Photo by pjangelfishHow did we not get to this sooner? From reading today’s arts sections around town, it appears there might be a new regime in music writing.
The Post’s Chris Richards spent yesterday at the National Building Museum for the taping of Christmas in Washington, the annual star-laden bash in which celebrities get to hang with the first family.
For the 30th edition of the show, President Obama and family were joined by Jennifer Hudson, Cee Lo Green, Nickelodeon star Victoria Justice and Conan O’Brien, who emceed the afternoon’s festivities.
Oh yeah, Richards’ lede:
’Twas 1 p.m. on Sunday, and all through the National Building Museum, hundreds of creatures are stirring — just not Justin Bieber, who’s off dreaming about sugarplums.
The Biebs has blown off rehearsal to sleep in, putting some good, old-fashioned holiday panic into the usual clockwork preparations for “Christmas in Washington,” the annual pop concert taped downtown.
Richards aptly connects Bieber’s stardom to the Obama presidency, reminding us that “Bieber made his TV debut at Christmas in Washington two Decembers ago, when few knew his name. The president accidentally called him ‘Justin Bye-ber.'” But yesterday, Bieber rolled in late, with Richards noticing that the “sighs of relief are actually audible.” And the show goes on.
Perhaps not to be outdone in the race for Bieber-induced pageviews, the City Paper’s Arts Desk blog—my old haunt—culled the Biebs’ rendition of “Little Drummer Boy” for today’s installment of its annual collection of Yuletide tunes, “The Sleigher.”
Brooke Hatfield was unsparing:
The last verse tacks on a message of charitable giving, but by then you’ll feel that actually listening to the song in its entirety should be tax-deductible. Remember how in The Princess Bride, Wesley builds up an immunity to iocane powder? If you have tweens in your life this Christmas, you may as well listen to this song over and over again until it doesn’t make you feel like a Grinch with Tourette Syndrome.
Harsh words for the Canadian phenom and Busta Rhymes, his sidekick for this track, but one has to imagine the City Paper is pulling down decent clicks.
But wait! There’s more Bieber!
Over on The Post’s Click Track blog, Richards has a bunch of outtakes from his “long, merry” afternoon with Christmas in Washington. Some Bieberisms:
On being back in Washington:
It’s really amazing to be here again and for [President Obama] to want me back is really incredible… Everyone is in the Christmas spirit.
On ladies at the airport:
I just had a lady come up to me at the airport the other day and say, ‘Oh, I loved your performance on “The View,”’ and all these things. And I was like, “Do you have kids?”
On new rappers:
Uh, pffft. New rappers? No. But my boy Lil Twist is up for best new rapper on MTV. So him.
On salutations, Richards:
In addition to becoming one of the biggest stars in pop music over the past 24 months, he has also developed a very grown-up handshake.
Good to know.
