The Rolling Stone faithful aren't going to like this one. Zac Efron, star of High School Musical and the new movie Hairspray, will grace the next cover of Rolling Stone magazine.

 

RS describes the upcoming issue as follows:

 

 

Check out Rolling Stone's next issue to find out how Efron found his way into one of the most successful musical series of all time, how he fared on the set of Hairspray and how he deals with haters.

 

 

This has led to a pretty good amount of backlash from RS readers and the Internet in general. The concern, simply put, is that a magazine with such a rich musical tradition is featuring the star of some kids' movie, and that it somehow reflects a sad state of affairs in the music world.

 

Listen, I certainly would have prefered a cover with Vanessa Hudgens. But you know what? High School Musical was the best selling album of 2006. It sold more copies than Pearl Jam, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Incubus, My Chemical Romance and anything else in '06. Does that make it better? No. But it does make it relevant. So what if High School Musical is targeted toward kids? You're just reading about it, you don't have to watch it. And it's not like Rolling Stone is going to write the article in text message speak, like "omg taht Ahsley TIsdale is soooo HOTT 2!!!"

 

You don't have to like this issue. You don't have to buy it. But remember, RS is running a business. One of the first things I ever learned about running a business is that the people who complain or hassle you are the ones who are most likely to flake out anyways. So you can't cater to a bunch of whiners. To all the people threatening to cancel their subscriptions -- and there are plenty, just check the comments section -- you should know, Rolling Stone doesn't care.

 

That said, the actual cover is really lame, and I challenge everyone to come up with the best fake headline they can. I'll get things started:

 

Zac Efron: '19 Is Never Too Young To Start Checking Yourself For Breast Cancer'

 

Zac Efron: 'This Pose Will Attract Men AND Women, Right?'

 

Zac Efron: 'No, For The Hundreth Time, I'm Not The Dude From Hanson'