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Pick at the pops: 12 November 2007

Michael Jackson and 50 Cent

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Our weekly round-up of the weird and wonderful world of pop music...

In this grasping world, it’s nice to see some generosity every now and then. Now, pop stars aren’t famed for altruism, unless you count upping your public profile at a charity gig once a decade, but Moby – the popular American dancemeister with the very wide parting – is offering his music to independent film makers for free. Yes, free, gratis, no charge, to put on soundtracks of their choice. It’s a wonder he makes any money at all. After all, it’s not the first time the chrome dome has offered his songs for soundtracks – last time, a load of advertising executives snapped them up and… oh yeah, he made zillions of dollars.

Also being unexpectedly generous to the public is slow-witted rap king 50 Cent. Fiddy has reneged on his pledge to retire if Kanye West beat him in the recent album sales battle (West whupped Fiddy all over the world, of course), and has decided to give the public more of what they want. “I don’t know if it’s possible for a rapper to retire,” he mewled. “Rappers are like fighters. You’ll see them come back and back.” Oh good. Another busted flush, like Eminem and Jay-Z, who doesn’t know when it’s game over.

Michael Jackson reckons he knows when it’s over, mind you. In his first published interview in more than a decade, Jacko declared that he doesn’t want to work in music right into his old age, like “James Brown or Jackie Wilson did, where they just killed themselves”. So, Jackson wants to quit while he’s ahead, while he’s still got it, while he’s still young and healthy and before he loses his marbles. Er, Mike, dunno how to break this to you, but…

Quitting while he’s way behind is acid-tongued curmudgeon Elvis Costello. He’s only quitting England – which he actually left a quarter of a century ago to put down roots in the States, but now he says he doesn’t care if he never plays England again. Apparently a Glastonbury slot in 2005 wasn’t a roaring success – “I don’t dig it, they don’t dig me.” We’re just going to have to cope, people.

Matthew Horton

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