Phoebe Bridgers on SNL: A Continuation of a Rock’n’Roll Tradition or Lame Attempt for Fame?

  The now well-renowned and Grammy-nominated Artist Phoebe Bridgers has been riding a phenomenal wave of appraisal from the music community at large, ranging from critics to fans alike, since the artist’s latest full-length album ‘Punisher’ was released to the masses. It is difficult to disagree with claims of ‘Punisher’ being one of the best albums of 2020, as is showcased with an 8.7 score on the famous critic site, Pitchfork. On top of that, Phoebe also managed to secure numerous Grammy Award nominations, pushing her into the mainstream. The categories for which, she was nominated include Best Rock Song for one of the album’s singles “Kyoto”, as well as Best New Artist, marking 2020 as one of the best years for an upcoming artist ever 

  Believably, following such outrageous success, yet with a lack of ability to tour due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, the 25-year-old Indie stand-out had to find other ways of creating media hype and staying relevant amongst all of the wild stuff happening throughout the past year. What may have initially been a challenge, seems to have been perfectly utilised by Phoebe and her crew, resulting in multiple performances on Live TV, which included a rendition of the track ‘ICU’ on the Late Late Show and a beautiful, yet tremendously haunting crowdless performance of the album closer “I Know the End” on the Seth Meyers show. 

  It is with a new live appearance and a new interpretation of “I Know the End”, that a recent controversy stems from. Bridgers appeared on her biggest platform yet, performing two songs on America’s Saturday Night Live, “Kyoto” and “I Know the End”. It is the latter that sparked outrage amongst many of the viewers. During the climax of “I Know the End”, Phoebe decides to channel her inner Rock’n’Roll goddess and smashes her guitar against one of the speakers. An act very reminiscent of the Rock Icon Pete Townshend, who would do the same and attract a cult following for this action, whilst marking it as a staple act in Rock history. An act that would later be followed by many other inspirational musicians like Hendrix and Kurt Cobain and now, Phoebe Bridgers joins them in this performance.  

  However, Phoebe’s smashing of the guitar was nowhere near as uniting as Townshend’s. A vast division appeared with many criticising the young artist for copying a legendary act in an attempt to be “edgy” and having no energy or genuine motive behind the act. At the same time, many supported Bridgers and believed she added a new layer of personality to the live performance and provided an outlet, which the original song arguably needed following its culmination. This triggered many arguments between the two sides with claims of misogyny (because the smashing was done by a woman and that it wasn’t effective because of this) to points of such acts having been outdated and losing their edge, since first being introduced by Townshend. Still, many believed that it brought a new energy and edge into a genre, which was previously dominated by men and granted Phoebe a new standing and a chance to carve her name into people’s minds, thus attempting (arguably pretty successfully) to become a household name. 

  Overall, I understand the perspective that trashing guitars has lost its cool and isn’t revolutionary anymore, unlike it was in the days of The Who and Jimi Hendrix. But it does not change the fact, that Phoebe, as a young woman in a mostly male-dominated industry, succeeded to create a storm to gain attention for herself and make herself known not only in the Indie Pop scene, but known to the general US Audience, as well as around the world. There is something truly admirable about Phoebe’s decision to follow herself and her instincts, rather than being guided by the industry and by what is assumed safe to do. Also, it appears that most of the steam blew over, but Phoebe is still being spoken about, regardless of the nature of this controversy, suggesting that she is here to stay and continue bringing forward amazing performances. 

  You can check out Punisher on any streaming services and can check more of Phoebe out on her socials, particularly Twitter and Instagram.