Epsiode 14: Weeding Out Industry Plants - Pop Culture Boner
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Epsiode 14: Weeding Out
Industry Plants
Tik Tok is completely fascinating to me, Rather Die, about dating straight white
but also, I am absolutely not allowed to men. It wasn’t a great song, and then
download it to my phone. This is because when people started digging into them
my brain is operated by a complex a little it seemed as though they were
series of pullies, levers, rewards and something that had been pulled together
bait and switches which I am operating as a money-making exercise and they
with a vice-like grip using my little were labelled an ‘Industry Plant’. It took
goblin hands. If I disrupt that delicate about three days for the internet tear
ecosystem with something as easily strips off them so mercilessly that they
consumable as tiny little video snippets made their Twitters private, deleted a
that sometimes make me laugh, I will bunch of social media accounts, turned
never ever do anything again. I will just off comments and released an apology
stare at my phone for like 16 hours a day video. The apology also included vigorous
until eventually my body is consumed by denial of their status as ‘industry plants’.
fungi and I am harvested and made into The whole thing got me thinking about
a delicious pasta alla boscaiola. the music industry and the near-fever
pitch levels of conspiracy circulating Tik
Essentially, what I do is receive trickle- Tok and YouTube about people’s status as
down Tik Tok content through either artists. And since I’m already chomping
friends or other social media platforms. at the bit to be allowed to pay attention
They’re like unwanted goldfish that to the tiny dopamine-inducing video
someone flushed down the toilet, which snippets, I thought we could make it an
are now monstrously huge and thriving episode.
in the sewers of Tumblr. Lot of weird
imagery going on in this intro. Doing I’m Alex – this is Pop Culture Boner, the
well. Anyway, point is – I’m familiar with podcast edition, and today I’m thinking
some Tik Tok content, and because I am about Industry Plants.
terminally online, sometimes that means
I am also familiar with the ins and outs If you’re not as embedded in internet stuff
of Tik Tok drama. Recently that drama as I am, that whole intro was probably
has included the rise, and then rapid fall a bunch of gobbledygook but basically,
of an all-girl pop-punk band called the this episode is not really about the Tramp
Tramp Stamps. It’s a lot of summarise in Stamps, although they certainly form
an intro, but basically three colour-coded part of the story. This episode is actually
girls with a wardrobe made entirely about digital conspiracy theories, their
of fishnet tops wrote a song called I’d rapid circulation on Tik Tok and theconcept of music industry plants. Not Eilish. So, I thought today we could look
plants as in foliage – although there is at the history of the term Industry Plant –
probably a whole separate episode on the where did it come from? Who is it levelled
phenomenon of 30-year-olds dancing to at and why? And what is it about Tik Tok
rap music in front of their vast collections that has made the Zoomers go full tin hat
of indoor plants. I’m talking about plants on the music industry?
as in the like… nefarious CIA, spy-novel
kind. Except for the music industry. The term ‘Industry Plant’ as it stands
today, has its roots in hip hop message
The term ‘Industry Plant’ has been boards from the early aughts, and you’ll
floating around for a few years now, and probably notice throughout the episode
how you define it depends on who you that specific genres are more concerned
ask and how bitter they are about the with the idea of Industry Plants than
state of the music industry. The definition others. This is because part of the issue
from Urban Dictionary comes from user that people have with a Plant is that
NicholasCageStressesMeOut in 2015 and they’re somehow being inauthentic in
says: their presentation to their audience.
That’s not new – the term ‘sell-out’
“An industry plant is an artist who existed in the 90s, but it was typically
has a Major/Indie Label backing their used to refer to alternative bands
movement but presents themselves as a frittering away their hard-earned indie
“home grown start up” label to create credibility by doing things like signing
a pseudo-organic following. They act as to a major label or letting your song be
if things are miraculously happening the soundtrack to someone hoeing into
for them based on their talent (via blog their Big Mac. What’s different about the
coverage, media coverage, MTV playing Industry Plant is that it’s pre-empting
their vids, etc.) The reality is a low risk/ the audience – rather than selling out,
high reward situation for labels looking it’s buying in early and giving up the
to build the next “new star”.” chance to build an authentic relationship
with your craft and your audience.
