Waterloo Revival - "Bad For You"

[sabre14]

Artist: Waterloo Revival
Single: "Bad For You"
Writers: Cody Cooper, George Birge, Ross Copperman, Jon Nite
Label: Big Machine Records/BMLG
Add Date: August 3rd, 2015
Source: Waterloo Revival facebook



This will be the new single for Waterloo Revival. Thanks to jhomes87 for bringing it up in the Record Label thread. :)

Listen!

Edit: Whoa, don't like this at all. The feel is far removed from country. I can totally see why they chose it for a radio single though, unfortunately.

[kw9461]

I was on board right up until the chorus started...then i was out. What a mess. The article compared it to Maroon 5 and I think that's fair (at least what I remember of Maroon 5, I tried to avoid their music when possible). Yet another insult to the genre formerly known as country. There's obviously a market for this style of music, but continuing to pretend it's country is just a lose-lose for all in the long run.

[Deleted]

I really like this...but it's not country. They at least sprinkled in some country instrumentation, but this is a pop song through and through, and a few country instruments in the background don't change that.

Anyway, the lead singer's vocals really sound like Adam Levine at times (especially during the verses), so I can totally understand the Maroon 5 comparison (and I do like Maroon 5. And hey, at least M5's music is played on the proper radio format...) Also, during the bridge I think he sounds a bit like Thomas Rhett on "Crash And Burn".

A really short song, only 2:29 in length, but it's really catchy. "Hit The Road" didn't do much at radio, but it seemed like Big Machine never gave that one a full push. Basically it seemed like Big Machine signed these guys and then bam, their debut single was released almost immediately, well before their radio tour was done. I'm pretty sure they went out and finished a full radio tour, so this one might get off to a better start at radio, and get the full support of Big Machine as well.

[Dustin J.]

I think Waterloo Revival was better before they got signed by BMLG. If anybody has heard their stuff from a few years ago, you'll know what I know.

[sabre14]

Just serviced to country radio this afternoon according to Play Mpe. Add date is August 3rd.

[rsmatto]

I don't exactly hear "Maroon 5" but I do hear more of an AAA/Adult Pop sound than country but if Sam Hunt, Canaan Smith, A Thousand Horses, and the like fit mainstream radio then this fits. Hell, take a listen to the "I Won't Back Down" cover from Sammy Kershaw. It'd fit country radio now too.

[sabre14]

According to Waterloo Revival's facebook page, the music video for "Bad For You" was shot last Tuesday.

[annie]

Jul 13, 2015 15:31:49 GMT -5 rsmatto said:

I don't exactly hear "Maroon 5" but I do hear more of an AAA/Adult Pop sound than country but if Sam Hunt, Canaan Smith, A Thousand Horses, and the like fit mainstream radio then this fits. Hell, take a listen to the "I Won't Back Down" cover from Sammy Kershaw. It'd fit country radio now too.

The only distinction I'm seeing is that Sam claimed the 'storytelling' element, Canaan can claim topics/vocal, etc etc. With "Bad For You," I'm finding it hard to pick out even one piece that can rationalize it being country. I tend to not care much about genre lines honestly (for better or worse) but I'm mostly just confused as to how how this can be rationalized as country in any aspect – not lyrically, instrumentally, vocally, topically...

[rsmatto]

Aug 3, 2015 0:58:56 GMT -5 annie said:

Jul 13, 2015 15:31:49 GMT -5 rsmatto said:

I don't exactly hear "Maroon 5" but I do hear more of an AAA/Adult Pop sound than country but if Sam Hunt, Canaan Smith, A Thousand Horses, and the like fit mainstream radio then this fits. Hell, take a listen to the "I Won't Back Down" cover from Sammy Kershaw. It'd fit country radio now too.

The only distinction I'm seeing is that Sam claimed the 'storytelling' element, Canaan can claim topics/vocal, etc etc. With "Bad For You," I'm finding it hard to pick out even one piece that can rationalize it being country. I tend to not care much about genre lines honestly (for better or worse) but I'm mostly just confused as to how how this can be rationalized as country in any aspect – not lyrically, instrumentally, vocally, topically...

I can only say there that as a mainstream radio format, because it's marketed there? That's pretty much all "country radio" needs these days.

[sabre14]

Aug 3, 2015 11:16:55 GMT -5 rsmatto said:

Aug 3, 2015 0:58:56 GMT -5 annie said:

The only distinction I'm seeing is that Sam claimed the 'storytelling' element, Canaan can claim topics/vocal, etc etc. With "Bad For You," I'm finding it hard to pick out even one piece that can rationalize it being country. I tend to not care much about genre lines honestly (for better or worse) but I'm mostly just confused as to how how this can be rationalized as country in any aspect – not lyrically, instrumentally, vocally, topically...

I can only say there that as a mainstream radio format, because it's marketed there? That's pretty much all "country radio" needs these days.

Pretty much. Just because its played on country radio though, doesn't mean it's country in terms of the specific elements that make the song itself country (instrumentation, production, beat, vocals). "Bad For You" is not country other than the token country instruments they sprinkled in the background.

What's the point of keeping genre-based radio formats if the formats sound similar? If I tune into a pop station I want to hear pop music (catchy, upbeat, drum loops, etc.). If I tune into a country station I wish to hear country music (stories, steel guitars, fiddles). I'm not saying I'm not liberal with what I find acceptable on country radio (I like the recent output from Eric Church and Keith Urban for example -- and I was a fan of Big & Rich's music when they first broke out) but songs like "Bad For You", "Leave The Night On", "Burnin' It Down" sound like straight up pop songs. If I never listened to country radio and tuned into my local country station and heard this song, I'd be beyond confused at why they were playing it since it sounds nothing like a country song.

