Which musicians do you think are true prodigies?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah people really don't understand what prodigy is. I think T Swift counts, she has been composing songs since she was a child and has continued extremely prolifically through her life.

Joshua Bell and Tori Amos and Princec and Motzart for sure.

I honestly don't know enough about a lot of artists to know if they were prodigies. But like, is Aretha Franklin a prodigy? I didn't think so. And that has nothing to do with her TALENT. It has to do with, specifically, musical skill. Celine Dion was recording albums at 12, that is what a prodigy is. It isn't a knock on Aretha for not being a prodigy but it is a specific thing.

Singing is also different I think than other musical talents. Someone can have exceptional musical talent/skill and not be able to sing, there is a strong biophysical component to singing.

You think Taylor Swift is a prodigy. You don’t completely understand either. Yes, she “writes” songs but it’s not talent or skill. It’s average at best.

Writing songs is absolutely a talent and skill. You don't have to like her songs, but she has been composing full songs with lyrics since childhood. That is an exceptional skill that most children do not have.

This is my whole point everyone is focused on who they think the most brilliant musicians of all time are but that is not the question.

I am not even a big taylor swift fan but she meets the definition of prodigy by any definition. I could not write love story today let alone at 15.

I meant are you really saying songwriting isn't a skill? That is such a ludicrous claim that I think I might be misunderstanding you. I think it is possibly more of a skill than singing a song.

Her songwriting isn’t a skill. Her lyrics read like a 15 year and still do. So many better songwriters including Mariah Carey that there is no way Taylor Swift is in the same league. She can be popular and still be an average talent.

I mean I'm never going to convince someone who hates her so there is no point in trying but people are so weird about her. Both sides are weird, to be fair, her fans are very intense. But she's one of the most skilled lyricists on the planet IMO and critically for this thread, has been writing since she was a kid.

Like Mariah Carey is a better songwriter really? She wrote three albums during COVID! The ability to write a song, tell a story, write music to go with it, that is extremely hard. If an average talent could do what she did than the ticketmaster story wouldn't have dominated the news for two weeks. This is making me sound like one of her crazy fans but it just seems straight up sexist to say that this woman who's wrote an incredible amount of hit songs and albums is 'average'.

I don’t hate her nor do I worship the ground she walks on. And yes, Mariah Carey is a much better songwriter. Go actually look up the lyrics of both artist. Look at the actual vocabulary used to describe emotions, etc.

Taylor Swift constantly puts out music bc she isn’t putting out actual music showcasing skill. Over abundance doesn’t equal talent.

When she was 15 she wrote songs about being 15, as she's aged her music has matured with her. For better or worse she's been writing since she was a kid so she has childlike songs and adult songs. I think Mariah Carey is exceptionally talented and certainly don't want to use this as a way to besmirch her. But I truly believe a lot of the Swift criticism is sexist and probably ageist. There is no group taken less seriously than teenage girls. She successfully captured what it feels like to be a teenage girl (at least, white, in the south teenage girl). Entertainment for women, especially young women, is frequently written off as fluff or surface level and it is just in my opinion unacceptable that we refuse to give work that speaks to the experiences of a huge swath of the population as unserious. Swift is a diarist, you don't resonate with her experiences, nothing wrong with that, but I think you yourself should look at more of her music if you think she has no vocabulary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Jon Batiste!

Yes! +1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Milli vanilli

girl you know it's true

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah people really don't understand what prodigy is. I think T Swift counts, she has been composing songs since she was a child and has continued extremely prolifically through her life.

Joshua Bell and Tori Amos and Princec and Motzart for sure.

I honestly don't know enough about a lot of artists to know if they were prodigies. But like, is Aretha Franklin a prodigy? I didn't think so. And that has nothing to do with her TALENT. It has to do with, specifically, musical skill. Celine Dion was recording albums at 12, that is what a prodigy is. It isn't a knock on Aretha for not being a prodigy but it is a specific thing.

Singing is also different I think than other musical talents. Someone can have exceptional musical talent/skill and not be able to sing, there is a strong biophysical component to singing.

You think Taylor Swift is a prodigy. You don’t completely understand either. Yes, she “writes” songs but it’s not talent or skill. It’s average at best.

Writing songs is absolutely a talent and skill. You don't have to like her songs, but she has been composing full songs with lyrics since childhood. That is an exceptional skill that most children do not have.

This is my whole point everyone is focused on who they think the most brilliant musicians of all time are but that is not the question.

