Often seen as a subculture, emo also signifies a specific relationship between fans and artists and certain aspects of fashion, culture, and behavior. Emo fashion includesskinny jeans, blackeyeliner, tightt-shirts with band names, studded belts, and flat, straight, jet-black hair with longbangs. Since the early-to-mid 2000s, fans of emo music who dress like this are referred to as "emo kids" or "emos". The emo subculture was stereotypically associated withsocial alienation, sensitivity,misanthropy,introversion, andangst. Purported links todepression,self-harm, andsuicide, combined with its rise in popularity in the early 2000s, inspired abacklash against emo, with some bands, includingMy Chemical Romance andPanic! at the Disco, rejecting the emo label because of the social stigma and controversy surrounding it.
Lyrics, a focus in emo music, are typically emotional and often personal or confessional,[9] dealing with topics such as failed romance,[10] self-loathing, pain, insecurity, suicidal thoughts, love, and relationships.[9]AllMusic[unreliable source?] described emo lyrics as "usually eitherfree-associative poetry or intimate confessionals".[1] Early emo bands were hardcore punk bands that used melody and emotional or introspective lyrics and that were less structured than regular hardcore punk, making early emo bands different from the aggression, anger, andverse-chorus-verse structures of regular hardcore punk.[11]
According to AllMusic, most 1990s emo bands "borrowed from some combination ofFugazi,Sunny Day Real Estate, andWeezer".[1]The New York Times described emo as "emotionalpunk orpost-hardcore orpop-punk. That is, punk that wears its heart on its sleeve and tries a little tenderness to leaven its sonic attack. If it helps, imagineRicky Nelson singing in theSex Pistols."[12] Author Matt Diehl called emo a "more sensitive interpolation of punk's mission".[10] According toMerriam-Webster, emo is "a style of rock music influenced by punk rock and featuring introspective and emotionally fraught lyrics".[13]
History
Hardcore punk band Minor Threat in 1981
Predecessors
Pet Sounds,the Beach Boys' 1966 album, is sometimes considered the first emo album. According to music writer Luke Britton, such assertions are perhaps stated "wryly", and wrote that "it's generally accepted that the genre's pioneers" came later in the 1980s.[14] During the decade, manyhardcore punk andpost-hardcore bands formed inWashington, D.C. Post-hardcore, an experimental offshoot of hardcore punk, was inspired bypost-punk.[15] Hardcore punk bands and post-hardcore bands who influenced early emo bands includeMinor Threat,[16]Black Flag andHüsker Dü.[17]
The one fact that no one seems to debate − or at least debate that loudly − is that emo emerged from hardcore.
Music criticAndy Greenwald, in the bookNothing Feels Good: Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo (2003)[18]
Emo, which began as a post-hardcore subgenre,[3] was part of the 1980s hardcore punk[1] scene inWashington, D.C. as something different from the violent part of theWashington, D.C. hardcore scene.[11][19][20] Minor Threat fanGuy Picciotto formedRites of Spring in 1984, using the musical style of hardcore punk and combining the musical style with melodic guitars, varied rhythms, and personal, emotional lyrics.[16] Many of the band's themes, including nostalgia, romantic bitterness and poetic desperation, became familiartropes of later emo music.[21] Its performances were public, emotional purges where audience members sometimes wept.[22] Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat became a Rites of Spring fan (recording their only album and being theirroadie) and formed the emo bandEmbrace, which explored similar themes of self-searching and emotional release.[23] Similar bands followed in connection with the "Revolution Summer” of 1985, an attempt by members of the Washington scene to break from the usual characteristics of hardcore punk to a hardcore punk style with different characteristics.[20] Bands such asGray Matter,Beefeater,Fire Party,Dag Nasty, andSoulside were associated with the movement.[23][20]
The melodic guitars, varied rhythms and personal lyrics ofRites of Spring changed the hardcore punk scene and helped launch the "emotional hardcore" or "emocore" style in the 1980s.[19]
Although the origins of the word "emo" are uncertain, evidence shows that the word "emo" was coined in the mid-1980s, specifically 1985. According toAndy Greenwald, author ofNothing Feels Good: Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo, "The origins of the term 'emo' are shrouded in mystery ... but it first came into common practice in 1985. If Minor Threat was hardcore, then Rites of Spring, with its altered focus, was emotional hardcore or emocore."[23]Michael Azerrad, author ofOur Band Could Be Your Life, also traces the word's origins to the mid-1980s: "The style was soon dubbed 'emo-core,' a term everyone involved bitterly detested".[24] MacKaye traces it to 1985, attributing it to an article inThrasher magazine referring to Embrace and other Washington, D.C. bands as "emo-core" (which he called "the stupidest fucking thing I've ever heard in my entire life").[25] Other accounts attribute the word to an audience member at an Embrace show, who shouted as an insult that the band was "emocore".[26][27] Others have said that MacKaye coined the word when he used it self-mockingly in a magazine, or that it originated with Rites of Spring.