Why do some music groups break up?
HAVE you ever looked around and wondered where your old-time favourite music troupe disappeared to? Well, it seems that most groups – even the ones that started doing music together from “baby bands” to super stars – tend to go their separate ways due to different musical ambitions, or for personal reasons – while some causes are more obvious.
From my own observation, I certainly believe that break ups between music partners usually happen when money is involved. The baby to mid-size groups that legitimately cannot survive on the income their gang is generating tend to get tired of living below the poverty line. Each member, one by one, begins to peel off to ‘fall back’ on their degrees or go solo to start making their own undivided money.
For those who have been in the game a long time, it all comes down to fairness amongst each other through splitting the group’s income equally because it’s indeed believed to be less messy if done that way. For some reason when the group members start making money, personalities also tend to change and above money, this has killed most of the great bands in the industry.
On many occasions, one member starts to take over control, much to the others’ dismay. And when the resentment settles in, that’s when one member starts feeling like they are better off alone than being with someone who only want things done their way or no way.
Another common factor that has contributed to the division of group members is ego. We all know that every successful musician has a huge ego.
If they didn’t believe that their songs (and show) deserved an audience paying the ticket price, they’d never perform.
People have different beliefs and once one of the crew’s ego starts to make him/her believe that they are better than the others, that’s when it becomes obvious that the group’s days are numbered.
Musical differences also contribute to the breakup of many bands. Sometimes musicians have musical differences, but just because they have been buddies for a long time or are into the same genre, they decided to form a group that ended up being nothing but a bunch of fake people around each other.
Legitimately, some musicians like to evolve and experiment and others like to do the same thing they have been doing since the beginning – which has “been working” for them. However, if the members can’t agree on the musical direction, it won’t work and mediocre solo careers typically follow.
Sometimes, the artists’ “significant others” also catalyse the group’s break-up.
They are always part of the equation. If they are not directly involved in the crew’s success, they will resent their love spending so much time away from them. And ‘music’ then becomes a dirty word in the relationship.
Almost as toxic as the ex’s name.
Although many bands have come together and released one-hit wonders before going their separate ways, I admire those groups that have stuck together through thick and thin for years, despite their differences.