I am not even a big taylor swift fan but she meets the definition of prodigy by any definition. I could not write love story today let alone at 15.

I meant are you really saying songwriting isn't a skill? That is such a ludicrous claim that I think I might be misunderstanding you. I think it is possibly more of a skill than singing a song.

Her songwriting isn’t a skill. Her lyrics read like a 15 year and still do. So many better songwriters including Mariah Carey that there is no way Taylor Swift is in the same league. She can be popular and still be an average talent.

I mean I'm never going to convince someone who hates her so there is no point in trying but people are so weird about her. Both sides are weird, to be fair, her fans are very intense. But she's one of the most skilled lyricists on the planet IMO and critically for this thread, has been writing since she was a kid.

Like Mariah Carey is a better songwriter really? She wrote three albums during COVID! The ability to write a song, tell a story, write music to go with it, that is extremely hard. If an average talent could do what she did than the ticketmaster story wouldn't have dominated the news for two weeks. This is making me sound like one of her crazy fans but it just seems straight up sexist to say that this woman who's wrote an incredible amount of hit songs and albums is 'average'.

I don’t hate her nor do I worship the ground she walks on. And yes, Mariah Carey is a much better songwriter. Go actually look up the lyrics of both artist. Look at the actual vocabulary used to describe emotions, etc.

Taylor Swift constantly puts out music bc she isn’t putting out actual music showcasing skill. Over abundance doesn’t equal talent.

When she was 15 she wrote songs about being 15, as she's aged her music has matured with her. For better or worse she's been writing since she was a kid so she has childlike songs and adult songs. I think Mariah Carey is exceptionally talented and certainly don't want to use this as a way to besmirch her. But I truly believe a lot of the Swift criticism is sexist and probably ageist. There is no group taken less seriously than teenage girls. She successfully captured what it feels like to be a teenage girl (at least, white, in the south teenage girl). Entertainment for women, especially young women, is frequently written off as fluff or surface level and it is just in my opinion unacceptable that we refuse to give work that speaks to the experiences of a huge swath of the population as unserious. Swift is a diarist, you don't resonate with her experiences, nothing wrong with that, but I think you yourself should look at more of her music if you think she has no vocabulary.

DP. So far, I haven’t liked any of Taylor Swift’s music, or what for me are not-relatable lyrics. I enjoy listening to a wide range of musical artists and genres. What would you — or anyone else inclined to jump in — suggest that I listen to to get a sense of Taylor Swift’s talent and skills?

[Anonymous]

Don’t you dare compare goddess Mariah to Taylor swift. Nobody mentioned Whitney Houston. No voice can top hers

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah people really don't understand what prodigy is. I think T Swift counts, she has been composing songs since she was a child and has continued extremely prolifically through her life.

Joshua Bell and Tori Amos and Princec and Motzart for sure.

I honestly don't know enough about a lot of artists to know if they were prodigies. But like, is Aretha Franklin a prodigy? I didn't think so. And that has nothing to do with her TALENT. It has to do with, specifically, musical skill. Celine Dion was recording albums at 12, that is what a prodigy is. It isn't a knock on Aretha for not being a prodigy but it is a specific thing.

Singing is also different I think than other musical talents. Someone can have exceptional musical talent/skill and not be able to sing, there is a strong biophysical component to singing.

You think Taylor Swift is a prodigy. You don’t completely understand either. Yes, she “writes” songs but it’s not talent or skill. It’s average at best.

Writing songs is absolutely a talent and skill. You don't have to like her songs, but she has been composing full songs with lyrics since childhood. That is an exceptional skill that most children do not have.

This is my whole point everyone is focused on who they think the most brilliant musicians of all time are but that is not the question.

I am not even a big taylor swift fan but she meets the definition of prodigy by any definition. I could not write love story today let alone at 15.

I meant are you really saying songwriting isn't a skill? That is such a ludicrous claim that I think I might be misunderstanding you. I think it is possibly more of a skill than singing a song.

Her songwriting isn’t a skill. Her lyrics read like a 15 year and still do. So many better songwriters including Mariah Carey that there is no way Taylor Swift is in the same league. She can be popular and still be an average talent.

I mean I'm never going to convince someone who hates her so there is no point in trying but people are so weird about her. Both sides are weird, to be fair, her fans are very intense. But she's one of the most skilled lyricists on the planet IMO and critically for this thread, has been writing since she was a kid.

