Artists Are Being Forced to Make TikToks

[@MaxMiller94]

The issue is that it's not just influencing the way music is promoted. It's affected the way music is made. Back in the days of radio, labels forced artists to make "radio friendly" music. Now they force them to make "TikTok friendly" singles. Edit: forcing artists to fulfill any sort of formula is bad, to clarify.

[@therealdudeski]

Music will be pushed to be commercially viable no matter what

[@someordinaryplayer209]

@@beaualIoevv we?"

[@diddlefiggins6557]

How do radio friendly and tik tok friendly differ?

[@IllusionistBeatsOfficial]

@@diddlefiggins6557 radio friendly typically means simple structure, no swearing or taboo content, less than 4 mins long, no overly long solos etc. Tik tok friendly would be more along the lines of 'relatable' lyrics or lyrics which could be applied to a variety of situations, short and catchy 'moments' which could be used to make videos etc.

[@Dave-kt9lu]

@@diddlefiggins6557 tiktok friendly music is often just dumbed down even more than radio music

[@noahharrington8883]

I vaguely remember doja cat having a tik tok that said it was purely contractual. This thing has to be insanely common now that TikTok viralness is the zeitgeist

[@KingLoop13]

Lol it was for taco bell

[@Dsheppp]

Taco Bell pizza, Is the pizza For you and meeeeeee

[@chrisblanchard6413]

whats zeitgiest, some anime mech?

[@HowDoYouPronounceGIF]

@@chrisblanchard6413 “the general set of ideas, beliefs, feelings, etc. that is typical of a particular period in history” from Merriam-Webster

[@samfullofsin]

that was an ad tho

[@theidealcopy_]

The rise of TikTok as a music industry kingmaker has just led to labels offloading even more responsibility onto artists. The idea that an artist should have to spend a huge chunk of their time and energy chasing engagement on a social media platform for no pay just so their label don't have to invest in traditional promo is ridiculous and scummy. The artist's job is to make the product - it's the label's job to sell it. In a time when streaming is the method of music consumption du jour, labels are setting themselves up for a fall if the only service they ultimately provide for an artist anymore is physical distribution.

[@fernandoBOT]

💯

[@pillsburydoughbane2618]

🦾🦾🦾🦾🦾🦾🦾🦾🦾

[@lyonsin2535]

^^^

[@9G0D]

@@itsaUSBline very unlikely when labels are still offering the type of money and coverage that they are

[@zeromath20]

Record labels are over and they know it that's why they grab onto any trend imaginable

[@jasonscholl2945]

Her saying she's being "forced to fake viral tik toks" IS CREATING the "fake virality" the label has allegedly demanded. These marketing strategies today are epic.

[@neonlacee]

I thought the same thing! Her video about being forced to make a viral post going viral itself is really wild and is wilder still if it were a strategy. W earned in my book.

[@cropman]

Damn I never thought of it that way

[@new.romance999]

More reasons to not feel sorry

[@canesugar911]

@@new.romance999 i don't think they were begging for your sympathy.

[@new.romance999]

@@canesugar911 of course not, they're begging for attention in the most childish way

[@dootlime4400]

This has been happening for a while now. An artist I love named Aries (who Anthony has interviewed before) was trying to release a song called Kids On Molly back in May 2021 and the label wanted 10,000 TikToks made using the song before they released it. The fanbase brought it to that number by making spam TikToks with the song, so it was never really an official “trend”. After that, the label told him he needed 25,000 pre-saves of the song before he dropped it. The song didn’t come out until mid-August, so we waited all fucking summer for a song that should’ve been out before June. Music labels are so fucking lame.

[@billhicks8]

Wow, what's worse there is that the label is making _you_ - the fans - work to hear the goddamn single. That's insane. Just shows how entitled corporations are that they now even expect their own customers to labour for their employees. Artists gotta unionise.

[@nova4476]

@billhicks8 Just wait until you hear about what Oliver Tree makes his fans do! Can’t tell if it’s his label or him at this point.

[@Viper-dz2kw]

@@nova4476 what does he do

[@brokatarofficial]

@@nova4476 it's his label. he's talked about it in the past how he couldn't release his album unless he got 1 million followers on his instagram. I know he's not a really serious guy but out of all he says that felt the most real and in line with how labels treat their artists. it's literally all finance and numbers to them. they don't give a fuck about the art.

[@evanblake5252]

Cool. I was just thinking the music industry doesn't suck enough. Glad we're working on that.

[@new.romance999]

​@Random Username Another one, you have to make a song or ft. with DJ Khaled

[@Zwettekop]

@Random Username Isn't that already the case for a lot of artists?

[@_dakoda]

yoo is this the tallah evan blake

[@evanblake5252]

@@_dakoda It is.

[@playerwil]

Labels are forcing artists to sell out, and it's getting harder for artists to be authentic with their audience

[@hypnagogue]

this has been a problem for the industry’s whole existence, it’s just taking a new form now

[@kerpal1233]

Sell out? Wtf halsey isn't some super underground artist that makes music that shuns the masses. She's making pop music. Music for the masses. Labels ain't forcing you to "sell out" when you already fcking make POP MUSIC. Who are these artist even going to "sell out" to anyways?

