The Unprecedented Times
The social media platform (and the internet in general) has fundamentally transformed the way fans and labels treat musicians, both established and up and coming.
Tik Tok is a guilty pleasure of mine. Recently, it’s more guilt than pleasure. I especially feel this way when I see a musician come up on my “For You” page. Or at least, someone trying to become a musician (in a professional sense that is). Any avid user of the platform has surely come across it in some form: a young, quirky 18-ish year old who’s seated in their car. They’ll address the camera and say something akin to“this is a song I wrote for anyone who’s ever been through a really bad breakup!” And then they lip sync to their own music, which often falls into a pop category. There are many versions of this type of video. But they all share a common goal of self promotion. Tik Tok has become the modern vehicle for fame. Every niche is filled on Tik Tok’s platform. Every type of content anyone might want to see can be found in abundance (for better or for worse).
In the case of musicians, Tik Tok is a blessing and a curse. For young, undiscovered talent, they can pray to whatever god rules over the algorithm and hope that a 4 second snippet of a song they created in their bedroom is plucked from their page to become the next trending “sound”. But there is some question as to whether this actually has anything to do with the music itself. It is not necessarily good for an artist’s image when a song “blows up”. How could it be? The average Tik Tok user will hear a short segment of a longer song. They either like it or they don’t. If they don’t enjoy it, they’ll probably skip past that sound wherever it appears on their page. If they do like it, then they’re sure to have it drilled into their brains for the foreseeable future. A trending song’s staying power is at the will of the people. Some last just a few days to a week, whereas others might be heard for a month or more. But surely even those who enjoy what they hear will grow tired of it after repeated listens, especially to one specific clip from a song they might otherwise enjoy in moderation.
For those looking for their big break, Tik Tok can direct hundreds of thousands (if not more) prospective fans to follow the “link in bio” and stream their music on Spotify, Apple Music, etc. They’ll have their fifteen minutes of fame and a viral song to ride the wave of for as long as they can. Look at artist GAYLE, who wrote such a song in “abcdefu”. Listeners are quick to critique the track, pointing out that it lacks any kind of substance and relies on trends to achieve popularity that it otherwise couldn’t. And while many have voiced disdain for the song, who can deny GAYLE’s subsequent success? Not only is she going to be joining Taylor Swift for a leg of her tour, but the song that launched her to the ranks of Swift was nominated for a Grammy. A case could be made that those who make these selections for Grammy nominees are out of touch and that they were hoping to somehow appeal to a demographic that they thought wouldn’t watch the award ceremony. But regardless, it is one less Grammy nomination than hundreds of other deserving artists have under their belt. For GAYLE, Tik Tok has been a successful venture. But interestingly, established artists are often hurt by the same algorithm that bolsters new artists. Halsey, for example, made it public that her label would not allow her to release her new single unless she could get it to go viral on Tik Tok.
And what happens to artists who blow up this way? Look no further than Steve Lacy. Lacy was an established, popular artist prior to the release of his 2022 album Gemini Rights. But Tik Tok brought an influx of new fans thanks to the popularity of a handful of singles from the album. Most notably, “Bad Habit”. The song is a well-written, catchy pop tune. This was a blessing and a curse. Lacy likely could not have predicted the increase in new listeners. And while I’m sure anyone in his position would be happy to receive additional recognition for their art, Lacy likely had second thoughts once his tour began. Shortly after kicking off a string of concerts in promotion of Gemini Rights, videos of the shows began to circulate. Lacy was visibly annoyed with fans to say the least. Between songs, a young woman calls out in the brief silence for Steve Lacy to “say hi to her mom”, as she holds her phone out in front of her. Similar videos popped up intermittently. In one of the more notable incidents, a fan physically threw a disposable camera at Lacy. He picked it up and smashed it on stage. After catching flack for his reaction, he posted a response online:
“… shoutout to the people not throwing disposable cameras at me and just coming to catch a vibe and connect 🙂 i had a really good time in nola last night. i hate that the beauty of the connection i have with so many people in the crowd-gets lost when something negative happens.”He continues, “i don’t believe i owe anyone an apology- maybe i couldve reacted better? sure. always. i’m a student of life. but i’m a real person with real feelings and real reactions. i’m not a product or a robot. i am human. i will continue to give my all at these shows. please come with respect for urself and others please thank you love u”
Lacy isn’t the only artist to return from the pandemic to a new type of crowd. Many artists have made statements about crowd reactions to their shows. Mitski, for example, is an artist who has been very vocal in asking fans to put the phones down and just enjoy the show. Unfortunately, even the artist’s direct request isn’t enough.
In the past, fans of an artist would seek out their concerts well in advance. In my own personal experience, I do a deep dive of an artist’s music in the weeks leading up to the show (if I wasn’t already familiar). Call me old school, but I tend to enjoy a show more when I know most, if not all, of the songs that an artist is likely to include in their setlist.
So how does this keep happening? Why are artists having to adapt to a seemingly changed audience? Well, Tik Tok has an algorithm that propels songs to extreme popularity. Droves of new fans, often young and with knowledge of just a few of a musician’s most popular songs, buy tickets to a show. But these young fans might not have a certain knowledge of proper concert etiquette. Older fans have posed questions on social media in regards to this new crowd. They’ve noticed that these fans will remain on their phones for much of the show. Some of these audience members even sit down mid-show. There has also been an increasing number of fans who pass out in the midst of a performance (most often from dehydration).
On one hand, bigger crowds are good for artists. In today’s musical landscape, touring brings in the biggest income for bands. Streaming has made music more accessible than ever. But it is now less profitable for the makers of that music. Many artists, however, are quite vocal about the extreme exhaustion that comes from touring. And rightfully so. Even to a crowd of adoring, attentive fans, the often months-long travel schedule can be taxing for musicians. So imagine that same exhausting tour but substitute the dedicated fans for a sea of bored teenagers. To them, you’re only as useful as the post they’ll make to their social media pages.
The reason I feel guilty whenever one of these exploited artists comes up on my page is that I share some responsibility for the growing problem. By using Tik Tok as a platform, I am feeding into the algorithm. The fame machine is now self sufficient. Up and comers have to blow up on Tik Tok. They need to adhere to the trends. They need to feed the machine. But now, even established artists are often forced into having a presence on the platform by their record labels. Nobody is safe from the hungry social media beast. Only time will tell if its grip on the music industry will tighten or lessen.
The Unprecedented Times
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