Like Mariah Carey is a better songwriter really? She wrote three albums during COVID! The ability to write a song, tell a story, write music to go with it, that is extremely hard. If an average talent could do what she did than the ticketmaster story wouldn't have dominated the news for two weeks. This is making me sound like one of her crazy fans but it just seems straight up sexist to say that this woman who's wrote an incredible amount of hit songs and albums is 'average'.

I don’t hate her nor do I worship the ground she walks on. And yes, Mariah Carey is a much better songwriter. Go actually look up the lyrics of both artist. Look at the actual vocabulary used to describe emotions, etc.

Taylor Swift constantly puts out music bc she isn’t putting out actual music showcasing skill. Over abundance doesn’t equal talent.

When she was 15 she wrote songs about being 15, as she's aged her music has matured with her. For better or worse she's been writing since she was a kid so she has childlike songs and adult songs. I think Mariah Carey is exceptionally talented and certainly don't want to use this as a way to besmirch her. But I truly believe a lot of the Swift criticism is sexist and probably ageist. There is no group taken less seriously than teenage girls. She successfully captured what it feels like to be a teenage girl (at least, white, in the south teenage girl). Entertainment for women, especially young women, is frequently written off as fluff or surface level and it is just in my opinion unacceptable that we refuse to give work that speaks to the experiences of a huge swath of the population as unserious. Swift is a diarist, you don't resonate with her experiences, nothing wrong with that, but I think you yourself should look at more of her music if you think she has no vocabulary.

You can truly think that Taylor represents some under represented marginalized group. I’ve listened to her songs and I have some of her songs on my playlist. However, I’m not delusional in believing she is anything more than a beloved pop star with mediocre writing, singing and dancing ability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah people really don't understand what prodigy is. I think T Swift counts, she has been composing songs since she was a child and has continued extremely prolifically through her life.

Joshua Bell and Tori Amos and Princec and Motzart for sure.

I honestly don't know enough about a lot of artists to know if they were prodigies. But like, is Aretha Franklin a prodigy? I didn't think so. And that has nothing to do with her TALENT. It has to do with, specifically, musical skill. Celine Dion was recording albums at 12, that is what a prodigy is. It isn't a knock on Aretha for not being a prodigy but it is a specific thing.

Singing is also different I think than other musical talents. Someone can have exceptional musical talent/skill and not be able to sing, there is a strong biophysical component to singing.

You think Taylor Swift is a prodigy. You don’t completely understand either. Yes, she “writes” songs but it’s not talent or skill. It’s average at best.

Writing songs is absolutely a talent and skill. You don't have to like her songs, but she has been composing full songs with lyrics since childhood. That is an exceptional skill that most children do not have.

This is my whole point everyone is focused on who they think the most brilliant musicians of all time are but that is not the question.

I am not even a big taylor swift fan but she meets the definition of prodigy by any definition. I could not write love story today let alone at 15.

I meant are you really saying songwriting isn't a skill? That is such a ludicrous claim that I think I might be misunderstanding you. I think it is possibly more of a skill than singing a song.

Her songwriting isn’t a skill. Her lyrics read like a 15 year and still do. So many better songwriters including Mariah Carey that there is no way Taylor Swift is in the same league. She can be popular and still be an average talent.

I mean I'm never going to convince someone who hates her so there is no point in trying but people are so weird about her. Both sides are weird, to be fair, her fans are very intense. But she's one of the most skilled lyricists on the planet IMO and critically for this thread, has been writing since she was a kid.

Like Mariah Carey is a better songwriter really? She wrote three albums during COVID! The ability to write a song, tell a story, write music to go with it, that is extremely hard. If an average talent could do what she did than the ticketmaster story wouldn't have dominated the news for two weeks. This is making me sound like one of her crazy fans but it just seems straight up sexist to say that this woman who's wrote an incredible amount of hit songs and albums is 'average'.

I don’t hate her nor do I worship the ground she walks on. And yes, Mariah Carey is a much better songwriter. Go actually look up the lyrics of both artist. Look at the actual vocabulary used to describe emotions, etc.

Taylor Swift constantly puts out music bc she isn’t putting out actual music showcasing skill. Over abundance doesn’t equal talent.

When she was 15 she wrote songs about being 15, as she's aged her music has matured with her. For better or worse she's been writing since she was a kid so she has childlike songs and adult songs. I think Mariah Carey is exceptionally talented and certainly don't want to use this as a way to besmirch her. But I truly believe a lot of the Swift criticism is sexist and probably ageist. There is no group taken less seriously than teenage girls. She successfully captured what it feels like to be a teenage girl (at least, white, in the south teenage girl). Entertainment for women, especially young women, is frequently written off as fluff or surface level and it is just in my opinion unacceptable that we refuse to give work that speaks to the experiences of a huge swath of the population as unserious. Swift is a diarist, you don't resonate with her experiences, nothing wrong with that, but I think you yourself should look at more of her music if you think she has no vocabulary.