[27] The "emocore" label quickly spread through the DC punk scene, and was associated with many bands associated withIan MacKaye'sDischord Records.[26] Although many of the bands rejected the term, it stayed.Jenny Toomey recalled, "The only people who used it at first were the ones that were jealous over how big and fanatical a scene it was. [Rites of Spring] existed well before the term did and they hated it. But there was this weird moment, like when people started calling music 'grunge,' where you were using the term even though you hated it."[28] The Washington, D.C. emo scene lasted only a few years, and by 1986, most of emo's major bands (including Rites of Spring, Embrace, Gray Matter and Beefeater) had broken up.[29] However, its ideas and aesthetics spread quickly across the country through a network of homemadezines, vinyl records and hearsay.[30] According to Greenwald, the Washington, D.C. scene laid the groundwork for emo's subsequent incarnations:
What had happened in D.C. in the mid-eighties—the shift from anger to action, from extroverted rage to internal turmoil, from an individualized mass to a mass of individuals—was in many ways a test case for the transformation of the national punk scene over the next two decades. The imagery, the power of the music, the way people responded to it, and the way the bands burned out instead of fading away—all have their origins in those first few performances by Rites of Spring. The roots of emo were laid, however unintentionally, by fifty or so people in the nation's capital. And in some ways, it was never as good and surely never as pure again. Certainly, the Washington scene was the only time "emocore" had any consensus definition as a genre.[31]
1991–1994: Reinvention
As the Washington, D.C. emo movement spread across the United States, local bands began to emulate its style.[32] Emo combined the fatalism, theatricality and isolation ofThe Smiths with hardcore punk's uncompromising, dramatic worldview.[32] Despite the number of bands and the variety of locales, emocore's late-1980s aesthetics remained more-or-less the same: "over-the-top lyrics about feelings wedded to dramatic but decidedly punk music."[32] During the early–mid 1990s, several new bands reinvented emo,[33] making emo expand by becoming a subgenre of genres like indie rock and pop punk.[1] Chief among them wereJawbreaker andSunny Day Real Estate, who inspired cult followings, redefined emo and brought it a step closer to the mainstream.[33] In the wake of the 1991 success ofNirvana'sNevermind, underground music and subcultures were widely noticed in the United States. New distribution networks emerged, touring routes were codified, and regional and independent acts accessed the national stage.[33] Young people across the country became fans of independent music, and punk culture became mainstream.[33]
Emerging from the late 1980s and early 1990sSan Francisco punk rock scene and forming inNew York City, Jawbreaker combined pop punk with emotional and personal lyrics.[35][36][37] Singer-guitaristBlake Schwarzenbach focused his lyrics on personal, immediate topics often taken from his journal.[35] Often obscure and cloaked inmetaphors, their relationship to Schwarzenbach's concerns gave his words a bitterness and frustration which made them universal and attractive to audiences.[38] Schwarzenbach became emo's first idol, as listeners related to the singer even more than to his songs.[38] Jawbreaker's 1994 album,24 Hour Revenge Therapy, was popular with fans and is atouchstone of mid-1990s emo.[39] Although Jawbreaker signed withGeffen Records and toured with mainstream bands Nirvana andGreen Day, Jawbreaker's 1995 albumDear You did not achieve mainstream success. Jawbreaker broke up soon afterwards, with Schwarzenbach forming emo bandJets to Brazil.[40]
Sunny Day Real Estate formed inSeattle at the height of the early 1990sgrunge boom.[41] Themusic video for "Seven", lead track of the band's debut albumDiary (1994), was played onMTV, giving the band more attention.[42] Another band often considered to be emo which emerged at the same time was California'sWeezer.[43] Nonetheless, it is debated whether Weezer is emo. For example,Alternative Press argues that the emo label has been misapplied to the band,[44] and authorAndy Greenwald also states that the band is not emo.[45]Jimmy Eat World, anArizona emo band, also emerged at this time. Influenced bypop punk bands such asthe Mr. T Experience andHorace Pinker,[46] Jimmy Eat World released itsself-titled debut album in 1994.[47]
1994–1997: Underground popularity
The Americanpunk andindie rock movements, which had been largely underground since the early 1980s, became part of mainstream culture during the mid-1990s. WithNirvana's success, major record labels capitalized on the popularity ofalternative rock and other underground music by signing and promoting independent bands.[48] In 1994, the same year that Jawbreaker's24 Hour Revenge Therapy and Sunny Day Real Estate'sDiary were released, punk rock bandsGreen Day andthe Offspring broke into the mainstream with diamond albumDookie[49] and multi-platinum albumSmash,[50] respectively. After underground music went mainstream, emo retreated and reformed as a national subculture over the next few years.[48] Inspired by Jawbreaker,Drive Like Jehu andFugazi, 1990s emo abandoned the elements ofhardcore punk and used elements of indie rock, withpunk rock'sdo-it-yourself work ethic but smoother songs and emotional vocals.[51]
