Etta James

[Miguel]

On the Haley's in the Studio thread, I have linked to a couple of videos that contain footage from a documentary about Motown.

To mark Etta's recent passing, I am including a third one here that features her:

[john]

At Last was a song that Haley said she had wanted to do on Idol. On X Factor young Rachael really belted out I'd Rather Be Blind, and of course Josh blew away the crowd at his audition with At Last. Good songs to show off your pipes. RIP Etta.

[Miguel]

Christina Aguilera sings At Last at Etta James' Funeral:

[midnightblues]

Wow. Christina sang her ass off on that one.

[john]

While I respect that Christina has a big voice, I am not a fan. I find her very tacky and I hate many of the stylistic choices she makes. I'm always bracing for the next cringe worthy note.

She sings the national anthem at the Superbowl, blows it and then acts like she is performing at her own concert when she's done. She sings at a funeral and finds a way to make it all about her -- the tribute gets lost in the nonsense.

A brief sampling of the comments at YT...why be controversial at a freaking funeral?

Only porn stars show their cleavage at a funeral. If Etta was for that crap, you'd see her half naked like that. Just because you're great at anything in this world doesn't give you the right to just do what you want. There is a thing called respect and this isn't one of them. If you actually think for one second that a woman of Etta James's caliber of class and dignity would allow anyone to go showing off their t!ts, than you are miserably misinformed.
iconicbrand5 18 seconds ago

@2luvis2live Christina has an amazing voice and distinct style she is respected enough to be asked to perform at Miss Etta's funeral which speaks volumes
animefangal2 7 seconds ago

@LookingAtYou I do respect if people didn't like how she came dressed, but that doesn't justify offensive, insulting bad words, that's just too much and that CAN'T and WON'T be respected.
kaiyno 5 seconds ago

@05tjj where you talkin about her or yourself?
Figurean 36 seconds ago
I wish to god Christina would stop singing as if she has something to prove. she always sounds like she is on American idol in a competition. MANY people feel this way but yet she continues. She also looks like a drag queen. i wish she would just tone it it down in both her voice and appearance. regardless...She will be famous long after Brittany is dead of a drug overdose. if she toned it down she might be able to age gracefully.
roscoellis 21 seconds ago

Reply
DAMN! that was some good singing x-tina know how to do it right. I nice tits buy the way
KHWendy28 13 seconds ago

You say she showed too much cleavage while lecturing everyone they must RESPECT (with capital letters) her choice to dress how she wants. YOU need to respect everyone's right to freedom of speech. If they think how she dressed was inappropriate (i.e. disrespectful), they have just as much right as you to state that sentiment.
LookingAtYou 16 seconds ago

christina is back at it again. she always seems to over-sing every damn song, you can tell by the strain in the voice and how red her face was that she was doing too damn much
shiningstar021 9 minutes ago

[Miguel]

I noticed the comments were generally along these lines:

(1) Good performance
(2) Inappropriate attire
(3) She ruined the song by oversinging
(4) I'm a fan but her voice isn't what it used to be

I agree she showed too much cleavage for a funeral and believe she would not have dressed that way for a non-televised, private ceremony held for someone that wasn't famous. It must be hard for Christina, having been marketed as a young sexpot early on, to give up that identity.

Christina's often been accused of oversinging and that same charge was leveled against Haley for her performances early in the Idol competition. I believe Haley did that to showcase what she could do and won't make a habit of it in the future.

Attire-wise, I think Haley has always exhibited good fashion sense. Like a 1950s pin-up girl, she might show some leg and a bit of cleavage, but the outfits she wears are more classy than trashy. I hope that continues to be the case.

[midnightblues]

I hope that continues to be the case that she would be more classy than trashy. Earlier on in the competition she was classified as a pole dancer or something close to it, when the summer tour came along I saw her new rendition of BATJ and I was a little concerned not that she looked bad she looked very hot but there were a lot of kids along with their mothers and grandparents on the tour thinking along the lines that Haley is a very trashy and letting it all hang out type singer including cleavage. What really concerns me the most is I don't want her to be put in the category of female singers with nice bodies and good looks having to sell her product by how sexy they can look, Because I know Haley has both the ability to sing whatever is put in front of her or whatever she decides to write, and looks to go along with it. Welcome to Hollywood Haley just be careful, the Wolf is always at the door.

[cherelann]

In the beginning of Haley's AI sojourn I didn't pay attention to Haley because her attire distracted me. I found some of her come hither facial expressions a little off putting, too. After she sang Janis I began to take serious notice of her vocal ability. Benny pulled me in but it was Moanin that hooked me for good.

There is a fine line between classy & trashy but I have come to believe our Haley has good fashion sense. She seems to dress appropriately depending on the occasion. I don't think she would ever show cleavage at a funeral, lol.

[buzzenator]

Every person sees something a little different, based on our own perspective or biases. I am not a big fan of Christina's version of 'At Last' in the video above, for me it was more pay attention to me and OTT than respectfully honoring Etta's life.

I agree with Steven Tyler that Haley "sings sexy", but it is more like her getting into a character than how she really is when not performing. Her down to earth attitude, adorkableness and caring for others is more who she really is. The sexy, sultry style she can often bring is just part of her ability to perform on stage using a voice that is suited for that style.

I don't remember any cleavage by Haley on the Tour videos, it was mostly shoulders and legs.

[Miguel]

If you could model your career after an artist, who would it be and why?

I would model my career after Corinne Bailey Rae. This radiant sugar plum is so talented and remains very gracious. Not only do I admire her vocal style, but the authentic emotion put into each word she sings pulls me in from the get-go. I respect the fact that she's so classy. She's not doin' it for the limelight, but because she feels it.