The best way to answer this question is probably by first looking back at how it blew up before, so here’s a little history lesson.
The first seeds of the ‘Pop-Punk’ genre were sown in the 60s and 70s by punk bands such as The Ramones and Sex Pistols pioneering a more aggressive brand of rock and roll. However, it wasn’t until the 90s that it would be recognisable as being anything like it is today.
Bands like Green Day started signing to major record labels in the mid 90s as interest in punk began gaining momentum towards the end of the decade and the start of the next. Sum 41, Blink 182 and New Found Glory were among a great number of bands having incredible mainstream success in an era referred to as ‘the first wave’.
Pop-Punk reigned supreme for just a few years until it began to lose momentum in the mid 2000s. The lines that define genre had become blurred with so many subgenres like emo and easycore starting to break away from the ‘rules’ set by pop-punk.
Another wave of bands emerged between around 2009 and 2015 which made pop-punk big again. It was inevitable really that kids growing up listening to Green Day and Blink would now want to form bands of their own. The Wonder Years, The Story So Far, and Neck Deep ended up being the real leaders of this short comeback, championing a much more hardcore influenced sound with energetic live shows being a massive draw for fans.
Despite having a DIY feel and never reaching the mainstream heights like before, this wave made pop-punk top of the alternative scene for a good few years until artists started. experimenting more with their sound and once more, distorting the lines and expectations of what pop-punk is meant to sound like.
So, is there a new wave coming?
Pop-punk is seeing a small amount of chart success once again thanks mostly to… *checks notes* Machine Gun Kelly?
After trying to take on Eminem and failing, the rapper has made a complete genre switch with the release of his full length Pop-punk album, ‘Tickets To My Downfall’, and you know what? It’s actually pretty good! It shares a similar sound to the hayday of the 2000s and there’s probably a good reason for that as it was heavily influenced by Blink-182 drummer, Travis Barker. Travis has been a busy boy working with a number of punk/rap crossover artists including Nothing, Nowhere, KennyHoopla and Willow Smith. All these artists starting pop-punk projects is bound to bring more fans to the scene! We’ve even seen the likes of Doja Cat and Miley Cyrus adopting rockstar personas for some of their live performances.
Some old school bands are reaching new, young fans via the nostalgia trip that is TikTok. The audio centered app has seen songs from All Time Low, MCR, Taking Back Sunday and many others go viral.
So will this start a new wave? If you ask me, probably not. The success of the likes of MGK trickling down to the rest of the scene relies highly on these new fans being proactive and engaging in the discovery of new bands which is something I don’t see them doing. These crossover artists also seem to be keeping to themselves, touring together in their own little group and doing very little to promote or even acknowledge anyone else in the Pop-punk scene.
Neck Deep vocalist, Ben Barlow, took to Instagram recently to voice his opinion on the matter:
“Is it pop punk or is it just pop? Is it really punk or is it $2000 an outfit to look like one? Is it just celebrities grabbing at something they don’t understand for insta relevance? It’s all of those things, but it ain’t pop punk. Go jam some Green Day people”.
He goes on to say, “I’m all for pop punk getting some recognition. And I’m not gatekeeping it from anyone, it should be for everyone. But when you don’t give back to the genre, don’t put on smaller bands and you just use it to appeal to the clueless celebrity circles and top 40 normies with no respect for the world it comes from, it belittles the work and experience of some of the bands who have kept the genre alive”.
Are we seeing a new wave of Pop-Punk? Tell me what you think on instagram or twitter and drop a follow while you’re there so you don’t miss new content including the imminent return of live music!
The Birdbox 