Within the last few years, artists have been heavily influenced by the sounds of the early 2000s. Evident with figures like Machine Gun Kelly and Olivia Rodrigo, pop-punk music has reemerged into the mainstream with a major influence on younger artists.
However, it’s important to acknowledge the artists who were essentially the founders of this genre, as in the past credit has not been given to its pioneers.
The genre garnered mass appeal in the late 1970s and early 1980s due to iconic bands like the Ramones and the Buzzcocks. It lost some of its momentum due to mainstream pop and disco sounds, dying out in the early 1990s due to the grunge-rock revival led by groups such as Green Day and Sum 41.
Thanks to the internet and the rise of digital streaming platforms like MySpace and YouTube, pop-punk grew popular well into the mid-2000s. It also became a fan favorite because of catchy hooks and introspective lyrics, focused on subjects like teen angst, heartbreak, rebellion and societal norms.
With its reliability to music listeners, pop-punk music became a commercial success with artists like Paramore, Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco, all of whom are still beloved music groups to this day because of hits like “Misery Business,” “Sugar, We’re Goin Down” and “I Write Sins Not Tragedies.”
Other artists, particularly female-identifying ones, also became dominating forces in pop-punk during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Icons like Alanis Morrisette, Avril Lavigne and Hayley Williams proved that women could be taken seriously as lead vocal powerhouses, showing off their individualities with box-dyed hair, pixie cuts and daring makeup looks.
At the time, this was seen as a departure from societal norms in music, as women were not supposed to look more masculine or edgy, which is now becoming more prominent in the revival of pop-punk. Speaking of this revival, upcoming musicians have notably been pulling inspiration from this era of music, from performing covers to using similar production and themes to express their inner thoughts.
Most recently, Olivia Rodrigo has gained a massive following over the recent debut of her sophomore album “GUTS,” which seems to be heavily inspired by Lavigne and Morrisette, who Rodrigo has remarked in the past are some of her musical inspirations. It’s clear on songs like “ballad of a homeschool girl” and “bad idea right? that the singer is trying to illustrate the annoyances that come with being a young woman, using heavy guitar riffs and lyrics about feeling inadequate to relate to her teenage audience.
Another artist who totally transitioned into the pop-punk genre was Machine Gun Kelly, who has released two albums in this genre, including 2020’s “Tickets To My Downfall” and last year’s “mainstream sellout.” In these albums, the former rapper switched from trap beats to singing similar to noteworthy punk frontmen such as Gerard Way and Patrick Stump, also lamenting about heartbreak and wanting revenge on his exes.
Additionally, artists like Miley Cyrus and WILLOW have also reinvented their sounds to fall into the pop-punk genre. They became overnight sensations for songs like “Midnight Sky” and “t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l (feat. Travis Barker).” Without the influences ranging from the 1970s to the early 2000s, none of these artists would’ve made the jump to a genre that is renowned for its distinctiveness.
With the re-emergence of pop-punk fully back into the mainstream, it’s interesting to see how a new wave of artists have interpreted and have been influenced by the genre, evidence that it will continue to be repurposed and reimagined for the masses. If you haven’t noticed this trend, it will only become more prominent, especially as younger artists borrow its catchiness and relatability.