The band Weezer (pictured) released the albumPinkerton, an album that was originally a critical and commercial failure. Nonetheless,Pinkerton is considered one of the most important 1990s emo albums.[60]
The Promise Ring's music took a slower, smoother,pop punk approach to riffs, blending them with singerDavey von Bohlen'simagist lyrics delivered in a froggy croon and pronouncedlisp and playing shows in basements andVFW halls.[61] Jade Tree released their debut album,30° Everywhere, in 1996; it sold tens of thousands of copies and was successful by independent standards.[62] Greenwald describes the album as "like being hit in the head with cotton candy."[63] Other bands, such asKarate,the Van Pelt,Joan of Arc and the Shyness Clinic, played emo music withpost-rock andnoise rock influences.[64] Their common lyrical thread was "applying big questions to small scenarios."[64] A cornerstone of mid-1990s emo wasWeezer's 1996 album,Pinkerton.[65] After the mainstream success of Weezer'sself-titled debut album,Pinkerton showed a more dark and abrasive style.[66][67] FrontmanRivers Cuomo's songs focused on messy, manipulative sex and his insecurity about dealing with celebrity.[67] A critical and commercial failure,[67][68]Rolling Stone called it the third-worst album of the year.[69] Cuomo retreated from the public eye,[67] later referring to the album as "hideous" and "a hugely painful mistake".[70] However,Pinkerton found enduring appeal with young people who were discoveringalternative rock and identified with its confessional lyrics and theme of rejection.[60] Sales grew steadily due to word of mouth, online message boards andNapster.[60] "Although no one was paying attention", writes Greenwald, "perhapsbecause no one was paying attention—Pinkerton became the most important emo album of the decade."[60] In 2004, James Montgomery ofMTV described Weezer as "the most important band of the last 10 years".[71]Pinkerton's success grew very gradually, being certified gold by the RIAA in July 2001 and eventually being certified platinum by the RIAA in September 2016.[72]
Mid-1990s emo was embodied by Mineral, whoseThe Power of Failing (1997) andEndSerenading (1998) encapsulated emo tropes: somber music, accompanied by a shy narrator singing seriously about mundane problems.[73] Greenwald calls "If I Could" "the ultimate expression" of 1990s emo, writing that "the song's short synopsis—she is beautiful, I am weak, dumb, and shy; I am alone but am surprisingly poetic when left alone — sums up everything that emo's adherents admired and its detractors detested."[73] Another significant band was Braid, whose 1998 albumFrame and Canvas andB-side song "Forever Got Shorter" blurred the line between band and listener; the group mirrored their audience in passion and sentiment, and sang in their fans' voice.[74]
Although mid-1990s emo had thousands of young fans, it did not enter the national consciousness.[76] A few bands were offered contracts with major record labels, but most broke up before they could capitalize on the opportunity.[77] Jimmy Eat World signed toCapitol Records in 1995 and developed a following with their album,Static Prevails, but did not break into the mainstream yet.[78] The Promise Ring were the most commercially successful emo band of the time, with sales of their 1997 albumNothing Feels Good reaching the mid-five figures.[76] Greenwald calls the album "the pinnacle of its generation of emo: a convergence of pop and punk, of resignation and celebration, of the lure of girlfriends and the pull of friends, bandmates, and the road";[79] mid-1990s emo was "the last subculture made of vinyl and paper instead of plastic and megabytes."[80]
1997–2002: Independent success
Emo's popularity grew during the late 1990s, laying the foundation for mainstream success.Deep Elm Records released a series of elevencompilation albums,The Emo Diaries, from 1997 to 2007.[81] Emphasizing unreleased music from many bands, the series included Jimmy Eat World,Further Seems Forever,Samiam andthe Movielife.[81] Jimmy Eat World's 1999 album,Clarity, was a touchstone for later emo bands.[82] In 2003, Andy Greenwald calledClarity "one of the most fiercely beloved rock 'n' roll records of the last decade."[82] Despite a warm critical reception and the promotion of "Lucky Denver Mint" in theDrew Barrymore comedyNever Been Kissed,Clarity was commercially unsuccessful.[83] Nevertheless, the album had steady word-of-mouth popularity and eventually sold over 70,000 copies.[84] Jimmy Eat World self-financed their next album,Bleed American (2001), before signing withDreamWorks Records. The album sold 30,000 copies in its first week, went gold shortly afterwards and went platinum in 2002, making emo become mainstream.[85]Drive-Thru Records developed a roster of primarilypop punk bands with emo characteristics, includingMidtown,the Starting Line, the Movielife andSomething Corporate.[86] Drive-Thru's partnership withMCA Records enabled its brand of emo-inflected pop to reach a wider audience.[87] Drive-Thru's unabashedly populist, capitalist approach to music allowed its bands' albums and merchandise to sell in stores such asHot Topic.[88]
Saves the Day was one of the more successful emo bands during the late 1990s and early 2000s, when emo was still primarily underground.
