Too Many Songs, Not Enough Hits: Music Is Struggling to Create New Stars

[Max Power]

“y’all just old!” “Every generation says this!” “Where do you all find these stories?”

It's always OLD motherfukkers desperate to appear hip and trendy saying this shyt too

 

[IIVI]

300k songs release out every 5 days. Literally.

It'd take someone 2 years of non-stop listening to hear everything that is released in a week.

Artists literally stay in the global top 50 for a few days and that's it.

Music is at an exponential rate right now and I don't see that slowing down anytime soon with easier ways being able to create it.

 

[Complexion]

I was thinking about this earlier:

If you're a modern artist you're screwed either way because if you take your time in the lab to cook up a classic people will forget you between releases as they expect a constant drip feed of low effort content to keep your name visible. Either that or you need to be in constant F-ery for the attention it brings.

Either way the nurturing of talent is gone and the fans don't care. This is great for the labels but not so for those who actually know what quality music sounds like.

Did that sound as as it soundsed back when people were talking about rap the same way in 91?

The signal to noise ratio is immense as there is so much content being dropped, not just music but movies, books, art, courses etc... its absolutely insane how we went from a veritable famine that had you rocking your tape till it popped as you memorized the lyrics and read the liner notes for the 1000th time to having half a million songs dropped every 7 days.

There is definitely a spot in the market which could clean up nicely by curating the best but once it got traction/influence it would either be bought out or drowned out via corporate interests. Crazy situation whichever way you look at it because the net was supposed to make it easier and its done just the flip in so many respects, exactly as intended.

Another odd thing is that everything sounds the same. Across the planet. Across the genres. Across the races. In a few generations everyone will be listening to one beat with one set of lyrics translated into different languages via local artists as everyone blinks at the same time...

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

How much of that first hit popping would you attribute to the record label and how much would you attribute to the actual music? 60/40? 30/70?



Why should the average music consumer in 2022 care that record labels can’t manufacture stars anymore?

lol, that's not the point, this isn't just about labels not being able to create stars, it's about artists of all types not being stars, could be someone on a major or an independent artist. they get a hit and it can't be replicated because there are now 576 inputs to how a hit happens, with no clear method to follow for getting a 2nd hit, let along a 10th, and without being able to replicate that success, you can't create stars - stars are people who run shyt for multiple years. not have a hot 2015 like a fetty wap

look at HER - she had songs and projects hittin in 2017/18, but could not sustain or move that momentum forward, so she's not a star despite her awards, awards show placements and push. she's successful in her own right, but she would've been alicia keys big 15 years ago if there was rhyme or reason to today's music landscape

now if you ask the question of why should the average consumer care about stars in general, that's the right question. it's clear they dont and are happy to digest songs while not elevating artists to startdom

 

[NZA]

girl in red is very talented, but her video has youtube serving me this "am i gay test" ad. leave me alone!

 

[NZA]

movies faced the same problem but have some unique tools to mitigate its effects. they too dont produce true movie stars anymore, but with movies, you can build a universe that forces fans to stay locked in an ecosystem where they keep consuming in spite of dips in quality or originality. music, cant rely on that, so there is practically no brand loyalty at all. music studios just have to throw content at the wall and hope something sticks. they also cant afford to spend too much developing it since there is no way to forecast ROI on newer artists. the artists need thottery or threats of gang violence to help out with the marketing. the cost of this type of marketing is all on the artist.

 

[TaxCollector13459]

A lotta artists concerts be trash too and that has a lot to do with it imo. No stage presence/allure

 

[JustCKing]

I disagree with labels creating stars. It isn't that simple. Never was. Labels give artists access and reach via marketing and promotion, but there's a lot that goes into being a star:

1) artist has to have charisma and star quality to begin with

2) has to have some kind of a look or a style

3) some semblance of talent or ability that can be honed

4) production- this goes hand in hand with #3.

5) writing- goes hand in hand with #3 and 4.

^^^ without #3, 4, and 5, it doesn't matter how much money or how much push a label gives an artist, they will flop especially without good writers or producers behind them.

 

[FeverPitch2]

I disagree with labels creating stars. It isn't that simple. Never was. Labels give artists access and reach via marketing and promotion, but there's a lot that goes into being a star:

1) artist has to have charisma and star quality to begin with

2) has to have some kind of a look or a style

3) some semblance of talent or ability that can be honed

4) production- this goes hand in hand with #3.

5) writing- goes hand in hand with #3 and 4.

^^^ without #3, 4, and 5, it doesn't matter how much money or how much push a label gives an artist, they will flop especially without good writers or producers behind them.

