Sound CheckJustin Bieber’s management team bans concert reviewers from Toronto show
It looks like the negative attention that his halftime show performance garnered during the 100th Grey Cup on Nov. 25th might have stung 18-year-old singer Justin Bieber a little more than he let on.
See more: Fans boo Justin Bieber at Grey Cup
As the Toronto Star reports, Bieber's management team is not welcoming concert reviewers at his upcoming show at the Rogers Centre on Dec. 1. Steph Porter, a spokeswoman for the venue, says, "They've pretty much decided there's going to be no reviewers, just photographers."
She also said, "They've determined that for pretty much all of his shows."
Dealing with criticism is something that every celebrity must endure at one time or another and some can handle it better than others.
In November 2011, it was rumoured that former Oasis lead guitarist Noel Gallagher's public relations team denied Gary Flockhart, an Edinburgh Evening News music writer, media passes to his show based on the writer's review of his band High Flying Birds' debut album, calling it a "let down."
See more: Fireworks overshadow Grey Cup halftime performances
According to The Guardian, Simon Blackmore from Black Arts PR responded to Flockhart's request in an email, writing, "Sorry Gary — not going to be able to spare any (is ridiculously oversubscribed and can't fit everybody in). That piece you wrote about him last week didn't exactly help your cause to be honest."
However, Gallagher later responded to the claim on his website, writing:
"There was also a story in one of the local newspapers that I'd had some hairdresser-turned-journalist BANNED from the gig for apparently sh-tting on my album? A ludicrous claim. As you might guess, I'm not an avid reader of the local Edinburgh News. Sounds like someone trying to make a name for himself, if you ask me."
Country superstar Taylor Swift dealt with a music critic who she felt was too rough on her by writing the tune "Mean," which appeared on her 2010 album "Speak Now."
"There's a song called 'Mean,' that I guess you could categorize it into feelings and or relationships but it's actually about a critic," Swift told Dose.ca. "I totally understand constructive criticism and even criticism, professional criticism. When it crosses a line and becomes mean, that's when it really becomes painful and this was somebody who was consistently writing things that would just shatter my day."
See more: Young 'X Factor' contestant wows singing 'Over the Rainbow'
Rapper Kanye West also felt the pressure from the press when fashion critics weren't too kind after the unveiling of his first collection and banned them from attending the preview of his second collection at Paris Fashion Week in March 2012.
New York Times fashion writer Eric Wilson recounted West's actions, explaining, "He canceled last minute, saying, 'I don't know about this. I got treated unfairly by the press last time. Why would I want to do this?'"
When artists refuse to participate in a fair discussion of their work it can set a dangerous precedent for other artists. Fans are unable to get a balanced view of the artist's work when performances are closed off to the media. Welcome to the new, even more tightly-controlled Bieber machine.
True, everyone is entitled to their opinion and as Huffington Post blogger Ruth Gerson points out, there is a "difference between judgement and criticism," but in the ever-expanding world where almost anyone can be a critic on the Internet, where do you draw the line?