Independent labelVagrant Records signed several successful late-1990s and early-2000s emo bands.The Get Up Kids had sold over 15,000 copies of their debut album,Four Minute Mile (1997), before signing with Vagrant. The label promoted them aggressively, sending them on tours opening forGreen Day andWeezer.[89] Their 1999 album,Something to Write Home About, reaching number 31 onBillboard'sTop Heatseekers chart.[90] Vagrant signed and recorded a number of other emo-related bands over the next two years, includingthe Anniversary,Reggie and the Full Effect,the New Amsterdams,Alkaline Trio,Saves the Day,Dashboard Confessional,Hey Mercedes andHot Rod Circuit.[91] Saves the Day had developed a substantial East Coast following and sold almost 50,000 copies of their second album,Through Being Cool (1999),[58] before signing with Vagrant and releasingStay What You Are (2001).Stay What You Are sold 15,000 copies in its first week,[92] reached number 100 on theBillboard 200[93] and sold at least 120,000 copies in the United States.[94] Vagrant organized a national tour with every band on its label, sponsored by corporations includingMicrosoft andCoca-Cola, during the summer of 2001. Its populist approach and use of the internet as a marketing tool made it one of the country's most-successful independent labels and helped popularize the word "emo".[95] According to Greenwald, "More than any other event, it was Vagrant America that defined emo to masses—mainly because it had the gumption to hit the road and bring it tothem."[92]
Emo broke into the mainstream media during the summer of 2002.[96] During this time, many fans of emo music had an appearance of short, dyed black hair with bangs cut high on the forehead, glasses with thick and black frames, and thrift store clothes. This fashion then became a huge part of emo's identity.[98] Jimmy Eat World'sBleed American album went platinum on the strength of "The Middle", which toppedBillboard'sAlternative Songs chart.[96][97][99] The mainstream success achieved by Jimmy Eat World paved the way for emo pop music that would appear during the rest of the 2000s,[100] with emo pop becoming a very common style of emo music during the 2000s.[101] The band Dashboard Confessional broke into the mainstream. Started by the band's guitarist and lead vocalistChris Carrabba, Dashboard Confessional are known for sometimes creatingacoustic songs.[102] Dashboard Confessional originally was a side project, as Carrabba was also a member of the emo bandFurther Seems Forever,[102] and Vacant Andys, a punk rock band Carraba helped start in 1995.[103]Dashboard Confessional's albumThe Places You Have Come to Fear the Most peaked at number 5 on theIndependent Albums chart.[104] Dashboard Confessional was the firstnon-platinum-selling artist to record an episode ofMTV Unplugged.[96] The 2002resulting live album and video long-form was certified platinum by the RIAA on May 22, 2003, topped the Independent Albums chart, and, as of October 19, 2007, sold 316,000 copies.[104][102][105] With Dashboard Confessional's mainstream success, Carrabba appeared on a cover of the magazineSpin and according toJim DeRogatis, "has become the 'face of emo' the way thatMoby was deemed the prime exponent oftechno orKurt Cobain became the unwilling crown prince of grunge."[106] Three of Dashboard Confessional's studio albums,The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most (2001),A Mark, a Mission, a Brand, a Scar (2003), andDusk and Summer (2006), all were certified gold by the RIAA during the mid-2000s.[105] As of October 19, 2007,The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most has sold 599,000 copies.[107] As of October 19, 2007,Dusk and Summer andA Mark, a Mission, a Brand, a Scar have sold 512,000 copies and 901,000 copies in the United States, respectively.[107] As of October 19, 2007, Dashboard Confessional's 2000 debut albumThe Swiss Army Romance sold 338,000 copies.[107] On August 10, 2003,The New York Times reported how, "from the three-chord laments of Alkaline Trio to thefolky rants ofBright Eyes, from the erudite pop-punk ofBrand New" to the entropic anthems of Thursday, much of the most exciting rock music" was appearing from the emo genre.[108]
Saves the Day toured with Green Day, Blink-182 and Weezer, playing in large arenas such asMadison Square Garden.[109] Saves the Day performed onLate Night with Conan O'Brien, appeared on the cover ofAlternative Press and hadmusic videos for "At Your Funeral" and "Freakish" in rotation onMTV2.[92][110]Taking Back Sunday released their debut album,Tell All Your Friends, onVictory Records in 2002. The album gave the band a taste of success in the emo scene with singles such as "Cute Without the 'E' (Cut from the Team)" and "You're So Last Summer".Tell All Your Friends was eventually certified gold by the RIAA in 2005[111] and is considered one of emo's most-influential albums. As of May 8, 2009,Tell All Your Friends sold 790,000 copies.[112] Articles on Vagrant Records appeared inTime andNewsweek,[113] and the word "emo" became a catchall term for non-mainstream pop music.[114]
Taking Back Sunday performing on August 24, 2007