DP. So far, I haven’t liked any of Taylor Swift’s music, or what for me are not-relatable lyrics. I enjoy listening to a wide range of musical artists and genres. What would you — or anyone else inclined to jump in — suggest that I listen to to get a sense of Taylor Swift’s talent and skills?

I am, transparently, not so deeply entrenched in her music that I am able to cite deep cuts. I found Out of the Woods to be very relateable to my lived experience and listened to that one song many times. I think All to Well is a very well written song. And I thought there was a lot of great songs on Evermore and Fokelore. The song with Bon Iver I liked a lot and the one about the rhode island heiress (which I looked up to be the last great american dynasty). And I will say that while I see it as the fantasy it is, I have always loved Love Story and think it very much captures the heart and dreams of what it is to be 16 and in love.

I am not saying all her songs are amazing, I think she's similar to Stephen King who is also extremely prolific (though not a prodigy). Plenty of SK's books are crap, some are spectacular. With great amounts of content comes a lot of variety.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don’t you dare compare goddess Mariah to Taylor swift. Nobody mentioned Whitney Houston. No voice can top hers

Whitney is a prodigy but this question is not about who has the best voice. It is about who displayed exceptional musical talent at a very young age. Everyone is so heated to say their person is the best like, they all lose to Mozart! He was composing at age 4 and his music has lasted for centuries!

This isn't 'who is the best child prodigy' just, which musicians were true prodigies. I think Whitney does qualify as her voice was fantastic even as a young kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it would be good to have a working definition for musical prodigy. It should be those that reach exceptionally high levels of musical achievement *before adolescence*.

Mozart, Paganini, Liszt, Barber, Bizet, Bellini, Prokofiev, Milanollo sisters, Chopin, Schumann, Deutscher, Mendelssohn, Judy Garland, Stevie Wonder, Heifetz, Joachim, Menuhin, Gladys Knight, Bjork (yes, really!), Wooten, Ma, du Pre, Celine Dion, Hilary Hahn, Beyonce, LeAnn Rimes, Midori, etc.

Finally a good list

John legend

Although Legend started in music at a young age, his accomplishments didn’t come until he was much older. Ditto Dylan.

One can make a better case for someone like Charlotte Church than either of them (as a CHILD prodigy)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yeah people really don't understand what prodigy is. I think T Swift counts, she has been composing songs since she was a child and has continued extremely prolifically through her life.

Joshua Bell and Tori Amos and Princec and Motzart for sure.

I honestly don't know enough about a lot of artists to know if they were prodigies. But like, is Aretha Franklin a prodigy? I didn't think so. And that has nothing to do with her TALENT. It has to do with, specifically, musical skill. Celine Dion was recording albums at 12, that is what a prodigy is. It isn't a knock on Aretha for not being a prodigy but it is a specific thing.

Singing is also different I think than other musical talents. Someone can have exceptional musical talent/skill and not be able to sing, there is a strong biophysical component to singing.

You think Taylor Swift is a prodigy. You don’t completely understand either. Yes, she “writes” songs but it’s not talent or skill. It’s average at best.

Writing songs is absolutely a talent and skill. You don't have to like her songs, but she has been composing full songs with lyrics since childhood. That is an exceptional skill that most children do not have.

This is my whole point everyone is focused on who they think the most brilliant musicians of all time are but that is not the question.

I am not even a big taylor swift fan but she meets the definition of prodigy by any definition. I could not write love story today let alone at 15.

I meant are you really saying songwriting isn't a skill? That is such a ludicrous claim that I think I might be misunderstanding you. I think it is possibly more of a skill than singing a song.

Her songwriting isn’t a skill. Her lyrics read like a 15 year and still do. So many better songwriters including Mariah Carey that there is no way Taylor Swift is in the same league. She can be popular and still be an average talent.

I mean I'm never going to convince someone who hates her so there is no point in trying but people are so weird about her. Both sides are weird, to be fair, her fans are very intense. But she's one of the most skilled lyricists on the planet IMO and critically for this thread, has been writing since she was a kid.

