Royal Purple

Issue date: 4/23/08 Section: Opinion

Bremer [Click to enlarge]

Every time I catch wind of another celebrity couple tying the knot, I picture myself in loge seating with a large foam finger cheering on the home team. Immediately, stars fast forward to the bottom of the ninth inning, and as per America's favorite past time, we only allow three strikes to the players. The odds are against them and they need the support of the fans to knock it out of the park.

Luckily for Ashlee Simpson, I just so happen to be the last surviving specimen of her fan club. So as she enters into holy matrimony with Fall Out Boy guitarist Pete Wentz, you can best believe I'll be on deck, watching and encouraging each move.

Naturally, spectators don't have the most faith in the younger Simpson playing house at this point in her life. After all, it is no secret that the young singer has driven a beat up jalopy down a rocky road of public scrutiny. She'll never live down her SNL lip sync jig, not too mention the canines across America that came howling in response to her 2005 Orange Bowl performance.

Simpson has laid pretty low these past couple years and let her older sister have the evil spotlight. I've always defended her despite the criticism she receives. She was rather immature and new into the music scene when all of her debacles ensued. As over-bearing as her father/manager appears to be, I'm sure he played a large part in thrusting her into these situations that she clearly wasn't ready for. And since she was following in Jessica's footsteps she had more to prove than most new artists do.

This is unfortunate because I really think she has a lot of potential musically, but people cannot disassociate her from the more negative things she's better known for. I'm just reminded of a young Avril Lavigne when she first hit it big with Complicated. I can remember her performing it live at a MTV sponsored event. Let's just say Simon Cowell would have eaten her for lunch. But you know, she was out there and maturing into a real artist. And you didn't see disgruntled fans posting a petition online to ban her from singing as they did Simpson.

With the announcement of Simpson's engagement to Wentz, she may just have another chance with the public. She had mentioned in past interviews that Wentz is an inspiration to her and offers her advice with music. The Fall Out Boy member, with hits like "Sugar we're going down" and the remake of "Beat it" is a well-respected artist whom Simpson could truly benefit from heeding advice.

I only hope she doesn't dig her own grave the way her sister did. I challenge anyone to name an artist that has experienced longevity and success after airing their dirty laundry in a reality show, excluding American Idol.

Simpson has been accused of mooching off her sister's fame and sneaking in the back door of the music industry. People need to see she's not in it for the fame but actually strives to be a respected artist. This is her opportunity to set herself apart as an individual by proving that she's serious about her career and commitments, professionally and personally. She has already exhausted at least two strikes.

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