At this point in the ratings game, there’s almost nobody left who doesn’t know what Glee is. The show averages an astronomical number of viewers and has turned its cast into stars. With the second season came an even wider audience and a more devoted fan base, and Fox has already ordered a third season. Of course, the show hasn’t been without its criticism, but Glee has won every battle of sheer popularity. The critics are, for the most part, ignored.
A recent public blowout, however, between the show’s creator and rock band Kings of Leon brought to light another ballyhooed aspect of the show, and it’s one worth mentioning. The story is this: Glee approached Kings of Leon sometime in the not-so-distant past about using their song “Use Somebody” on the show, and the band turned down the request claiming they had never seen Glee while simultaneously insisting that lending their song to the pop culture phenomenon would be akin to “selling out.” In a recent interview in “The Hollywood Reporter,” Glee creator Ryan Murphy was quoted saying, “Fuck you, Kings of Leon. They’re self-centred assholes, and they missed the big picture. They missed that a seven-year-old kid can see someone close to their age singing a Kings of Leon song, which will maybe make them want to join a glee club or pick up a musical instrument.” The dispute was further aggravated when Kings of Leon band member Nathan Followill tweeted a homophobic insult to Ryan Murphy and suggesting he get over the whole debacle. In the end, Murphy spoke out about the homophobia and Followill apologized and retracted his quote.
The whole public battle between Murphy and Kings of Leon is nothing if not childish and downright embarrassing. Murphy acted like an immature toddler when he blasted Kings of Leon for their refusal to let Glee use their song, and came off like a pompous windbag when he insisted Glee was some sort of musical miracle. Despite this, the villain in the story ended up being Followill thanks to his homophobic taunt. Overall, nobody wins in a public drama like this one.
The feud highlights these questions: Are artists selling out by licensing their songs to Glee? And how should rejection be dealt with? Musicians have right to decide who can cover their songs, and while the definition of selling out is murky at best, if that’s how an artist feels about Glee, there’s really no reason they shouldn’t be able to turn down good money if they feel it will maintain their integrity as an artist. After all, once Glee gains control of a song, they are veritably free to do with it what they wish, and this can be a terrifying situation for an artist who has worked hard to make their music. That being said, Glee brings many songs to a broad audience and can definitely help popularize an artist should they choose to allow the show access to their catalogue.
There’s no right or wrong in the decision to allow Glee to use songs, and there’s no reason artists should be disrespected for turning the show down. However, should artists refuse to allow Glee to use their material, it’s completely unprofessional to make things personal. Glee will be here for a while, and many artists will give their songs to the show by the time it ends. The show’s fans are appreciative for the new versions of their favourite songs and for exposure to songs they never knew existed. In the end, the original songs still exist and artists are allowed to keep their songs intact should they so choose, so does anybody really get hurt?
