Photo Credit: antonbe
Inspired by the YouTube video, “The TikTokification of Music” by Gabi Belle
TikTok’s Potential Impact On Heavy Metal
It’s no secret that TikTok has become a new horizon, or detriment, to our society and culture. That includes music and the music industry as a whole.
There are so many ways in which I could explain how a platform like TikTok has made music more accessible than ever. But there are even more ways I could describe how it has made that music cheap and easy.
So how does this apply to a genre like heavy metal you ask?
Well, it’s the fact that there is the potential for many metal musicians to go viral on TikTok and gain a following. I have no issue with this as it’s important for heavy metal to grow and be seen.
What is being compromised though? That is a question I would like to answer.
In my very first blog post, I stated that metal fans should not be upset about their favorite band becoming more popular because it means they are gaining success. I stand by that statement.
However, with platforms like TikTok affecting our attention span to the point of it being less than a goldfish’s, it could also erode the songwriting aspect that makes us metal fans giddy on the inside.
Heavy metal is a genre that will never be genuinely mainstream from top to bottom, and that is something we dig about it. Having music that most people can’t understand as a form of art is something that we find charming about the genre. A big part of that is the fact that much of the songwriting process does not follow conventional means.
But with the growing aspect of ‘TikTokification’, there is the possibility that the songwriting in heavy metal could still get dumbed down alongside every other genre of music that adopts this growing trend.
The heavy metal community should be aware of this and not let it overtake the rebellious nature the genre was founded upon.
Examining The Past To Address ‘TikTokification’
Heavy metal’s last time at the top of everyone’s mind was in the early 2000s when the subgenre of nu-metal was at its peak popularity.
One thing that sticks out in my mind with this era is the countless amount of generic groups that spawned trying to capture the magic of the top bands at the time. These bands also tried to act the part as much as play the music. Rough childhoods and ridiculous hairstyles were just a means to an end.
Korn was genuine about it, but it became the cover for a group’s generic sound.
So, with that being said, the potential ‘TikTokification’ of heavy metal could lead us back to the popularity that we saw with nu metal, but at the cost of authenticity, the thing that makes metal what it is.
Do we want that as metalheads who adore the raw and visceral nature of the music we listen to daily? I say not!
The Solution
To prevent the watering down of metal by such a large social media platform, I suggest that we create an environment in which the heaviest music out there can get the same attention that a viral metal song would get.
Metalheads, don’t take shit too personally. Create more memes and post more clips around black metal, death metal, and the extreme subgenres out there. I believe it would all be in good fun and allow the entire genre to get seen more than it would have otherwise.
This way there is a balance between the mainstream and the underground. Both could get widespread attention and most bands would probably welcome this.
Besides, they wouldn’t start diminishing their artistic vision because of popularity. It would just tell them they should do more like the song that got their attention.
Less ‘TikTokification’ would occur and the genre would grow exponentially. All I see is a win-win scenario that should be embraced.