statsman1982 said:
That’s a valid point. It seems that it should be important that a singer is voicing their own songs, rather than songs provided by someone else. That seems somehow truer to emotional connection, or something.
Except singers do get credit for being songwriters. Think Bob Dylan, whose vocal talents are far overshadowed by songwriting skills. Though to be fair, at least early in his career he was intelligible. Or think of Billy Joel. Or Bruce Springstein. Etc.
But the pop music industry does give far more credit to the performers than the writers. Furthermore, it gives far more credit to the singers than musicians in most cases. Sure, Eddie Van Halen, Joe Satriani, and Eric Clapton are known for their guitar skills above anything else they do, but they are exceptions when the “front” to a band is typically the vocalist.
A song is a whole package. Pop music is about different artists with different audiences. Some is about listening for emotional content, some for aesthetic enjoyment, some for dancing. And people have vastly different tastes.