[@PrincipalProductions]

@@kerpal1233 riiight keep playing “killing boys” and telling yourself that, hope that her knees and back done with soon from all the stress cause that’s what she gets for selling out/being corrupt

[@kerpal1233]

@Critique Everything I don't think indie labels are going to tell you wat to do

[@kauswekazilimani3736]

@@kerpal1233 Indie labels are still labels. Especially the legendary established ones.

[@hungryepicboys8895]

I do music videos full time in NYC and consistently have artists and their management asking me to include “TikTok” edits and transitions even at the detriment of the original treatment or concepts. I definitely see the benefit of tiktok especially in terms of marketing or breaking independent artists but man it’s really making my job annoying

[@mattmattga]

Are they at least giving you more money for providing the secondary Tik Tok cuts on top of the video??

[@TheLily97232]

Tell me about it !!!!!! I hate when people ask me about Instagram edits for their feed. I'm a photographer I don't know how to film bts videos

[@hungryepicboys8895]

@@TheLily97232 fr all the photographers in the city ik have this issue, you’re def not alone

[@hungryepicboys8895]

@@mattmattga typically no :// because the style here rn is very effects heavy as it is- see any Bronx rap music video for an example, so they usually think it’s included (which can be it’s own issue since most of my team is made up of film school grads, and we mainly focus on cinematography over using stock vfx). There’s a pretty large over saturation of videographers in general and because a lot of them are al using the same KZbin tutorials and effects packs, there’s a lot of videos that look exactly the same

[@CalebHerring]

My gf and I released the first song off our new project. A Spotify rep told us that they loved the song a lot, but wouldn’t playlist it because we hadn’t had viral success on Tiktok. It destroyed her after all the hard work we put into not only the music, but into making dozens of stupid tiktoks that never did anything. Next song came around and we finally had a semi-hit on tiktok. Suddenly we’re on the top of Fresh Finds. Just released the latest song and have not had a similar viral tiktok, and no word yet on playlisting at all. It’s a huge punch in the gut, because we spent every penny we had (and then took out a loan) to buy her out of a dumpster record deal she was in, and have been working on this album for 2 years since. We can’t seem to nail TikTok down, despite her spending every waking moment working on it and stressing constantly about it. It’s really toxic to the art of music as a whole. I despise it with every bone in my body. Spent many sleepless nights agonizing over what we could possibly do to appease the TikTok gods into giving us anything. Anyway… listen to Penny Lame on Spotify or Apple Music or Tidal or whatever, please.

[@CalebHerring]

Better yet, watch her tiktoks, I guess.

[@anthonyfoti4391]

Link the music brother I would love to hear

[@bonkknob3240]

@@beaualIoevv WE?

[@mhaughton821]

@@beaualIoevv who is we fam?

[@me30000]

@@mhaughton821 their multiple personalities

[@sillyl8y]

I see this as a dangerous slope because I have heard increasing horror stories about labels failing their promotional duties, now this insane success story from TikTok music seems like an excuse for them to push more and more of the promo responsibility onto the artist.

[@THICCTHICCTHICC]

Presumably without pay too. It's just pathetic all round.

[@coraldelaluna]

Wait but she did what the label told her. She created a viral moment just not in the exact way the label might have wanted

[@Krashnachen]

Pretty sure the label doesn't give a shit/supports her

[@knifenoir]

Sigma moves

[@thebasedgodmax1163]

because it's all part of the viral moment. you'd have to be a moron to fall for most of these

[@ajgerbi]

They’re completely okay with it, marketing an artist or influencer as a rebellious artist struggling to please the evil, corporate bad guys at the label is just another way to make the general public root for them and make them seem more relatable. Halsey’s tik tok going viral for this reason is exactly what the label wanted, they don’t care if the label looks bad, as long as the artists working for them look good and have that viral moment they want them it doesn’t matter to them. 🤷‍♂️ The kardashians do it all the time and it always works. It’s all just a game for money.

[@AlligatorArms]

I wouldn’t even say the label didn’t want this. 99% of all music consumers couldn’t name 3 other artists signed to Capitol & even if they could, it wouldn’t be fair to hold the artists accountable for signing their life away to a shit company. The recording industry is built in such a way that major labels have very minimal reason to fear any retribution or accountability, and they know it, as most of them have operated accordingly for as long as I’ve been alive, and probably well beyond.

[@anamelessyoutuber1462]

I'm convinced that Tik Tok is trying to make me hate it.

[@BingaBangoBongo]

Yeah, no shit. The algorithm is likely learning that controversy gets views, the same way Facebook did.

[@blodiaaa6990]

You should've been hating it long before now

[@anamelessyoutuber1462]

@@blodiaaa6990 Oh, I hated it since the very beginning due to the videos from it being some of the unfunniest pieces of dogshit I've ever seen.

[@8bitdiedie]

@@BingaBangoBongo This 100%! I feel I’m more addicted to the “unpleasantness” of social media more than what I actually like about it.

[@itsaUSBline]

@@8bitdiedie So stop using it. I signed out of all my accounts years ago, and it was a huge boon for my mental health.

[@punkindhouse08]

Marketing, specifically digital marketing, is now so pervasive that I honestly wouldn't be surprised if Halsey's 'statement' is in fact 'the viral moment' that her label has manufactured. I mean... she did post it on TikTok, and we are talking about it, aren't we? And she hasn't actually said anything. And we can't be sure if that's pre-written copy on the vieo. I know this reads cynical, but marketing is exactly that. Anything can be spun and served, all for a numbers game.

