“For those about to rock… best try another genre”: New stats show that bands are dead, solo and collabs are the way to go and rock has well and truly rolled…

We’ve already touched upon the increasing prominence of the modern solo artist and the fact that such presence in today’s streaming numbers is having a detrimental impact to those bands still hoping for a slice of whatever gig or playback pie they can grab.

But now get set for some brand new bands-are-dead panic…

New figures put together by music tuition platform Skoove, using data from the Official UK charts, processed by DataPulse research, only backs up the worries, producing what looks like irrefutable visual evidence on where we – as music makers and consumers – are all heading.

Diving in, let’s look at the facts. The dwindling of band popularity and the rise of collabs and in particular solo artists when expressed as the proportion of the year that each was number one, is plain to see in the following graph.

And stepping away from merely measuring top spot, once again we see bands getting edged out in favour of solo artists and – especially in this area – collaborations.

The below graph looks at the makeup of the entire chart on each week from 1980 to the present day. And while solo artists increase slightly (let’s not forget that the '80s DID have more than their fair share of big-name Madonna, Micheal Jackson, Prince, George Michael-style stars) it’s the collabs that are really eating your band’s lunch through 2000 onwards.

“It’s perhaps inevitable that collabs have become so popular. They bring double the star-power of solo artists, allowing each star to tap into their own and their collaborator’s audience,” observes Skoove's Dominik Schirmer.

“It’s a great way to increase exposure, grow streams and reach new demographics. There’s also the novelty factor to consider. As collaborations tend to only happen every once in a while between specific stars, they’re inherently more valuable and more desirable to listeners.”

So what’s going on?

Firstly there’s no denying the influence of the increased power and presence of technology in music production. More and more, those who would have once considered themselves to be musicians are actually making their first steps into music as producers – able to craft entire tracks rather than focus on one specific element and go hunting for like minded folk to fill in the gaps.

After all, why bother learning a single instrument and fantasising about what a finished track featuring your performance might sound like, when you can just go ahead and create the whole thing by yourself?

Learning the ins and outs of a digital audio workstation (DAW) is now arguably the most important and impressive ‘musical instrument’ that anyone can learn.

Anyone can be 'a band'.

Plus there’s all the other bonuses that working solo when writing and producing brings. Now you get to make music your way with zero discussion, debate or compromise. Pick the sounds and style that you like. Make the music that you want. No need to back down or owe any favours – you’re in complete control.

And – in a similar vein – with the artist now being very much ‘of one mind’, getting anything done (in all aspects of music creation and promotion) is a simple knee-jerk decision away. From a record company or promoter’s point of view, working with a solo artist is MUCH simpler than trying to herd the many cats within a band.

And bands have a strange habit of splitting up. Just when everything is going great, just when they're finally making money and their work is loved, one of them will either a) die, b) get married or c) decide that they never really liked Steve and Ted anyway… And while we’re at it, why can't we do more Reggaeton?

It’s hard to remember the last time a solo artist stopped working due to ‘musical differences’.

Result: Labels love solo artists… Bands? Not so much.

And the below chart – showing which type of artist historically scores the most enduring hits – only confirms the lack of backing bands get.

Today, social and streaming matters and AGAIN, it's solo artists who have the upper hand.

With complete control of the Send button, solo artists are able to depict themselves how they want to be seen, saying what they want to say and communicating a more personal message than any five-headed consensus ever could.

“The impact of social media can't be understated. It has been absolutely instrumental in changing how solo artists break through,” says Schirmer. “They can tap into this enormous global audience and create their own communities of loyal fans to raise awareness and build momentum way before they’re on the radar of labels.

“We’ve seen many solo artists in recent years use extremely sophisticated social media strategies to launch their careers by parlaying that grassroots, online support into mainstream success. Let’s not forget, streaming platforms and social media go hand-in-hand. Once they have that bit of traction and popularity on social media, it’s easy to begin driving downloads with a link.”

I’m Mr Brightside…

OK. Let’s just say that a band DOES work together great. They DO have a massive hit. And the record company IS happy. Surely that member who wrote the song, persuaded the rest of the band to play it and who is now only taking one-fifth of the credit and money is going to stick around and recreate that magic?… Right?…

OK. So if bands are now under threat, what about the rock music genre that the majority of them make up?

Will there be a time and a place for big rock band going forwards? A new Queen? Rolling Stones? U2? Metallica? Or a genre-hopping Coldplay? Surely?

Sadly, using the data at hand, it seems that Skoove's experts don't seem to think so. For those about to rock… Best try another genre.

“There’s an intrinsic link between the success of bands and the proliferation of rock music. So many bands have their roots in rock - so when one struggles, the other also falters,” explains Schirmer. “The worry of course is that as bands continue to see their audiences drift away and streaming and air time limited, rock as a genre is also disappearing from the airwaves.”

Let’s Stick Together…

But, of course, there are downsides to going it alone.

Most of music’s greatest moments ARE the results of one or more musicians putting their all into a track but ultimately coming up short. Thus, when the other members of the band hear that framework they bring an original spin to round out and complete an original spark of genius.

Take Lennon and McCartney as an example. Or, closer to 2025, look no further than the vast nine-person writing rooms and shared production credits behind the so-hot-right-now works of Max Martin, Benny Blanco and Danny Nigro.

Working solo on the other hand, for all its freedom, can actually be more a pressure-laden and creatively blocked method than working within a band.

And the sheer pressure of being on socials cameras, on the road or fronting that album that not even THEY like – all while being unable to share the burden – can be too much for many to handle.

But whatever the truth, and whatever your road ahead, these numbers look hard to deny.

Check out more of Skoove's doomy data here.