为什么歌手都去演电影

格兰德并不是最近唯一一位登上银幕的流行乐坛公主。

双语精读

Why are pop singers popping up in films?

为什么流行歌手开始出现在电影里？

You could tune out for a few seconds and miss it. There is a brief moment in "Popular", one of the song-and-dance numbers in "Wicked", when Ariana Grande delivers a riff that sounds more like something from one of her hit pop songs than the operatic trills typical of Glinda the Good Witch.

如果你走神几秒钟，就不会注意到。在《魔法坏女巫》的歌舞片段《变身万人迷》中有一个短暂的瞬间，爱莉安娜·格兰德唱出了一个重复旋律，这听起来更像是她的某首热门流行歌曲，而不是善良女巫格林达的那种典型的歌剧颤音。

The movie musical has grossed over $725m and is up for ten Academy Awards on March 2nd, including Best Supporting Actress for Ms Grande. On social media her fans, who call themselves "Arianators", have fixated on that moment. It was, one user said, "just the touch of Ari we needed".

这部音乐电影的票房收入已超过7.25亿美元，并将于3月2日获得十项奥斯卡提名，其中包括格兰德的最佳女配角提名。在社交媒体上，她的粉丝们（自称“亚莉战士”）一直密切关注着这一刻。一位用户说，这正是“我们要的A妹魅力时刻”。

Ms Grande is not the only pop princess to grace the silver screen of late. Selena Gomez plays the tragic, chaotic wife of a Mexican cartel boss in "Emilia Pérez".

格兰德并不是最近唯一一位登上银幕的流行乐坛公主。赛琳娜·戈麦斯在《艾米莉亚·佩雷斯》中饰演一位墨西哥毒枭头目的悲剧性、心理混乱的妻子。

For decades talented folk have moved between the recording studio and the studio lot. In Hollywood's Golden Age, many performers were a "triple threat"-ie, they could act, dance and sing.

几十年来，文艺工作者一直在录音室和电影制片厂之间穿梭。在好莱坞的黄金时代，许多演员都是“三项全能”，也就是说，他们会表演、会跳舞、会唱歌。

As Hollywood seeks to lure audiences to cinemas, producers will be thinking more strategically about casting. Increasingly your favourite singer may also be your favourite movie star.

随着好莱坞寻求吸引观众走进电影院，制片人在选角时会更具策略性地思考。你最喜欢的歌手越来越有可能变成你最喜欢的电影明星。

Box-office receipts are studio executives' primary concern. Cinemas have struggled since the pandemic. Many people would rather watch videos on TikTok or YouTube at home, or wait for a film's release on streaming services, than rush out to see a new title.

票房收入是电影公司高管们关心的首要问题。自疫情以来，电影院一直在艰难生存。许多人宁愿在家看TikTok或YouTube上的视频，或者等电影在流媒体平台上发布，也不愿走出家门去看新片。

Cast a famous musician, however, and the equation changes. Singers are in their fans' ears every day. Gayle Stever of the Empire State University of New York says that this intensifies the one-sided connection: "More frequent contact does foster a closer parasocial relationship."

然而，请一位有名的音乐人来出演，情况就会改变。歌手每天都在粉丝的耳边唱歌。纽约州立大学帝国学院的盖尔·斯特弗表示，这让粉丝与歌手的单方面联系更为密切：“更频繁的接触确实会培养一种更亲密的准社会关系。”

In 2024 a study by Deloitte found that, across every generation, individuals are more likely to say that their support of a particular musician-as opposed to a film franchise or video game-is an important part of their identity.

2024年，德勤的一项研究发现，在每一代人中，个人更有可能表示，他们对某个音乐家的支持——而不是对电影系列或视频游戏的支持——是自己身份的重要组成部分。

Gen Z, in particular, takes fandom seriously. As a way of proving their fealty to celebrities, many youngsters make videos about their work. Clips tagged #fancontent have almost 60m views on TikTok.

Z世代尤其把粉丝文化看作严肃的事。作为一种证明自己对明星忠诚度的方式，许多年轻人会制作关于他们作品的视频。带有“粉丝内容”标签的视频在TikTok上有近6000万次观看量。

These videos-such as the analyses of Ms Grande's "Popular" riff-are free marketing for film studios. Casting chart-topping musicians is one way for the film industry to stay in tune with the times.

这些视频——例如对格兰德的《变身万人迷》重复乐段的分析——对电影公司来说是免费营销。让排行榜冠军音乐人出演电影是电影业与时俱进的一种方式。

词汇预习

重点讲解

Why are pop singers popping up in films?

为什么流行歌手开始出现在电影里？

tune out 

1. 关掉；停止收听

【例】Please tune out the radio.

请把收音机关掉。

【反义词】tune in to sth  收听/看某节目

【例】We often tune in to the news.