[@travywavy_au]

Doubt it cos other artists have come forward about it and it’s sparked a discussion in the music industry as a whole

[@efleishermedia]

Yes. That's the point. 99 percent of marketing and PR is making sure it doesn't seem like promo but it's still promo

[@ImpendingRiot83]

Honestly, if labels are going to insist on TikTok, they should hire in-house influencers (term used very loosely) who will make content in order to spread their signed artists’ work if the musicians aren’t ready and willing to do it themselves. Labels having KZbin channels and posting full album streams and all that sort of thing like Profound Lore, Rhymesayers and Dais Records do, for instance, wasn’t always a thing. Labels already adapted to posting to all the older sites after enough time. It’s been long enough now. If TikTok is going to be so pivotal to artists gaining traction then the labels should make the effort to help those people integrate as smoothly as possible, whether in person or through a label social media proxy. I honestly don’t think people would mind proxies like that. If labels are transparent this way, it doesn’t spoil any authenticity angle of the musician(s) in question and it’s frankly more endearing to me as a potential customer. The labels I mentioned do very open and transparent promotion of their artists and I’ve grown to partially trust them as institutions as a result because they’re not hiding from me and trying to manipulate me with stupid ad-agency psyops.

[@NewPurpleRobyn]

You just gave the labels a million dollar solution. Hopefully they take it.

[@redbruhcolli]

The problem in music were never social media, streaming platforms, mp3s, cds, sharing platforms... the problem was and always will be a record label.

[@helenasereza4296]

In my opinion Anitta is a great example of an artist who got an intern to post things on her tiktoks, usually it's edits of her dancing on stage or with other celebrities to her own song.

[@Sea_witch_]

That's better imo

[@TheMcPozitiv]

you mean anitta the brazilian singer ?

[@kazonikz]

@@TheMcPozitiv yes it’s the brazillian Anitta

[@MaxMax-zo9vq]

Part of the point of signing to a major is them handling your PR, and if you’re having to do a majority of that yourself to the point of burnout then that’s so fucked.

[@taylorstep8135]

At that point stay independent.

[@MaxMax-zo9vq]

@@taylorstep8135 or shoot for a higher end indie label like Sub Pop, 4AD, XL, or Rough Trade

[@taylorstep8135]

@@MaxMax-zo9vq indie labels are worst.

[@Soulr]

Tik Tok is a massive L for music

[@Sam-cq9us]

how?

[@shroom9492]

Not at all

[@arseeoliveira6934]

He might not be right, but he isn't wrong either. Look, there are songs that tiktok organically uplifts into virality and some of those records are good (and made by the artist without the intent of going viral) we've seen this a lot in the past. But now, we got artists (record signed mostly) looking to pander tiktok's algorithm with lazy songs, with most of them being sooo over the top, hurting the art (if there was any) and hurting the music industry itself. That's how we're getting the same generic songs with the same formulas nowadays.

[@michaelsinclair9137]

It might be an L in general but tick tock is an insanely effective way to promote music.

[@d3nkal]

@@Atomic_Bubblegum it really be like that. TikTok could be extremely dangerous for this gen

[@MicJaiy]

I'm saddened by the industry. This was the main reason I founded my label, been leveraging my audience here on KZbin to give exposure to other artists music I've signed. I don't expect my artists to have a large following and/or get a popular tik tok to release. If there music sounds great and fits the genre/style, it gets released end of story.

[@r_dreamer5462]

I've only ever seen labels hurt artists, not help them. Whenever I see a smaller artist get signed, the music they release always gets worse

[@WazzapItsJas]

TikTok has damaged music in that everyone is so focused on virality these days. At first it was a handful of meme audios here and there on the app, but now years later, music labels have capitalized heavily on the trend and pushed anything and everything that has viral potential. The thing about viral trends though is that they never have any sort of longevity (or it's very rare). An artist will get super-promoted for one viral song, and then the next month they completely fall off once their song is overplayed and are swept under the rug for someone new. And since that's just how the viral cycle goes, we tolerate it and continue moving forward. In my opinion it seems like nobody cares about longevity anymore and that's the most disheartening aspect of all of it to me. I truly think the era of legacy acts in mainstream music is heading out. Think of all the artists who started their careers out in the late 2000s/early 2010s who are still heavy-hitters today, who have a legacy about their status in popular music. Now think of artists who have started their careers within the last 5 years. Who today can you honestly see being as big as a Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Drake, Adele, Ariana Grande, The Weeknd, Lana Del Rey, etc in 10-15 years from now?

[@TheLily97232]

When you think about it TikTok and social media has damaged a lot of things actually...

[@TheLily97232]

Well no I would say capitalism ruins everything

[@foreverfuturebound]

some of the stuff that goes viral on tiktok is questionable too... thomas bangalter (half of daft punk) did a soundtrack for a movie called irreversible back in 2002. one of the songs from the soundtrack called "rectum" became viral on tiktok. however, i feel like if people knew about the movie it was from, they wouldn't want to use the song (the movie is incredibly graphic), and i doubt that any of the people using it know who thomas bangalter actually is. people don't really think about the music on tiktok if that makes sense

[@kruddy3627]

Doja Cat and Joji could be in that class someday despite their origins as extremely online memesters. Olivia Rodrigo, Billie Eilish. Lil Nas X has been a consistent pop star for over three years now even though he started as a meme on TikTok. No one was considering Lady Gaga or Lana Del Rey future legacy acts when they started either.