It's all about money to labels and radio. The reason labels continue to market these songs as singles is because country radio is leaving their doors open to allow that music to be played. This radio format has become the sacrificial lamb for "pushing boundaries" as there is no other place to successfully market these songs right now other than mainstream country radio. I can't say exactly how the genre will look 10-15 years from now but I'm finally starting believe my father when he said to me two years ago that this genre is heading for fragmentation, which is something I still find a little hard to forecast since that would mean a loss of audience and money with sub-genres.

[rsmatto]

Oh, I understand all of that. But its interesting to me because the average listener (we're not average listeners) would consider most of what you said "country songs" based on either vocal style, lyrical arrangement, etc. And that'd be people of all ages. People who still listen to the radio just listen to what is programmed to them. The younger listeners listen to hodepodge streams, playlists, youtube, etc. that are far from exclusive to sounds and I actually think the loose radio genre definition for songs like this and others mentioned is the format's hope to reel in some of them as listeners.

[sabre14]

"Bad For You" is tied for the second most added song on MB this week with 26 adds on impact day.

Their debut single, "Hit The Road" got 22 impact day adds.

[sabre14]

Waterloo Revival's "Bad For You" had a full page write-up in this past week's Billboard issue. In the piece they talked about how they came to write the song with Jon Nite and Ross Copperman, including the "Cloud on blue" lyric during the chorus:

“I said, ‘I’m like a bee on honey,’ three different times,” he recalls. “The fourth time I said it, Ross was like, ‘Dude, great line.’ And I was like, ‘Man, I’ve been saying that for the last hour.’ So I came up with ‘bee on honey,’ and then Jon was like, ‘Yeah, man, like a cloud on blue.’ ”A what? “Cloud on blue” is a weird line — Nite knew it while it was coming out of his mouth — but there was something intriguing about what’s ultimately a reference to a fair-weather sky. “We actually talked about doing ‘cloud nine,’ but it didn’t work as well rhyme-wise,” says Copperman.

The piece also said that another track was slated to be the duo's second single but "Bad For You" was chosen instead. Big Machine is definitely treating this like their debut single. I never heard anything about "Hit The Road" when it was out and they weren't even close to finishing their radio tour by the time that song was sent to radio -- "Bad For You" is a single that Big Machine is going to push pretty hard though.

Other than the mandolins added into the track, there is literally nothing country on this track.

[sabre14]

Official Music Video:

[sabre14]

"Bad For You" got 7 adds this week, with 5 of them being iHeartMedia.

[sabre14]

It looks as if Big Machine has already thrown in the white flag on "Bad For You". This song lost 140 spins and 400k in audience on this week's MB chart and its lost over 500k in audience over the past 10 days. It also lost nearly 400k in audience on this week's Billboard Airplay chart.

[Deleted]

Another failed pop attempt by BMLG...can't imagine anyone here is really upset...lol...

[Deleted]

Oct 26, 2015 20:21:46 GMT -5 sabre14 said:

It looks as if Big Machine has already thrown in the white flag on "Bad For You". This song lost 140 spins and 400k in audience on this week's MB chart and its lost over 500k in audience over the past 10 days. It also lost nearly 400k in audience on this week's Billboard Airplay chart.

Well it wasn't like it was going to be a hit. That was evident when it kept taking up chart space the last few weeks where it barely moved at all. Waterloo Revival and The Cadillac Three I think aren't going to last much longer on Big Machine.

Thank you country radio! First Live Forever now Bad For You lets keep this up radio your making me very happy with these decisions :)

[zaclord 🌈]

I wasn't a big fan of this song, but I did love "Hit the Road". I'd love to see them come back with more material like that and get a hit. But if all they have left to offer is more "Bad For You", then I don't care if BMLG drops them.

[Future Captain]

I'm actually more confused why Big Machine never go ahead and send some of the pop stuffs to where they belong. I'm not a country follower at all, but I found some of BMLG's artists latest releases to be something I won't mind to see on the Pop charts. I mean, they're doing real well with Taylor there.

[sabre14]

Oct 28, 2015 8:46:10 GMT -5 Future Captain said:

I'm actually more confused why Big Machine never go ahead and send some of the pop stuffs to where they belong. I'm not a country follower at all, but I found some of BMLG's artists latest releases to be something I won't mind to see on the Pop charts. I mean, they're doing real well with Taylor there.

It would be quite the sell to pop radio, convincing them to play a brand new country duo called Waterloo Revival, especially knowing most of their past material before they were signed weren't anything like "Bad For You." The goal for Big Machine is to break an artist at country radio first, then they'll see about pop radio...and country radio has proven they'll play pop music (Thomas Rhett, Sam Hunt). Big Machine is a country music focused label and they also have Taylor, who from day one was destined to be a pop artist. Scott Borchetta wanted Taylor to become a pop icon and that's exactly what happened.

I'm not confident that Waterloo Revival will stick with BMLG -- their songs are just getting completely lost in the shuffle at radio. They were quoted when "Hit The Road" was out that they had opportunities to latch on with other labels but they hand-picked BMLG. "Bad For You" was just a pandering pop song and the fact that this song failed so abruptly, doesn't bode well for their future at country radio. Coming back with a another song like this (if they get another single) probably won't do any better, and if they come back with something more traditional sounding, country radio likely won't buy in to that either. Their in a pretty difficult situation right now with "Bad For You" bombing.