In the wake of this success, many emo bands were signed to major record labels and the genre became marketable.[115] According to DreamWorks Records seniorA&R representative Luke Wood, "The industry really does look at emo as the newrap rock, or the new grunge. I don't think that anyone is listening to the music that's being made—they're thinking of how they're going to take advantage of the sound's popularity at retail."[116] Emo's apolitical nature, catchy music and accessible themes had broad appeal for a young, mainstream audience. Emo bands that emerged or broke into the mainstream during this time were rejected by many fans of older emo music.[101] As emo continued to be mainstream, it became quite common for emo bands to have black hair and wear eyeliner.[101] Taking Back Sunday had continued success in the next few years, with their 2004 albumWhere You Want To Be both reaching number three on theBillboard 200 and being certified gold by the RIAA in July 2005.[117] The album, as of February 17, 2006, sold more than 700,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[118] The band's 2006 album,Louder Now, reached number two on theBillboard 200, was certified gold by the RIAA a little less than two months after its release date,[119] and, as of May 8, 2009, sold 674,000 copies.[112]
The emo band Thursday performing live in 2006
A darker, more aggressive style of emo was also becoming popular. New Jersey–basedThursday signed a multimillion-dollar, multi-album contract withIsland Def Jam after their 2001 album,Full Collapse, reached number 178 on theBillboard 200.[120] Their music was more political and lacked pop hooks and anthems, influenced instead bythe Smiths,Joy Division, andthe Cure. However, the band's accessibility, basement-show roots and touring with Saves the Day made them part of the emo movement.[121] Thursday's 2003 album,War All the Time, reached number seven on theBillboard 200.[122] Hawthorne Heights,Story of the Year,Underoath, andAlexisonfire, four bands frequently featured on MTV, have popularizedscreamo.[123] Other screamo bands includeSilverstein,[124]Senses Fail[125][126] andVendetta Red.[123] Underoath's albumsThey're Only Chasing Safety (2004)[127] andDefine the Great Line (2006)[128] both were certified gold by the RIAA. The Used'sself-titled album (2002) was certified gold by the RIAA on July 21, 2003.[129] The Used's self-titled album, as of August 22, 2009, has sold 841,000 copies.[130] The Used's albumIn Love and Death (2004) was certified gold by the RIAA on March 21, 2005.[131]In Love and Death, as of January 2, 2007, sold 689,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[132] Four Alexisonfire albums were certified gold or platinum in Canada.[133][134][135][136]
The emo bandHawthorne Heights in 2007My Chemical Romance is known for their use of eyeliner and black clothing associated with emo fashion.
Emo pop, a pop punk-oriented subgenre of emo withpop-influencedhooks, became the main emo style during the mid-to late 2000s, with many of these bands being signed byFueled by Ramen Records and some adopting agoth-inspired look.[100] My Chemical Romance broke into the mainstream with their 2004 albumThree Cheers for Sweet Revenge. My Chemical Romance is known for their goth-influenced emo appearance and creation ofconcept albums androck operas.[137][138]Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge was certified platinum by the RIAA in 2005.[139] The band's success continued with its third album,The Black Parade, which sold 240,000 copies in its first week of release[140] and was certified platinum by the RIAA in less than a year.[141] Fall Out Boy's album,From Under the Cork Tree, sold 2,700,000 copies in the United States.[142] The band's album,Infinity on High, topped theBillboard 200, sold 260,000 copies in its first week of release[143] and sold 1,400,000 copies in the United States.[142] Multiple Fall Out Boy songs reached the top ten of theBillboard Hot 100.[144] Panic! at the Disco's album,A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, was certified double platinum by the RIAA[145] and its single, "I Write Sins Not Tragedies", reached number seven on theBillboard Hot 100.[146] Panic! at the Disco are known for combining emo withelectronics[147] and their albumA Fever You Can't Sweat Out is an emo album[148] with elements ofdance-punk[149] andbaroque pop.[150] The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus' "Face Down" peaked at number 24 on theBillboard Hot 100[151] and its album,Don't You Fake It, sold 852,000 copies in the United States.[152]AFI's albumsSing the Sorrow andDecemberunderground both were certified platinum by the RIAA,[153][154] withDecemberunderground peaking at number 1 on theBillboard 200.[155] Paramore's 2007 albumRiot! was certified double platinum by the RIAA[156] and several Paramore songs appeared on theBillboard Hot 100 in the late 2000s, including "Misery Business", "Decode", "Crushcrushcrush", "That's What You Get", and "Ignorance".[157]
In the 2020s, emo's impact on mainstream music of the2010s, as well as a revival of the genre itself, was noted in media outlets.[177][178] TheBBC observed in 2018 "beyond guitar-based bands, the influence of emo can be seen in much of modern music, both in style and lyrical content" and "addressingmental health issues has become increasingly more common in pop".[14]
The term "screamo" was initially applied to an aggressive offshoot of emo which developed in San Diego in 1991 and used short songs grafting "spastic intensity to willfully experimental dissonance and dynamics."[179] Screamo is a dissonant form of emo influenced byhardcore punk,[123] with typical rock instrumentation and noted for short songs, chaotic execution andscreaming vocals.