Like Mariah Carey is a better songwriter really? She wrote three albums during COVID! The ability to write a song, tell a story, write music to go with it, that is extremely hard. If an average talent could do what she did than the ticketmaster story wouldn't have dominated the news for two weeks. This is making me sound like one of her crazy fans but it just seems straight up sexist to say that this woman who's wrote an incredible amount of hit songs and albums is 'average'.

I don’t hate her nor do I worship the ground she walks on. And yes, Mariah Carey is a much better songwriter. Go actually look up the lyrics of both artist. Look at the actual vocabulary used to describe emotions, etc.

Taylor Swift constantly puts out music bc she isn’t putting out actual music showcasing skill. Over abundance doesn’t equal talent.

When she was 15 she wrote songs about being 15, as she's aged her music has matured with her. For better or worse she's been writing since she was a kid so she has childlike songs and adult songs. I think Mariah Carey is exceptionally talented and certainly don't want to use this as a way to besmirch her. But I truly believe a lot of the Swift criticism is sexist and probably ageist. There is no group taken less seriously than teenage girls. She successfully captured what it feels like to be a teenage girl (at least, white, in the south teenage girl). Entertainment for women, especially young women, is frequently written off as fluff or surface level and it is just in my opinion unacceptable that we refuse to give work that speaks to the experiences of a huge swath of the population as unserious. Swift is a diarist, you don't resonate with her experiences, nothing wrong with that, but I think you yourself should look at more of her music if you think she has no vocabulary.

DP. So far, I haven’t liked any of Taylor Swift’s music, or what for me are not-relatable lyrics. I enjoy listening to a wide range of musical artists and genres. What would you — or anyone else inclined to jump in — suggest that I listen to to get a sense of Taylor Swift’s talent and skills?

I am, transparently, not so deeply entrenched in her music that I am able to cite deep cuts. I found Out of the Woods to be very relateable to my lived experience and listened to that one song many times. I think All to Well is a very well written song. And I thought there was a lot of great songs on Evermore and Fokelore. The song with Bon Iver I liked a lot and the one about the rhode island heiress (which I looked up to be the last great american dynasty). And I will say that while I see it as the fantasy it is, I have always loved Love Story and think it very much captures the heart and dreams of what it is to be 16 and in love.

I am not saying all her songs are amazing, I think she's similar to Stephen King who is also extremely prolific (though not a prodigy). Plenty of SK's books are crap, some are spectacular. With great amounts of content comes a lot of variety.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t you dare compare goddess Mariah to Taylor swift. Nobody mentioned Whitney Houston. No voice can top hers

Whitney is a prodigy but this question is not about who has the best voice. It is about who displayed exceptional musical talent at a very young age. Everyone is so heated to say their person is the best like, they all lose to Mozart! He was composing at age 4 and his music has lasted for centuries!

This isn't 'who is the best child prodigy' just, which musicians were true prodigies. I think Whitney does qualify as her voice was fantastic even as a young kid.

Prince and Stevie are my “Mozarts”.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t you dare compare goddess Mariah to Taylor swift. Nobody mentioned Whitney Houston. No voice can top hers

Whitney is a prodigy but this question is not about who has the best voice. It is about who displayed exceptional musical talent at a very young age. Everyone is so heated to say their person is the best like, they all lose to Mozart! He was composing at age 4 and his music has lasted for centuries!

This isn't 'who is the best child prodigy' just, which musicians were true prodigies. I think Whitney does qualify as her voice was fantastic even as a young kid.

Prince and Stevie are my “Mozarts”.

This. All of this. Real musicians who did it all. Played every instrument, wrote every song.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t you dare compare goddess Mariah to Taylor swift. Nobody mentioned Whitney Houston. No voice can top hers

Whitney is a prodigy but this question is not about who has the best voice. It is about who displayed exceptional musical talent at a very young age. Everyone is so heated to say their person is the best like, they all lose to Mozart! He was composing at age 4 and his music has lasted for centuries!

This isn't 'who is the best child prodigy' just, which musicians were true prodigies. I think Whitney does qualify as her voice was fantastic even as a young kid.

Prince and Stevie are my “Mozarts”.

This. All of this. Real musicians who did it all. Played every instrument, wrote every song.

Stevie Wonder was a child prodigy. Prince doesn't fit that term, since he was in his twenties when he started contributing meaningfully to music. Not even my beloved Freddie Mercury fits into the category of child prodigy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tevin Campbell

+1

Unfortunately he was unable to be his “true” authentic self in the homophobic early-/mid-nineties which harbored his musical career thus ending it.

[Anonymous]

lady Gaga - pianist, range and strength of vocals, writes own music. Also not a bad actress.