我们经常听/看新闻节目。

2. 不听；开小差；走神

【例】All the students tuned out when the speaker began on a long list of uninteresting facts.

当演讲者开始讲一长串无聊的事实时，所有学生都走神了。

【拓展】tune  v. 调音

You could tune out for a few seconds and miss it. There is a brief moment in “Popular”, one of the song-and-dance numbers in “Wicked”, when Ariana Grande delivers a riff that sounds more like something from one of her hit pop songs than the operatic trills typical of Glinda the Good Witch.

如果你走神几秒钟，就不会注意到。在《魔法坏女巫》的歌舞片段《变身万人迷》中有一个短暂的瞬间，爱莉安娜·格兰德唱出了一个重复旋律，这听起来更像是她的某首热门流行歌曲，而不是善良女巫格林达的那种典型的歌剧颤音。

tune out 

1. 关掉；停止收听

【例】Please tune out the radio.

请把收音机关掉。

【反义词】tune in to sth  收听/看某节目

【例】We often tune in to the news.

我们经常听/看新闻节目。

2. 不听；开小差；走神

【例】All the students tuned out when the speaker began on a long list of uninteresting facts.

当演讲者开始讲一长串无聊的事实时，所有学生都走神了。

【拓展】tune  v. 调音

The movie musical has grossed over $725m and is up for ten Academy Awards on March 2nd, including Best Supporting Actress for Ms Grande. On social media her fans, who call themselves “Arianators”, have fixated on that moment. It was, one user said, “just the touch of Ari we needed”.

这部音乐电影的票房收入已超过7.25亿美元，并将于3月2日获得十项奥斯卡提名，其中包括格兰德的最佳女配角提名。在社交媒体上，她的粉丝们（自称“亚莉战士”）一直密切关注着这一刻。一位用户说，这正是“我们要的A妹魅力时刻”。

fixate on sth  密切关注某事；迷恋某事

【例】She has for some time been fixated on photography. 

她这段时间迷上了摄影。

High achievers sometimes fixate on their own flaws.

优秀的人有时候会特别在意自己的缺点。

【拓展】fix  v. 使固定

【拓展】fixation  n. 异常的依恋；癖；情结

【例】a mother fixation 恋母情结

Ms Grande is not the only pop princess to grace the silver screen of late. Selena Gomez plays the tragic, chaotic wife of a Mexican cartel boss in “Emilia Pérez”.

格兰德并不是最近唯一一位登上银幕的流行乐坛公主。赛琳娜·戈麦斯在《艾米莉亚·佩雷斯》中饰演一位墨西哥毒枭头目的悲剧性、心理混乱的妻子。

triple threat  三面手；三项全能

【例】The athlete is a triple threat: He can run. He can throw. He can jump.

这位运动员是一个三面手：他能跑、能投掷、能跳。

【近义词】Jack of all trades 样样精通的人

Renaissance man/woman 多才多艺的人

all-rounder  n. 全才；全能的人

versatile  adj. 多才多艺的人

For decades talented folk have moved between the recording studio and the studio lot. In Hollywood’s Golden Age, many performers were a “triple threat”—ie, they could act, dance and sing.

几十年来，文艺工作者一直在录音室和电影制片厂之间穿梭。在好莱坞的黄金时代，许多演员都是“三项全能”，也就是说，他们会表演、会跳舞、会唱歌。

triple threat  三面手；三项全能

【例】The athlete is a triple threat: He can run. He can throw. He can jump.

这位运动员是一个三面手：他能跑、能投掷、能跳。

【近义词】Jack of all trades 样样精通的人

Renaissance man/woman 多才多艺的人

all-rounder  n. 全才；全能的人

versatile  adj. 多才多艺的人

As Hollywood seeks to lure audiences to cinemas, producers will be thinking more strategically about casting. Increasingly your favourite singer may also be your favourite movie star.

随着好莱坞寻求吸引观众走进电影院，制片人在选角时会更具策略性地思考。你最喜欢的歌手越来越有可能变成你最喜欢的电影明星。

lure  v. 诱惑；吸引

【例】Large firms lure customers away from small businesses with slick advertising. 

大公司以花言巧语的广告把顾客从小店拉走。

【搭配】lure sb into/to/out of... 吸引某人做某事

【近义词】tempt  v. 诱惑；吸引

【搭配】tempt sb to do sth 诱惑/吸引某人做某事

would rather do A than do B 宁愿做A，也不愿做B

【例】She would rather die than give a speech. 

她宁愿死也不愿意做演讲。

【近义词】prefer doing A to doing B 更愿意做A而不是做B

prefer to do A rather than do B 更愿意做A而不是做B

Box-office receipts are studio executives’ primary concern. Cinemas have struggled since the pandemic. Many people would rather watch videos on TikTok or YouTube at home, or wait for a film’s release on streaming services, than rush out to see a new title.