While this is a pretty succinct summary,
people have used it to label anyone Now, on the whole, pop music is largely
from artists whose songs randomly unconcerned with this as a concept. I
blow up on sharing platforms like Tik think there are a few reasons for this –
Tok or Soundcloud, to people who sign first of all, it’s designed to be consumed
with labels early in their career, to well- by a mass market. We’re used to hearing
connected artists with friends or family in pop music blend in influence from other
the industry. And given that it’s a term genres to make it more appealing or
that is used almost exclusively to discredit stylish for the moment. And beyond
someone’s artistic merit, it comes with its that, we’re very used to seeing artists
own forms of cyclical backlash. The term manipulated for the sake of pop music.
seems to have taken a new life on Tik Tok Think about Boney M for example,
in the form of rampant conspiracy theories where the band was constructed to prop
about everyone from Juice Wrld to Billie up a German producer’s disco hits, andit was revealed that their front man isn’t invested enough in hip hop to join a
Bobby Farrell contributed no vocals to message board to trip and fall and end up
their recordings. Or Milli Vanilli, whose in a YouTube spiral on why every rapper
vocals were cut together from a variety you’ve ever met is lying to you. With the
of uncredited performers and then term becoming more mainstream, you
slapped on two handsome faces. Now, are, in turn, more likely to see it levelled
obviously, there’s a separate story there at someone outside of the hip hop genre.
about the manipulation of black men to
make money for shadowy producers who Adding to this phenomenon is the fact
don’t care for the performer’s wellbeing that the music industry is currently in a
– but that’s a different episode. What state of flux. As it did for newspapers,
I’m saying is, even if lip-synching was a magazines, movies and the dinosaurs,
big, career-ending scandal for a group the internet has really done an
(particularly in the case of Milli Vanilli), unprecedented number on the way we
at a certain point, audiences became consume music, which the industry itself
comfortable with a bit of slight of hand has been pretty slow to react to. Spotify,
in pop music. for example, launched in 2008 and it
took until 2018 for the Billboard charts to
The second point is that we also expect finalise how they were including digital
pop stars to be a little bit inauthentic. Or steams in their ranking calculations, and
at least, not like us. No one is looking I’m pretty sure they only did it because
to Ariana Grande’s Disney child star enough of us stopped buying CDs that it
upbringing and thinking, “God, that looks was getting embarrassing. For the casual
like hard work, but also a completely observer, it might seem like a reasonably
feasible roadmap for me to follow as a insignificant thing – what does it matter
person.” And (perhaps thankfully for us to you if Billie Eilish is number 40 or
as an audience) she’s not making music number 100, aside from its impact the
about the Disney grind either. The genres cost of the ticket you want to buy? But
that attract wild conspiracies about incorporation of digital streaming into
Industry Plants are typically genres where the way we calculate traditional industry
audience members place a high value on accolades is has meant that the chances
authenticity, like hip hop or punk. Hip of something totally fucking left of field
hop’s roots as a form of expression for happening increase drastically. Leor Galil
marginalised black communities and wrote a really great piece for the Chicago
emphasis on the struggle as part of its Reader called ‘How did the ‘industry
thematic composition, for example, make plant’ take root?’, and he says,
it incompatible with the kind of slick
branding you see in pop music. Which is “Streaming technology has fed rumors
why hip-hop message boards were such of industry plants by making it easier
a fertile breeding ground for the Industry for unknown musicians to cross over
Plant concept. And with a lot of those with viral hits—Billboard played an
fanatics now making the move onto other inadvertent role… by deciding… to
social platforms – particularly YouTube weight streamed songs and albums more
or Tik Tok – it’s easier for someone who heavily in its chart data. This increasesthe odds of unforeseen anomalies garnering audiences in the millions that
appearing on those charts: the version they’re unlikely to replicate on other
of “Baby Shark” produced by South more familiar platforms like YouTube or
Korean education company Pinkfong, for Instagram. And because the premise of Tik
instance, debuted on the Billboard Hot Tok as an app hinges on users interacting
100 at number 32…” with snippets of sounds or music by way
of sketches, dances and lip synchs, users
On top of this, streaming numbers are are less likely to run into some of the
more easily able to be artificially inflated copyright pitfalls they would hit on other
using third party services. There are terms platforms. YouTube will slap you with a
and conditions that are designed to rule copyright claim for even thinking about
out this type of activity on most platforms, a song in one of your videos, whereas
but if you look on at the approximately Tik Tok is asking you to make 15 videos
one million videos from hip hop fanatics in a single day using any piece of media
attempting to prove or disprove that an you like. Perhaps unsurprisingly then,
artist is an Industry Plant, there do seem it’s a pretty fertile ground for musicians
to be some anomalies. I watched several with the potential for huge audiences on
videos from a channel called Progresss, tracks that may never have been heard
where he used social media analytics otherwise.
