The Roots of an Industry Plant
Every now and then, famous musicians are scrutinized for rising to fame too quickly. Now that might sound odd because you’d wonder why that’s a bad thing, but there’s definitely a reason for speculation. Some might say it stems from jealousy, but others might argue that different elements are at play. Artists like Lizzo, Post Malone, Billie Eilish, Eminem, and many more have been accused of the very same — being heavily backed by record labels before they even got big, thus being deemed “Industry Plants.”
The exact meaning of the term “industry plant” might be hard to pin down because anyone you ask will have a different definition. Still, the one that made the most sense to me was given by a Canadian YouTuber named John, who operates a channel called Progress. He defines it as: “a young musician snapped up by a label before having a chance to develop a sense of agency or artistic identity.”
The music industry is known to control the narratives of artists and build them up to cater to a specific audience. This means that their entire careers are mapped out from day one. In that case, Eilish fits the description. She was signed onto Interscope records after releasing “Ocean Eyes” on SoundCloud with no music involvement except for two other songs, which clearly lacked the lyrical depth of “Ocean Eyes”. So what was the label signing on to, her potential to become famous, or her voice? It is important to know that all of her songs to date are written and produced by her brother, Finneas, yet he isn’t signed to a label.
When she interviewed with Vogue and Interview Magazine she gave two separate chains of events that led to the creation of “Ocean Eyes.” In addition, her entire family has industry ties. Finneas is a singer-songwriter and actor, and her parents are also heavily involved in the industry as well. I’m no hater, but everything I’ve uncovered about Billie seems off. Music might’ve meant a lot to her and was present in her life from an early age, but all the facts point to her being planted.
You might ask why these labels put in so much time, money, and effort into building up artists like Eilish but the answer is quite simple:
Industry plants are cash cows.
Major music labels are capitalizing on their resources and looking for ways to monopolize the industry, so they stay in control. They know what fans are looking for and how they can sell it to them.
Before this article, I would argue that it didn’t really matter as long as you like the music they produce. However, when you have such massive funding and a wide arsenal of producers and sound engineers that tune your music to perfection, it has to sound good. Each alleged plant has had a banner year, their music dominating the radio airwaves, and regularly topping the charts. This is because they’re all marketed aggressively online and on social media.
There’s no use in arguing over how bad industry plants for the growth of a genre because labels will keep looking for their next big star. Industry plants don’t just come in one form; they are all molded differently, so they aren’t so easily spotted amongst “real” artists. For example, paranoid rap forums are skeptical of Chance the Rapper (even though he has been an independent artist since day one), Post Malone (who has more blog posts about him than songs), and even Lil Nas X with his chart-topping one-hit-wonder single “Old Town Road.”
When it's all said and done, big-name executives and labels will retain their power, and fans will stir up speculation and debate on Twitter feeds and rap forums. I’m just saying there’s a lot we don’t know about the industry, and even more that we may never know. One thing, however, remains true: music will speak for itself. Mediocre artists will be heavily invested in, coming and going like the common cold, whereas real artists will last long regardless of what’s hot.