The Used,Thursday,Thrice andHawthorne Heights, who all formed in the United States during the late 1990s and early 2000s and remained active throughout the 2000s, helped popularize screamo.[123]Post-hardcore bands such asRefused andAt the Drive-In paved the way for these bands.[123] Screamo bands from the Canadian emo scene such asSilverstein[188] andAlexisonfire[189] also emerged at this time. By the mid-2000s, the saturation of the screamo scene caused many bands to expand beyond the genre and incorporate more-experimental elements. Non-screamo bands used the genre's characteristic guttural vocal style.[123] Some screamo bands during this time period were inspired by genres likepop punk andheavy metal.[123]
Jeff Mitchell of theIowa State Daily wrote, "There is no set definition of what screamo sounds like but screaming over once deafeningly loud rocking noise and suddenly quiet, melodic guitar lines is a theme commonly affiliated with the genre."[190]
Emo pop (or emo pop punk) is a subgenre of emo known for itspop music influences, more concise songs andhook-filledchoruses.[100]AllMusic describes emo pop as blending "youthfulangst" with "slick production" and mainstream appeal, using "high-pitchedmelodies,rhythmic guitars, and lyrics concerningadolescence, relationships, and heartbreak."[100]The Guardian described emo pop as a cross between "saccharineboy-band pop" and emo.[198]
Emo pop developed during the 1990s. Bands like Jawbreaker andSamiam are known for formulating the emo pop punk style.[199] According to Nicole Keiper ofCMJ New Music Monthly,Sense Field'sBuilding (1996) pushed the band "into the emo-pop camp with the likes of the Get Up Kids and Jejune".[200] As emo became commercially successful in the early 2000s, emo pop became popular with Jimmy Eat World's 2001 albumBleed American and the success of its single "The Middle".[100] Jimmy Eat World,[100] the Get Up Kids[201] andthe Promise Ring[202] also are early emo pop bands. The emo pop style of Jimmy Eat World's album,Clarity[203] influenced later emo.[204] The emo band Braid's 1998 albumFrame & Canvas has been described as emo pop by Blake Butler ofAllMusic, who gave the Braid album four out of five stars and wrote thatFrame & Canvas "proves to be one of Braid's best efforts".[205] Emo pop became successful during the late 1990s, with its popularity increasing in the early 2000s. The Get Up Kids sold over 15,000 copies of their debut album,Four Minute Mile (1997), before signing with Vagrant Records. The label promoted them, sending them on tours toopen forGreen Day andWeezer.[89] Their 1999 album,Something to Write Home About, reached number 31 onBillboard'sTop Heatseekers chart.[90] As of May 2, 2002,Something to Write Home About sold 134,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
As emo pop coalesced, theFueled by Ramen label became a center of the movement and signedFall Out Boy,Panic! at the Disco, andParamore (all of whom had been successful).[100] Two regional scenes developed. TheFlorida scene was created by Fueled by Ramen;midwest emo-pop was promoted by Pete Wentz, whose Fall Out Boy rose to the forefront of the style during the mid-2000s.[100][206][207]Cash Cash releasedTake It to the Floor (2008); according to AllMusic, it could be "the definitive statement of airheaded, glittery, andcontent-freeemo-pop[208] ... the transformation of emo from the expression of intensely felt, ripped-from-the-throat feelings played by bands directly influenced by post-punk and hardcore to mall-friendlyDay-Glo pop played by kids who look about as authentic as the "punks" on an old episode ofQuincy did back in the '70s was made pretty much complete".[208]You Me at Six released their 2008 debut album,Take Off Your Colours, described by AllMusic's Jon O'Brien as "follow[ing] the 'emo-pop for dummies' handbook word-for-word."[209] The album was certified gold in the UK.[210]
The beginning of emo as a subculture rather than just a style of music dates back to the mid-1990sSan Diego screamo scene. The scene's bands, such as Heroin, Antioch Arrow and Swing Kids, and participants in this scene were often called "spock rock", in reference to their black-dyed hair with straight fringes.[191] As the vocalist of Swing Kids, Justin Pearson had choppy spikes protruding from the back of his head alongside straight fringes, which was a prototype for the emo haircut.[191] During this time, emo fashion was clean-cut and tended towards geek chic,[219] with clothing items like thick-rimmed glasses resembling 1950s musicianBuddy Holly, button-down shirts, t-shirts, sweater vests, tight jeans, converse shoes, and cardigans being common.[9]
