“Watch What Happens Next” by Waterparks

The song “Watch What Happens Next” is premised on the pressure the singer, Waterparks’ frontman Awsten Knight, feels in being compelled to conform to the ideologies which dominate the particular genre of music the group specializes in. That is to say that pop-punk bands are expected to keep it real with their audiences. And this includes being discouraged from altering their sound in order to have more of a mass appeal – or selling out if you will.

And while Awsten Knight is not privy on selling out, he does make it be known explicitly that he wants to make more money. And one of the ways he apparently tends on doing so is by experimenting with other types of music. However, he knows beforehand, based on the history of pop punk, that he is going to receive negative feedback from fans based on his desire to do such. And on one hand he’s telling them to cut him some slack, citing rappers for instance (particularly Lil Nas X it would seem) who are able to “do whatever they want” in terms of the styles they utilize. But on the other hand, he is telling these selfsame listeners that he doesn’t really care for their opinion. 

The singer does not seem like the type who is willing to run away from taking artistic and commercial risks in the name of increasing his income. And on a higher level he feels as if fans are basically oppressing him by expecting him to conform to a certain image, since doing so will also limit his cashflow.

Conclusion

So in this track you can say that Waterworks is not only confronting restrictive fans of the pop punk but also the ideologies upon which the genre is built upon. And what they are basically saying is that both need to lighten up and allow their musicians to make more dough without feeling like they are betraying their fanbase.

Release Date of “Watch What Happens Next”

Waterparks began teasing this song via Twitter on 10 August 2019. Then a couple of days later, (to be precise on 12 August 2019), Hopeless Records released “Watch What Happens Next”.

 The song appears on Waterparks’ third album which is titled Fandom.  

FYI: The music video to this song was the first ever directed by Awsten Knight, the lead singer of Waterparks.