Do singers even sing anymore?

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finallyfalling

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Pop artists aren't the vocalists they used to be. I can't name many modern singers that hit those high notes, or have large vocal ranges. They don't put emotion into their voices and their singing is calm, soft, and boring. "Bedroom pop" artists (Clairo, Beabadoobee) are the worst example of this. All they do is whisper into their mics, there's no way any of them have formal training. They sing in the same tone every song, once you've heard one you've heard them all. The barrier to entry has been greatly lowered and these are the consequences. I don't like it.
 
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We haven't had another Whitney Houston or Madonna type come out in a long time. Everyone seems like a 15 minutes of fame deal right now. These singers aren't meant to be icons loved by multiple generations. They are here to go viral then fall off the radar. TikTok has made everyone think they can become a star. It's so easy to put out your own music these days. The music industry has its problems. They've cheated a lot of artists out of money and publishing and have exploited young artists and put them in danger. But the good side is that there is better vetting and you get less duds since not just anyone could get a record deal. You had to show that you were at least worth a shot to invest in.
 
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A lot of them are talented but I think that a focus on having a nice sounding voice kind of limits them. Everything is so produced, autotuned to perfection.

Say what you will about the likes of Bob Dylan, Kurt Cobain, Kate Bush etc. many people hate their voices (at least Dylans) but they were able to strike a balance between conveying what felt like real emotion at times and also keeping a melody.

A lot of modern music has had the edges smoothed out, this weirdly paved the way for people being able to enjoy AI generated songs. I don't think this was the music industries intention but the increasing artificial adjusting of singers voices to people just listening to entirely artificial voices is something I think the music industry isn't ready to deal with.

Taylor Swift early music had a charm to it, simple pop songs but I could see the appeal. Most of what she has released over the last several years may as well be AI imo.
 
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You don't need to sing, you just need to be appealing. It's easier than ever to manufacture stars now. VTubers are the future of music unironically.

Bands will be like cartoon shows, it's going to be the fictional character going through many different people voicing them.
 
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It really pisses me off when I hear what might have been a good song, but is ruined by autotuned vocals and/or immoral lyrics.
Like hearing Country music with heavy/obvious autotune, singing about drinking, and the music video shows people with booze or tattoos. I mean can jews not try to ruin everything? It has to be intentional. "oh, you wanna be a Country music star? We'll hook you up with (((our))) producer... now sing about being a degenerate and we'll ruin your voice with autotune, that's what the kids like these days you know, wink wink nudge nudge"
 
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Necrosan said:
You don't need to sing, you just need to be appealing. It's easier than ever to manufacture stars now. VTubers are the future of music unironically.

Bands will be like cartoon shows, it's going to be the fictional character going through many different people voicing them.
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Considering how successful the "vocaloids" in Japan there is a good chance this will be the case.


The performers don't get exhausted and can do impossible things. Everything will always be perfect unless there are any technical difficulties. If this can expand more outside of Asia this could definitely become a new normal. Right now it's kind of a novelty in other parts of the world.
 
PovertySprocket said:
How many successful mascot oriented bands have we seen beside Gorillaz? (Asia excluded)
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Asia had a mascot? I thought they just had kooky album art.

cover_74452412017_r.webp
 
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Lemmingwiser said:
I don't know what you mean, this is excellent vocal range.

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Super late, but the girl in this video is a designer who has created a lot of genuinely cute pieces and has collabed with one of the biggest icons in Harajuku/Menhera Jfashion, Gloomy Bear. I do not know why in God's name she tries so hard to be a singer, her lyrics are so literal and uninspired I've seen more eloquent Instagram posts.
 
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PovertySprocket said:
How many successful mascot oriented bands have we seen beside Gorillaz? (Asia excluded)
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The Aquabats! (no I'm not exclaiming that's how you spell their name) and adjacent bands (Phenomenauts, Sandfleas, etc.) GWAR, Green Jellÿ, Radioactive Chicken Heads. I guess you can say KISS, most black metal bands, a variety of rappers/ rap groups like MF Doom and Deltron 3030. I guess you could say a bunch of third wave ska bands have mascots too. I guess Eddie is a mascot for Maiden. It's pretty common for bands/ artists to have mascots.
 
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Depends on the genre. Kpop 90% no outside of very rare exceptions like Hyori (inactive, I believe), and Kim Tae-woo who are considered generation one kpop which was a much different time, where the idol culture and lipsyncing didn't really take off until generation two. Most generation one kpop stars became actors or embraced a private life. To be fair, most pop singers of any country don't sing live, or they use a loud backing track.
 
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Gaddafi said:
Super late, but the girl in this video is a designer who has created a lot of genuinely cute pieces and has collabed with one of the biggest icons in Harajuku/Menhera Jfashion, Gloomy Bear. I do not know why in God's name she tries so hard to be a singer, her lyrics are so literal and uninspired I've seen more eloquent Instagram posts.
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Laundry, shut the fuck up
Dinosaurs, shut the fuck up
Lyrics, shut the fuck up
Gaddafi, shut the fuck up
 
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