Music
The American Top 43,000
How the digital age of art has created a market too big for its own good
In 2020, more than 400 million people subscribed to some sort of digital music platform. The age of people going into stores to buy physical music is over. As technology has increasingly become more interwoven into our lives, the only way to survive is to adapt.
The music industry is no different, as apps such as Spotify and Apple Music have revolutionized how we listen to music. For the consumer these apps have done nothing but help, as any song imaginable is just a click away. You can now create playlists with hundreds of different artists without leaving your couch. Apps like SoundCloud have allowed artists to get their music out there without the help of labels. Soundcloud has helped to produce big time names such as Trippie Red and Tay-K, who without the help of new technology likely would not have made it in the industry. The days of rappers handing out their mixtape on the street-corner has fallen, and out of the ashes has risen “go check out my Soundcloud, link in bio.”
In his book The Medium is the Massage, Marshall McLuhan talks about how he thinks the age of digital media is creating a “global village,” in that everyone around the world is becoming more and more interconnected through technology, similar to how people were connected when humans still lived in villages. The evolution of music has in many ways followed along with McLuhan’s ideology. The metaphorical “campfire” where ideas were shared is reemerging through things such as public playlists, and as technology and music become more interwoven, so do the musical tastes of people across the world. Twenty years ago the idea of Americans listening to K-Pop or Lil Wayne performing in Saudi Arabia would be unheard of, but as music has become more available it has spread like wildfire to all corners of the world.
With this new abundance of available music to the public, has come the over-saturation of the market. Today there is more music available at you fingertips than has ever existed prior. In an article for the New Yorker, Hua Hsu wonders “How Can We Pay for Creativity in the Digital Age?” He cites a letter to Spotify shareholders, “suggesting that the days of Top Forty charts were over: ‘It’s now the Top 43,000.” Consumers have all began to develop their own diverse, yet specific tastes.
Out of the broadened spectrum of music has come a problem for up and coming artists. There is more competition than ever and for listeners it is easy to get bogged down by the excess of music. Many listeners have chosen to listen to app created playlists, such as Rap Caviar, a playlist created by Spotify that has over 13,000,000 listeners, which allows them to find new good music quickly. Such compilations leave artists who haven’t achieved a certain level of fame to fight for whatever crumbs are leftover. Hua Hsu cites that nearly seventy-seven percent of music industry revenue goes to only the top one percent of producers.
In years past, record labels were the ones that chased artists, but with the recent change surrounding the music industry, artists are left desperately trying to get signed to a label just to have someone that will promote their music. Labels now hold most of the power and have gained creative control over what artists release. Many labels, instead of allowing artists to have creative freedom, have restricted what musicians release to better fit what is selling best. Frustration from creators and listeners alike has been evident. Many genres such as rock and country have gone into decline as the “indie” sound that allows genres to evolve and keep young listeners interested has began to fade away. Even the film industry has begun to feel the backlash of art becoming more focused on consumerism as big box office superhero movies have dominated. However, recently there has been a resurgence in independent music as artists like Tyler Childers and Tyler, The Creator and many more have gained a cult like following as listeners yearn for something original.
Making a living as a musician in today’s digital age of media is becoming increasingly harder. More artists than ever are fighting for the eye of the public and most are failing. A study by Princeton University determined that the average salary of full time musician is only around twenty- three thousand dollars, which would be under the poverty line for a family of 3. A similar study conducted showed that only 10% of people with an art degree make their primary income as an artist. The digital age of art has created a level of exposure and convenience never before seen, but with this new age has led to the downfall of the average artist.
