R&b
Madison Beer’s career to date is emblematic of modern pop’s obsession with metrics. Catching fame after Justin Bieber shared one of her videos, she was swept up into an online maelstrom that emphasised statistics over songs, and numbers over emotions. Yet she’s never wanted this: an out queer woman with a passion for advocacy, right from the start she’s focussed on the craft, on her delivery, and what the art truly means to her.
That’s why the accusation – false, as it happens – that Madison Beer is a ‘flop’ frames so directly one of pop’s core problems. Artists aren’t given time to develop, to hone their skills; they aren’t even given space to let their careers rise and fall. To self-appointed online observers, whose shrill voices often rise above the pack, success has to be immediate and constant, entirely unfailing.
To use Madison Beer as an example, though, is hilarious. The ‘flop’ slur has put against her name for a while now – one viral tweet recently pondered “Madison Beer has been ‘up and coming’ for five years now…” Stan account MadisonBeerCraves has even flipped this, turning into a kind of in-joke for her fans.
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A few hours ago, Madison finally bit. Clapping back on Twitter / x, she wrote (and then deleted) a message to a critic: “calling me a flop bc I’m ont where some other artists are in terms of how you define success is ridiculous – I’m nothing but proud of my achievements and continuous growth. I’m just making music and doing my thing. Not every artists goals are the same. 😉 Lame ass take.”
Sure, she deleted it – probably a move to preserve the mental health of the original poster – but there’s a huge amount of truth in here. Madison Beer has a right to frame her own narrative, to lay claim to her own story. That’s partially why she wrote an entire memoir, and it rings out in her music.
Indeed, the continual growth that Madison is seeking is clearly there. Her song ‘Make You Mine’ is the first American single in history to reach the Top 10 on US Pop Radio without charting on the Billboard Hot 100 – a sign that the metrics so often clung to by critics are themselves out-dated. Who seriously checks the charts these days? Exactly.
The people who matter, the fans, are growing in number. The lowest grossing show from her current Spinnin’ Tour has out-sold the highest growing show from her 2021 Life Support Tour; streams are rocketing ever-upwards, while her social media is growing.
We live in a cut-throat era, where buzzy pop stars are built up in a matter of weeks before imploding. The perceived failure of the Ice Spice debut album is a potent example of how the internet can haul people out of the depths, only to abandon them when the hype begins to disintegrate. There’s a continual plea for greater health awareness in music, yet few in the online realm permit artists space to find that own path.
With her advocacy for sexual abuse survivors, her emphasise on mental health, everything Madison Beer stands for sits in opposition to the continua churn of the music industry, to the metric-driven, data-focussed, spreadsheet-aligned method of 21st century pop. Permitting herself a lengthy ascent, Madison Beer is able to make the music she wants, and share it with an audience which truly appreciates it. In a music landscape that often feels as though it’s disintegrating, that’s what success truly is.
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Related: A New Chapter – Madison Beer In Conversation
Words: Robin Murray
Photo Credit: Connie Burke
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