[@Jacksonrox13]

@@foreverfuturebound Don't tell me these dumb Gen Z-ers are ruining a perfectly good Noise song for their chance at fifteen seconds of fame? Ffs, I hate this current generation.

[@thescoobymike]

I can understand why a label would do this but I don’t think it’s healthy for artists

[@watr19]

No shit

[@MangInutil]

you think? It *is* unhealthy for artists to do something that they don't like

[@thescoobymike]

@@MangInutil I apologize for having thoughts. I’m so sorry.

[@mooremusic4394]

I dont understand complaining about making a 4 sec tiktok vid. Have they never had a real job before?

[@someordinaryplayer209]

@@beaualIoevv we?"

[@YuiTachibanaVT]

Moral of the story: stay independent

[@maddexulanowski1184]

You would think with how big most of these artists are that Labels would realize TikTok isn't always necessary for getting a smash hit. Sure it can help stabilize your song on the charts over a long period time but it doesn't have to be the reason a song gets popular.

[@Da_Homie12]

Do you have any idea the impact TikTok has on the music industry?

[@maddexulanowski1184]

@@Da_Homie12 Absolutely lmao. It is fucking huge. I watch the Charts quite a lot.

[@someordinaryplayer209]

@@beaualIoevv we?"

[@maddexulanowski1184]

@@beaualIoevv We? Is your mother here as well?

[@beaualoevw]

@@maddexulanowski1184 yes, and how about yours? oh right she -de ad

[@ronniewhitedx]

What are the chances that the viral marketing IS the fact that she is calling out her label for forcing her to make TikToks. BIG BRAINED MOVE

[@Tom-vu1wr]

Ye that popped into my head

[@micah459]

I'm glad I'm not an artist under a label because you can't pay me to get on Tiktok. That shit is toxic and weird af

[@the_Googie]

Working for a music label is like signing a full employment contract at a circus. You have to dance for them and if you dont make money, you have to get out. And more-so, you have to make money the way they want you to.

[@oldchicken2]

The best music tends to take repeated listens to get and appreciate. Tik Tok promotes music that gives an instant serotonin hit, usually pop music, rather than more complex types of music.

[@jasonvu6442]

Kinda ironic but Pink Floyd made a TikTok two days ago lmfao

[@oldchicken2]

@@jasonvu6442 I know :(

[@trvrshoe4518]

Is no one gonna mention how it could be a ploy? Like pretending to be forced to create a viral moment being the viral moment

[@uhuhuh1966]

This is nothing new, when I was in the industry as a teenager (before saying eff that and going to college) there wouldn’t be any movement until I reached a Twitter milestone or had a viral KZbin video, didn’t matter how I was as a performer or the quality of my music Edit: and no, my label offered zero help in achieving these goals lol

[@redbruhcolli]

unknown artists that blew up quickly because of a viral tiktok are forgotten with same speed

[@rogerklk]

Before Twigs had a very low profile social media presence and now she's non stop promoting and posting and I thought she was doing a pretty good job, mixing the era with the need to take the piss out of it but it didn't help much I guess. I never imagined someone like her would've become this interactable and I'd prefer she wouldn't.

[@MaxMax-zo9vq]

I mean, she’s signed to a major label now so I really doubt they’re going to let her keep up that level of low key mystique.

[@RK-ig8gc]

@𑀚ל𐩺𐤑𑀚𑀥 he’s really weird, posts a lot, has a presence but still has a sort of mystique surrounding him

[@a.w_.]

Just listen to the music man

[@9G0D]

@𑀚ל𐩺𐤑𑀚𑀥 because his streams and popularity has stayed constant meaning that the label are making a profit on the investment money that they’v given him. If an artists like TWIGS falls off or the fans stop supporting the label will make you find other ways to make a return on their investment. Its important for artists who dont want to operate at a mainstream level to stop agreeing to mainstream contracts

[@ochiai3]

@@RK-ig8gc i totally get you, his twitter makes me uncomfortable not because i hate him or he did something horrible, but because i don't know

[@stacie1595]

I have a keen nose for bullsh*t and I know when an artist is desperate to go viral on tiktok. I hate watching artists force other famous people to do their dance challenge or watching them ask their audience to engage with a challenge. The thing with virality is that the best viral hits happened naturally. That probably pisses lables off the most because regardless of how hard they try, they can't force a song or artist to go viral! Audiences can sense when it's desperate and it makes it less cool. Labels should, instead, invest in real promotions instead of crossing their fingers that some teenagers on tiktok blow it up for them.

[@oldchicken2]

Back in the day artists would work their ass off so that they wouldn’t have to tour non-stop in shitty clubs and dive bars. Now I think the goal is be able to successful enough so that you don’t have to sell your soul on social media.

[@drewbrew444]

I'm glad you commented on the (in my opinion more likely) meta-narrative that artists are making these "ugh, the label wants me to make this tiktok. anywhere, please share this toktok to show them!" because the label told them to do so because it's more likely to get viral. I mean... you're making a video about it. Thats kinda the label's social media team's main goal isn't it? to just get their product (the social media post) sold to the most customers (the tiktok, instagram, twitter, and youtube viewers).