Emo fashion in the mid-to late 2000s includedskinny jeans, tightT-shirts (usually short-sleeved, and often with the names of emo bands), studdedbelts,Converse sneakers,Vans and blackwristbands.[220][221] Thick, horn-rimmed glasses remained in style to an extent,[220] andeye liner andblack fingernails became common during the mid-2000s.[222][223] The best-known facet of emo fashion is its hairstyle: flat, straight, usually jet-black hair with longbangs covering much of the face,[221] which has been called afad.[221] As emo became a subculture, people who dressed in emo fashion and associated themselves with its music were known as "emo kids" or "emos".[221]
Emo has been associated with a stereotype of emotion, sensitivity, shyness, introversion orangst.[12][224][225] More controversially,stereotypes surrounding the genre includeddepression,self-harm andsuicide,[221][226] in part stoked by depictions of emo fans as a "cult" by British tabloidDaily Mail.[227] Emos andgoths were often distinguished by the stereotype that "emos hate themselves, while goths hate everyone."[228] In 2020,The Independent wrote on such stereotypes, that "emo was singled out for the destructive behaviour of teenagers who'd found a home in a subculture that offered them community and a vehicle for self-expression."[177]
In 2008, emo music was blamed for thesuicide by hanging of British teenager Hannah Bond by thecoroner at her inquest and her mother, Heather Bond, who suggested that the music and fandom glamorisedsuicide. They suggested Hannah's apparent obsession withMy Chemical Romance was linked to her death. It was said at the inquest that she was part of an Internet "emo cult", and an image of an emo girl with bloody wrists was on herBebo page.[229] Hannah reportedly told her parents that her self-harm was an "emo initiation ceremony".[229] Heather Bond criticised emo culture: "There are 'emo' websites that show pink teddies hanging themselves."[229] The coroner's statements were featured in a series of articles in theDaily Mail.[227] After they were reported inNME, fans of emo music contacted the magazine to deny that it promoted self-harm and suicide.[230] My Chemical Romance reacted online: "We have recently learned of the suicide and tragic loss of Hannah Bond. We'd like to send our condolences to her family during this time of mourning. Our hearts and thoughts are with them".[231] The band also posted that they "are and always have been vocally anti-violence and anti-suicide".[231]
Emo received significant backlash during the 2000s.Warped Tour founderKevin Lyman said that there was a "real backlash" by bands on the tour against emo groups, but he dismissed the hostility as "juvenile".[233] The backlash intensified, with anti-emo groups attacking teenagers inMexico City,Querétaro, andTijuana in 2008.[234][235] Legislation was proposed in Russia'sDuma regulating emo websites and banning emo attire in schools and government buildings, with the subculture perceived as a "dangerous teen trend" promoting anti-social behaviour, depression, social withdrawal and suicide.[236][237] The BBC reported that in March 2012,Shia militias inIraqshot or beat to death as many as 58 young Iraqi emos.[238] Somemetalheads andpunks often were known for hating emos and criticizing the emo subculture.[239]
Terminology
Emo means different things to different people. Actually, that's a massive understatement. Emo seems tosolely mean different things to different people − like pig latin or books by Thomas Pynchon, confusion is one of its hallmark traits. [...] The word has survived and flourished in three decades, two milleniums, and two Bush administrations. [...] It's older than most of its fans. It's been a source of pride, a target of derision, a mark of confusion, and a sign of the times. It's been the next big thing twice, [and] the current big thing once. And yet, not only can no one agree on what it means, [but] there is not now, nor has there ever been, a single major band that admits to being emo. Not one.
Music criticAndy Greenwald in the bookNothing Feels Good: Punk Rock, Teenagers, and Emo. (published November 15, 2003). St. Martins Griffin. pp. 1-2.
