Lana Del Rey's SNL Performance and the Message it Sends

There is so much emphasis being put on the music heard on the radio, that it is becoming the scale by which we measure musical greatness. Billboard Hot 100, iTunes Top 10 Songs, Rolling Stone's Top 40 Songs -- do these charts account for the true capacity of the artists' talent, or are we just rating them by what sounds good?

On last Saturday's episode of NBC's Saturday Night Live, featuring host Daniel Radcliffe, musical guest Lana Del Rey gained much negative attention due to her less than stellar live performance. The songstress was riding a wave of positive feedback from fans and critics who had heard her debut song, Video Games, a single that was first released on the Internet last fall. The song propelled Del Rey into the mainstream after it gained popularity and was featured, for the first time in a prime spot, on the hit TV series, The Ringer, on Sept. 28. Del Ray's first studio album, Born To Die, is set to be released worldwide, on Jan. 31.

After four months of hype over a studio recorded song, it took only four minutes and twenty-five seconds and one live performance for viewers to realize that hype was all the singer was worthy of. A lack of enthusiasm and urge to perform provoked celebrities and critics alike to take to Twitter and vent their frustration over what they had just seen.

Unimpressed was actress Juliette Lewis, who criticized Del Ray, despite her ties with NBC. Lewis stars in the new NBC legal drama, The Firm.

Wow watching this 'singer' on SNL is like watching a 12 year old in their bedroom when they're pretending to sing and perform. #signofourtimes, Lewis wrote.

Just watched SNL. Not only was @LanaDelRey vocally WAY off, but watching her utter lack of stage presence was cringe-worthy, wrote celebrity blogger Perez Hilton.

Although the truth is out for all to see, my point does not apply to every musician who relies heavily on digitally simulated beats and well produced vocal tracks. But I will say this: respectable are the musicians who make their living solely by performing. Admirable are the artists who put everything they've got, out onto that stage. Forgettable are the ones that do none of the above.