[@isaaccastro4846]

What if this is just a marketing strategy in order to capitalize the feeling of going against the big company??

[@cdvideodump]

This post sponsored by Meta Platforms

[@isaaccastro4846]

@@cdvideodump I wish I was paid to make comments😔

[@domsuf]

this is downright despicable

[@tontonbonnet7397]

This is why I respect Kendrick so much. He made sure that this kind of stuff just bounces off him

[@zael7292]

And nba young boy

[@Thatdudewiththedogs]

Yeah, I’ve seen multiple artists go “my record label is making me make this Tik Tok” and it’s just so off and makes me feel weird and bad for the artist. It’s just bad all around.

[@frankbuckwell2348]

The extremes of the situation are mostly unimportant. This is fucked up full stop imo.

[@jasonwonkawich5275]

I don't want a social media platform determining whether or not I get to enjoy music from my favorite artists. Since when did TikTok become the gatekeeper for my playlist? Who made that fucking decision?

[@9G0D]

It has nothing to do with tik tok and more to do with audience engagement. Bavk in the day it was the same thing you would play an unreleased song at the club and if the crowd likes it then you know u should release it. If the crowed doesnt move its less likely the song will get releases. People just hate things that are popular and they want to seem unique so we’re making it an issue about tiktok

[@shadez123]

@@9G0D TikTok is different, it's about making viral moments envolving the music/artist and not about the music itself. It's not about people wanting to seem different, it kind of cheapens the music. Also some music is just not suited for the platform, so it also doubles down as yet another platform that influences artists to make a certaint type of song, just like the radio did/does. Besides the original point stands, labels should not be gating music releases behind "engagement", they should be doing their job and promoting the music themselves.

[@9G0D]

@@shadez123 well the fans are too smart for their own good now and dont want anything marketed to them directly from the label because then the artist is an “industry plant” “manufactured star”. Fans want to feel like they discovered an artist organically and thats why labels are putting so much pressure on social media/tik tok because a song blowing up on tik tok is more relatable than a song being pushed down your throat on a million youtube ads and on the radio all day

[@loganleatherman7647]

@9god How much longer is that going to last for though until people start realizing that’s what’s happening? Then they’ll revolt and the industry will have to find/contrive another medium by which to make music feel “organically discovered”

[@9G0D]

@@loganleatherman7647 we are literally watching it in real time. The new viral moment is pretending u were forced to use tik tok, now people are talking about you being forced to do it and wow how convenient that the song u were supposed to do a tik tok dance for is now playing in the background of you crying on tik tok. Voila, everyone discovers the song in a way that feels more genuine.

[@thescoobymike]

Ironically it became a viral moment on TikTok

[@EIEANIMATIONS]

'my label said so' is just the artist version of 'my mom said so'

[@EaZyGoiN12]

although one of them you can grow out of and the other one you're intertwined legally.

[@sheridan7475]

Glad we’re still talking about this, but sad we’re still talking about this.

[@KMKZmusic]

Why is everyone mad at labels? It's not their fault TikTok is pretty much the only way to promote music now. Traditional promo doesn't work anymore. TikTok does. Labels throwing money at artists for promo will only go so far; if artists want to be successful they have to make TikToks. That's just how it works now.

[@xxcorrinxx6299]

I think its a major difference between having a social media presence (posting some engaging content on tik tok every now and then and maybe participating in some trends), and feeling pressured into writing music with possible "viral tik tok sound" opportunities in mind. That's where it's really starting to interfere with the authenticity and freedom of an artist I think. If a song is catchy enough it might seem like a waste not to purposefully throw in some moments that could lead to 1000 different versions of the same joke, and that icks me out tbh.

[@meresounds699]

I think a point missed here is that it’s now part of the marketing plan, for these artists to actively go “against” their label. It adds to the rebellious nature of certain fanbases and when the artist goes “against the man!!!” it’s now seen as good. I believe that’s exactly what’s happening with Halsey. It’s all planned out and disgusting.

[@therealdudeski]

Halsey seems to be inauthentic as fuck

[@Homeb]

Lol

[@someordinaryplayer209]

@@beaualIoevv we?"

[@meresounds699]

@hunteryaradis two sides here for sure and I respect your opinion, it’s definitely happening to artists. However, I think specifically in Halsey’s case, that this is just meta level marketing doing whatever they can, at any cost, to sell records. Halsey’s new record is probably gonna have tons of songs about fighting record labels, talking about shitty producers, talking about her manager won’t let her put songs out. Then in 2 weeks she’s gonna have a tiktok that says “my label didn’t want me to put this out… but I did anyways😈” then drop the most mediocre song I’ve heard in my life.

[@carlvargas7911]

@@someordinaryplayer209 yes WE

[@ginny7000]

the performance of authenticity 2: tiktok edition discourse is coming about sooner than expected, i thought we'd need to see tiktokers get burn out first, i didn't count on artists v label strife being turned into content.

[@ichris2011]

I really don’t see what labels offer artists these days to make signing away anything to them worthwhile. You pretty much have to have an already established fanbase on some platform to get any labels attention, and at that point you’ve already done what the whole point of a label is. I mean sure maybe they can get you on jimmy Fallon or something but in the era of homegrown internet fan bases is that really a strong selling point for signing anything?

