Before social media, only two communities were a part of the conversation: those who liked something and those who didn’t. Those who wanted something would speak loud and proud about their admiration, and those who didn’t would jump in and counter why something was undeserving of admiration. It was the usual, welcome, expected conversation around any significant release, particularly anything in the entertainment industry – and that made it so easy to form your identity. You either liked the day’s topic or didn’t, and you found your people from there.
These days, what’s popular is defined by you and you alone, at least on places like Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and more. You tell the media what you want to see on these sites – not vice versa.
If you want to see information about the Grammys, particularly on TikTok, all you have to do is search for the Grammys, and the following few videos will be Grammy-related. However, you aren’t subjected to it if you don’t care about the Grammys. What you consume is entirely in your hands, and that’s scary for some people.
Before, when the media decided what was popular, it was easier to form an identity around pop culture because all you had to do was decide if you liked it or not, and then you were part of the conversation. But social media has changed that. You curate the conversation and decide whether you want to contribute. And those who don’t want to contribute can form their identity around something else.
There is so much more room for people to care about different things – finding yourself in the great sea of opinions can be challenging.
The Grammys are one drop in the sea. With the vastness of social media, people’s perspectives are changing. Sure, the Grammys happened, but so did the MAMA awards in South Korea. The Grammys are a strictly American award show with only a tiny sliver of attention on foreign entertainment. On social media, the amount of information is so vast because anyone with a rich inner world can make content, and we’re seeing the inner worlds of people across the globe – even those who couldn’t care less what’s going on in America.
So, are the Grammys dying? That shouldn’t be the case. The awards show is far too influential in American pop culture ever to be insignificant. But the millions of people who don’t care now have a platform, and they aren’t going to quiet down because the Grammys are happening. The Grammys may need to hop on TikTok for some promotion if it will stay as relevant as it felt 10 years ago.
