The document discusses how in today's music industry, it is difficult for one-hit wonders to gain recognition or success beyond a single hit song, unlike in previous decades. Now, ultra-successful artists like Rihanna and Taylor Swift dominate the charts, leaving little room for up-and-coming artists. Where bands in the 80s and 90s like Devo could have one major hit but still have a career, modern one-hit wonders like Sara Bareilles quickly fade after their one radio song. The dominance of a small number of mega-stars makes it challenging for new artists to break through and achieve more than a single viral hit.

1. The Growing Separation Between Ultra Successful Artists and One-Hit Wonders
In today’s music industry, it’s hard for a one-hit wonder to gain any recognition or be
allowed the opportunity to make more than just one hit. With big names like Jay-Z,
Rihanna, and Taylor Swift ruling the Billboard charts, it is a struggle for upcoming artists
to develop their sound and become successful.
For the music industry, being successful means that you make a living off of your
art. In previous decades, one-hit wonders could be just that, a one-hit wonder, and
produce maybe one or two albums, but still be considered successful. The 80s and 90s
were chock-full of successful one-hit wonders. Take Devo, for example. When I say
Devo, you probably think, “It sounds familiar.” But when I say, their single was “Whip
It,” you immediately imagine the men in those funny plastic red hats. Though the song
and band both quickly faded from the music industry, “Whip it” has been featured in
Swiffer commercials and the like for the last two decades.
And then you have the ultra successful, world-renowned bands that only had one
single that saw airplay on the radio. You know Jimi Hendrix. You’ve heard him referred
to as a legend, a God of the electric guitar. But technically Jimi was a one-hit wonder.
The only song of Hendrix’s that ever made the top 40 was All Along the Watchtower in
1968. Perhaps it was his edgy sound and style that kept him off of mainstream radio, but
he was not an artist that went unnoticed. All three of his studio albums sold in the top
five, but he wasn’t getting the sales or airplay for his other songs. Purple Haze peaked at
#65, Foxy Lady at #67, and classics like “The Wind Cries Mary” and “Voodoo Child”
never even made the top 100.
But today, one-hit wonders have no wiggle room in the music industry. An artist
like Sara Bareilles, who is mainly known for her piano ballad “Love Song,” released in
2007, get one hit on the radio, and quickly fade away. While artists may still be making
music and even putting out albums, if the public isn’t hearing it, then they aren’t buying
it. And if they aren’t buying it, then the artist isn’t doing so well in terms of finances.
Part of my radio-hating soul thinks pop is to blame. With a handful of really
successful artists like Rihanna holding reign at the top, it seems like there’s no airtime
left for upcoming artists. Even the cast of Glee is making it hard for musicians to keep up
and produce something that will make it onto the iTunes charts.
It seems that in today’s music industry, once an artist has had two or three singles
released on the radio, they become unstoppable. Rihanna, for example, emerged on the
scene in 2007 when she was still a cute little girl from Barbados. Now, in 2013, she’s
sex-ified not only her look, but her songs, too. From “Please Don’t Stop the Music” to
“S&M,” it’s easy to see why Rihanna has become so popular. She’s willing to become
what the music industry wants her to become. They wanted a nice girl; she gave it to
them. They wanted a kinky, latex-wearing dominatrix; she gave it to them. Now, every
other station on the radio is over-playing her hit “Diamonds” and beginning to push her
new single “Stay,” towards number one. She isn’t the only recent artist that has had this
ultra success.
Did you know, for example, that while Led Zeppelin never had a number one
single, but Rihanna has had ten? And that Katy Perry is tied with Michael Jackson for the
most number of singles off of one album?
It seems that with each a new, poppy band emerges a great single and hope for the

2. future. They quickly climb to number one on the charts, and then they’re rarely heard
from again. In 2009, Adam Young, the master behind Owl City, released his single
“Fireflies.” It jumped to number one on the billboard charts, and suddenly, Owl City was
no more. While he continued to write and produce his albums, Young didn’t see the
charts again until 2012 when he collaborated with Carly Rae Jepsen, singer of the smash
hit “Call Me Maybe,” on a song called “Good Time.”
Is it class warfare with music?
The one-hit wonders are the dissolving middle class of the music industry, while the ultra
successful acts are holding reign at the top of the music charts, distanced far away from
the one-hit wonders.
One-hit wonders can’t make a living.