Christina Aguilera finds herself in a junction many 90s & 00s veterans have unfortunately come to know.
With her last Platinum album dating a decade back to 2006, Aguilera has some serious ground to make to win back her pervious prowess – especially after the limp response to her last LP ‘Lotus’ in 2012.
In an age so saturated with female Pop stars and after a lengthy spell out of the spotlight, what can Xtina do to set herself apart?
We have a few suggestions. Join us after the jump…
We at That Grape Juice feel there are a few factors detracting the star from achieving present-day success. Factor’s she’ll need to address before her comeback and during. First and foremost…
Christina Struggles With Being Relatable.
She doesn’t have that charismatic personality or story that younger demographics can latch onto. Even from her mentoring role she comes across quite stoic and unattached. There also seems to be a lack of connection between Aguilera and her fan base. With the Katy Perry’s and Lady Gaga’s of the world so immersed with their respective audiences, it would behoove Christina to re-establish this relationship.
Speaking of connections, it would also be refreshing to see the star…
Collaborate More With Artists Beyond ‘The Voice’
After creating her own Diva-esque persona, the four-octave vocalist has rubbed many wrong in and outside the industry. A point that isn’t conjecture, but fact. Just ask Mary J. Blige, Pink, and more. Despite squashing the alleged feud with Gaga, Aguilera still appears to carry a certain level of affluence.
In recent times, she’s achieved success as a feature artist with the likes of Maroon 5 [‘Moves Like Jagger’] and Blake Shelton [‘Just A Fool’]. There has also been some dalliance beyond ‘The Voice’ fold with Pitbull [‘Feel This Moment’] and A Great Big World [‘Say Something’]. We’d love to see her continue down the latter path and fuse her talent with others beyond acts that share those comfy red chairs. Because, in doing so, she’ll re-affirm that she has an artistic narrative away from the show.
Which serves as a sound segue-way to unpack our belief that she needs to…
Leave ‘The Voice’ To Get Her Voice (And Market-Share Back)
It’s no secret that coaches on ‘The Voice’ earn a pretty penny for their services. Indeed, many sources suggest each panelist pockets double-digit millions per season of the NBC hit.
And while the likes of Blake and Adam have parlayed this into ways of making even more moolah (see: touring), Xtina has arguably been the most complacent coach of all.
Sure, she recently became a mother again. But even before then, she would routinely be the only judge who didn’t use the platform to plug new projects. Instead, she’d perform covers and serve up cliché but acceptable critiques. More recently, she’s resorted to dueting with CGI projections of legends.
The end result has seen her become palatable to TV audiences, but lose her grip on the record-buying public who largely see her as “that woman on The Voice.” A reality that became oh so clear when she finally did try (unsuccessfully) to use the platform to promote ‘Lotus.’ Unfortunate as the LP, while not her best, did house hot material (see: ‘Your Body’ et al).
This, for us, serves as evidence enough for why Christina needs to vacate her spot on the show. And we don’t mean sitting out a season here and there. But rather for a lengthier window.
She needs to re-establish herself in the music sphere; hit the radio stations to talk about new material, perform at the opening of a door, and create brand partnerships that forcibly inject her back into the musical mix.
She’d be voluntarily leaving a large sum of money on the table; coin that trumps the returns from songwriting royalties and the level of touring she’d be able to do in her current predicament. However, it’s highly unlikely she’s short on funds. Hence, from where we’re standing, it’d be for the greater good.
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Christina had the makings to ascend to the lofty level of success enjoyed by the Mariah Carey’s. Yet, ultimately her career has taken a different path.
Still, while not in the best of positions presently, there’s no reason why fresh success needs to elude her in the long-term.
She remains a name whose talent warrants a certain respect. She’s also still in possession of said talent. As such, at a relatively young 35, we’re hesitant to say all bets are off just yet. After all, Ms. Carey did experience an epic ‘Emancipation’ at the same age.
We’re curious to see what the blond bombshell turns out with her 7th instalment.