Why “The Box” Is So Popular

Whether you follow hip hop and rap or not, you have most likely heard the “eee err” at the beginning of the popular song, “The Box” by Roddy Ricch. The 21-year-old California native currently holds the number one song on Billboard’s top 100 list for the sixth straight week. “The Box” has a very catchy beat that has sparked questions all over the internet. It also contains an upbeat and fun mood and notable lyrics such as “I won’t never sell my soul, and I can back that.” It was featured on his debut studio album Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial which has been all over social media and on the Billboard’s hot 100 lists since its release in December of 2019. But how exactly did “The Box” become the most popular song of 2020 and why is it such a big deal?

The world of music has drastically changed over the years. Hip-hop has not been accepted as mainstream until recently and young artists like Roddy Ricch haven’t had the opportunity to take over the world with their talents. Typically, hip hop is commonly linked to guns, drugs, and violence, but new artists are showing that hip hop is just as musically creative as all other genres of music. The use of apps such as Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Tik Tok, and Youtube has helped grow an appreciation and excitement for hip hop music. From teasing new music and albums, to movie-like music videos, the millions of people following these artists are helping boost rap to become more socially accepted and popular. The mainstream radio stations and social norms have been holding Ricch and other creators back from being some of the biggest artists on the planet and from having #1 records. Many popular radio stations only play pop music and don’t want to play rap music. Ricch crushed that stereotype with his new sounds as you can hear this song whenever and wherever you go. Roddy Ricch has proven that society has changed and hip hop is more socially acceptable. Young artists like Roddy Ricch are beginning to break away from the previous negative connotations of hip-hop music and paving a path for the next generation of stars.

“The Box” also has people of all ages dancing, singing and creating memes on a popular app called Tik Tok. Tik Tok is a video sharing app where you can upload videos of yourself dancing, singing, or whatever else you may wish. Tik Tok has a “For You Page” which is a section of the app that creates a playlist of videos you may enjoy based on your previously watched and liked videos. When a Tik Tok video makes it onto the “For You Page” it can be shown to anyone and if so it will be shown on other people’s “For You Page.” By reaching the “For You Page” you are exposing your brand and music to billions of people all over the world who have the app. If your sound is used in a Tik Tok it is easily accessible to the whole world to recreate the video and share it with other people. All of this makes Tik Tok an amazing platform with which to create a name for uprising musical artists such as Roddy Ricch because of how quickly the music spreads among millions of people.

When Tik Yokers got a hold of “The Box,” a popular dance was created and there are over 3 million videos of people dancing to the song. Some of Tik Tok’s biggest influences, Charlie and Dixie D’Amelio, Josh Richards, Marshmello, Dtay.Known, Jackson Mahomes and millions of other people using the app have posted videos of them dancing to this song with the most popular video having over 4 million views. Each video is seen by many people on their own “For You Page” and they inspire all other users watching to use the sound. “The Box” has a mysterious sound in its beat. When this song first came out the world was questioning how this “eee err” sound was being made. This resulted in an uproar of questions and curious people listening to the song trying to recreate the sound. Viral memes and videos showed people wiping a window, opening old doors to cleaning glasses poking fun at the weird sound in the beat. Also, the song has been played over SpongeBob Square Pants videos which has just created more attention and inspired more people to listen to the song. Between Tik Tok and all of the other video streaming services, “The Box” has made an impression on millions people all over the world, creating an insanely popular song.

“The Box” by Roddey Ricch is more than just another piece of music, it is one of the sounds of 2020. Breaking barriers and social norms and proving the impacts of video creation and streaming services, “The Box” is proving that times have changed for the better. Ricch has inspired millions of people to understand that they can achieve their dreams and break barriers. This song is a firm representation of the new social media age we live in and how it will have an effect on the music industry.