Ever since I was little I have been fascinated with music. It has gotten me through some of the worst moments in my life and has been right by my side for some of the best. When I was younger I studied the drums, the piano and went to vocal lessons. To this day I still enjoy singing and currently I work as a videographer and editor for a recording studio. So each day I’m lucky enough to be surrounded by music.
As I’ve grown up I’ve listened to all genres of music. My grandmother was into classical and Broadway music and that’s how I got into theater. My mother was into classic rock and my dad country. And after years of growing and cultivating my own opinions I feel in love with a very particular genre… boy bands.
For me boy bands and the fanaticism that goes with them has been around my whole life. First it was the Jonas Brothers when I was like 8 and then Big Time Rush came on to the scene with their TV show, (like The Monkees) in 2009 and then it really hit. In 2010 on the X Factor UK a British boy band was assembled and I literally feel in love. This boy band was One Direction. Since then I have been to multiple of their tours, pre-ordered every album, had their t-shirts, posters, perfumes, saw their movie and will forever know every lyric to every song. This band also helped me find another one of my favorite bands 5 Seconds of Summer who were their openers on two of their tours. It’s been a fun 10 years of listening to this kind of music, but I’ve always wondered why do me and so many other girls have such a guttural reaction to these boy bands and how come the boy bands that I love today are nothing like the old ones?
That’s what I want to answer in my 3 part YouTube series where I take a deep look into the emotional psychology behind boy band fans and how the definition of boy bands has evolved over the years including the way their marketed, their sound and the controversy. I’ll be asking people who grew up loving bands from each of these decades to give me their opinion and asking people where they draw the line as to who is a boy band and who isn’t.
Over the years the word boy band has had a certain stigma attached to it. The word can discredit the band and make it seem like they have minimal talent and are only marketed for young girls who want to cry about love. And while at times that can be true, it shouldn’t be a blanket statement. Boy bands are complex and each member in the band can bring something different to the table and that becomes extremely evident when the bands inevitably break up. Certain members go solo with completely different musical sonics or career paths. For example, Justin Timberlake (NSYNC), Harry Styles (One Direction) and Donny Wahlberg ( New Kids On the Block).
I want to create a fun Youtube series that all genders can enjoy and learn something from. By using well organized research and well crafter visuals I believe it’s completely possible. I want to not only push myself on a researching in depth, but also want to push myself as a storyteller and artist. I want to create compelling episodes that entertain from beginning to end and I want each episode to contain animated visuals that I’ve never tried before.
I’m looking forward to the next few weeks as I begin to make this idea a reality and continue to create. It’s going to be a lot of work, but I’m passionate and excited about the subject and I think it’s going to end up being something that no ones ever really watched before.
In order to jump right in and start the process, I created a proposal for the YouTube series that highlights the main parts of the project and the equipment and materials needed to make it a reality. I also made an organized bibliography with the research I have done so far. Both documents are linked below. Check them out if you’re interested in my project and want to learn more.
taylorsniffen.com 