website Social Blade to map view counts
on particular artist’s channels and you The best example is probably Lil Nas X
could see a lot of days where view counts and his hit Old Town Road. Seemingly
would quadruple, and then taper off overnight, he’s gone from making beats
quickly. Now, virality is a weird thing, in his bedroom to having a huge following
and there could be a lot of explanations and a series of number one hits. And it’s
for why something might go up or down down to the song’s traction on Tik Tok – it
– additions to a playlist, media coverage, was picked up for something called the
whatever – but across a few of them it YeeHaw Challenge – I’m old, I don’t really
seemed quite cyclical – 300,000 views for know what that means, but basically
two days and then dropping back down to it was a meme. Coupled with Lil Nas’
30,000 for a week and before jumping clever familiarity with other social media
back up to 300,000. The regularity of the platforms, and he’s managed to build a
jumps and the fact that they would often career that seems like it will have some
fall within the same approximate view longevity. Of course, this sky-rocketing
range is pretty similar to what you’d see success has encouraged a barrage of
on a digital advertising campaign run “Industry Plant” tweets from hip hop
through a third-party platform. fans, but the more successful he becomes,
the less that seems to stick – especially
This ability to manipulate streaming since he loves to retweet anyone who
brings me back around to the Tramp calls him a Plant and confirm that he is,
Stamps and their brief blaze of horrifying in fact, a Plant. I think the fact that he’s
glory on Tik Tok. Perhaps more than any very engaged and funny on a lot of social
other platform, people who gain traction media really works in his favour in terms
on Tik Tok really gain traction – often of buying him some of the credibility hemight have otherwise lost with people by For You page on Tik Tok with colour co-
being so successful so quickly. ordinated haircuts and laughably bad pop
punk hooks people became suspicious.
I digress. What I actually wanted to The overall vibe is bit like when you leave
talk about was the fact that this ability a banana in a lunch box and everything
to be VERY successful on the platform tastes a little bit like banana – except
has obviously attracted music industry it’s three women who were left in the
attention. And with COVID-19 shutting same room as one Bikini Kill album, 400
down a lot of live shows, label A&R guys pictures of e-girls and a link to the Dolls
are, I would imagine, spending a lot Kill website.
