Shinedown‘s most recent album, ‘Planet Zero,’ did something extraordinary – it topped the all-genre Billboard Top Album Sales chart. The rock band’s leap into broader recognition is partly due to their strategic decision about how they debuted their hit single, ‘A Symptom Of Being Human.’ Brent Smith recently shared why they didn’t want it to make it on rock radio with USA Today.
‘A Symptom Of Being Human’ is no ordinary song, and Shinedown wanted it to have an extraordinary journey. Rather than sticking with the familiar rock radio, the band decided to switch things up. According to Brent Smith, they aimed to debut the song on Hot Adult Contemporary lists, an unusual move for a rock band, hoping that the song would eventually make it to the top 40.
Smith then expressed his dissatisfaction with the prevalent belief that rock music doesn’t belong on certain radio formats. He believes that music should transcend these barriers and reach out to a broader audience. By doing so, Smith hopes to pave the way for young rock bands to follow in their footsteps, proving that rock music can find its place on any playlist.
Speaking to USA Today, Brent Smith said the following about ‘A Symptom Of Being Human’:
“What makes ‘Symptom’ so unique is we decided not to work it at rock radio first. The goal was to start it at Hot Adult Contemporary with the foresight of moving it to the Top 40.”
He continued:
“For whatever reason, there is this mentality that a ‘rock’ band can’t be played on ‘this’ format because that’s not what they are. It should all be inclusive because, at the end of the day, it’s about the song and if the song is necessary to the public. We’re trying to open the door to young rock bands, too. Why is the barrier there?“
According to the charts, it’s clear that Shinedown’s bold decision has paid off. ‘A Symptom of Being Human’ currently sits at No. 22 on Billboard’s Adult Pop Airplay chart. It’s also the second most played song on Sirius XM’s The Pulse, rubbing shoulders with pop heavyweights. It seems that Shinedown’s experiment with genre boundaries has yielded exactly the kind of wide-ranging success they were aiming for.
