Wet Leg played in front of a full audience at the O2 Kentish Town Forum in London last night. It was a celebratory appearance for the indie band that took Great Britain by storm in 2022.
No one had heard of Wet Leg for two years. There were a handful of recordings on Spotify before the band Isle of Wight deleted everything to start over with their debut single “Chaise Longue.”
“Chaise Longue” was released in June 2021 and quickly found its way onto radio stations, social media platforms, and Spotify playlists. By the time their self-titled first album was released, Wet Leg had gone from obscurity to become one of the most hyped acts in the country.
Since the first album, Wet Leg has toured with Harry Styles, been nominated for the Mercury Prize and received a handful of Grammy nominations.
They also tried out a new idea for last night’s performance: Wet Leg streamed the entire concert live on TikTok.
It’s part of a sophisticated social media strategy that has put the band in the limelight to reach their over 500,000 followers.
Indie music is back in vogue in the UK thanks to acts like Wet Leg, Sam Fender, Nova Twins, Cassyette and Jordan Adetunji. Some of this success is due to bands reaching out to their fan base via TikTok.
Wet Leg, consisting of Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers, regularly releases concert excerpts and behind the scenes content on their channel.
“I think TikTok has helped them bring their music to a wider audience,” says Sheema Siddiqi, artist community manager at TikTok UK.
The band joined TikTok after they released “Chaise Longue” and immediately began using it to communicate their music, but also their sense of humor.
“One of my favorite things to do is have them respond to comments. It’s essentially promoting her music at the same time, but all of her comments are a bit tongue-in-cheek and really do a great job of showing off her personality,” says Siddiqi.
Indie music has never been bigger after losing popularity in the 2010s. Part of this is that new artists are causing a stir on social media.
Sam Fender’s line: “I was way too afraid to hit him/but I’d hit him right now/That’s the thing about anger/It’s asking you to stay here” from his anthem “Seventeen Going Under” became the backing track for thousands of TikTok videos detailing personal stories of abuse.
The lyrics really resonate with people and a new era of stars who are ready to be closer to fans.
But baring everything on TikTok isn’t right for all artists.
Earlier this year, Rebecca Lucy Taylor, better known as Self Esteem, wrote an opinion piece for the Guardian about why she is concerned that artists, particularly female artists, are increasingly being forced to have online presences.
“But what do you do when sharing parts of yourself isn’t for you? In my twenties, I would have blindly believed in the authority of labels and management and would have done anything to grab a ticket to success without thinking about what consequences this could have later on,” she writes.
“It feels like the artists who denigrate TikTok (and the many fans who tweet their dismay about it) are seen by the industry as too valuable or old-fashioned. But in the end, the artists who have a good basis on TikTok will prevail in the ever-hungry endless machine, at least for the time being. It’s moving without you. So they don’t have a choice,” Taylor notes.
It is undeniable that a presence on social media is a valuable tool for attracting new fans. But any artist forced onto a platform they don’t feel comfortable using will only create content that reeks of inauthenticity.
It’s better that artists only do what they really love to do, says Siddiqi from TikTok.
“I think we can always tell when someone like Oasis did an MTV interview and they couldn’t worry about it. I don’t think it’s any different now that content exists on TikTok.”
“We say you shouldn’t do anything you don’t like publishing. If you don’t feel comfortable doing things right in front of the camera, then don’t do it. You don’t want to do lip syncs or dances, which everyone thinks TikTok is, don’t do that,” says Siddiqi.
Instead, she says the best content often comes from bands and musicians who simply let fans into an open part of their daily lives. Be it the reality of a tour or the recording of a song.
Wet Leg played in front of a full audience at the O2 Kentish Town Forum in London last night. It was a celebratory appearance for the indie band that took Great Britain by storm in 2022.
No one had heard of Wet Leg for two years. There were a handful of recordings on Spotify before the band Isle of Wight deleted everything to start over with their debut single “Chaise Longue.”
“Chaise Longue” was released in June 2021 and quickly found its way onto radio stations, social media platforms, and Spotify playlists. By the time their self-titled first album was released, Wet Leg had gone from obscurity to become one of the most hyped acts in the country.
Since the first album, Wet Leg has toured with Harry Styles, been nominated for the Mercury Prize and received a handful of Grammy nominations.
They also tried out a new idea for last night’s performance: Wet Leg streamed the entire concert live on TikTok.
It’s part of a sophisticated social media strategy that has put the band in the limelight to reach their over 500,000 followers.
Indie music is back in vogue in the UK thanks to acts like Wet Leg, Sam Fender, Nova Twins, Cassyette and Jordan Adetunji. Some of this success is due to bands reaching out to their fan base via TikTok.
Wet Leg, consisting of Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers, regularly releases concert excerpts and behind the scenes content on their channel.
“I think TikTok has helped them bring their music to a wider audience,” says Sheema Siddiqi, artist community manager at TikTok UK.
The band joined TikTok after they released “Chaise Longue” and immediately began using it to communicate their music, but also their sense of humor.
“One of my favorite things to do is have them respond to comments. It’s essentially promoting her music at the same time, but all of her comments are a bit tongue-in-cheek and really do a great job of showing off her personality,” says Siddiqi.
Indie music has never been bigger after losing popularity in the 2010s. Part of this is that new artists are causing a stir on social media.
Sam Fender’s line: “I was way too afraid to hit him/but I’d hit him right now/That’s the thing about anger/It’s asking you to stay here” from his anthem “Seventeen Going Under” became the backing track for thousands of TikTok videos detailing personal stories of abuse.
The lyrics really resonate with people and a new era of stars who are ready to be closer to fans.
But baring everything on TikTok isn’t right for all artists.
Earlier this year, Rebecca Lucy Taylor, better known as Self Esteem, wrote an opinion piece for the Guardian about why she is concerned that artists, particularly female artists, are increasingly being forced to have online presences.
“But what do you do when sharing parts of yourself isn’t for you? In my twenties, I would have blindly believed in the authority of labels and management and would have done anything to grab a ticket to success without thinking about what consequences this could have later on,” she writes.
“It feels like the artists who denigrate TikTok (and the many fans who tweet their dismay about it) are seen by the industry as too valuable or old-fashioned. But in the end, the artists who have a good basis on TikTok will prevail in the ever-hungry endless machine, at least for the time being. It’s moving without you. So they don’t have a choice,” Taylor notes.
It is undeniable that a presence on social media is a valuable tool for attracting new fans. But any artist forced onto a platform they don’t feel comfortable using will only create content that reeks of inauthenticity.
It’s better that artists only do what they really love to do, says Siddiqi from TikTok.
“I think we can always tell when someone like Oasis did an MTV interview and they couldn’t worry about it. I don’t think it’s any different now that content exists on TikTok.”
“We say you shouldn’t do anything you don’t like publishing. If you don’t feel comfortable doing things right in front of the camera, then don’t do it. You don’t want to do lip syncs or dances, which everyone thinks TikTok is, don’t do that,” says Siddiqi.
Instead, she says the best content often comes from bands and musicians who simply let fans into an open part of their daily lives. Be it the reality of a tour or the recording of a song.