票房收入是电影公司高管们关心的首要问题。自疫情以来，电影院一直在艰难生存。许多人宁愿在家看TikTok或YouTube上的视频，或者等电影在流媒体平台上发布，也不愿走出家门去看新片。

lure  v. 诱惑；吸引

【例】Large firms lure customers away from small businesses with slick advertising. 

大公司以花言巧语的广告把顾客从小店拉走。

【搭配】lure sb into/to/out of... 吸引某人做某事

【近义词】tempt  v. 诱惑；吸引

【搭配】tempt sb to do sth 诱惑/吸引某人做某事

would rather do A than do B 宁愿做A，也不愿做B

【例】She would rather die than give a speech. 

她宁愿死也不愿意做演讲。

【近义词】prefer doing A to doing B 更愿意做A而不是做B

prefer to do A rather than do B 更愿意做A而不是做B

Cast a famous musician, however, and the equation changes. Singers are in their fans’ ears every day. Gayle Stever of the Empire State University of New York says that this intensifies the one-sided connection: “More frequent contact does foster a closer parasocial relationship.”

然而，请一位有名的音乐人来出演，情况就会改变。歌手每天都在粉丝的耳边唱歌。纽约州立大学帝国学院的盖尔·斯特弗表示，这让粉丝与歌手的单方面联系更为密切：“更频繁的接触确实会培养一种更亲密的准社会关系。”

equation  n. 等式；情况；综合状态

【例】When children enter the equation, tensions may arise within a marriage. 

有了孩子以后，婚姻关系可能会变得紧张。

【辨析】equality  n. 均等；平等

equity  n. 公平

【拓展】equal  adj. 相等的；均等的

In 2024 a study by Deloitte found that, across every generation, individuals are more likely to say that their support of a particular musician—as opposed to a film franchise or video game—is an important part of their identity.

2024年，德勤的一项研究发现，在每一代人中，个人更有可能表示，他们对某个音乐家的支持——而不是对电影系列或视频游戏的支持——是自己身份的重要组成部分。

as opposed to  （表示对比）而不是

【例】This exercise develops speed as opposed to strength.

这项运动锻炼的是速度，而不是力量。

【拓展】opposed  adj. 反对的；截然不同的

【例】I am opposed to the idea.

我反对这个主意。

Our views are opposed on this matter.

我们对于这件事的看法完全不同。

Gen Z, in particular, takes fandom seriously. As a way of proving their fealty to celebrities, many youngsters make videos about their work. Clips tagged #fancontent have almost 60m views on TikTok.

Z世代尤其把粉丝文化看作严肃的事。作为一种证明自己对明星忠诚度的方式，许多年轻人会制作关于他们作品的视频。带有“粉丝内容”标签的视频在TikTok上有近6000万次观看量。

as opposed to  （表示对比）而不是

【例】This exercise develops speed as opposed to strength.

这项运动锻炼的是速度，而不是力量。

【拓展】opposed  adj. 反对的；截然不同的

【例】I am opposed to the idea.

我反对这个主意。

Our views are opposed on this matter.

我们对于这件事的看法完全不同。

These videos—such as the analyses of Ms Grande’s “Popular” riff—are free marketing for film studios. Casting chart-topping musicians is one way for the film industry to stay in tune with the times.

这些视频——例如对格兰德的《变身万人迷》重复乐段的分析——对电影公司来说是免费营销。让排行榜冠军音乐人出演电影是电影业与时俱进的一种方式。

be in tune with  与……一致/协调

【例】These proposals are in tune with our thoughts on the subject. 

这些建议与我们在这个问题上的想法一致。

【反义词】be out of tune with  与……不一致

【例】He is always out of tune with everyone.

他老是和大家唱反调。

【拓展】Stay tuned for our next lesson.

请继续收听我们的下期课程。

课后练习

• What is special about the brief moment in "Popular"?

  A. It contains beautiful operatic trills by Glinda the Good Witch.
  B. Ariana Grande’s riff is different from the style of the movie.
  C. It is a brilliant adaptation of Ariana Grande’s pop song.
  D. It has earned Ariana Grande an Oscar nomination.

• What is the recent trend of casting in Hollywood?

  A. Focusing on actors with a background in theater.
  B. Casting those who can act, dance and sing.
  C. Casting more pop singers in movie roles.
  D. Avoiding using any pop stars in movies.

• Casting a famous musician may lure people to cinema because ____.

  A. singers have a greater influence on fans
  B. musical films have become a popular genre
  C. watching films in cinema provides better experience
  D. Gen Z considers their support of films as a part of their identity

• What is the author's attitude toward casting pop musicians?

  A. Negative.
  B. Approval.
  C. Neutral.
  D. Sarcastic.