Technology and Celebs Get Along Famously

07/10/2009

Us mere mortals can now share the lifestyles of the rich and famous via a plethora of internet wizardry and stellar gadgets, allowing us to bag a bit of star quality.

Hollywood’s love affair with blogging has jumped across the pond with British stars such as Stephen Fry and tennis ace Andy Murray now sharing their every move with us on social networking sites such as Twitter.

Where would we be without Jonathan Ross’ eating habits or Britney’s tour banter? Even President Obama used the medium to drum up support during the electoral race.

Blogging and now Tweeting are the latest phenomenon made addictively popular by A-list trendsetters, with many of us now baring our souls and tracking each other’s whereabouts via mobile devices such as smart phones.

Thanks to pint-sized computers and smart phones many people are taking advantage of freely-accessible music online, whether it’s by using Last.fm, Spotify or other internet jukeboxes.

Now available as an iPhone application, Spotify gives music fans access to millions of songs online without the need for a huge hard drive or investing in a pricey collection. It also allows users to share playlists and with some users being celebs, it’s like stealing your favourite rock star’s MP3 player.

From The Saturday’s sugar coated pop playlist to Radiohead’s eclectic Arabic odyssey, edgy newcomer VV Brown’s quirky influences and celeb blogger Perez Hilton’s camp club classics- which include Dolly Parton…need we say more – there’s certainly something for everyone.

While handy to the average cash-strapped music junkie, such technological advances have divided rock royalty, with Radiohead famously unveiling their last album as a pay-what-you-like download, while Lily Allen is tweeting against freebies, arguing it stifles up-and-coming talent. Whatever your stance, singers are keen to get their music to the masses – whether free downloads is the way to go, you’ll just have to watch this (my)space.

The web phenomenon is credited with launching such talents as The Arctic Monkeys and most notably-Lily Allen, regularly featuring exclusive tracks, pre-releases, demos and videos. Even rock-aristocracy (some might say dinosaurs) Oasis used the platform to unveil a new video.

Meanwhile, musicians are also using Twitter to reward fans for their support. Mika recently announced special gigs for Tweeters only, while fans and artists alike can use a variety of plug-ins and other in genius methods to share music and preview up- and-coming releases.

Singer Rob Thomas loves his BlackBerry to stay in touch with family while on a demanding tour schedule, while McFly drummer Harry Judd relies on his Sky+ box to catch up on his favourite TV programmes after a few months on the road.

If you’re so lucky to come across a campaigning celeb, meandering model or swaggering singer while on your travels, although an autograph is all well and good, chances are you’ll want to capture the moment on film (well, memory card).

Join the paparazzi with an SLR camera, some of which now come in compact sizes to keep in your bag on the off-chance of an encounter. As any member of any celeb’s entourage will know, it’s also a good idea to keep a bumper size high capacity memory card handy for an impromptu exclusive, while extra chargers and batteries for essential gadgetry are vital to ensure you’re never out of the loop.

Even if it’s not celebrity stalking but a photo call with friends, it’s never too early to perfect your pose ready for your 15 minutes of fame.