The most exciting thing in the music world right now is roots-oriented singer-songwriters who are heating up the world with their sincere thoughts and stripped-down acoustic sounds.
As perhaps the second most popular star in the genre, there’s no need to explain the importance of Zach Bryan’s status in country music. He’s scheduled to play to packed stadiums in 2024 and is a country music sensation despite a lack of support from the mainstream country industry.
Noah Kahan has been an amazing folk-pop phenomenon of the past year, putting together some rather quietly incredible numbers. The world has been slow to realize how great Noah Kahan is because he clearly doesn’t fit in anywhere. But no matter what you call his music, he’s an area-level artist.
And beneath these two titans, like Zach and Noah, they have skyrocketed to popularity through viral songs spread on Tik-Tok, which fits, but doesn’t quite fit into “country.” There are many up-and-coming artists. Better than anywhere else. This includes the likes of Wyatt Flores and Dylan Gossett, whose song “Call” is one of his Tik-Tok sensations, and whose song “Call” is one of his most popular on Tik-Tok. You can also add it to the equation.
Everyone’s sound and approach is a little different. Wyatt Flores feels it’s much more similar to Oklahoma Red Dirt or something similar to country, but Noah Kayhan says he doesn’t want to be considered country, and the same goes for rootsy versions of pop. This is an appropriate expression.
But what’s similar about all of them is that when you go to their concerts, every song they play has the whole audience yelling back every word. We saw this phenomenon play out with Zach Bryan a few years ago. Both Wyatt Flores and Noah Kahan enjoy the same reality. And on Monday, both expressed genuine concerns about mental health and what is commonly referred to as “imposter syndrome.”
On Monday, February 19th, Wyatt Flores announced that he was canceling his scheduled show in Oxford, Ohio. Other shows scheduled in Detroit and Toronto will also be postponed to a later date to allow for mental health to be a priority.
“To tell you the truth, I struggle with my sense of self-worth and sometimes feel like I’m only loved because of the guitar in my hand.” Flores said in part: in a statement. “I’m not good at saying no to things and disappointing anyone, especially my fans. The feelings don’t go away. I try to hide them by burying them in a bottle or finding other distractions. I drank less and tried to take better care of myself. Suddenly, my emotions finally caught up with me.”
You can hear Wyatt Flores expressing these very struggles in songs like “Orange Bottles” from his 2023 EP. life lessons. It’s these kinds of songs that put Flores on a rapid trajectory to stardom.
In a recent feature published in guardianNoah Kahan speaks specifically about impostor syndrome, which he experienced and had sometimes devastating effects.
“It feels too simplistic to make music that I really value and am proud of, and that it connects with people. For me, there must be some underlying dark forces that are fabricating this. there is no.” Kahan says: “Then I’m going to an arena show and it’s like, ‘Oh my god, they’re all fooling me. I’m fooling them into thinking I’m something I’m not. It’s like, ‘That’s it.’
In many ways, the mental fragility of these songwriters and the way they process emotions through their music is what makes them so appealing to mass audiences. But it’s also about a personality type who isn’t necessarily happy about standing on a stage and being praised in front of a packed arena.
These people are not alone. This is similar to the pathology behind Turnpike Troubadours frontman Evan Felker’s mental health issues, and Felker is particularly concerned about people singing song lyrics back to him during performances. He said that it was causing him to become mentally unstable.
They are not self-absorbed people like the rock stars of old or the big performers from mainstream countries. they are songwriters. In previous eras, they would have built their careers in the shadows, writing tracks primarily for others and perhaps touring on the club circuit. It just so happens that their strong, emotional, and serious songwriting has become so talked about that it has propelled them to superstar status, often only being brought up through Tik-Tok forums.
“I’ve gained a huge following on TikTok, so I have a great base. I’m very lucky.” Noah Kahan says. “But some people, especially young, developing artists and artists who are about to break out, don’t have that right now. I hope people don’t just say, ‘I’m done.’ Because I think if you’re really talented and you have a story to tell, you’ll find a way to get people to hear it. ”
TikTok has been the catalyst for all this success, providing a much more democratic discovery mechanism than terrestrial radio, but perhaps dangerously accelerating this growing interest in songwriters. There is a possibility that you are doing so.
With so much money flowing into many of these viral songwriters, the trend may be to strike while the iron is hot. When there’s so much money being made, there’s a perverse incentive to keep the show going by finding a drug to push away the anxiety. On the other hand, the artist herself also feels that in a sense her dream is coming true and she does not want to risk it by slowing down her pace, which is why she is struggling.
Zooming out to see the larger context, another concern is that all this attention to songwriters could become a hypertrend that could quickly explode into flames, which isn’t good for anyone. Growing sustainably over time and following wisely crafted step-by-step benchmarks before graduating to a bigger position is the way to realistically move all of this forward, always prioritizing your mental health. .
In previous eras, we let these songwriters spiral out of control and eventually achieve legendary status, like Townes Van Zandt or Blaze Foley or even Hank Williams. But only to become a songwriter who died before his time.of Luke Bell’s tragic story ‘ is also a cautionary tale, with Sierra Ferrell also speaking openly about her mental health struggles with fame and infamy in the past.
We are in a new era where pure, original talent, rather than unoriginal talent, is actually recognized by the broader public. But this also brings new challenges and dilemmas. At the end of the day, the health and safety of celebrities should take precedence over profits and publicity. Having guardrails and full stop signs in place when things get tense is something that all performers, their representatives, and the public should accept and understand.
Often, it’s not just the praise that matters, but also the overnight sensations. “Brought Me” as sung by Evan Felker on the current Saving Country Music Single of the Year “There’s a certain amount of love in the Thousand-Person Choir…”
But Felker needed to feel true to himself before he could accept the love of others.
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