AUSTIN, Texas — Like bees to honey, cameras swarmed 42-year-old rapper Snoop Dogg when he walked into Airbnb's pop-up venue for SXSW on Tuesday. The veteran artist watched as people around him sipped on the event's special drink — gin and juice — a cocktail that he rapped about in his 1994 hit single of the same name.
The song is still remembered 20 years later, which is something any new musician or band can only dream of. But SXSW, which was originally designed to showcase independent artists, can surely help them take that first step into similar stardom — right?
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Not quite, say some SXSW observers. They argue that the increase of mainstream artists (such as Lady Gaga, Jay Z, Kanye West and Coldplay) at the festival means fewer indie artists are attracting enough headlines and critical attention to trigger successful music careers on their own or on the label circuit.
Mashable asked Snoop Dogg about the evolution of SXSW from indie central into a bonanza for chart-topping artists:
I still feel like SXSW should still pay tribute to the artist who are independent and don't have record deals because that's what [the festival] was built on — it was built on those trying to become the next — but I do respect the fact that they are paying attention to the artists that are big and coming here, but remember those big artists were small once upon a time. ... We respect those new, hungry artists because they keep us inspired to know that there's somebody out there striving to become who we are. It takes us back to the days when we didn't have record deals and we had to try and be seen and heard. ... I love that this is a new artists' scenario and that they get to bring their music and say, 'Hey, Snoop, I rap, listen to this.' After awhile you get tired of it, but you still love the spirit they have because I remember when I had that spirit.
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There are no two ways about "Slide" by the Goo Goo Dolls -- it's about a young couple dealing with an unexpected pregnancy. It's debatable what the couple finally chooses to do, but that doesn't make the song any less dark.
"Waterfalls" by TLC was not just a simple pop hit. It tackled issues with a surprising degree of severity, such as the illegal drug trade and the HIV/AIDS epidemic -- dark stuff for such a catchy and popular song.
"Semi-Charmed Life" by Third Eye Blind is about crazy descent into the world of crystal meth addiction, and all the things that come along with it. The bleak picture it paints couldn't be any more miserable.
Ah, everyone's favorite toy-themed '90s single, "Barbie Girl". If only it were about a toy. It's actually depicts the proletariat abuse perpetrated by the bourgeoisie in a capitalist system, using the Barbie doll as a metaphor. That's dark with a dash of Marxism.
If you thought "Come To My Window" by Melissa Ethridge was a love song, you're sorely mistaken. It's actually about the heartache and torture of a relationship that's decaying and slipping away.
"No Rain" by Blind Melon is about depression -- pure, simple, unadulterated depression. It's about not being able to get up the morning and feeling utterly miserable.
Better Than Ezra's "Good" is about coming home to find your partner has left without a trace, and the torture of pining for this person. With that in mind, it's hard not to take the "good" lyric as just a tad sarcastic.
This is easily one of the catchiest songs of the early '90s, but it's nowhere near as innocent as it seems. Listen closely, and you'll hear ravings of a tortured soul who is trapped in a seriously unhealthy, dysfunctional relationship.
I know what you're thinking: How could this song with the most innocuous lyrics in the world be dark? Well, it's not quite as simple as you might think. If you listen to the verses in between the "MMMBops," you'll hear the teens talking about the brevity of friendships and how very few of them actually last. Not the darkest song, but pretty somber stuff for a tween.
"Steal My Sunshine" doesn't have the sunny lyrics its name implies. This is a song about depression, and how another person can "steal your sunshine" making you feel even worse.
It sounds hopeful, but "Bittersweet Symphony" is a song about feeling powerless.The lyrics suggest the misery of feeling trapped in your life due to circumstances beyond your control. It's about the absolute misery of everyday struggle.