Jacob Howard
Staff Writer
Social media has completely changed the way we consume our entertainment.
The music industry has especially been affected by this transition, from radio and television, to streaming platforms and video-sharing sites. Because of this change, record labels now have an easier time discovering new artists through sites like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
However, because of the efficiency of this method and the tendency of modern record labels to mistreat their signed artists, the music industry has found a brand new problem in the form of “industry plants.”
Industry plants are musicians brought in by record labels to find instant success and popularity without having an established music catalog. With the rise of social media influencers, record labels can now utilize these people’s followings and equip them with the best producers, engineers and a team in order to market them as the face of their label.
One of the major ways to tell if an artist is an industry plant or not is by looking at their discography. Whether it be on Apple Music or Spotify, if an artist only has a couple of singles and maybe an EP or an album that was released within the last year of their popularity, then they are most likely an industry plant.
The career of SoundCloud rapper Jumex is an example of an industry plant gone wrong. He first went viral after posting a clip to Instagram of him disrupting a class he was taking in high school. The video ended up catching the attention of Brad Scoffern, who had previously managed musicians like Tyler, The Creator, Mac Miller and the music collective Odd Future. Scoffern would then work with Jumex to help film his first music video.
Although he only had a couple of songs released at that point, Jumex’s management under Scoffern’s record label quickly positioned him within the industry as a prominent up and coming artist. The illusion came crashing down, however, when screenshots were released that showed Jumex asking other artists to write his music for him. This resulted in the record label parting ways with him less than two years later, and Jumex quickly faded into obscurity.
Because of failed experiments like Jumex, the term industry plant has been misused when describing artists who randomly gain popularity, even though they don’t have any label behind them.
With her rise in popularity in 2017, Billie Eilish is an example of an artist falsely accused of being an industry plant. Her song “Ocean Eyes” gained traction on SoundCloud in 2016, leading to her getting signed by Interscope Records in November of that year. Fans were skeptical of the authenticity of Eilish’s rise since she was the daughter of Maggie Baird, an actress with connections within the entertainment industry.
This provided her with opportunities to act in movies as a teen, notably doing work for the first “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” movie. Although she was provided a gateway into the music industry that other artists dream of having, it’s clear that Eilish is a musician who cares about her artistry and deserves the core following that she has maintained.
After the release of her debut album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” in September 2023, Chappell Roan suddenly received a lot of mainstream attention. This caused people to label her as an industry plant due to the insane amount of success of her songs “Good Luck, Babe!” and “HOT TO GO!” These claims soon lost traction, though, as it was revealed that Roan began making music at the age of 11. She was also signed to Atlantic Records for a short period of time, before eventually getting dropped in 2020.
While it may seem to people who were unaware of Chappell that she was just a random artist backed by an effective marketing team, she was actually an independent artist when releasing a majority of the singles that grew to become her biggest hits.
Fans are justified in their concerns of whether or not someone is involved in the music industry for fame and fortune or for the love of self-expression and creation. Those musicians that reach the limelight quickly may seem like they are at the top of the industry, but genuine passion and hard work seems like it will continue to outlive the people chasing trends and chart positions.