dI have a different opinion Andrea Laffranci, born in 1969, critic of Corriere della Sera and professor at the IULM University of Milan: “Actually, I do not think that there is necessarily a lack of institutional criticism behind dissidence. Let’s think about the criticism received last year from Love Mi. Newspapers then talked a lot about Auto-Tune. In addition, in interviews with artists, the topic of numbers, read pop music is often raised.
according to the number of threads or followers. I think there is criticism on these points, the problem is that newspapers are read less than before and then it “seems” that there is no criticism. When it comes to music, much less attention is paid to information than before. There are many reasons. There is another, economic, which should not be underestimated. Once upon a time, before risking spending 20,000 lire or 20 euros on a record, someone tried to understand what his reference critic thought of this record. Today, listening to an “extra” album through streaming does not require any additional investment from the listener. My “marginal cost” of listening to an additional recording is zero.“. Where can criticism find new meaning? On this, Laffranchi thinks like many of us here at MOW: “Reviews may still exist in specialized journals, but today the possibilities for criticism are different: that is, to try to analyze the phenomenon. Telling what people miss. We are the ones who have to connect dots that are sometimes far away, to define a new map, new paths. Example: last Milan date Weekendwhich left us all a little cold. It seemed to me more like an investment in communication than a concert (as we usually think about concerts). We must try to measure ourselves with change, we have no alternative. On one opinion, we can no longer compete with social networks. Social networks, on this, brought us out. Once upon a time, criticism could change the course of a career, but not today. Even the value of “discovery” for a journalist has diminished. An example that I also use in university courses: when the Beatles first came to Italy, in 1965 (then they had already existed for 3 years), journalists were absolutely not ready. They behaved arrogantly, ironically. The Beatles – I mean the Beatles! Incredible questions were asked. What happens if you lose your hair? The title was: “The Descent of the Wigs”. And today instead? “When the first single came out last year Anna, which then took first place in the charts, I wrote that Anna did not have a record contract until four weeks ago, she did not exist. How would you tell today’s readers, “I’ve found something,” if you go from nothing to number one in four weeks?
Nevertheless, Laffranki does not hide from the trap: “The trap marked a deep break with everything that came before. If earlier in a talent show a novice boy could perform a work by De Gregory, Zucchero, Negramaro, anyone, then today this is no longer the case. Today, a new artist no longer allows himself to be produced by a well-known and experienced producer, he records his usual team. The bridge with the past has collapsed, there is no dialogue. What sense would a duet between a big name from the past and a hunter have today? Just a few years ago, a duo big and young could work for both, today a hypothetical duo of Giovanotti-Rcomi might not be useful for either of them.