Author: Michael Pementel
In a recent interview with Kerrang!, Bring Me The Horizon singer Oli Sykes said that musicians today need to be like “actors” in way, given the pressures placed on them by music labels.
Earlier this week, we shared how Linkin Park‘s Mike Shinoda took to Twitter and spoke to his frustrations regarding the music industry pushing artists to create “mind numbing content.”
Shinoda wrote on Twitter:
“I’m tired of hearing musicians be told they’re not investing enough energy in social media content.
“Every artist I talk to right now has this feeling. They say they’re spending way too much time making little videos to support their careers, but wish they could spend more time making and playing music.
“How is a young artist expected to put in enough time to get great at their craft when they need to feed all these content channels? The time they spent generating mind numbing ‘content’ might have been at the expense of the best song they never wrote.”
Now in a recent interview with Kerrang!, Bring Me The Horizon singer Oli Sykes has shared a similar sentiment. At one point in the article, Kerrang! speak to the success that Sykes has had via TikTok; Sykes goes into talking about how he feels sorry for this generation of artists, going on to talk about label’s pressuring said artists for social media content.
BMTH singer talks music industry pressures
“I feel sorry for this generation of artists,” [Sykes] sighs. “Most labels want you to do skits for TikTok, or be thinking about your social media presence, and that alone is a full-time gig. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be a new artist and have that responsibility. It’s not just making music, you’ve also got to be an actor, almost. I’m watching it with my wife [alt.pop artist Alissic] now, and it’s mad.”
What are your thoughts on what both Mike Shinoda and Oli Sykes have shared regarding these social media pressures?
I’m tired of hearing musicians be told they’re not investing enough energy in social media content.
— Mike Shinoda (@mikeshinoda) May 23, 2022
Every artist I talk to right now has this feeling. They say they’re spending way too much time making little videos to support their careers, but wish they could spend more time making and playing music.
— Mike Shinoda (@mikeshinoda) May 23, 2022
How is a young artist expected to put in enough time to get great at their craft when they need to feed all these content channels?
The time they spent generating mind numbing “content” might have been at the expense of the best song they never wrote.
— Mike Shinoda (@mikeshinoda) May 23, 2022
Watch: Fans At A Bring Me The Horizon Festival Started A Circle Pit In A Swimming Pool