Heidi Montag is the next Mariah Carey. Just kidding. With her new album entitled Superficial, which reportedly cost her two million dollars to produce, Heidi Montag managed to sell 658 copies in the course of a week. That staggering amount follows a tabloid firestorm about her ten plastic surgeries in one day. Now this says a lot about our obsession with celebrity culture. If we as consumers are interested in reading stories about how she managed to change her physical appearance with plastic surgery how does it not translate to at least 1000 album sales. Aren't people inherently interested in everything about this celebrity if we care enough about how wide her nose is today versus two years ago? The lack of album sales for Heidi Montag makes a larger statement about the concept of manufactured fame versus fame from greatness.
This historical debate about how celebrity status arises gives way to two main schools of thought: product of greatness (i.e. athletic ability, artistry, singing talent) or manufactured fame (i.e. produced through marketing and constant exposure). I think the general population can recognize the difference between the two. We care about Heidi Montag if she is forced upon us on tmz.com and their constant barrage of before and after photos. However the general consumer recognizes that this exposure does not translate to singing ability. And because of this logic consumers are not going to take proactive measures (buy her album) when it comes to consuming the cultural text that is Heidi Montag. Our interest in her is much more created and forced by the media than consumers demand. This conclusion is only supported by her selling 658 cd's when her face and story are plastered (no pun intended) all over tabloids and entertainment media.
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