2020 was a confusing and challenging year for everyone. The pandemic made us rethink our entire way of life and find alternatives to move forward. The music industry was no exception, hard hit by global isolation with canceled concerts and festivals in addition to hundreds of venues independents in complete bankruptcy around the world.
However, not everything was bad. 2020 was also a year where hundreds of artists took the time to start / launch new projects, others returned from a hiatus that was speculated would never end; others saw in all the chaos an opportunity to help and make a change. In the same way, the industry had to rearrange itself to continue to provide experiences in ways that had never been considered before. The limits of technology and creativity were pushed and adapted to a new way of looking at things. We present you some of the best moments in music that 2020 left us.
Billie Eilish Makes Grammy History
On January 26, the 63rd Grammy Awards took place, with a great ceremony that at this point in 2020 seems very far away. Among all the moments that were lived that night, it is worth highlighting the then 18-year-old, Billie Eilish, who won the 4 main awards offered by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States, an achievement that did not it had been seen in any artist of that age.
Jennifer Lopez and Shakira at Super Bowl LIV
The importance of the halftime that the duo of JLO and Shakira gave us on February 2 during the game between the San Francisco 49’s and the Kansas City Chiefs lies in the ever-deepening presence of the Latino community in the entertainment industry, and the show was the recognition of this latent reality. Already in what to performance refers, both artists demonstrated why they are still valid with more than 20 years in the medium.
The Strokes surprises with The New Abnormal
It was in 2013 when The Strokes released their fifth album production Comedown Machine And since then, the group has dedicated itself to releasing some EPs with unreleased material, however, its audience demanded a new studio album. Since 2019, the New York group began to advance this production, causing great expectation among its audience, and finally, after its launch on April 10, The New Abnormal became one of the most acclaimed albums of 2020.
The Rolling Stones return with unreleased music
It took 7 years for their Satanic Majesties to return to the platforms of streaming with a completely new theme. “Living in a Ghost Town” is a song that was born before the pandemic but thanks to this it takes on a much more poetic sense, and as if that were not enough, it marks the first preview of the next album by The Rolling Stones. Without a doubt one of the best surprises that this 2020 left us.
The pandemic begins: concerts appear in cars
March would come and the COVID-19 madness began. Hundreds of concerts worldwide canceled and artists are frustrated and worried about the immediate future. In this way, the industry began to look for alternatives to this problem, and that is how in May 2020 the so-called “auto concerts” were born, where people can enjoy any musical show from the comfort of their cars. Today, this alternative is a reality all over the world and it is all thanks to the Danish musician Mads Langer who performed the first self-concert on record.
Music unites against racism
The month of June saw one of the most regrettable acts in recent United States history: the murder of African-American citizen George Floyd by police officer Derek Chauvin. This act ignited the anger of the entire country and protests began. Artists from all over the world showed their fed up with latent racism and little by little pieces inspired by the violence that the United States was experiencing began to appear. Just as in the second half of the twentieth century, music was once again a vital part of protesting and demanding a change, since it is no surprise to anyone the great influence that musicians had in bringing Trump out of power.
Bands released concerts from their archives
As a result of the isolation, and to entertain their fans, bands like Metallica, Radiohead, and many more began to put on concerts representative of their careers.
Virtual shows become a reality
By the middle of the year, the artists had already resigned themselves to not returning to the stage for a while, and while some used this period to continue certain projects, others saw an opportunity to get closer to their followers. In this way, hundreds of musicians began to offer shows on their social networks where they interacted with their fans; some played covers, others acoustic versions of their hits, others gave very intimate interviews that at the end of the day helped a lot to people to cope with the pandemic, but this was only the tip of the iceberg. The awards, festivals and various mass events also opted for virtual shows where great creativity was shown by the organizers, in addition to the opportunity to have the participation of events that could hardly have been presented. In this way, the pandemic showed us new alternatives to keep in touch.
Nathan Apodaca takes over the internet with Fleetwood Mac
The video of the tiktoker Nathan Apodaca where he walked in his longboard While taking a sip of Ocean Spry with Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” in the background at sunset, it went viral so that the juice brand gave Nathan a lifetime ration of his favorite drink as well as a truck so he could ride the streets Los Angeles out of the woods. “Dreams” for its part returned to the charts, unseating current artists such as Ariana Grande, Dua Lipa and The Weeknd. The implicit message of freedom and simplicity that Nathan conveyed in those seconds of video was merely hypnotizing, because in such strange moments, enjoying the simple things in life is what has kept millions of us sane.
Music saved for years came to light
Without a doubt, listening to new versions of our favorite songs is always a delight. This 2020, dozens of musicians occupied this space to release a large amount of music that had been gathering dust for years. A situation that under normal circumstances, would not have been carried out in such a massive way.
Nandi Bushell becomes a phenomenon
The 11-year-old prodigy caused an internet rage by uploading videos playing guitar, bass and drums in rock classics from bands like Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave and Foo Fighters. His great ability came to the eyes of Tom Morello and Dave Grohl, who have dedicated themselves to furthering Bushell’s career by gifting him guitars, writing music for him and sharing musical challenges. Bushell was proof that rock not only continues, but is a great platform for young prodigies to excel in the music industry.
New supergroups appear
This free time also helped the musicians to join forces and in this way capture the projects that were interrupted by tours, recordings, etc. This year we saw the debut of Muzz, a band created by none other than Paul Banks, Matt Barrick and Josh Kaufman, as well as the Nighttime Boogie Association, the project born from Taylor Hawkins and Matt Cameron. Like these, many supergroups have been born, and if it weren’t for the pandemic, this would not have been possible.
AC / DC returns with its original members
After all the setbacks that the Australian group experienced in recent years such as the death of Malcolm Young, the health problems of Brian Johnson and the crimes committed by Phil Rudd, many of us believed we were witnessing the end of AC / DC. However, from the middle of 2019 rumors of a meeting with the original members of the band began, and finally, these rumors came true in November with the release of Power Up, AC / DC’s 17th album, which has become a resounding success around the world. A pleasant surprise for all the fans and a great happiness to see one of the most important groups of hard rock continue despite adversity.
Women dominate the 2021 Grammys
The 2021 Grammy nominations came in and immediately caused great controversy over the absence of acts like The Weeknd, who had an impressive reception for their album. After Hours. On the other hand, a pleasant surprise was to see female names invading all categories of the Grammys, which makes us think of a new musical era where women dominate the industry. This is only the beginning.
The new facet of Miley Cyrus
Without a doubt, Miley Cyrus became one of the most important figures of the year thanks to this new aesthetic that she adopted so attached to the rock of the eighties. His album Plastic Hearts featuring collaborations from artists like Dua Lipa, Joan Jett, and Billy Idol is a statement of where the artist wants to take her project.
Quarantine albums
Various artists such as Charli XCX, Taylor Swift and many more, found inspiration in isolation and gave us records that helped us through difficult times. Whether they are albums inspired by the pandemic, produced during it, or simply released in that period. Without a doubt, this year’s records came to save us.
Check out our list of The Best Albums of 2020 here.
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