By Tolu Salako
Staff Writer
British culture is the American teen’s guilty pleasure. Their accents, music and TV shows all contribute to the American teenager’s slight obsession with Britain.
During the summer of 2011, a swarm of British artists came into America, releasing new singles and albums from various music artists including Jessie J, Tinie Tempah, Adele, Ellie Goulding etc.
Thanks to VEVO, a website used to watch music videos and discover new artists, many British artists have been introduced to America by this website. Jessie J, a British pop artist, was the first to host the series VEVO Lift, a webisode series about a new artist’s life and what to expect on their upcoming album. Since then, other European and British artists have been the host of Lift and have recently been successful in America such as Tinie Tempah and Oh Land.
By simply taking a glance at the iTunes top ten artists, there is handful of them that are from British or at least European descent. Adele’s album has been in the top ten for many months and has been blowing up the radio. American artists such as Britney Spears and Ke$ha used be in the same position, which has recently been taken by the Brits.
“I really think that people like British stars because they have more raw voices and of course everybody wants to hear someone with a different accent,” sophomore Mary Claire Phillips said.
About two years ago, the only British stars and artists that American teens were familiar with were the cast of Harry Potter and maybe the members of Coldplay. Since that time, British media has increasingly emerged into American culture at a very fast pace.
Recently, a remake of the British show, “Skins”, premiered on MTV on Jan. 17, 2011. The show was about teenagers in New York City and their lives about their dysfunctional families, mental illnesses, substance abuse and death, etc. However this show did not connect with the American audience in the same way the original Skins, based in Bristol, England, did back in 2007.
“[Skins US] didn’t have the same characters and the actors were very one dimensional,” junior Tatiana Gantt said, “The British ‘Skins’ show had a lot more depth.”
In addition to the debut of new British TV shows in America, the show “Misfits” premiered in the UK on Nov. 2009 and recently Hulu started to post new episodes every Monday of this hit show so it can be available to Americans.
The British culture seems to appeal to the younger generations due to their different slang, accents, and music style. The situation and scenarios are different to what American teens would face, such as the unchanging weather, the school systems and the way that British students are educated. The British culture is completely different yet American teens can relate to it because of the same language.
MTV is one of the most famous TV channels in America while E4, a UK channel with the same concept as MTV, is one of the most watched channels by teens in the UK. Many UK stars started out their careers on E4, including stars from “Skins”, “The Inbetweeners”, “Misfits”, “Doctor Who” and “Nearly Famous.”
There is no doubt that the British are stepping into America creating a large entertainment base for all teenagers to enjoy.
