Taylor Momsen: Collaborations Today Are Overdone, Marketing Tools
The Pretty Reckless' latest album Death By Rock and Roll features collaborations with a few legendary musicians, but vocalist Taylor Momsen argued that the songs called for those artists themselves. She admitted she believes a lot of collaborations nowadays are marketing tools as opposed to genuine artistic projects.
On Death By Rock and Roll, you'll hear the sludgy riffs of Soundgarden's Kim Thayil and the thunder of Matt Cameron on "Only Love Can Save Me Now," as well as the melodic ferocity of Tom Morello on "And So It Went." Coincidentally, these rockers have all been in bands with Chris Cornell, whose death in 2017 absolutely devastated the Pretty Reckless.
Momsen, however, explained to Loudwire Nights that this wasn't planned — as she wrote the songs, she simply felt that the musicianship of these artists was necessary to complete them. It also helps that she developed strong friendships with all three of them over the last few years, especially after performing at the "I Am the Highway" tribute concert to Cornell in 2019.
"I didn't go into this record with the intention of featuring anyone. I never do, that's not how I think, that's not how I write songs," Momsen said. "Collaborations, I think, especially now in today's paradigm, can be very overdone. They can be used more so as like a marketing tool more than like, an actual artistic collaboration. And that's something that I don't personally love, by any means."
"For me, the songs come first. That's the core of it, that's the whole thing," she continued." The song dictates where it should go and who should be a part of it, and who can elevate the song to the highest level possible."
Collaborations have become increasingly popular over the last year, especially due to everyone working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. People have been able to send files back and forth to each other quite easily, resulting in a new dynamic for the songs they create.
Momsen went into depth about each of the songs on Death By Rock and Roll during the Loudwire Nights interview, so to hear more about the record, watch the full conversation below.