Veteran musician and producer Todd Rundgren has put forth a controversial theory linking the rise of female artists in popular music to the growing popularity of video games among young men in the 1990s. In a recent interview with Vulture, Rundgren suggested that boys began spending their money on video games rather than music during that decade, a shift he believes contributed to the decline of male-dominated rock music and the subsequent ascent of female pop stars.
Rundgren, known for his extensive production work with artists like Meat Loaf, Patti Smith, and Hall and Oates, observed that the biggest artists in the world are currently female. He posited that this trend stems from the '90s, when he claims young men "stopped spending money on music and started spending it on video games." While the early '90s saw the dominance of grunge acts like Nirvana and Pearl Jam, the decade concluded with the widespread success of boy bands and pop groups such as *NSYNC and the Spice Girls.
While Rundgren expressed a dislike for the current music landscape and specifically mentioned Taylor Swift as an artist who "doesn't do anything particularly great except grow hair," he noted that he does not inherently oppose pop stars, citing Lady Gaga as an artist he admires. His critique appears to be focused on what he perceives as video games having siphoned male attention and disposable income away from guitar-centric music genres.
The article in Vulture acknowledges that '90s video games were largely marketed towards boys. However, it counters Rundgren's assertion by pointing out that major hits like Pokémon and The Sims quickly proved this demographic assumption to be too narrow. Furthermore, the piece highlights that contemporary chart-toppers, including Lady Gaga, openly discuss their passion for gaming, suggesting that an interest in video games and success in the music industry are not mutually exclusive. The article also notes the increasing diversity of the gaming audience, challenging the notion that games remain solely a male pursuit. The passing of Steve Albini, who once appeared in a video game, is also mentioned as a loss for choosing "rock n' roll cranks" like in the past.