[@9G0D]

MONEY…. BIG WADS OF CHASH UP FRONT. They pay for videos, writers, beats and you can focus on creating music without having to decide if you wanna pay for studio time or food

[@cartilagehead]

I forget which music KZbinr it was (possibly Benn Jordan, but not sure) who recently said that today the value-add from a label to a struggling artist is 100% as the arts equivalent of a bank/chamber of commerce. Basically they’ll give you what amounts to a small business loan in the form of an advance/record deal, plus some various resources to help grow your business (and best pay back what you now owe the label). Somebody buying a Subway franchise can go to a bank and get a $50-200k small business loan, but it’s v v hard to get a traditional SBL to quit your day job and dedicate yourself full time to recording/promoting/touring your debut album, even if you somehow manage to produce useful sales projections/etc of some kind. So labels step in to take advantage of that.

[@mattmattga]

Connections with Playlisters

[@taylorstep8135]

Fame

[@Kianleahy]

artists say there label wont let them release music unless they go viral, everyone says oh no poor artist and talks about it. the artist releases there album and everyone listens. She just made a fake thing turn viral, that was the tiktok.

[@funkychicken4509]

Halsey making that tiktok ironically became the viral tiktok moment they asked for

[@consolas2514]

It sucks but that's what you get into a label for, it's commercial. You entered the label wanting convertible support, they are doing the best they can for the commercial side of it, thats the deal with labels.

[@AnarchyIsLove]

You have to craft a song around those "viral moments" and it can ruin the fucking song. And not ruin it as in make it bad, but artists wanna make their songs their way, and having to compromise on that is shitty. What is viral on tik tok has nothing to do with the song's quality, it's whatever other people can use in different contexts. Tik tok is mostly kids and kids like repetitive, basic music that fits anything.

[@JanoyCresva]

i feel so bad for them! Next thing you know they'll make them go to award shows.

[@Jaies_]

What if her TikTok about being disappointed about having to make a marketing TikTok IS the marketing TikTok (brain expands)

[@mikaylatheengineer9631]

I think the label is just trying to help her promote her music after her hiatus and knows it won’t do as well if they just release it whereas promoting the song on TikTok will help the song do a lot better. Halsey has been through a lot so I understand why she wants to just release the music but at the end of the day, she is in a contract and the label wants to make money too. Unfortunately you just have to suck it up sometimes, that’s just how work is. I can’t just tell my job I don’t want to do something

[@mitchdodgemusic]

We can also see a big divide in artists “making it” from a viral video vs. the art or music they create… it’s very disheartening for those that put their musical talents first.

[@BuildingHP]

I don’t have tiktok but I’m subscribed to FKA twigs on youtube and in the leadup to and after her release of Caprisongs she has literally been releasing Shorts nonstop and I’m assuming these double as tiktoks and tbh it’s been jarring.

[@CT-Records]

The thing that gripes me about TikTok as a musician is that you have to manually identify your music in their content ID system for the song to get any viral plays. I can't just upload a video and expect the song to be IDd, forcing me to use the TikTok app to make my video. And when I try to do playalongs with instruments or whatever, I get syncing issues with the audio and video. TikTok is specifically tailored for the lip-syncing crowd, and doesn't do anything to promote actual musicianship.

[@SkeletonTown374]

just because of that one commenter im deliberately avoiding harrys house for the foreseeable future

[@sirisblank]

moral of the story, don’t sign with a label

[@stillvisionsmusic]

Reminds me of KISS claiming they were "forced" to make a disco album and weren't just chasing a trend...

[@TheBlackJewelz]

SCREW TikTok. We are witnessing the death of art. ART is not meant to be minimized into a commodity for emporiums of flippant transient sound bytes such as TikTok. When TikTok dies just like Vine then everyone will be saying “Oh now you have to run and cater to all the airheads and teeny boppers on this new trendy medium!” People just need to encouraged to respect, appreciate and VALUE true artistry.

[@Bodega_princess]

PREACH!! Tiktok is killing originality little by little

[@bzymek7054]

I mean i get what you're sayin but I don't see this as some new attack on artistry, it's Just an extension of radio and MTV days. There's thousands of stories about artists who were made to release the song they didn't want to, or to cancel the project they were passionate about because mr. Capitalism decided it's not profitable enough. Tiktok is not a source of oppression, it's merely another tool

[@billhicks8]

Art will never really die, but this way of operating it is going to die because it will just burn everyone out eventually. It just isn't sustainable.

[@perlundgren7797]

We are witnessing the mainstream being the mainstream. It's not "the death of art" any more than McDonald's existing is the death of food.

[@x_VineM_x]

💯

[@jdh21403]

One of the members of Doll Skin said that the band not doing well on TikTok cost them their record deal with Hopeless

[@prodxwoah]

I get how this is a bad situation, but this is some MAJOR publicity for the next album Halsey releases.

