Should Youtubers Make Music?

It's no secret that there's a ton of youtubers who try to branch out into creating music. Sometimes it works, sometimes it really doesn't. There is some pretty awful music out there as a direct result of youtubers, but does that mean all youtubers shouldn't make music? Absolutely not. Everyone wants youtubers to just check a box, they're one thing nothing more, nothing less. They're at the bottom of the Hollywood chain and their jobs "aren't hard", anything they do other than make their videos is an obvious money grab according to most people. That's just not true at all. There are some youtubers who you can genuinely tell love music and are actually good at it, so why shouldn't they be able to pursue it? I can give you two good reasons why they shouldn't be restricted by society, Scotty Sire and Gabbie Hanna.

Scotty Sire is most well-known from David Dobrik's very popular "vlog squad". He appears in several other members videos as well as has his own channel where he regularly posts content as well as music videos. In 2018, his debut album Ruin Your Party was released. It's classified under pop for the beats but rapping is utilized. When you first hear the songs your knee jerk reaction might be, "this isn't that good it sounds a little different", but let me tell you, listen to the lyrics. When you actually pay attention to what's being said the lyrics have a much deeper meaning and are actually really good. My favorite songs off the album have to be "American Love" featuring Elijah Blake and Myles Parrish, "My Life Sucks", and "FOMO". Each one of these has a special kind of commentary in their lyrics. "American Love" is a social commentary on the dating culture in modern day. It's about meeting someone out at the club and taking them home. That night he never got her name and he keeps going back to try and find her at this club again and when he finally sees her it doesn't go how he'd hoped. The lyrics to support this are, "And then I saw her there, plaid skirt, blonde hair. Must have been the weekend, she was really freakin'. Slide to the side of the club she's on. There's a look on her face like something's wrong. Apparently, she's there with her boyfriend Todd. I was a mistake, and she wants me gone." This speaks to the common dating/hookup culture not only in LA but in America, the chorus goes along with this, "I'm so LA, you're colder than New York City Is this love, love, love in America?" Not only is the song and music video (linked below) a great social commentary but this is the best sounding song on the album thanks to the features. The song really flows and has a good groove to it, it's a shame that it'll never get airplay because of the stigma of youtubers. The next song "My Life Sucks" talks about depression and the expectations put on you as a public figure. The chorus is what really sticks out to me because you often hear people talk about drugs in a "cool" way in their music and isn't really presented in this light, "Zolaft, Prozac, Lexapro, all anti-depressants that I've tried before". No one ever talks about anti-depressants in their music so it was shocking to me the first time I heard it. This goes hand in hand with one of the verses, "When I'm out in public, I'm always smiling, tried it, but when I'm home alone my tears are flowing like a hydrant". This speaks to how celebrities are presented in a way to us as having fantastic lives and are always happy when we see them and are living their best lives but this shows it isn't always true. The flow on this song is really interesting because while it's talking about something sad it has a very upbeat dance beat and even has humor within the song. The last song "FOMO" is extremely relatable and something a lot of millennials and Gen Z go through. The song is about the fear of missing out, even if you're invited to something. Every lyric in this song is used to tell the story so it's hard to pick out pieces, I want to talk about it all. The specific part that stuck out to me right away is something that I think everyone has experienced in the modern world, "I pull my phone up and I check my friends' stories. Everyone's getting wild while I'm watching Finding Dory. Now, I gotta try to snap back out of it then, but my Snapchat keeps on pulling me in and the Instagram pics from all of my friends make me wanna be out on the opposite end". It's one of the downfalls of social media it instills the intense fear of missing out on people. It was really interesting to hear that even people who are up on that pedestal still suffer from trivial things like FOMO. Overall, I think Scotty's music is great and have had it on repeat. Everyone should check it out, even if you think it's not your style.

Next up is Gabbie Hanna, she also at one point was a member of David Dobrik's "vlog squad" but is most well known for her own youtube channel The Gabbie Show. Her music was the first "youtube music" I ever heard that I thought was incredible and wondered "why isn't this on the radio?". She's released several singles, my two favorite being "Out Loud" (2017) and "Medicate" which just came out on February 1st. While "Out Loud" doesn't have a very strong commentary it makes up for it in the way it sounds. This song will get stuck in your head for days. Everything on the track is so good, especially the production and vocals. I really don't understand why this wasn't a overly played pop anthem on radio, it fits that bill so well. The visuals she produced for this song are outstanding, I love the music video (linked below) for this song so much, she tells a heartbreaking story. The chorus of this song is met with so much vocal power and is really well written, "Say what you mean out loud, drowning in silence when I'm lost in the crowd. 'Cause every sweet thing you never speak, is deafening, never knowing what could be. Wish I could show you how, but you're just a ghost now". I've belted out this song in the car, almost blowing the speakers out, more times than I'd care to admit. Her new song "Medicate" has such a beautiful sound to it while also throwing in social commentary on the effects of drugs like anti-depressants. Although this song is mostly about her suffering a broken heart some important messages can be taken from it. The chorus is very powerful that makes you think for a minute, "Should I take the pill to numb the pain? Change the chemicals inside my brain, I worry I won't be the same, but I guess that's the point". This is talking about the way prescriptions effect people, and make them different from who they really are. Not only are the lyrics in this song heartbreaking but her vocals have never sounded better or more vulnerable. It's backed by piano which only adds to the weight of the song.

Both Scotty and Gabbie are great examples of youtubers who make music and should be respected for it. What do you think about youtubers who make music? Leave a comment below!

Scotty Sire

"American Love": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT-ye0Sehwg

"My Life Sucks": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wjz3A3-qBwk

"FOMO": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyKXGXskzt4

Gabbie Hanna

"Out Loud": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHvT-oGf6ik

"Medicate": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_HDyrnEfl4