Barenaked Lady Caught with his Pants Down
July 19, 2008 by Eric Eggertson
Filed under Marketing
For some bands, an arrest for cocaine possession is just another week of media attention.
But for any entertainers trying to market themselves to children, drug arrests, unwholesome sex acts or disrespect for religion can be career stoppers.
The initial response from The Barenaked Ladies website said Steven Page had pleaded not guilty and “the validity of the charges against Steven will be strongly contested.”
While there’s a lot of societal tolerance for booze, “soft drugs”, and addictions to bad haircuts, the murmurs of understanding seem to die out when cocaine, meth, heroin or any of the harder drugs are involved.
While the cheerful, energetic lead singer’s legal case is being built, he and the band will have a lot of work to do on the reputation restoration side.
Not so much from their adult audience, who may be disappointed with a celebrity’s poor choice of mind-altering substances, but from parents who don’t want to expose their children to “bad influences.”
The behavior of children’s entertainers has always been held to a higher standard than us regular folks.
The Ladies have always been able to handle the media and their fans well. Here’s hoping they find the right combination to work through this situation.
I am very concerned. First for Mr. Page, his health & wellbeing. Second, for his children and the Page family as they deal with the microscope of the media as they pry into their ordeal, and Third for the people to whom Mr. Page shares his image…band members, fans, and yes of course our children. Am I worried about any influence on my children as we enjoy BNL music? NOT AT ALL! I am the influence upon my child, not a picture or a sound, or even a man they will most likely never meet (but hey, any BLN’ers feel free to stop by anytime, just leave the bad stuff at home!) These are adult issues that won’t even be discussed with our child (um, he’s 3 ok, not 12!) and in the meantime our best wishes go out to the REAL people….Steven, his family, his co-workers and their families in the days ahead. Thanks for the great times, but in the end, we each have to answer for ourselves!
Thanks for the comment.
Ditto on your best wishes to the people involved.
Celebrity chasers seem to forget that a few hit albums don’t change the fact these folks aren’t stories to be chased. They’re people.