The tabloid world is where Jeff Weiss, now one of the most successful music journalists of his generation, cut his teeth in the industry. In his new auto-fictionalized cultural critique-slash-memoir, Waiting For Britney Spears, he immerses us in the flashing lights of the paparazzo machine at its peak of derangement in the 2000s, and his (alleged) surreal adventures through the Hollywood Hills.
In the book, Weiss’ coming of age as a disillusioned twenty-something seeking purpose and direction parallels the chaotic career of Britney Spears and the media nightmare that engulfed her. As he sneaks into nightclubs and stakes out her mansion mining for the exclusive scoop, he becomes conflicted over the invasive sensationalism he’s contributing to and the havoc he’s witnessing it wreak on her life from afar. As the landscape of media changes from analog to digital and the cultural appetite for celebrity voyeurism escalates, ethical lines blur.
“Music journalism is such a beleaguered profession,” says Weiss over the phone during a break in his book-tour itinerary, “Especially now, I have a communal solidarity with anyone who's still trying to be a writer and not writing patently evil things for money. ... I think it's important as a writer and journalist, especially as you get older, to kind of pay it forward in some way and kind of be able to help people younger than you.”
Weiss will discuss his new book,Waiting for Britney Spears, at Interabang Books.
Macmillan Publishers
That communal solidarity is what makes tour life so suited for somebody like Jeff Weiss, a true writer’s writer. Name any working music journalist or editor in the game, and he’s probably exchanged some friendly correspondence with them. He seems to know everyone there is to know who shares in his niche profession. As he travels across the country, promoting the release of Waiting For Britney Spears, he’s got long-distance friends and colleagues to see in most cities.
“It's nice to meet people, especially off the internet, because when you're on the internet, it can feel like you're just hoisting words into an ocean that are immediately forgotten,” says Weiss, “It's nice to meet people and connect with them, look them in the eyes. And then they'll ask me weird questions about Drakeo [the Ruler] and I'll start going off on rants. It's beautiful.”
Ultimately, Weiss knows that his is the work of nerds, the kind of nerds whose preferred mode of socializing is to sit in a circle, listen to records and talk in depth (almost insufferably so) about music with people who share their samepassion for it. His appearance tonight at Interabang Books, featuring a conversation with local writers Matt Goodman and Natalie Weiner, will be no different.
Weiss has an affinity for Dallas, having worked with Dallas rapper Outlaw Mel’s early group project, The Outfit, TX, and Tye Harris on through the longstanding rap music blog and record label, Passion of the Weiss. Though he first visited the city with the Californian pretense of “Dallas Cowboys, oil money, all the cowboy cliches,” he was captivated by the city’s personality – citing Oak Cliff, the Texas Theatre and Doublewide as his favorite Dallas gems. He’s excited to see local rappers drawing a well-deserved spotlight to the city.
“Montana 700 and Zillionaire Doe right now are really awesome and killing it," Weiss says. "BigXthaPlug, he's probably the biggest new rap star [over] the last two years. So, Dallas is kind of like having a moment right now for sure. I think now people hate on X because he's so popular, but like, he embodies that larger-than-life spirit of Texas.
He's also aware of local publications' beating of the drum on up-and-comers.
“Dallas is always historically undercover outside of its local media,” says Weiss, “But thank God there are still Dallas publications like [the Observer] that exist and are doing good work.”
What Weiss and writers like him know for sure is that as it becomes harder for music, arts and culture writers to exist, the work of documenting culture becomes even more significant. Waiting For Britney Spears isn’t really a book about Britney Spears. It’s about a changing media landscape and its limitless appetite for surveillance, how the power of celebrity distorts reality and how the popular culture we consume reflects our societal neurosis.
“I think we can't understand ourselves as a people or as a culture if we don't understand the past.” Weiss explains, “And I think you see this in all aspects of the modern world, where it feels very Orwellian. It's that old line of ‘whoever controls the present controls the past.’ And right now, who's controlling the present are a bunch of private equity companies and billionaires and people that don't really care about the preservation of it.”
Weiss will be at Interbang Books (5600 W Lovers Lane) tonight, Aug. 28, for a discussion about Waiting for Britney Spears. The event is free to attend.
