TikTok’s always been a controversial platform since day one. Not so surprisingly, John Rzeznik just took place in the long list of people blaming TikTok for ruining music, life, and everything in general while chatting with iHeart Radio.
As Rzeznik discussed using social platforms and media, the host brought the topic to Goo Goo Doll’s lead single, ‘Yeah, I Like You,’ from the band’s recent album, ‘Chaos in Bloom.’ The song especially had an interesting take as it criticized the apparent celebrity culture and, of course, TikTok. So, John decided to discuss what inspired him to write the single and give some personal take.
“I wanted to write a piece of satire about the state of celebrity in the year of 2022,” the frontman said about the meaning behind the song. “I find it fascinating and ridiculous at the same time because you used to have to actually be talented at something to become famous.”
He continued, “Now, people are so interchangeable, and personally, this is just my opinion, so any crap anybody wants to give anybody directed directly at me, you know, not my family or anybody. I think TikTok’s destroying the music business. I totally think there’s no artist development.”
John then mentioned how getting a record deal becomes challenging for young artists if they don’t have any popularity on the platform. The rocker noted, “These people don’t know what they’re doing, [or] who are in charge. It’s like there are great artists out there. There are young, amazingly talented people that can’t get a record deal or whatever because they don’t have TikTok numbers, which is stupid.”
Even if some might disagree with his take on the popular platform, the frontman was determined to stand behind his statements as he remarked that he didn’t care much about TikTok. Rzeznik added, “And maybe, that’s the wrong thing to say, and somebody’s gonna give me grief, but I don’t give a crap about TikTok. It’s not part of my life.”
So, the Goo Goo Dolls singer doesn’t like the platform and blames it for ruining the music industry. John remarked that label companies now only care about artists’ popularity on social media rather than talent, making it challenging for young artists trying to get into the scene.
