We compiled a list of predicted 2021 music trends and what the future of music holds.
The Search for Songs
With an influx of new music coming out and more unorthodox music discovery platforms coming to the forefront like Tik Tok and Instagram, searching for songs can feel like an endless black hole. To keep you out of the music search worm hole, voice search functions available on Google Mobile may be combining with platforms like Shazam to create a system that can identify that catchy song based on a few of its lyrics or notes. The days of frantically Googling “What is the song that goes ‘beep bop boop boop bop’” will soon be over. Thanks technology.
Virtual Concert Experiences
If 90% of your personality was made up of going to live shows every other day, you aren’t alone (trust me, we’re all going through an identity crisis). The pandemic has brought more virtual concert experiences to the surface, and music lovers are now enjoying DJ sets and concerts straight from their couch. Even before the pandemic took hold of the world, virtual concert experiences were breaking ground in the live music and events industry. Live virtual reality show experiences offer a number of pros. Viewers are not only watching the concert, but experiencing it from multiple view points, including the point of view of the band or DJ. While VR doesn’t necessarily beat out the energy of a show crowd or the feeling of strong bass underneath the feet, it sure does beat getting stuck behind a 10-foot-tall person or a group of attendees that would rather talk loudly than listen to the performers.
Music Production On-the-Go
Unless you’re still the proud owner of a flip phone, the excuse of not having enough time for your music officially belongs in the trash. The rise of music production apps are dominating and becoming an essential tool for busy creators. No worries for your wallet either - the higher priced music production apps run at around $20, while others are completely free. There are full on DAW apps you can utilize such as Steinberg Cubasis, Image-Line FL Studio Mobile HD, and the infamous Apple GarageBand. There are also exceptional handheld drum machines and keyboards you dive into such as Native Instrument’s iMaschine 2, Akai iMPC Pro, and Arturia iMini. Cut your social media feed scrolling in half and start asserting your attention to your trusty, hand-held production apps.
Hits of Nostalgia
With the rise in popularity of vinyl, tape cassettes, and CDs, it’s no surprise that nostalgia has its grip on the world. Nostalgia is also often used as a coping mechanism, so it comes as no surprise that nostalgic triggered product comebacks are dominating shopping carts. Expect to see a reappearance of eight tracks, cassettes, Walkmans, boom boxes, iPods, and of course, vinyl.
The Rise of the Self-Made Creator
The internet is a beautiful thing. Every single resource that you could possibly need to make it big and establish your professional self is living on the internet, which is why so many artists are ditching labels and making a name for themselves. With beat-selling and distribution platforms like BeatStars, creators no longer need to rely on major labels or music middlemen to produce an amazing song and make it big. Producers are taking back the industry and are empowering themselves to run their music business on their own, making upwards of $4,000-$6,000 a month on BeatStars. In October 2020, BeatStars celebrated a milestone payout of $100 million to Producers, proving that creators can be self-sufficient and successful without the interference of restricting labels.
The Person Reading This
Let’s be real - we can predict trends and what the future holds as much as want, but trends and happenings often arise when you least expect it. Take that thought and run with it. Creators on BeatStars are a part of the future of music, and just like Lil Nas X and his rise to fame on BeatStars, the same could happen to you. Join hundreds of thousands of other creators on BeatStars and mold yourself into the future of music. Make 2021 your breakthrough year and start investing in yourself and your craft with the help of BeatStars.
