Declan McKenna bounced around the stage with childlike energy sporting messy bangs and a collared jumpsuit at The Fonda Theater on Hollywood Boulevard September 29.
The U.K.-based high school dropout turned alternative indie pop star took his tour to the U.S. to promote his 2020 album “Zeros,” selling out nationwide – from Los Angeles to New York.
When he was just 15 years old, McKenna’s hit single “Brazil” debuted in 2015, which won the Glastonbury Emerging Talent award and allowed him to drop out of high school with job prospects at 17. Since then, the singer has released two albums and toured around the U.K., Europe and U.S., performing at festivals worldwide, from Lollapalooza to Coachella.
The English singer-songwriter has 4.4 million monthly listeners on Spotify and gained mainstream popularity in the U.S. when “Brazil” blew up on TikTok in 2022. With its catchy tunes and eccentric analogies, “Brazil” critiques the corruption and economic inequality that came to light when the 2014 World Cup was hosted in Brazil. In the song’s silly chorus, he describes a man with “six cars and a grizzly bear” to hyperbolize the country’s privileged people, revealing McKenna’s commitment to social activism in his lyrics that appealed to Gen-Z’s political awareness. To date, 22.1K videos have been created using his sound, with TikTok virality sending “Brazil” to the U.K. singles tops charts seven years after its debut.
TikTok has undeniably overtaken the music industry, influencing mainstream music charts, according to artists, top record labels and streaming services. Alt-rock band The Walters was revitalized by TikTok, reuniting after their 2017 break-up due to sudden TikTok fame. In 2021, The Walters’ 2014 song “I Love You So” blew up on the TikTok – nearly 800,000 videos have been made using their mellow indie-pop single, which peaked at #6 on Billboard’s U.S. Hot Rock & Alternative charts and #21 on Billboard’s U.S. Top 40 charts eight years following its debut. Since their reconciliation, The Walters have signed with Warner Records, coming out with a new EP and embarking on a national tour.
In Billboard’s coverage of the record deal in November 2021, Warner Records CEO Aaron Bay-Schuck said, “The Walters song “I Love You So” is a perfect and modern example of a great song that is finally getting its due recognition thanks to discovery platforms like TikTok. The song is memorable upon first listen and timeless in its production, so no surprise it has risen above the clutter to identify itself as a hit song.”
MCKENNA AND THE HOLLYWOOD STARS
On September 29, I got the chance to see McKenna in concert and witness the TikTok phenomenon in person for the first time. By 8 p.m., there was already a line of eager fans winding around the corner of The Fonda. The sidewalks up and down the block are studded with stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Located in the heart of L.A., the venue is renowned for its rock and indie concerts, hosting shows from Katy Perry to the Rolling Stones.
Upon arriving, I was shocked to immediately see familiar faces; fellow USC students stood in the front of the line and I bumped into two more peers waiting for the bathroom inside. There’s an underground quality to McKenna’s stardom, but his fanbase is devoted, with listeners beyond his most popular single, “Brazil.”
“I had been waiting to see him live for a few years. You could tell the crowd had been, too,” said Julia Carpenter, a junior at USC. “The concert was surreal.”
Nashville indie singer Annie DiRusso opened, singing an upbeat song titled “Don’t Swerve” about unrequited love that she penned in her college dorm and another bop called “Dead Dogs” about her deceased family pet. After her hour-long set, McKenna took the stage.
A tangible enthusiasm swept the crowd, and they erupted in applause when McKenna took the stage. His stage presence and charisma were mesmerizing. One audience member Erin Munz tossed an orange bucket hat printed with beans onstage and McKenna playfully wore it for the rest of the song (Munz attested that superfans know of McKenna’s vocal love of legumes). McKenna played an acoustic guitar for some of his set and the crowd belted the lyrics in unison for the entirety of “Brazil.”
Young musicians like Declan McKenna have their pulse on the notoriously outspoken Gen-Z – and these artists’ socially conscious lyricism and indie pop styles have made their way from TikTok trends to top chart radio sensations. The British artist’s fame is indicative of the power of TikTok, both in exposing indie artists to the public and influencing mainstream music.