Some of music’s hottest stars are sounding off on aspects of the industry, including constant traveling, connecting with fans on Twitter and the power of YouTube.
American hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar is joined by global musicians profiled in The Hollywood Reporter‘s music issue, released ahead of Grammys weekend and featuring THR‘s global pop icons portfolio.
Priyanka Chopra, Afrojack, Ellie Goulding, Of Monsters and Men, Asaf Avidan, Juanes and Phoenix are just a few of the artists who prove hits can come from anywhere in today’s music landscape.
Here is a sampling of what they had to say in the video above.
On music as a global language:
“The only thing that communicates globally is music, because you either like a song or you don’t. It’s not that complicated,” says Afrojack, bobbing his head as only an expert DJ can.
“Music can be anything. The possibilities are endless these days,” Chopra adds.
On social media:
Goulding praises the power of technology for allowing the cream to rise to the top.
“If you’re good and you’re talented, they’ll see that right away,” she says of online audiences. “With technology, people are kind of fickle but they also make up their minds quickly about things.”
The stars also noted social media allowed them to connect with fans more easily than ever.
“My Twitter followers are like friends,” says Chopra. “I like the fact that there’s nothing between me and my fans. It’s just straight, clean and direct.”
Avidan says a German fan contacted him on Facebook to show him an unauthorized music video he’d made of one of the Israeli musicians’ songs. The version became a club hit across Europe.
On constant touring:
Lamar says traveling allows him to see how different people lead their lives. But while touring the world might sound like a nonstop party, the musicians say it can take its toll.
“I hate to travel, to be completely honest,” says Avidan, while Chopra says long flights are tough: “I do like two trips to America back and forth every month at least, which is like 26-hour flights back and forth.”
Members of Phoenix admitted to getting homesick on the road.
“We wanted to conquer the world. We thought it would be easy, but it just wasn’t as easy as we hoped,” says Phoenix guitarist Laurent Brancowitz.
Watch the video above for more from these artists, including a blooper reel with Afrojack, in which he talks about ordering In-N-Out Burger for the first time (“It’s the greatest thing in the world”) and what a promoter once told him early in his career (“Everything will be great. We have lots of money and lots of bitches.”)
Visit THR.com/music for more from the music issue, including coverage of Lorde, Avril Lavigne, G-Dragon and Mick Jagger, who graces this week’s cover of The Hollywood Reporter magazine.
