Music Review: Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this double CD is chock-full of
positive, self-empowering messages for tween girls, delivered
with the kind of self-conscious sincerity that will irritate
most music fans over the age of 10. Perfect for its target age
group, it's definitely NOT for the whole family. Adults are
warned to bring their own iPods to the dance party.
Families can talk about the self-esteem and "you can do it"
messages here, delivered with the subtlety of a pick-axe. Do
you think the messages are effective? Would they be more or
less effective in the context of subtler, more interesting
songs? What's the difference, musically, between music produced
for "tweens" and music presented as art, with no special
agenda?
Adorable Miley Cyrus is -- get this -- a regular school kid AND a rock star. You see, it's a secret identity thing, and none of her classmates have figured it out. Wait! That's Hannah Montana, so that means Miley Cyrus, who plays Hannah Montana, must actually have THREE identities: regular school kid, weekend-warrior rock star, and daughter of country-music one-hit wonder Billy Ray Cyrus. Yikes, it sure does get confusing! What doesn't get confusing, ever, are the steadfast good intentions dripping from every pore of HANNAH MONTANA 2/MEET MILEY CYRUS, with Miley singing her appealing little heart out on one perky "go get 'em girls" anthem after another.
Tweens who buy this product get a lot for their babysitting money: two CDs, one featuring songs from the TV show Hannah Montana; the other introducing originals billed as being by Miley herself (despite lengthy professional songwriter credits on the package). Perfect for tweens, this CD is likely to irritate anyone with more mature musical taste. Synthesized and over-processed, with a message about as subtle as a sledgehammer, there's absolutely no crossover potential here, so be sure to have your own iPod handy.
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