Social and Cultural Influence of Pop Stars

To understand the contemporary music industry better, i decided to dedicate a blog to the social implications and cultural impact of pop stars on the general public and how much the ‘Star Image’ follows along in the consideration of how a music piece would perform in the music market.

Two specific dynamics in the contemporary music industry have changed how society perceives musical influence in culture: the means of music consumption and the presentation of the artist to the public. In past decades, the album concept in music consumption generated hype, creating an event or a special show around the time of release of the music. A new vinyl record was a cherished prize for the music fan. But the digital revolution has repeatedly changed this type of consumption.

Another drastic change arrived with the digital revolution in the newest form of consumption that is music streaming. Through sites like Spotify, any artist has the ability to immediately upload his or her music through a popular medium, reaching an enormous user base. While this enables more music discovery, whether it boosts or diminishes the influence of that music and its creator needs to be determined.

Star Image and Record Labels

Similarly, the presentation of the artist has changed greatly with technology. In previous decades, the record label and savvy marketers could control the portrayed image of a music celebrity to mass audiences. Through social media, the freedom of interaction between music artists and their fans has never been greater. Through Instagram Lives and One on One music Interviews and Radio shows, artists have created mediums for feedback and interaction.

The consumer began to desire and that that led to a social attachment to the physical recording of an album which also drove the fans to worship those who create the commodity. The surge in recorded music gave life to the grand ideas of advertisers and marketers for the stars, initiated from the very beginnings of the youth culture. Elvis Presley was modeled along the popularity of Marlon Brando and James Dean. And with his success came a further influx of new artists designed to have the same image, ensuring an already established consumer base.

Today similarly, artists like BTS, Selena Gomez, The Weeknd and many more have established the idea of the perfect star image by maximizing interaction with fans. Through the celebrities having their own Youtube channels, blogs, TikTok accounts, the mass appeal has been further pushed to relate to the general audience and providing more content. The idea of including the audience in their daily lives and creating a sense of belonging and constant grattitude has now ensured the artists of a dedicated conmsumer base for their music and ther content that they upload on The Web.