 

[K-Deini]

"Yo, too many songs, weak rhymes that's mad long
Make it brief son, half short and twice strong" - gza

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

I disagree with labels creating stars. It isn't that simple. Never was. Labels give artists access and reach via marketing and promotion, but there's a lot that goes into being a star:

1) artist has to have charisma and star quality to begin with

2) has to have some kind of a look or a style

3) some semblance of talent or ability that can be honed

4) production- this goes hand in hand with #3.

5) writing- goes hand in hand with #3 and 4.

^^^ without #3, 4, and 5, it doesn't matter how much money or how much push a label gives an artist, they will flop especially without good writers or producers behind them.

1 - yes, there is an "it" factor, no one is denying that, but every star didn't/doesn't have the "it" factor, and yet still had a major run - toni braxton is someone i'll say wasn't overly charismatic or a person you'd point out and know that's "the one" but she still had wild success, someone like bey on the other hand stood out from jump and/or def by DC's second album as a solo star

2 - many stars get their look/style from a label/a label sending them to a stylist - puffy and jodeci come to mind, and pretty much every "glow up"

3 - this is subjective, TBoz was clearly a star with TLC, she was not talented at singing, yet their handlers/label got them the right sound

4 - addressed with TLC, but Rihanna is a case of this too, they first had her ride the 00's island wave, they then got her with Dream and Tricky

5 - addressed

labels give you 2-5 on that list, occasionally you get an erykah badu who comes to you with their own style that's a winner or an alicia keys who comes up with nearly an album worth of music between her and her production partner from before the major label sign, but that's beyond rare.

and no, a label being behind you doesn't guarantee you'll be a star, but no person without major label resources becomes a star. an independent chick like goapele does not become erykah badu without a major label push, resources and packaging. bone thugs n harmony does not become what they were in the mid 90's without priority, jill scott isn't who she was before her major label deal.

 

[KFBF]

now if you ask the question of why should the average consumer care about stars in general, that's the right question. it's clear they dont and are happy to digest songs while not elevating artists to startdom

Yeah, sorry that’s what I should have asked.

 

[JustCKing]

1 - yes, there is an "it" factor, no one is denying that, but every star didn't/doesn't have the "it" factor, and yet still had a major run - toni braxton is someone i'll say wasn't overly charismatic or a person you'd point out and know that's "the one" but she still had wild success, someone like bey on the other hand stood out from jump and/or def by DC's second album as a solo star

2 - many stars get their look/style from a label/a label sending them to a stylist - puffy and jodeci come to mind, and pretty much every "glow up"

3 - this is subjective, TBoz was clearly a star with TLC, she was not talented at singing, yet their handlers/label got them the right sound

4 - addressed with TLC, but Rihanna is a case of this too, they first had her ride the 00's island wave, they then got her with Dream and Tricky

5 - addressed

labels give you 2-5 on that list, occasionally you get an erykah badu who comes to you with their own style that's a winner or an alicia keys who comes up with nearly an album worth of music between her and her production partner from before the major label sign, but that's beyond rare.

and no, a label being behind you doesn't guarantee you'll be a star, but no person without major label resources becomes a star. an independent chick like goapele does not become erykah badu without a major label push, resources and packaging. bone thugs n harmony does not become what they were in the mid 90's without priority, jill scott isn't who she was before her major label deal.

1. All of them have some semblance of an it factor. I can't think of too many artists who looked like Toni. Yes, it was the everyday female look. Beyonce stood out in Destiny's Child, but she's an example of a label not being able to create a star.

2. Puff's a bad example as he wasn't some label head who gave Jodeci a look. Puff was actually in the streets and knew what was hot.

3. T-Boz is also a bad example. TLC as a group, of course were mega stars, but none of them were solo successes and T-Boz had a solo single that didn't much at all. Good production and writing plays to the strengths of an artist so that the weaknesses don't really matter. I never said that an artist had to be an exceptional talent.

Production and writing aren't necessarily products of a label especially in rap where the rapper writes their own music. Even in other genres, a lot of artists already come to majors with a production deal or in the case of a set up like LA Face, the label heads are also writers and producers.

 

[DaHNIC82]

When they replaced Physical media with this Streaming bullshyt, It cheapened the value of music which creates a disconnection from knowing who the artist truly is. The liner notes, the artwork, the sample references and even the thank you notes gave you a chance to see who they are. Plus alot of people are lazy and would much rather go on IG and post their thoughts instead of expressing it through the music.

 

[Thief's Theme]

all genres of music feel dead right now

but maybe that's just me