk to Nick about girls." I just interviewed Britney Spears a few weeks ago and the Gazette totally fucking trashed me. They were like, "A suck-up interview for a suck-up pop star." And it's like, what do you want me to ask Britney Spears, honey? Everyone wants to know about her boyfriend, about her breasts and about her singing a song called "I'm a Slave For You." I'm not gonna trash her. She may be a multi-millionaire, but she's still a human being and I'm not going to trash her. Pop stars can be kind of vacant sometimes, but some of them are really nice :



Anne-Marie's top 10 of the year (in no particular order):

Shuggie Otis Inspiration Information (Luaka Bop)

"Crazy, West Coast psychedelic soul, R&B from California. Genius, with beautiful guitar work, like a cross between Stevie Wonder and Bill Withers. Totally spacey."

The Ramones Self-titled debut reissue (Warner Archives)

"You get alternate versions of songs we all know so well, like 'Blitzkrieg Bop' and 'Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue.' It's pure, raw, punk emotion. It's great to drive around in your car with, which is very important."

Tool Lateralus (BMG)

"For your ageing uncle who's still stuck in his Genesis/King Crimson phase--which, by the way, there's nothing wrong with--you get him the Tool record and he feels like he's discovered a whole new universe. You can stare at the trippy artwork for hours. They filled the Molson Centre with more people than the Backstreet Boys."

U2 All That You Can't Leave Behind (Island)

"I know the album is from last year, but this year was really U2's year. I saw their tour three times and it kicks everybody's ass, it's so great. The record is uplifting, it's perfect for these uncertain times."

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Blow in the Wind (Fat Wreck Chords)

"Five guys from five different punk bands doing wicked covers of really good '60s songs, except for "Who Put the Bomp?" which is a shitty song, but it's good on this record. They do "My Boyfriend's Back" and they're all big fat guys so that's pretty funny."

Various Girl Group Greats and More Girl Group Greats (Rhino)

"It's the perfect compliment to the Me First and the Gimme Gimme record. In all you get 40 songs about boys, talking on the phone, dances, drag races, being alone on a Saturday night. The two CDs don't come together, but you gotta get both."

The Doves Lost Soul (Heavenly/EMI)

"It came out in England in '99, but it only got released here this year. In the Grandaddy, Flaming Lips vein, mixed with a little Coldplay and Travis, very spacey, with lush orchestration. NME gave this album nine out of 10 and said it was the best debut since Definitely Maybe from Oasis."

Various Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts From the British Empire & Beyond (Rhino)

"It says on the cover: 'Contains virtually no hits! Four discs of hitless yet priceless singles.' Way funky, trippy, psychedelic mod shit from the U.K., the U.S. and Japan. Plus, the liner notes were put together by totally nerdy, '60s nostalgia people who give you the lineup for every single song."

Sytem of a Down: Toxicity (Columbia)/Slipknot self-titled (Roadrunner)

"For your angry little brother or sister who's discovered aggro metal like Disturbed. You want to steer them down the right path, so you buy them some smart angry music. Toxicity is like Middle-Eastern groove meets punk/hardcore/metal. And Slipknot are nine guys who get dressed up and scream and it's fucking fun, really heavy music."

Hi-Tek Hi Teknology (Rawkus)

"A compilation with Hi-Tek, Common and Talib Kweli and a lot of people. The beats are prime and it's just great."



Honourable mentions: John Coltrane The Classic Quartet: Complete Impulse Studio Recordings (Impulse), Stanton Warriors The Stanton Sessions (XL) Lupine Howl The Carnivorous Lunar Activities of Lupine Howl (Vinyl Hiss), Nathaniel Merriweather Lovage: Music to Make Love to Your Old Lady By (75 Ark)