The Stigma Around Artists “Going Pop”
Recently, I’ve become a casual fan of the band Bring Me The Horizon.
I first heard a song theirs, Mantra, five months ago when it was covered by another band, First to Eleven. I ended up loving the cover and decided to check out the original, which I also liked, and that lead me to look into their other stuff.
Overall, they’ve seemed to make some pretty good music, but when I talk about Bring Me The Horizon with other people, I get one of two reactions: either they’ve never heard of the band, or they think that they’ve become too pop, and they’re no longer good.
I’ve noticed that this criticism has been applied to artists a lot, and it always confuses me.
For starters, what does it mean for an artist to “go pop”?
From what I’ve seen, an artist going pop means that they’ve become mainstream. They began as a less well known artist, most likely self-producing and self-releasing their music, until they get a break and become well known to the general public.
They get a record deal, they’re on big Spotify playlists, their songs end up as Top 40s hits on the radio, the whole thing.
Along with this, there can be some changes in the sound of the artist to appeal to a more mainstream demographic. Since EDM and hip-hop are dominating the pop scene currently, an artist going pop will tend to incorporate sounds associated with those genres into their music.
Going back to Bring Me The Horizon, their most recent song, Medicine, is undoubtedly more of a pop song than any of their previous stuff. There are fewer distorted guitars, the hook has more of a catchy, danceable vibe and the overall energy is happier and more energetic.
When I see all of this happening, I’m usually really happy about it. Pop fusion songs are quite enjoyable, as they soften certain parts of a genre that aren’t as digestible and add in catchier choruses and more positive energy.
On top of that, artists being recognized for their work is awesome. I spent a brief period of time making music myself, and I know that it is not easy. Actually managing to get a break and be heard by an everyday person is really hard, and it usually takes years of grinding before it happens, if it happens at all.
Unfortunately, when a lot of artists do go mainstream, instead of being happy for them, fans will usually become frustrated.
A lot of them will immediately stop listening, or if they stay, they’re constantly hating on the artist, telling them to go back to what they used to do, since it was so much better.
For a lot of people who listen to indie or underground music, there’s this kind of stigma surrounding pop. They see pop as the ultimate lowest common denominator genre, full of all of the basic trash that doesn’t have any substance or meaning, and is meant to appeal to mindless teenagers.
Another part of the equation seems to be a desired feeling of exclusivity for listeners. When you listen to an indie artist, it feels like you’re in on a secret, that you’re listening to this incredible music that’s almost personal to you, and that causes people to develop a deep connection to it.
Pop music, on the other hand, is listened to by millions of people and is produced to appeal to the masses, and as a result, it’s harder to feel personally attached to it.
Once an indie artist becomes popular, it can feel like you’ve lost that connection with the artist. They used to produce their music for you, now they produce music for radio executives and high school students.
The irony surrounding all of this is that, at first, fans of indie music actually want their artist of choice to become popular.
90% of the comments you will find on any indie artist’s video will say something along the lines of “why aren’t you more popular?” or “I wish more people knew how good this was!” It’s obvious that people want these artists to become popular, but the second they do, they say that they’ve changed and gotten worse so that pop listeners will like them more.
To be honest though, I don’t really agree with what these listeners are saying.
Medicine might be a pop song, but it’s definitely still a Bring Me The Horizon song. There’s still screaming, intense lyrics and disturbing visuals that the band is iconic for. While they have changed their sound so that more people can enjoy their music, they still have their unique flavor mixed in, and people who fell in love with the band years ago still have something about their music that they can enjoy. The same applies to other artists that have gone pop.
While an artist’s sound might change to fit more of a pop feel once they become popular, most artists don’t lose themselves. You can still hear the artist’s true work mixed in with the slick production and catchy choruses; they’re not another artist, they’re just a new version of themself, and you should appreciate that, not shun it.
Unfortunately, however, going pop is something that is looked down upon by a lot of people.
Fans of artists who become popular will think that, because the artist is popular and now has millions of listeners, their music is less valuable for little to no reason. In reality, becoming popular can make an artist better, because it can cause them, explore more territory musically to appeal to more people and find who they are.
Popularity also means than an artist is finally having years or even decades of work pay off, and if you are a fan of them, that should be the ultimate gift for you.
