Stage Presence, Great Lyrics, and Dancing for Days: The 80's

Prince (Singing "When Doves Cry")

Michael Jackson

Crazy costumes and crazier hair. Some even had insanely amazing dance moves  and the occasional "Heeee! Heeee!" (mostly from the fellow on the right) to go with it. 80's music artists had unbelievable shows to go along with their fantastic music. They had great theatrics such as lighting effects backing them up as well, but they never lost sight of what was important: lyrics and music. The lyrics from the top artists of this time held powerful messages and were, at times, controversial (i.e. Madonna's Like a Virgin).  The music composition was top notch regardless if musicians chose to stick with more traditional melodies or shifted to more electrical sounds. A lot of prominent musicians of this time, as with the musicians of Sunday's post are among the top artists of all time. They include...

1. The Rolling Stones at #4
2. U2 at #22
3. Bruce Springsteen at #23
4. Prince at #27
5. Michael Jackson at #35
6. Madonna at #36
7. David Bowie at #39
8. Elton John at #49
9. Queen at #52
10. The Police at #70 

The top songs of this era include:

1. 1980's Another Brick in the Wall (part 2) by Pink Floyd (#51 top artist)
2. 1983's Flashdance...What a Feeling by Irene Cara
3. 1983's Every Breath You Take by The Police (#70 top artist)
4. 1981's Bette Davis Eyes by Kim Carnes 
5. 1983's Billie Jean by Michael Jackson (#35 top artist)

What can modern artists take away from 80's artists? Have fun! Be crazy and make shows that are all your own. You will have fun doing it and more people will want to come. But never forget that the lyrics and music should be at the heart of it. The main modern artist that comes to mind that does this is Lady Gaga. Her shows are full of amazing theatrics that dazzle and her content always contains messages that are important to her.

I do not own any of the pictures or videos. My research is from http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/100-greatest-artists-of-all-time-19691231 and http://tsort.info/music/ds1980.htm.

Madonna

Queen