[@Da_Homie12]

Imagine still being signed to a record label in 2022

[@Merumya]

its not just music. authors for example are also pushed to having some kind of social media activity. if you have a good amount of followers that can actually help to persuade a publisher to accept your transcript. If you dont.... many publishers expect at least a website or a blog or whatever, because its the hot stuff nowadays which they think improves their sales. But i totally agree, that its he publishers/labels job, to do the job on advertising and getting ppl to know about the stuff of their artists/authors. What are they even for, if they dont do that? the two main points a publisher/a lable provides are finances (investing something into your project, believing it will pay off) and advertising it. forcing the advertising onto the artist/author reduces them to a bank for artists, instead of being a label/publisher.

[@synthiandrakon]

It's hard to feel anything about this really, it's like am I supposed to be outraged on an artist's behalf that their label wants them go advertise their own album?

[@danieladams1752]

Dude im working on my vocals, instrument technicalities, and songwriting(which is why I watch your channel) and I dread tik tok. I dont like tik tok. I barely like social media. Please can we push for not exploiting artist for money? I thought that's where we were trying to head

[@9G0D]

Artists have been exploited for money for decades bro.. tv radio tours blah blah blah the list goes on, nothing has changed. People just hate tik tok so they wanna blame it for everything

[@danieladams1752]

@@9G0D ok so shouldnt we, like, stop it? Like I have no desire to preform like a circus animal on tik tok. Id like to preform my art the way I would like to preform the art.

[@otherly.]

@@danieladams1752 the thing is thats where a lot of people discover and spread music. If people werent using tiktok that much, then the labels wouldnt push their artist. You could probably use another platform of your liking to promote your music such as Twitch or KZbin. As long as it makes people stream your music and support you. But its much easier and less timeconsuming to make a tiktok video than to make yt videos or live-stream on twitch

[@9G0D]

@@danieladams1752 the best way to not being exploited for money is to not accept an enormous amount of money that can only be made back via exploitation. The ammount of touring, promo, rehearsal that major artists do is unhealthy but they took that money and they agreed to be a circus animal to make a profit on that money

[@literallynomadic78]

Is it really news to anyone that music labels suck? This has been widely known for over 40 years. Plus let's not pretend Halsey is some inspirational artist being held back by her label, she's basically an amalgamation of other people's work with her face slapped onto it. Would love to see her contract that she willingly signed with the label to see if it mentions any promotional obligations from her.

[@strayiggytv]

Man as a person who grew up in the 90s where ever being filmed enjoying yourself or revealing your musical taste would have been a one way ticket to bullying town I will never see the appeal of TikTok. I can't get through videos on there without cringing.

[@idkidc7513]

Funny how a lot of the rants regarding this situation is towards TikTok and not the whole music industry which is the reason why they're doing this

[@Not_Your_Usual_Username]

Flightless records: we need you to create another album before we release this album King Gizzard: already done

[@dajuiceman8870]

If I’m being personally honest; the label not wanting to release Halsey’s music is a net positive for everyone; this is a good thing.

[@Meowblivion]

XD

[@mikexxxmilly]

out of all the pop artists in that bubble I find her to be one of the least annoying but her voice does become grading

[@mandiedukes]

@@mikexxxmilly Least annoying? Try working in a retail store where they play Halsey 24/7..

[@mikexxxmilly]

@@mandiedukes Id rather hear Halsey all day than Cardi B lmao

[@mandiedukes]

@@mikexxxmilly Now THAT’S a fact 😂

[@thats_wacckk1998]

The moment I read this I was like what if this is the fake viral moment

[@rux_ton]

I hate most all labels tbh. I agree with what you said, that the label should do the promo(and more pushing in general) but that burden has then been put onto the artist. However in this little kiddy pool of hatred I made for myself, i have just learned that you do have to be on ALL platforms. I try to remind my friends who also make music this. A lot of artists have this attitude of "oh i dont like tiktok" well lose out on that promo then man. I guess my point here was if any artists dont like platforms but want their music to be heard? get over it and get on em. Also fuck most labels (remember, i said most not all, i love the labels ive released on). Super glad to of seen this video on this topic. I feel like not a lot of people talk about this in the music space

[@ralphman6125]

This controversy seems very nuanced and some of the reactions I'm seeing seem bizarre. There's obviously a point where this becomes burnout and artists should absolutely not be required to make a "viral moment" in order to release their art, but a lot of people seem to think that artists shouldn't be required to do socials promotion at all? How do you hear about music if not from the artist? A label tweeting isn't going to get a new song out, it has to be the artist, TikTok and any other platform works the same way. It's not the record industry being monsters by simply saying "hey charli xcx can you tell your incredibly engaged fanbase that you have new music out? they follow you to hear about these things".

[@nu-metalfan2654]

@RALPHMAN. Well before Social Media was a thing, the label would be responsible for you to get you on the radio, so the station could play the music and the band or artists might get booked to do an acoustic radio session. The label back then was responsible for anything media related, so the band or artists would get TV, Radio and Magazine interviews or ads promoting their music. In the early days of the Internet the band or artists would have a website to promote their music, but they had to promote their website via TV, Radio or Magazine interviews which the label would cover that for the artists to promote themselves. That’s how some things worked pre Social Media. Now all bands/artists need to do is just announce new music via Twitter and KZbin, which they can do themselves.

[@the_trash_mane5875]

I mean my friends are in a band where part of the contract is they have to post on social media to advertise, each member gets a turn doing it. This includes them posting from Facebook, to TikTok, and everything in between. Do I like it? No. Forced is pretty cringe.

