why do so many modern pop songs sound like they were made by committee

[PurpleFencepost]

like seriously it feels like every time i hear something new on the radio it’s got this weird overproduced sheen where you can almost hear the focus group notes in the background. “make the drop bigger,” “add a rap verse here for crossover appeal,” “tone down the guitars it’s too edgy.” it’s not even bad music necessarily but it all just feels sanitized? like there’s no risk or personality left. i miss when artists could just put out something weird and unpolished and it was allowed to exist without being focus-tested to death maybe im just old and grumpy but it kinda sucks. …anyone else feel this way or am i alone here

 

[Stargazer6]

yeah i get what youre saying... it’s like everything has to fit into this box of “will this sell” instead of “does this feel authentic.” i miss when bands/artists could experiment and flop hard but it was still exciting! like that one time i found this indie band that only released one album bc it tanked but it was so weird and fun... it’s not even about pop being bad, some of it’s great! but it all blends together now... like if you heard a snippet you’d struggle to name the artist maybe thats the point tho? idk. also side note did you know venus has mountains taller than everest but we cant see them clearly bc of the atmosphere? kinda like how pop's buried under layers of production sometimes