Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro has laid into Kesha, U2, and pretty much everyone at the Grammys, criticizing the “Tik Tok” singer in particular for her emotive performance.
Ben Shapiro is a rising star in the young conservative movement and is sometimes compared to Milo Yiannopoulos, who he has feuded with and is rumored to dislike.
The New York Times has profiled Shapiro respectfully, saying, “he represents the tastes of an emerging political class.”
Kesha is well-known for her major lawsuit against her record label. Kesha accused her former producer, Dr. Luke, of physically, sexually, verbally, and emotionally abusing her, according to Rolling Stone . Dr. Luke countersued at one point, and eventually, a New York Supreme Court Justice denied an injunction that would have released Kesha from her obligations t her label Kemosabe. A Free Kesha hashtag started trending after an image of Kesha looking distressed in court went viral.
Ben Shapiro weighed in on the emotional Grammys performance, which was inspired by Kesha’s ordeal with Dr. Luke. Shapiro quotes some sexually-suggestive Kesha lyrics from a different track and says the blonde singer should adjust her self-presentation if she wishes to be thought of as more than a sex object. The fast-talking Daily Wire editor insists that he is aware of the argument that men “shouldn’t look at you like a sex object, no matter what you wear” and that his statement is “mildly controversial,” but he stands by his point, saying, “life is filled with realities you may not enjoy.”
Shapiro rants that Hollywood is full of abusers and that everyone in the audience knows who the perpetrators are. Shapiro sneers about the posturing, calling it a “double game.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_mAT5k7kGk
“Not a single name was named. We all know who these guys are!”
Shapiro also had a go at U2, saying he is sick of the band’s signature sound, hailed as epic, with a soaring, larger-than-life quality, when it was still fresh back in the 80s and 90s. Shapiro notes that U2 relies on reverberating guitars and effects applied to Bono’s voice — which sounds like it has been muted dramatically on one knob before being dialed back up in another part of the mixing panel– to achieve their signature sound. The stadium favorites tend to sing about large themes like loss, spirituality, humanitarianism, social change, and human brotherhood, and the sound probably evolved because both the muted vocals and reverberating guitars evoke a feeling of being in a large cavernous space. This fits well with the ambitious themes of the lyrics and with the band’s reputation as stadium giants who are great live.
Shapiro declared himself “so bored” with U2, who have not changed their sound since the 80s, except for flirtations with EDM/electronic back in the 1990s “Discotheque” era and light glam rock touches in songs like “Lemon.”
“Blessed are the s***hole countries.”
Shapiro rants about Bono’s declaration, “Blessed are the s***hole countries,” during U2’s Grammy performance. Bono was referring to Donald Trump’s recent provocative question about whether immigrants from what the president called “s***hole countries” are providing value and doing America any good.
“The reason people are leaving is because these countries aren’t great,” Shapiro tells his listeners. “Wouldn’t you want those countries not to be bad?”
“That is such a nonsensical statement,” Shapiro adds, ranting that he and his wife have an immigrant nanny who they love, but they would never say they are happy her country is having problems right now.
The conservative commentator ridicules Bono for his posturing about diversity, focusing on a moment when the U2 singer stares at the sky with an American flag-printed megaphone in his hand.
“Oh look, he’s so diverse. Look at Bono staring up at the sky,” Ben says mockingly during a rant about the excessive use of posturing, face-pulling, and histrionics in modern music.
The Daily Wire editor asks whether Bono even has American citizenship, saying “it’s all just irritating.”