Miley Cyrus, Dua Lipa, and The Weeknd are all artists who share the distinction of being some of the most in-demand names in popular music today. Another characteristic which ties together these heavy-hitters is their shared embrace of a distinct, 80s-tinged aesthetic for their recent material.
The re-emerging popularity of stylistic elements found in genres heavily associated with the popular decade – such as new-wave and synth-pop – have been a significant contributing factor to the stylistic shift in recent years. Heavily processed drum machines and synthesizers have become a mainstay on the Billboard Hot 100 charts as of late, and sounds formerly associated primarily with acts like Cyndi Lauper, Whitney Houston, and Madonna are becoming equally indicative of 21st century tastes.
Artists such as Miley Cyrus and Lady Gaga, have even begun crossing genre lines in their retroactive musical explorations, incorporating elements of 80s rock into contemporary pop records. On her seventh album, 2020’s Plastic Hearts, Miley Cyrus went as far as to include features from classic artists such as Joan Jett, Stevie Nicks, and Billy Idol to drive home the idea of the project as a modern throwback.
But the embrace of decades past has not been limited to pop music, as acts generally associated with more rock and ensemble-based sounds – such as Haim, John Mayer, and Coldplay – have emulated their old-school heroes through their recent output as well. Mayer, for example, channels the yacht-rock and soft-rock influence of artists like Don Henley, Steve Winwood, and Toto on his latest LP, 2021’s Sob Rock.
Perhaps taking note of this change in the cultural landscape, many original artists from these bygone eras have been mounting comebacks of their own. Elton John – who achieved massive success as a rocker in the 70s and produced a string of pop hits throughout the 80s – for example, released a collaborative album near the end of 2021 which featured a slew of successful modern-day artists including Nicki Minaj, Lil Nas X, and Young Thug among many others.
Classic rock outfits from the era are also looking to capitalize on revitalized interest in their material, with the bands Def Leppard, Poison, and Mötley Crüe joining forces for their co-headlining Stadium Tour with openers Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. Originally announced in 2019 and scheduled for the summer of 2020, the tour was pushed back multiple times due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and is now set to take place for 2022.
This speaks to the steadily increasing momentum of public interest in the distinct era, which was perhaps initially kicked into high gear as far back as 2014. This was the year that Taylor Swift would release her album, the appropriately titled 1989. It was with this record Swift would shed her country aesthetic for a complete sonic makeover as a pop star, effectively launching her into the stratosphere of global superstardom. The distinct 80s influence on the album’s production – which showed considerable focus on the synth-pop sub-genre – proved to be highly influential to contemporary artists such as Ryan Adams and the aforementioned Dua Lipa.
But while the 80s as a trendy, modern aesthetic could potentially be traced back to Swift, indie acts such as MGMT, Tame Impala, and Foster the People have been implementing new-wave and synth-pop elements in their own music for some time. Lady Gaga also cherry-picked elements from these sub-genres in her own music before fully embracing the sound more recently. Carly Rae Jepsen is another significant bearer of the 80s torch, and has used the era as a musical touchstone for years.
What does the re-established interest in the 80s mean for culture going forward? Will we see the return of excessively teased hair and parachute pants? Will the boombox make a comeback just as vinyl has in recent years? One could imagine worse, and if anything, the re-emergence of bombastic, synthetic drums and keyboards is a welcome change from the monotonous assault of claps and tinny hi-hats found in the trap sub-genre, which has dominated the airwaves for entirely too long. In a time when the well of contemporary musical ideas appears to be all but bone-dry, a glance to the past for inspiration has proven an unlikely breath of fresh air.