As time-tested album cycles are discarded and abandoned, so too is an artist's traditional publicity window. In 2013, the best way to stay in the public eye was not to do interviews, but to bicker, troll, and brawl -- on Twitter, on TV, or in person. Yes, beef was what's for dinner in 2013, and while it would be cynical to assume artists were making multiple trips to the buffet in order to maintain visibility, it would be naive to blindly assume otherwise.
To that end, several of 2013's Biggest Music Beefs were not isolated incidences, but recurring squabbles, or variations on a theme. Heck, Azealia Banks alone was involved in such an array of beefery that we had to eliminate her from this competition so that her own 10 Dumbest Beefs could be examined up close. Same for Death Grips, who topped our list of 2012's Biggest Music Beefs. And you want to know the absolute craziest thing? Even if we were to lump both those acts' respective beefs into single entries on this list, I still don't think either of them would have been able to wrest the crown from the artist who eventually claimed its top spot.
So pull up a chair and dig in. Beef is on the menu, and the feast begins here.
Hi Austin. Fuck SXSW. There… I said it.SXSW never responded -- there was plenty of truth to Smith's accusations, after all -- but a suspicious person might wonder if Smith's diatribe was partly in defense of his girlfriend, Sky Ferreira, who admitted to losing her voice during a show, then doing three SXSW shows with a blown voice, before finally canceling another.Here, the music comes last. 5 minute set-up, no sound check, 15 minute set. The "music" element is all a front, it's the first thing to be compromised. Corporate money everywhere but in the hands of the artists, at what is really just a glorified corporate networking party. Drunk corporate goons and other industry vampires and cocaine. Everyone is drunk, being cool. "Official" bureaucracy and all their mindless rules. Branding, branding, branding. It's bullshit… sorry.
OK, you don’t understand why you need to take a meeting with Kanye West? I’mma show you why you need to take a meeting with Kanye West: EVERYBODY IN ATLANTA RIGHT NOW AT THE LOUIS VUITTON STORE IF YOU BLACK DON’T GO TO LOUIS VUITTON TODAY. [Silence.] THAT'S WHY YOU NEED TO TAKE A MEETING WITH KANYE WEST, BERNARD ARNAULT.
O'Connor, naturally, was offended by this. So she sent Miley another letter, this one a bit more aggressive than the first, demanding an apology, threatening legal action, and saying, "taking me on is even more fuckin' stupid than behaving like a prostitute and calling it feminism." Miley again responded on Twitter, saying: "Sinead. I don't have time to write you an open letter cause Im hosting & performing on SNL this week. So if youd like to meet up and talk lemme know in your next letter. :)"
A next letter did indeed arrive! Sinead opened by saying, "I have no interest whatsoever in meeting you" and closed with, "Cease behaving in an anti-female capacity. You will become the victim of it shortly. Soon it will be you the media [is calling] 'crazy' .. and you will not enjoy it.. and you will appreciate people (like myself) standing up for you. Which I will be happy to do.. if you earn my respect today by apologising publicly."
This time, Miley responded during a spot on The Today Show, where she told Matt Lauer: "I think [Sinead is] an incredible artist, I think she's an awesome songwriter, and I was really inspired by her for my 'Wrecking Ball' video, which was what started the whole thing. I don't know how someone can start a fight with somebody who said, 'Hey, I really respect you. And I really love what you what you did.' 'You know what? You suck! I don't like you!' That was kind of crazy. But as I said, I'm a big fan of hers, so it doesn't really matter."
Not an apology, exactly -- plus, use of the word "crazy." Sinead's fourth letter was the longest yet, although it repeated a single theme: You were wrong and now you have to apologize publicly. Wrote Sinead: "You may disagree with what I advised you in my first letter.. That is your entitlement. However the letter was written in a spirit of motherly care. You're entitled to have told me to go fuck myself if u liked.. But to respond to it in a way that has caused so much personal harm and damage to me and to people who may struggle currently with suicidal feelings.. And to abuse Amanda Bynes .. is beyond my understanding, as is your refusal so far to apologise, along with your further calling me 'crazy' today."
To this, Miley did not respond directly. But when asked in an interview if she and O'Connor would ever "kiss and make up," Miley simply said: "I don't know. Are we supposed to kiss?"
Sinead's fifth letter answered that question right off the bat: "No, worry not," wrote Sinead, "there's no need for kissing.. But let me state again.. You're supposed to apologise for the mocking of any person who sought help, publicly or privately, to prevent themselves from committing suicide. You're also supposed to apologise for mocking people who are mistakenly or otherwise perceived to be mentally ill."
That was on October 14. Then, silence. But on November 5, Miley DID apologize. Not to Sinead, however. No, here Miley apologized to ex-fiancee Liam Hemsworth, with whom she was trying to re-connect. And -- as if taking additional inspiration from Sinead -- Miley's apology came in the form of what she called an "open letter" (it was, in fact, just a regular letter). And in that letter, Miley apologized for her "wild ways" and said she was "sorry for acting so mad."
For her part, Sinead has taken to posting subtweety pictures on Facebook, miming sex acts with vegetables, and flashing big freaky smiles that look a whole lot like those worn by Cyrus … or a crazy person.
