Is this the Era of the Producer?

[NORTHCOAST]

It seems that so many articles on pop music these days focus on who the producer of the song is.  I'm not too familiar with pop musical history, but it seems to me that who produces a song gets as much hype as who performs it anymore.  (Gwen Stefani's solo album comes to mind)  It sort of makes me question an artist that relies too heavily on the producer of the moment.    Is this a trend that will fall by the wayside like the boy bands and grunge?  Is this a function of hip hop music dominating pop culture?  Are the producers of today oversaturated?  What do you think?

[Love Plastic Love]

Now that you mention it, it seems like whenever anyone has new music coming out, people automatically want to know who produced it, and if it isnt someone they love, will automatically say they arent looking forward to it anymore.
For me, producers dont make THAT much of a difference...its more the artist or almost always the artist. But, then again, I like more singer/songwriters than..rap artists or pop artists who put an emphasis on the "hot producer" of the moment.

[kellydicted]

Producers certainly have the ability to add something special to a track that otherwise would have been mediocre without them, but in the end I agree that it lies on the artist to make somethin out of it.

Producers just add to the hype around an album or a certain track. They arn't necessarily as instrumental as some people think.

[bluenote]

Without a producer, there would be no song. Without the singer, there would be no song......they go hand in hand.

[Devil Marlena Nylund]

Wrong. Without the producers there would be no record. Tons of people make songs and perform them without a producer. ;)
I'd rather a no-name producer. Then you know the stuff will be original fo sho.

[Marv]

CHR/Pop has been dominated by a handful of producers for quite a few years, especially since the trend away from being a mass-appeal CHR/Pop outlet has accelerated noticeably over the past several years.

That was certainly NOT the case during the sixties, seventies and eighties; the format was a songwriter-driven format, as opposed to being the producer driven format it is today.

Many of he best songwriters/artists out there aren't having the success they used to at the format.

Some of the VERY best songs of recent vintage (such as 'Live Like You Were Dying') aren't going anywhere at CHR/Pop these days, and that's a shame.