Right here’s a enjoyable strategy to begin a submit…

Ever heard of carcinization?

(You didn’t see that one coming, did you?)

In case you haven’t, right here’s the fast definition: Carcinization is the tendency of a number of species to evolve into crab-like lifeforms. Enjoyable! As a result of this, apparently, is what peak evolutionary efficiency appears to be like like:

Anyway, I stumbled throughout this concept someplace final week, and I’m writing a random submit about it as a result of for the previous a number of days I haven’t been in a position to get it out of my head. It retains popping to thoughts at random instances, normally accompanied by a obscure sense of existential dread.

Don’t get me fallacious. I’m not anxious about turning right into a crab, myself. Properly, I’m not that anxious.

However I’m anxious that the programs we’re swimming in as creators / people aren’t conducive to the creation of range – that they’re incentivizing us all to show into, for lack of a greater phrase, crabs.

It’s not music-industry particular, however right here’s an instance I’ve personally seen occur like 16 million instances.

1. A creator begins out making recent, useful, thrilling content material in some random area of interest – like cast-iron skillet cleansing (love that man), or Pokémon card buying and selling, or music manufacturing.
2. Over time, the act of rising an viewers turns into the creator’s main focus, displacing their preliminary ardour for his or her area of interest. That is pure, as a result of viewers development presents monetary and social rewards. However the consequence is that creators spend extra time excited about easy methods to get extra TikTok followers than they do excited about easy methods to clear cast-iron skillets.
3. The creator turns into actually good at constructing an viewers on-line and fewer and fewer of an skilled of their unique area of interest.
4. The creator decides to promote some product (a course, or a membership, or teaching) that helps different creators develop and monetize their very own audiences, becoming a member of the ranks of 16 million different on-line enterprise gurus. Now, the creator creates content material to assist different creators create content material.
5. The creator has change into a crab.

You don’t want me to let you know that this sort of factor occurs within the music {industry}, too, however I’ll do it anyway.

• This examine means that less complicated lyrics assist songs to chart.
• This examine means that musically easy songs promote higher.
• This examine means that shorter songs are extra well-liked.

To summarize: Over time, well-liked music is trending shorter and less complicated with much less and fewer sonic variance.

Once more: Crabs.

My concept is that, fifty years from now, each film can be about superheroes, each music can be made by an AI mannequin of Jack Antonoff, and the remainder of the web can be owned by Jeff Bezos.

From a utilitarian perspective, there may be nothing fallacious with this.

Carcinization, I imply. It’s bought its perks.

You may make much more cash and construct a a lot larger viewers in the event you discuss creating wealth and constructing an viewers. You’ll be able to go extra viral in the event you make an 83-second music with one verse and a TikTok-catchy, six-word refrain.

And significantly, that’s nice. There actually is nothing fallacious with making brief, four-chord pop songs, or constructing a enterprise that helps different individuals construct companies. That sort of stuff works. Folks need it. It’s useful.

Crabs get the job achieved.

However they aren’t stunning.

And I believe that issues, too.

Generally, it’s value stepping again to see if we truly wish to transfer towards the outcomes that our programs are incentivizing.

Like, do you actually wish to make a bunch of cash out of your music? Do you really need one million followers?

Or do you wish to make stunning artwork? Or do you wish to join with actual individuals in deep, significant methods?

The alternatives and outcomes aren’t strictly binary, after all.

Evolution didn’t solely make crabs. It additionally led to flamingoes and Danny DeVito. And our programs don’t solely churn out two-minute, four-chord pop songs; in some way, they’ve additionally led to “Bohemian Rhapsody” and the recognition of banjo music.

You’ll be able to completely create nice, distinctive music and construct an enormous fanbase concurrently. This isn’t the crustacean-dominated world on the finish of The Time Machine but. We nonetheless stay in the actual, human world of infinite, nuanced grey.

It’s simply one thing I’ve been excited about. I assume you possibly can boil it right down to this:

Pay attention to what you’re transferring towards.

If the objective is to be a crab, then full steam forward. But when the objective is to be one thing completely different, then watch out about which streams you’re swimming in.

I hope that’s useful, even when it’s not very sensible. And principally I hope that, having written this random diatribe, I can lastly cease excited about freaking crabs.

We’ll see.