The internet has no doubt completely changed the way society works, especially when it comes to the music industry. Artists no longer need to rely on record labels to break into the industry; they only need internet virality to launch their career, especially on TikTok.
Some believe that this need for TikTok virality has negatively affected the music industry, but senior Landen Davenport has a more nuanced view on the topic.
“I think it is really good for smaller creators,” Davenport said. “But I also think it has got less to do with the music now and more just to do with the business side of things.”
Davenport is currently in his second year in Music & Sound Production, where students learn the technical side of making music and other audio productions. While the class is taught at Fishers High School, HSE students are still welcome to take the class. The teacher of the class, Ray Masterson, also shared a neutral view of the topic.
“No artist has been able to really tap into the zeitgeist without going viral in their own way,” Masterson said. “TikTok is just the current way of doing it.”
A zeitgeist is the collective attitude of a culture at a specific point in time. Our zeitgeist is an era where social media is one of the most influential factors in what becomes popular. This raises questions about whether or not the music industry has become oversaturated with artists.
“It has always been oversaturated,” Davenport said. “I love that anybody can do it now. There are no barriers to get started.”
In contrast to Davenport, Masterson views the topic from a more technical aspect.
“There are so many that do not really learn how to make music that put music out there,” Masterson said. “On the upside you get some fresh new ideas, on the downside most of the music is not well produced.”
With so many artists vying for their turn in the spotlight, Davenport’s advice for those who like making music is to not worry about what’s popular at the moment in the music industry, instead encouraging them to make music for themselves
“There is all this complexity in getting records or getting deals or going viral,” Davenport said. “You do not have to make music for anybody. If you like doing it, just do it cause ‘why not?’”
