Lizzo Says Algorithms Have Left Music Industry “In Shambles,” Killed the “Song of the Summer”

Earlier this summer, Lizzo unveiled an entertaining enough mixtape titled My Face Hurts from Smiling. Now, the actor-singer isn’t exactly smiling as she’s taken to TikTok for a rant against the current state of the music industry.

In the 3.5-minute clip, the multiple Grammy Award winner begins by saying the industry is in “complete shambles right now.” Lizzo then goes on to explain that after years of working under an “algorithmic model,” the industry has lost control to a certain extent. As such, “no one can serve the masses anymore,” and that inevitably means something like the much-coveted Song of the Summer (where disparate groups can rally around one artist in a showcase of true cultural significance) is no longer possible.

There’s something to that argument, of course. In a recent Wired piece titled “The Song of the Summer Is Dead,” writer Jason Parham argues the media landscape has become fragmented after “music streamers replaced radio stations, [and] TikTok killed the music video.” He goes on to describe several reasons why 2025 was an “unpredictable summer for music.” That includes increasingly eclectic musical preferences across streaming platforms like Spotify; an “authenticity crisis” spurred on by a deluge of “AI slop”; and even Donald Trump, whose “domineering influence may represent a new version of monoculture that not even the music industry can evade.”

For her part, Lizzo says that the breakdown of the algorithm and loss of creative authorship/control has altered the way in which artists manage their careers. Whereas musicians were previously “servicing songs out to certain channels and radio stations,” an increasingly congested “internet space” meant there’s no “clear channel out for people to put their music out and serve the masses.” She points to a platform like TikTok, where even with a follower count well beyond 26 million, Lizzo herself struggles with getting her videos/content onto people’s screens.

So, then, what’s the solution? Lizzo says that more major artists “have to serve your people,” which means starting private fan pages where you can “have a dialogue with people that actually give a fuck…” In addition to interactions with her own “small but mighty” army of “Lizbians,” Lizzo uplifts Taylor Swift, whose own Swifties are “locked the fuck in.” And, to an extent, Swift’s fans are both a path forward and a sign of the times for the music industry. Because as problematic as some of their collective behaviors can be, one can’t deny the cultural weight held by this legion of fans. (See the semi-swaying power of Swifties for Kamala and how the fandom helped push “The Eras Tour” toward a record-smashing $2 billion in sales.)

But perhaps Lizzo’s most uplifting message is specifically for the young/up-and-coming artists. She says this moment in time means “you have an advantage over even major artists,” as independent artists can connect with people at a “way quicker rate.” Lizzo goes on to say that if she were a young artist in 2025, she’d avoid “the old-school route [of getting] signed” and instead record ample music/other content and debut it online right away. And it’s hard to argue that point, either. In a recent video with Drowned in Sound, British singer-songwriter Mary Spender called 2025 the year for independent artists, noting that her “small, not viral” approach has helped her build a fanbase of paying, hugely supportive fans that make her career aspirations possible.

Be you fan, major music star, or indie upstart, Lizzo’s video is certainly worth your time. Because in addition to those other decidedly salient points, she ends the video with one proper gem: “It’s been an incredible year for music; it just hasn’t been on your algorithm.” Which is to say, great music releases and subsequent consumption mean going beyond the models and other approaches we’ve been presented and doing a little digging. When that happens, industry playing fields are leveled, more artists get fresh opportunities, and we engage with music as people and not mere receptacles for algorithms.

But, no, Lizzo, I still don’t think PLUTO’s “WHIM WHAMIEE” is quite song of the summer.