Saturation Season: Inclusivity, Queerness, and Esthetics in the New Media Practices of Brockhampton

New publication announcement! My coauthor Kai Arne Hansen and I wrote a research article on Brockhampton’s media practices during the release of the Saturation album trilogy, which raise questions about digitalisation, social inclusion, and the democratisation of culture.

The article is part of a special issue of Popular Music and Society (44.5) on music, digitalisation, and democracy.

It’s an open access article, meaning there is no paywall and it can be read in full here.

The abstract reads:

Following the self-release of their Saturation album trilogy in 2017, American hip-hop group Brockhampton broke through to an international audience. The period of the trilogy’s release – known as “Saturation Season” – is notable for the large body of creative content the group produced and released online. In this article, the authors demonstrate how the group’s new media practices query the boundaries that separate amateurs and professionals, consumers and producers, and fans and artists, raising a range of questions concerning digitalization, (social) inclusion, and the democratization of culture. Emphasis is placed on exploring the contradictory effects of the digital turn in popular music.

Screenshot from the recording of ‘STUPID’, streamed by Kevin Abstract on Instagram Live

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