more time in the digital space trying to
work out the ins and outs of an app filled Part of the reason they caught everyone’s
with nihilistic Zoomers. I sympathise with attention in the first place was that their
them – I really do. I’m almost within the lyrics seemed so disingenuously engaged
target demographic for being reasonably with a feminist motif – I’ll give you a
competent on Tik Tok and I would still little sample of the type of thing we’re
rather die than attempt to work out what working with:
was cool on that platform. It just seems
like the wild West for teens – and there’s “I can’t remember the last time/ I slept
nothing more frightening than teens. with someone I/ Actually liked and
What this industry interest unfortunately he went down on me/ I can’t recall a
opens the door for is a lot of cringe- memory/ Of someone driving me/ Home
worthy attempts to manipulate Tik Tok to and not asking for a blow job (Ew)/ I’d
try and auto-generate success. Which is rather die/ Than hook up with another
cool in theory – sure Jan. Just make it go straight white guy”
viral and then leverage that success. It’s
easy. We’ll be millionaires. Which is kind of whatever, but it’s also
like… pop feminist takes circa 2009. It’s
The problem, of course, with virality is like someone has taken a ‘Girl Power’
that it is unpredictable. We talked about shirt and added ‘Fuck yeah!’ in Sharpie
it with Rebecca Black’s Friday. Why was to make it edgy. But it did make people
that suddenly a household name? A take notice of them. Unfortunately for
series of really complicated, accidental, them, rather than working in their
incidental factors, which include but are favour, people started digging through
not limited to – angry comedians on the each of the member’s Instagram pages
internet, boredom, high school bullying, to pinpoint the exact moment that they
late night talk shows, Katy Perry and started to get alt-girl makeovers. Spoiler
puberty. Any attempts to actually alert: it was about a month before the
replicate that particular moment in time band properly launched. From there,
would be instantly recognisable as fake criticism started to mount as people
and, because of the mean teenagers I started bringing up racist tweets and
mentioned earlier, be mocked to within queer baiting, forcing the members
an inch of its life. So, when the Tramp to immediately make a very poorly
Stamps started popping up on everyone’s received apology video. And then, blessthem, they tried their luck on Tumblr, mechanisms that operate industries like
the only place left on the internet that is music are more visible than they’ve ever
completely unmonetizable and therefore been. Normally you wouldn’t see the
only populated by the most insane people media training or the crafting of an origin
you’ve ever met. They were bullied off story that might go into a musician after
the platform in 5 hours by a bunch of signing. Which has led people to assign
wired internet freaks sending them the a kind of grand conspiratorial title to
phrase “bug ass” over and over again. something that is essentially the same
Which is the kind of quality content we thing a lot of artist development guys do
should all expect from the wasteland of for musicians generally. Cherie Hu, who
Tumblr. is a journalist who writes about music
and technology, says people are seeking
But essentially, the thing that kept transparency and honesty in the process
coming up over and over again was that now more than ever, which means
their exceedingly obvious attempts at that when they’re met with something
slick branding and their kind of “read the that they don’t understand they’re
Cliff’s Notes” attempts at engagement immediately sceptical and jump to the
with various social justice issues and phrase ‘Industry Plant’. Campaigns to
media platforms, made it seem like bring down the conspiracy make them
someone was pulling their strings. That feel like they’re part of something.
is to say, there are now 4000 videos
calling the Industry Plants. And look, I’m All this isn’t to say that there aren’t
not saying that they are – I think what is problems with the way the industry
more likely is that they’re three women operates now – predatory contracts
who already had music careers trying to that strip artists of their agency and
give it one last gimmick-driven shot and significantly limit their potential are
not fully doing their homework. But I something that should be looked into.
think the speed with which Tik Tok was But assigning a conspiracy-theory-esque
able to latch onto the conspiracy and use label to it only serves to work against the
it to drive the band off a metaphorical message. The best thing anyone has ever
cliff and back into obscurity is kind of said to me about conspiracy theories is
fascinating. that no one can keep their shit together
in normal everyday bureaucracy. There’s
There’s a post floating around that’s like no way in hell they’d be able to organise
“I can’t wait for the inevitable Gen Z cult a secret shadow bureaucracy.
boom” which is essentially implying that
the conditions of the world as it stands Well, that was my Industry Plant episode.
are ripe for a cult reconnaissance, the If you have a favourite suspiciously
same way they were in the 1970s – high successful artist who appeared on your
unemployment, high cost of living, lots Spotify playlist overnight but is definitely
of menial jobs resulting in a constant absolutely 100% not a Plant, talk to me
search for meaning elsewhere. I think about it next time you see me at the pub!
that’s why conspiracies spread so fast Peace!
and have such a hook in Tik Tok – theThis episode premiered on 26th May 2021. Episode written by Alex Johnson and produced by Wes Fahey. Theme tune by Wes Fahey. (Soundcloud: lee snipes) Visit us: Web: www.popcultureboner.com Twitter: @popcultureboner Instagram: @popcultureboner
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