Past Prologue

Previously, on Buffy the Vampire Slay--I mean, on Operation: Disque Drop...

Sorry, that's what I get for imagining that Anthony Stewart Head is narrating the headlines for my blog. Anyway, in the blog's maiden voyage, we established who Alizée is (with the help of some rather blatant eye-candy), we established who I am (kinda/sorta, in broad general terms), and then ended on a cliffhanger, with the answer to a world-shatteringly important question left dangling. Namely...

OK, so what is Operation: Disque Drop, then?

Thanks, Tony. Take five.

Operation: Disque Drop is a one-man (so far) grassroots fan effort to spread awareness of Alizée to North America, with an eye towards bolstering her fan base here, and gaining her some much-needed exposure to the media and the public at large. The ultimate goal is making it feasible and economically viable for Alizée and her record label to expand their focus and include North America in future plans for album releases and tour plans.

And then maybe I'll get to see her perform live, or have the ability to buy one of her albums without paying an arm and a leg to import it. Because, yes, at the end of the day, it's all about me.

In all seriousness, though: Alizée is an amazing talent, and I believe North America is poorer for not having been exposed to her. Like I said in my last post, I think she's exactly the breath of fresh air that our music industry needs. She could be huge here, if only more people knew about her. It worked for her in Mexico, after all...

Mexico? What happened to Alizée in Mexico?

Well, Alizée is a pretty big deal in Latin America, Tony...



Despite being from France--her most recent album has actually charted higher in Mexico than it has in Europe, and her cover of Madonna's La Isla Bonita (an English-language bonus track exclusive to the Mexican edition of Psychédélices) has become a top-ten hit on the Mexican airplay charts. Her success there is apparently thanks mainly to the grassroots, underground efforts of devoted fans, who worked to get the singles from her second album played in clubs and on the radio, and gained her the exposure she needed with the media and the public to become a household word. As a result, her current concert tour has included five shows in Mexico...compared to only one scheduled so far in France!

Operation: Disque Drop (and other co-ordinated fan efforts. like Lilly Town New York in Manhattan) is aiming to duplicate that kind of success here in North America. It's an uphill battle, certainly--Alizée's fanbase here is still relatively small and spread out compared to Mexico--and we know it won't happen overnight. The campaign is still in its earliest stages. But we're growing daily, and we're determined. It can happen here!

Wait...but she's French, right? Alizée sings in French...?

Yes Tony, she sings in French. Not exclusively--four tracks from her second album, Mes Courants Electriques..., were recorded in both French and English (with mixed results), and she's done a variety of English covers for various performances--but primarily, yes she sings in French. Of course, so did Celine Dion at the outset of her career, and I hear she's done sort of OK for herself...

Would Alizée necessarily have to cross over into English in order to be successful here? Maybe, maybe not...after all, 99 Luftballoons hit #2 on the Billboard chart back in the day, despite originally being in German...

OK...but does Alizée even want to come here?

Now, that's a very insightful question, Tony. And until very recently, the global Alizée fan community would have replied with a resounding 'hell, no!', since every indication was that she not only had zero intention or desire to break into North America, but she actually kind of enjoyed her anonymity here.

But then came this shining ray of hope for American Lilimaniacs everywhere, in the middle of this interview at the end of May:

-¿Después de visitar América latina que te gustaría hacer?
¿Por qué no hacer conocer el idioma francés en los Estados Unidos?

...which, translated into English, reads...

-After visiting Latin America, what would you like to do?
Why not make the French language known in the United States?

So, it appears that she's changed her mind on that score...or at least, that she and her (new) record label are open to the idea of it, if it can be proven to be worth their while to make it happen. This is where grassroots fan efforts like Operation: Disque Drop come in.

OK...so what is Operation: Disque Drop, then?!

Heh. I guess I never did get around to actually explaining it, did I? Unfortunately, it appears that we're out of space for today's blog....so tune in tomorrow--

What? You're kidding, right?

--for the exciting conclusion, the answer to the question of what Operation: Disque Drop actually is! Same Lili time, same Lili channel!