[@joshuaDstarks]

TikTok is the latest plague bringer.

[@dcstoy]

I’m mad that I’m not even surprised by this:// Artists have it hard man.

[@billhicks8]

Everyone has it hard now, unless you're a child or rich.

[@dcstoy]

@@billhicks8 Good point, I agree.

[@VeProducctions]

I love the irony in Halsey going viral on TikTok complaining about how her label is requiring her to have a viral TikTok for her new album

[@captain_crunk]

What if I told you that Halsey's viral video complaining about being forced to make a viral video....was indeed the viral video she was supposed to deliver... So meta bruh.

[@tritonneptune3834]

I'm sorry this is fucking hilarious. Imagine trying to express some real emotion through some raw heartfelt art, but before you do that you have to do some dumb tiktok thirst trap dance. Lmao free my artists.

[@StudioScarecrow]

ha ha very funny

[@NameOfTheChannel]

Making music is already hard enough. Promoting it in any efficient way is a different kind of beast. Artists should get payroll both as artist and as promoters if labels require them to do stuff like that.

[@champagnepapisocialist5903]

Labels asking artists to do TikToks makes sense, viral TikToks can get your music more-or-less free promotion which means that the label has to spend less money on marketing. The only problem is 1. That leads to the marketing departments being cut back and means people lose their jobs 2. The ARTIST isn't getting a discount on their contract or getting an increase in royalties for doing their own promotion without the label's help

[@jesse9999999]

Seems like a move from labels that understand they are becoming decreasingly relevant in the modern era, particularly considering the conversion rate of tik tok followers to actual streaming listeners/fans that would buy merch is pretty meagre in most cases. These people just need another metric to judge their employees (artists) on so they can shift the blame to the employee when the customer doesn't want their product. Really it is the fault of the label for not properly investing in the artists in terms of developing their talent and properly marketing their releases. Simultaneously it is increasingly on the backs of artists to reject the label path and carve their own lane, but taking that route and remaining creatively stimulated seems the better option to me.

[@altruisticlemur]

well, halsey did it and technically made a viral tiktok in this way lmao

[@bloh12345]

this was intented lmfao he literally talks about this "boo hoo this label is making me make a tik tok... i hate my label! btw, make sure to stream!" everyone fell for it!

[@slowestjabroni]

seems like a great long term reproducible solution for all artists and their mental health

[@user-kz3sb1ns9z]

It makes sense though and its already easy for artists to go viral on tik tok

[@tomfoolery5844]

I’m a personal trainer and I train someone who works in the music industry at a record label. From what I understand they are also forcing artists to get into KZbin shorts.

[@KennyCarson123]

Well look at Arizona Zervas, his song Roxane blew up on there but at the expense of any longevity cause he fell off the face of the Earth after that.

[@KoewlBag]

TikTok continues to be a blight on this world

[@IAmKhasse]

Wow! Artists need to do self promotion before their record label spends millions of dollars pushing their music?? What a weird concept!

[@brunodosreis]

There’s a huge difference between expecting consistent self promotion and expecting someone to already have viral success

[@xbmpr]

I remember being younger and it being my dream to become a famous musician and get a record contract. Now I just wanna be a simple luthier and fiddle with my guitars. Because screw that.

[@benro6564]

To maintain relevancy sometimes people are forced to do things they don't want to do. Labels are manipulative and run by soulless people so it is the sad reality of being a signed musician. Not saying it should happen in any way

[@egorzimowski3505]

well, it's artists' choice to sign with big labels. They can just not , then no one would force them to work and do stuff that's written in the contract

[@adamkincaidmusic]

@@egorzimowski3505 lol exactly! Nobody wants to take any personal responsibility. I like the idea of staying indie..

[@egorzimowski3505]

@@adamkincaidmusic many artists (even big ones) are now on their own labels. Yes, they don't have billions of streams but at least they don't share their money with people who force them to do something they don't want to

[@sunriseparrabellum5505]

@@egorzimowski3505 for smaller artists i understand the feelings of being exploited but if you’re a well known multimillionaire why tf do you need to be signed to a massive label? you’ve got your brand, do your own marketing

[@billhicks8]

@@sunriseparrabellum5505 I think a lot of music (mainly pop music) only "works" because it has a big budget being thrown behind it. Indie isn't everyone's career goal just for the way it shapes the sound and video around its constraints. Pop artists should ideally be able to have mainstream careers without necessarily spending time in Tiktok jail...

[@burnacco]

you're telling me you finally sign to a major for them handle all of the business and promotional bull and they demand YOU to reach a "virality milestone"?? just absolutely insane, really didn't think i could hate TikTok more but here we are

[@markshortall3384]

Meanwhile, the rest of the world has to do something they dont want to do for 8 hours a day 5 days a week.....also read your contact before you sign it

[@dorianh3986]

I feel like her making a post on it accomplishes the label’s goal

[@tomek6132]

What an original way for her to make a viral Tik Tok moment.

[@boejudden9011]

Gosh record labels are so mean they should go back to when they were good. Like when they let Billie Holiday sit in jail so she could go through violent withdrawals and be clean enough to play a segregated night club

[@josejones]

“Engagement.” Such a ridiculous and ironic word within the social media context…Maximize meaningful engagement within an environment of meaningless disengagement.