Celine Dion fans are protesting her exclusion from Rolling Stone’s list of the greatest singers of all time. On January 6th (IST), a group of angry fans staged a protest outside the magazine’s office to express their disappointment at Dion’s omission from the list. This list, which was released last week, caused controversy and polarizing reactions from music fans worldwide due to the exclusion of certain artists and the ranking of others.
Who is protesting Rolling Stone magazine?
A group of Celine Dion fans called The Redheads, who are based on Facebook, traveled from Montreal to New York City to protest outside the Rolling Stone office, according to a report in Variety. The group, which consisted of 15 people, carried signs with messages such as Rolling Stone you’ve hit an iceberg. The founder of The Redheads, Line Basbous, stated that the group wanted to show support for Celine Dion and make Rolling Stone aware of the singer’s fans’ opinions. Basbous called the magazine’s list of greatest singers “ridiculous” and stated that the group was confused by the exclusion of Dion and Madonna, as they feel that the list seems to only focus on American singers.
Gene Simmons and Marty Friedman respond to Rolling Stone’s list of the greatest singers
Musicians Gene Simmons and Marty Friedman have also expressed their reactions to Rolling Stone’s list of the greatest singers. Friedman, a former member of the band Megadeth, tweeted that he was not surprised by the list given the source, and suggested that the assessment should be taken with a large grain of salt. This comment was in response to a tweet by the account “Elvis Presley News,” which questioned the magazine’s ranking of Bob Dylan above Elvis Presley. Gene Simmons, a member of the band Kiss, was also left off Rolling Stone’s controversial list of the greatest singers. In an interview with TMZ, Simmons stated that he did not care about the list and called it “one-sided” and skewed. He argued that the list is not about singing ability but about popularity and having a distinctive style and voice.
Photos and videos of Celine Dion fans protesting outside the Rolling Stone office, holding placards, and shouting slogans were shared on social media platforms. Some netizens on Twitter mocked these fans and questioned their employment status and the validity of their complaints. One user wrote, “@ViralMaterialz I get she was snubbed but damn get a job (crying emojis)“, while another asked if people don’t have jobs on January 6th. A third user commented, “Peak first-world problems.
What is the list of the 200 greatest singers of all time according to Rolling Stone?
In 2008, Rolling Stone released a list of the 100 greatest singers. The magazine stated that they used an “elaborate voting process” at the time, which included input from prominent musicians. The new list, however, was compiled by the magazine’s staff and key contributors and is intended to represent “100 years of pop music as an ongoing global conversation. Rolling Stone emphasized that the list was ranked the greatest singers, not the greatest voices of all time. The criteria for inclusion on the list included originality, influence, the depth of an artist’s catalog, and the breadth of their musical legacy. The list includes a diverse range of artists, including Lata Mangeshkar, Jung Kook of BTS, Lana Del Rey, and Rosalia from Spain.
According to Rolling Stone, the top 10 greatest singers are Al Green, Otis Redding, Beyoncé, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Mariah Carey, Billie Holiday, Sam Cooke, and Whitney Houston, and finally at Number 1, Aretha Franklin.