Case Study On Brockhampton
INTRO
In this case study, I will be looking at how Brockhampton use genre fluidity and how it's helped their quick rise to fame and how I can use the same concept of genre fluidity in my music. I will be using sources such as interviews with the group as well as any reviews or academic papers I can find online about their sound but I feel like finding anything genuinely academic for a group like them will be difficult as they've only been well-known for a year or 2 at this point.
CONTEXT
After deciding to relate my project to genre fluidity I knew Brockhampton would be a good place to start as they are quite varied in sound. If you were to listen to any of their albums without knowing where they were coming from sonically you'd think each song was made by a different group entirely (Ehehalt, 2019), and this is to a degree true, Brockhampton has well over 10 members on the line-up whether they be vocalists, producers or graphic designers, that's a lot of creative input so obviously any project they do will sound out of place because it isn't a normal group. But that's only if you aren't aware of what they are attempting to do. They blend hip-hop, indie, R&B, and pop but they generally get thrown into the hip-hop category.
CONTEXT
After deciding to relate my project to genre fluidity I knew Brockhampton would be a good place to start as they are quite varied in sound. If you were to listen to any of their albums without knowing where they were coming from sonically you'd think each song was made by a different group entirely (Ehehalt, 2019), and this is to a degree true, Brockhampton has well over 10 members on the line-up whether they be vocalists, producers or graphic designers, that's a lot of creative input so obviously any project they do will sound out of place because it isn't a normal group. But that's only if you aren't aware of what they are attempting to do. They blend hip-hop, indie, R&B, and pop but they generally get thrown into the hip-hop category.
THE BOYBAND
In this video, the interviewer states "you guys are a self-proclaimed boyband" which causes the group to defend themselves and repeat the fact that they aren't self-proclaimed and they're just a boyband. This is a common topic in their interviews that they always seem to find themselves defending. People don't necessarily disagree and say they aren't a boyband but they always say "self-proclaimed" or suggest they don't make music typical of the boyband genre. These are some examples of how often in articles and interviews the term "boyband" is linked with Brockhampton.
This, in my opinion, is a marketing technique. I feel like the fact that they're music is alternative and considered "anti-pop" and they started off quite underground, some coming from failed solo careers means they are quite aware of how difficult it is to gain attention, so if they market themselves in a mainstream way, whilst appearing completely independent they'll begin to attract an audience. This brings the boyband image down to a more humble level and opens up their demographic, whilst at the same time making music that is fairly alien to the boyband genre. If you just look at the first single off of their saturation trilogy to be released and the one that followed it, you'll instantly hear it's difficult to place them in one genre.
This, in my opinion, is a marketing technique. I feel like the fact that they're music is alternative and considered "anti-pop" and they started off quite underground, some coming from failed solo careers means they are quite aware of how difficult it is to gain attention, so if they market themselves in a mainstream way, whilst appearing completely independent they'll begin to attract an audience. This brings the boyband image down to a more humble level and opens up their demographic, whilst at the same time making music that is fairly alien to the boyband genre. If you just look at the first single off of their saturation trilogy to be released and the one that followed it, you'll instantly hear it's difficult to place them in one genre.
This track has a lo-fi beat featuring a melodic and soft hook which is supported by melancholy and mellow rap verses. Then 10 days later they released this song.
TRACK COMPARISON
This song is on the other side of the emotional spectrum completely, reviewers describing it as "heavy, in your face and unapologetic" (WGB5054, 2017). I believe this complete change in sound in the space of a single is a big reason they have gained such an audience so quickly. People know they can do the emotional and deep stuff right off the bat and within two weeks they changed they're sound completely. I don't believe this way of approaching song-writing would've worked before the internet. The fact that they have this accessibility to whoever they want means they can constantly change their sound and people will come. People who enjoy aggressive and abrasive rap will also be fans of Brockhampton as well as those who enjoy the more mellow tunes and this could easily apply to any other type of music if they market themselves right. WGB5045, 2017 states on their blog for music reviews that "the group's versatility is both a strength and a weakness." and I agree with this because even though it has been extremely beneficial for the band to market themselves as this hip hop/pop group in the short term, I feel like they'll either find a certain sound to continue down or they'll end up dying out as that's not how you keep a consistent and loyal audience, they'll always be split down the middle by why they are listening which isn't a bad thing, I just feel like it would help the groups longevity to have a consistent sound.
AESTHETIC
Brockhamptons aesthetic also interlinks with this idea of genre melding. Whether intentionally or not Brockhampton has developed a very similar music video style to a lot of indie artists that are in the music scene right now. If you look at these two videos and then compare them to the Brockhampton video you'll see they follow quite a similar formulae from a stylistic angle.
As you can see all 3 of the videos are attempting to recreate the old VHS camera style with both Gold and Long Gone being shot in a 4:3 which gives it a classic feel. They all also feature a vintage looking font with the title of the song in the first couple seconds of the video. This is clearly a style people are attempting to replicate decades later and should be a thing I consider implementing into my music if I ever plan on doing a music video. I think Brockhampton and the other artists go for this particular style as it gives off a DIY and homegrown vibe that was lost in popular music in recent years, so adding this style of video to your music videos instantly implements a nostalgic vibe into your head without any knowledge of the artists, you may not enjoy the artist but you are well aware they represent an older time just from the first 3 seconds of the video. Brockhampton also take the opportunity to implement small and weird details into their songs and albums as a whole, as Comley, Liza (2018) states that on each saturation album each song has the same amount of characters, as well as the fact that the last song on saturation 3 leads into the first song off of 1.
After researching Brockhampton I have learned that genre melding is a good way to get yourself some quick traction but it is uncertain and for them too early in their career to decide if it will keep them at the top. If you look at the chart positions that Brockhampton has hit with each of their albums you'll see a clear increase in popularity so I guess for now that speaks for itself.
Ehehalt, L. (2018). iridescence by BROCKHAMPTON. [online] Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/@lehehalt/iridescence-by-brockhampton-54c707930204 [Accessed 15 April 2019].
wgb5054 (2017). “SATURATION” Review – Will’s Music Blog. [online] Psu.edu. Available at: https://sites.psu.edu/pashionblog/2017/10/05/saturation-review/ [Accessed 15 April 2019].
Comley, L. (2018). Brockhampton. [online] Rit.edu. Available at: http://elc2375.cias.rit.edu/interactive1/article/brockhampton.html [Accessed 15 April 2019].
trc5361 (2018). Brockhampton, The Internet’s First Boyband – Facing The Music. [online] Psu.edu. Available at: https://sites.psu.edu/tcallahanpassion/2018/01/26/brockhampton-call-ya-momma/ [Accessed 15 April. 2019].
Grosz, D. (2017). A look at BROCKHAMPTON, a hip-hop anti-collective All-American Boyband - The Stanford Daily. [online] The Stanford Daily. Available at: https://www.stanforddaily.com/2017/11/14/a-look-at-brockhampton-a-hip-hop-anti-collective-all-american-boyband/ [Accessed 15 April. 2019].
News, M. (2017). BROCKHAMPTON Talk “Saturation III” & Redefining “Boyband” | MTV News. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mKLT3KGUFQ [Accessed 15 Apr. 2019].
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