Kaliyah Harvey
Prof. Sewell
English 1101-34
October 22, 2016
Who Controls the Music? Music is a part of everyday life for everyone. John Seabrook’s The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory tells the story of how big artists, such as Brittney Spears, Rihanna, Kelly Clarkson, Backstreet Boys and ‘nSync came to be. Seabrook also tells the story behind of the big names behind the artists, Max Martin along with other Swedish writers, Denniz PoP, and many other producers that made the artists who they are and that the fans love still to this day. But because these artists have such great producers and writers, were they guaranteed to be big superstars or to have number one hits and become the artists they are today. Music producers from around …show more content…
American Idol was introduced to the United States in April 2002; the show was the search for a new superstar and at the same time the show added the element of built-in promotion, the show’s massive audience (Seabrook 125). American Idol was an amazing way to turn a small-town artist into big city names and that is exactly what it did, the millions of viewers tuning in. With American Idol, before the audience hears the person sing we hear the backstory, which is usually sad. This sad backstory attracts the fans and help them feel a connection to the artist even before they sing. American Idol increased the chances for an unknown artist to have a fan base before they even got signed to a record label. Seabrook tells the story American Idol’s first winner Kelly Clarkson. With the winning of the competition, Kelly gains a record deal and the chance to work with Dr. Luke. Kelly and Dr. Luke had a rocky relationship about what was going to sell. Dr. Luke felt as Kelly did not know what would sell but Kelly felt as she did and in a way, she did. Kelly was going to sell music regardless of who she worked with because of the background of American Idol, she had her fans without the help of Dr. Luke. The show was truly based on what the fans thought of the artist. After …show more content…
Seabrook opens the book up with a quote by Virginia Wolf from The Waves, “One cannot live outside the machine for more than perhaps than half an hour.” Today the world lives in a box called social media. Social media connects the world together in many ways and forms, music is one of them. Social media is the start of some of the biggest artists is music today. Everyday new and upcoming artist are being discovered and it is not by producers or music industry but by everyday people who live on social media such a Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Vine, and now Snapchat. With every like or share people around the world are helping promote these artists and leading them right where they want to be, with music producers to become rich and famous. Plenty of cases where fans get behind an artist on social media, and they blow up heavily which attracts corporations all around. Seabrook discusses how Dr. Luke launched Becky G’s career after her discovered her on YouTube, rapping over a Kanye West and Jay-Z song “Otis.” Don 't forget that Justin Bieber was found through social media and, with the help of his team, has mastered the art of the super fan. Sage the Gemini was found when his song "Gas Pedal" went viral on Vine. While posting video on social media can also give the artist negative feedback, any feedback can be good feedback. The fact that the artist is attracting a music corporation without
Prof. Sewell
English 1101-34
October 22, 2016
Who Controls the Music? Music is a part of everyday life for everyone. John Seabrook’s The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory tells the story of how big artists, such as Brittney Spears, Rihanna, Kelly Clarkson, Backstreet Boys and ‘nSync came to be. Seabrook also tells the story behind of the big names behind the artists, Max Martin along with other Swedish writers, Denniz PoP, and many other producers that made the artists who they are and that the fans love still to this day. But because these artists have such great producers and writers, were they guaranteed to be big superstars or to have number one hits and become the artists they are today. Music producers from around …show more content…
American Idol was introduced to the United States in April 2002; the show was the search for a new superstar and at the same time the show added the element of built-in promotion, the show’s massive audience (Seabrook 125). American Idol was an amazing way to turn a small-town artist into big city names and that is exactly what it did, the millions of viewers tuning in. With American Idol, before the audience hears the person sing we hear the backstory, which is usually sad. This sad backstory attracts the fans and help them feel a connection to the artist even before they sing. American Idol increased the chances for an unknown artist to have a fan base before they even got signed to a record label. Seabrook tells the story American Idol’s first winner Kelly Clarkson. With the winning of the competition, Kelly gains a record deal and the chance to work with Dr. Luke. Kelly and Dr. Luke had a rocky relationship about what was going to sell. Dr. Luke felt as Kelly did not know what would sell but Kelly felt as she did and in a way, she did. Kelly was going to sell music regardless of who she worked with because of the background of American Idol, she had her fans without the help of Dr. Luke. The show was truly based on what the fans thought of the artist. After …show more content…
Seabrook opens the book up with a quote by Virginia Wolf from The Waves, “One cannot live outside the machine for more than perhaps than half an hour.” Today the world lives in a box called social media. Social media connects the world together in many ways and forms, music is one of them. Social media is the start of some of the biggest artists is music today. Everyday new and upcoming artist are being discovered and it is not by producers or music industry but by everyday people who live on social media such a Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Vine, and now Snapchat. With every like or share people around the world are helping promote these artists and leading them right where they want to be, with music producers to become rich and famous. Plenty of cases where fans get behind an artist on social media, and they blow up heavily which attracts corporations all around. Seabrook discusses how Dr. Luke launched Becky G’s career after her discovered her on YouTube, rapping over a Kanye West and Jay-Z song “Otis.” Don 't forget that Justin Bieber was found through social media and, with the help of his team, has mastered the art of the super fan. Sage the Gemini was found when his song "Gas Pedal" went viral on Vine. While posting video on social media can also give the artist negative feedback, any feedback can be good feedback. The fact that the artist is attracting a music corporation without