Features

KYLIE MINOGUE: Wow Wow Wow

She has been voted
“woman of the year” more times than any other woman – and that includes politicians, professionals, world leaders, sports figures, businesswomen and yes, hrh herself.

Helena Morgan looks at the reasons why we all love kylie.

ylie is that rare thing – a female pop artist, combining a canny brain and mature beauty who has survived more than two decades at the top – still looking and performing as hotly as she did since she broke free of Neighbours onto the world arena.

Even rarer, she is an artist who garners the warmest admiration and adoration from across sexes, ages, cultures, colour, classes and background. The affection for Kylie spans teeny-boppers barley out of Huggies to grown women who don’t know their Myleenes from their Mutyas and of course to men – who love her - whether as a Gay icon or the beautiful babe that she is. She’s a glamorous workhorse, a down-to-earth diva without the pretension of Madonna or the self-destruct pathos Britney. She’s a female over 40 that can still carry off a pair of gold lame batty-riders – without getting the “what-not-to-wear” stamp of humiliation. If there is such a thing as a woman of substance in pop – then Kylie’s it!
Her highly publicised fight against breast cancer raised the stakes – not only did she win our support and increased admiration for her positive (often downright bubbly) outlook in times of extreme stress, she made many of us dig deep into our own fragile psyches. As Mary Riddell summed it up, in the Observer: “She has made people consider what it might be like to die.”

Her highly publicised fight against breast cancer raised the stakes – not only did she win our support and increased admiration for her positive outlook in times of extreme stress, she made many of us dig deep into our own fragile psyches.”

In the shallow and increasingly tiresome world of celebrity status, Kylie is one celeb that we still have time for. She will be treading the boards this summer and still keeps up campaigning work for Breast Cancer awareness. During International Women’s Month this March, one of her red-carpet dresses will be part of the 27 Celebrity dresses auctioned in support of the Lavender Trust (for young women with breast cancer).

She’s soldout six world tours, including the critically acclaimed 2006/2007 “Showgirl Homecoming” concert which was cut short due to her breast cancer diagnosis in 2005. Kylie was to face one of her greatest challenges, but following a partial mastectomy and a period of rest she was back as the optimistic, global cover girl craving to get back to work.

It’s not just music where Kylie has excelled - in the business world, the self-invented Kylie brand is flying off the shelves including her own perfume and underwear ranges.

Kylie also holds the record for the most played female artist on UK radio over the last 20 years, consistently re-inventing herself in a ruthless industry where youth and looks continue to call the shots. In her private life, during her on-off-on-off relationship with French photographer Olivier Martinez, she always presented as proud and unruffled by her love of an apparent commitment phobe.

Further proof of her top place in the popularity stakes – she has been re-moulded four times at Madame Tussauds - only the Queen has had more models created! As pop guru Pete Waterman once said: “There is just something about her. If you could bottle it, you’d be a billionaire.”

We can see how hard she has slogged for her fame and fortune, built more on genuine talent, determination and guts than hype. Another rare thing - she deserves all the success! We want to egg her on, not put her down. A perennial party girl, she does good times with dignity and decorum – values that we still admire!

Resilient and astute, the traditional Blonde Bimbo has never been one of her roles. As she says: “If you are part of a record company, to a degree it’s fair to say that you are a manufactured project. It doesn’t mean you’re not talented and that you don’t make creative and business decisions about what you do. I’m an all-rounder. If I was to choose anyone element of what I do, I don’t know if I’d excel at any one. But put all of them together, and I know what I’m doing.”

Keep on going Kylie!

Kylie Minogue and other stars are auctioning off their red carpet dresses on eBay, with the proceeds going to The Lavender Trust at Breast Cancer Care. The Lavender Trust at Breast Cancer Care raises money specifically to fund information and support for younger women with breast cancer. See www.breastcancercare.org