In recent times, Spanish musicians such as: Quevedo, Rigoberta Bandini, Vetusta Morla, Dani Martín, Pablo Alborán, Andy y Lucas, Tote King, Rayden, El Columpio Asesino, Miss Caffeina have announced their temporary or permanent retirement. There have been farewell announcements many in the history of pop and rock, but almost always starring artists of retirement age. Except for Ozzy Osbourne, who always follows suit: in 1992, at the age of 44, he launched his No More Tours, and has spent three decades saying goodbye. Leaving Osbourne aside, the news now is that we are talking about musicians in their thirties and forties: the Canary Islander Quevedo lowers the average at 22 years old. And they do it at a high point in his career. It is, therefore, a recent phenomenon that significantly affects Spanish music. What is really behind these advertisements? Are they sincere or do they carry a part marketing?
The reasons they give for stopping are noble: stress, need for a break after a long period of work, time to reflect on the next step… Just 10 days ago, Vetusta Morla claimed for her farewell temporary: “The level of musical and extra-musical demand is, at times, unhealthy. We need to separate ourselves to strengthen ourselves; “It is a health issue.” The Madrid group talks about “the human chopper that is often this industry and everything that surrounds it.” In Pablo Alborán’s announcement, on April 12, the man from Malaga stated: “I need to write again without all that pressure that one puts on oneself, not just the industry, and I want to observe, also live as a spectator.”
Most often announcements are made on social networks, at special concerts or in programs with mass audiences. And they are accompanied by a “but”: we are leaving, but after a tour that will begin next month and will last a year, for example. Or: we’re leaving, but next week we’re releasing a new album. Sometimes it is both: new album and concerts, as in the recent cases of Tote King and Vetusta Morla. That is to say: it is an announcement of three things (farewell, concerts and album), and two of them cost the follower money. Someone, appealing to their naive side, might think that perhaps the most honest thing would be to go on the tour or release the album and then announce their withdrawal, temporary or total. Alborán did it this way, but few follow this example. There are those who get confused with their words. Rigoberta Bandini said “retirement” and then he regretted it, because what was more in line with reality was “rest.”
If we turn to experts in digital strategy we can have a more accurate vision of the phenomenon. Germán Barrientos works of specialist in marketing digital: “Ethically it can be discussed whether it is reprehensible or not, but from the point of view of the marketing It’s a brilliant strategy no matter how you look at it. You cannot be a digital trend at all times, and advertisements as grandiloquent as these ensure that you have a lot of visibility for a while.”
We reach a key point: social networks. Rosana Corbacho She is a specialized clinical psychologist in the music industry for more than 10 years. He has worked at record labels, event management, and artist booking agencies. He knows well the material with which he works. His job is to deal psychologically with the problems of all workers in the music industry, from artists to members of record companies. “I think it all comes from the evolution of the music industry, from a pressure that demands immediacy and continually reporting things on your social networks. That’s why I believe that these decisions to retire are driven by a need to rest, disconnect, a need to live, to connect with the passion for creating and composing. And not be aware of selling mini-products, which are every post that is published on social networks,” explains Corbacho. One might ask: why announce a break of just one year; The statement could still be dispensed with, since it is temporary. The psychologist justifies the new trend: “The goal is to leave them alone. This announcement in some cases may be a matter of marketing, but also a cry for help. “We have to get to the point of respecting the bands’ rhythms so that they last for many years and give us their best compositions.” This newspaper has attempted to contact several of the affected musicians, but some refer to the statement and others are currently “resting.”
The specialist speaks of a feeling of panic when accepting the challenge of digital rules. It is based on the experience he has had in his consultation: “I see many musicians with the feeling of fear that it will end, fear that someone else will come along who will do it better, who will be more commercial or who will do it better on social networks. . Many decisions are made from fear, which is the basis of anxiety. And if you live with anxiety, the decisions you are going to make are going to be much more radical.”
The media also joins in on fashion. Some opt for giving it a dramatic coat of paint, and what is a “temporary withdrawal” in the headline becomes a plain “retirement,” which may draw more attention to the reader. “Quevedo is retiring from music,” reads a newspaper. Then, as the canary explains in a video and confirms the manager (for whoever wants to call it), it is a “parenthesis”. If we contrast this trend with the old industry we will see clear differences. Carlos López was president of Sony Spain for 12 years. Now retired, he says: “In the past, a one-year retirement was inherent to the music business. Between one record and another they retired. It was normal. The cycle was: release an album, tour and then wait a year and a half or so to come back with another album and tour. There are artists like Manolo García or Fito Cabrales, who follow that cycle, and do not announce the breaks, which in their cases are sometimes two years or more. What happens now? Many artists are subjected to a stressful situation that is quite difficult to cope with and has to do with mental health and balance. Artists don’t just compose, record, rehearse and go on tour. Furthermore, they are subjected to a continuous massacre on social networks where they have to justify very personal things. And that is very burning.”
![Pablo Alborán in a recital at the WiZink Center in Madrid, in November 2023.](https://imagenes.elpais.com/resizer/v2/UUORNRNDTRGG7K3DW224JO2WCI.jpg?auth=022788e288ff6d2597fdaf11fa0ba15e1e4f29035fa9238116b5d242736f10a0&width=414)
Corbacho, the psychologist, draws a fictitious parallel: “It can be compared to the psychology of elite sports: it is as if an athlete had everyone evaluating every workout he does. With that control they would not be able to achieve their marks and would withdraw.” Seen this way, the solution seems obvious: delete yourself from personal accounts on social networks. One problem with this: an expansion channel for your essential brand is closed in these times. The musicians, therefore, appear trapped in what López calls “the evil circle.” On the other hand, the fact that they retire can be taken as a sign that they are doing well: few people can afford to take one or two sabbatical years in their working lives. Although there is a small inaccuracy in these breaks: the goodbye is at most for the concerts, but not for the music, since the artist will continue composing and creating; or he will go on vacation and not pick up a guitar for a year, but that is not specified in the statement. Many of them will return on the indicated date with new music under their arms and we will wonder: but hadn’t they retired?
Rubén González, scholar of Spanish pop-rock and author of the recent book Rock against scissors. History of Spanish rock, 1991-2021, provides another perspective: “Traditionally bands lasted much less due to conflicts, creative differences, lack of maturity… Now they are much more rhythmic and calm, more meditated trajectories, which base their survival over time on reflected movements. Today there is a maturity that was not even dreamed of before and these announcements of farewell tours or long breaks are a logical consequence. “It’s about making these long trajectories not so monotonous.” At the same time, González sees a movement marketinian: “Of course it exists. In today’s industry, all groups have their communication agency; they need to sell information in a world with a lot of noise and competition. If an artist does not constantly offer something new, it is as if he does not exist. It is a perverse dynamic that we all fall into.”
The specialists consulted bet that the majority will return soon, just like those veterans who extend “the farewell tour” for years. Very few keep their word of erasing themselves from the map, unless your name is Rosendo Mercado. The Madrid musician isolated himself from the world in a town in Burgos in 2018, and he remains there.
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