Taken from this week’s Future Pop mailer. Click here to subscribe.
Last week I introduced Pretty Much, a group bringing the boyband concept into the modern pop era. Now for something different, but still fun. Why Don’t We is a new boyband made up of minor social media stars and one American Idol contestant (2015’s Daniel Seavey), aged between 16 and 19. Their press shots suggested their music would be totally cheesy and dated, but actually they have some fairly enjoyable pop songs that don’t evoke any second hand embarrassment. The band themselves are pretty weedy and awkward, but The Vamps made that work, so perhaps Why Don’t We could appeal to the same, younger end of the pop fanbase, even if no-one over 18 ever manages to tell them apart. They don’t have a record deal, but they do have the backing of digital marketing agency Crowd Surf, who specialise in teen influencers. Their launch plan appears to be reliant on a partnership with Vine alumnus Logan Paul (brother of Jake Paul, also featured here last week), who clearly has a stake in the group as he features them regularly on his YouTube channel, and has directed their music videos. Those videos have millions of views, with the most popular being Something Different and Nobody Gotta Know.