The term "emo" has been the subject of controversy amongst artists, critics, and fans alike. Some find the label to be loosely defined[240] with the term at times being used to describe any music that expresses emotion.[178] The mainstream success of emo and its related subculture caused the term to be conflated with other genres.[241]
Many bands labeled as emo rejected the emo label. In Chris Payne's bookWhere Are Your Boys Tonight? (2023),Bayside vocalistAnthony Raneri stated that he believed emo became "a dirty word" around the time of its mainstream success in the 2000s. He explains this derogatory use of the word derived fromhipsters adopting the term to demean rock artists they saw as being "not as cool as" the popular indie rock groups of the time, namelythe Strokes.[242] My Chemical Romance singerGerard Way said in 2007 that emo is "a pile of shit [...] I think there are bands that we get lumped in with that are considered emo and, by default, that starts to make us emo. All I can say is that anyone actually listening to the records, putting the records next to each other and listening to them, [would know there are] actually no similarities."[243]
Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco said : "It's ignorant! The stereotype is guys that are weak and have failing relationships write about how sad they are. If you listen to our songs, not one of them has that tone."[244]Adam Lazzara of Taking Back Sunday said he always considered his bandrock and roll instead of emo.[245] Guitarist ofthe Get Up Kids,Jim Suptic, noted the differences between the 2000s mainstream acts when compared to the emo bands of the 1990s, saying, “The punk scene we came out of and the punk scene now are completely different. It's likeglam rock now. We playedthe Bamboozle fests this year and we felt really out of place... If this is the world we helped create, then I apologise.”[246] Vocalist of AFI,Davey Havok, described emo as “such a strange and meaningless word.”[247] Early emo musicians also have rejected the label. Guy Picciotto, the vocalist of Rites of Spring, said he considers the emo label "retarded" and always considered Rites of Spring a punk rock band: "The reason I think it's so stupid is that - what, like theBad Brains weren't emotional? What - they were robots or something? It just doesn't make any sense to me."[248] Sunny Day Real Estate's members said they consider themselves simply a rock band, and said that back in the early days, the word "emocore" was an insult: "While I don't disrespect anyone for using the term emo-core, or rock, or anything, but back in the day, emo-core was just about the worst dis that you could throw on a band."[249]
The term “mall emo” has been used to separate mainstream bands likeParamore,Hawthorne Heights, My Chemical Romance, Panic! at the Disco, and Fall Out Boy from the less commercially viable bands that proceeded andsucceeded them.[250][251][252] The term "mall emo" dates back to around 2002, when many emo fans did not like the change emo was going through at the time when the genre became mainstream.[98]
Tom Mullen, editor of theAnthology of Emo book, created the website Washed Up Emo in 2007 in response to the mainstream perceptions of the genre, intending to impart information about the genre's history.[253] He later created the websiteIs This Band Emo? in 2014, which explains whether various bands are classified under the genre alongside humorous responses.[254][255]
In 2025, a mollusk fossil was named after the genre asEmo vorticaudum. The name was chosen to reflect the distinct characteristics of the mollusk. According to Sanjana Gajbhiye of Earth.com, "[Emo] was named for its elongated, folded posture, which suggested unusual and unconventional ways of moving. Its name reflects individuality and adaptability, much like the cultural association with the emo style."[256][257][258][259][260][261]
^Bayer, Jonah; Burgess, Aaron; Exposito, Suzy; Galil, Leor; Montgomery, James; Spanos, Brittany (March 1, 2016)."40 Greatest Emo Albums of All Time".Rolling Stone.Archived from the original on March 30, 2021. RetrievedAugust 12, 2018.
^"A Day with the Locust",L.A. Weekly, September 18, 2003"Brassland | Home". Archived fromthe original on March 5, 2009. RetrievedSeptember 14, 2011. Access date: June 19, 2008
^Lester, Paul (December 8, 2008)."New band of the day – No 445: Metro Station".The Guardian.Archived from the original on September 26, 2017. RetrievedJune 10, 2011.They peddle "emo-pop", a sort of cross between saccharine boy-band pop and whatever it is that bands like Panic! at the Disco and Fall Out Boy do – emo, let's be frank.
^Payne, Chris (2023).Where Are Your Boys Tonight? The Oral History of Emo's Mainstream Explosion 1999-2008. Dey Street Books. p. 109.ISBN9780063251281.Our scene was all honesty and grit and basements and connection. And that scene was, like, drugs, and sort of the revival of glam rock. They were like rock stars. They wore ripped clothes; they were selling what we were doing. But they weren't living it, you know? That's where "emo" as a dirty word I feel comes from, from hipsters, because it's not as cool as the Strokes. Nothing's as cool as the Strokes, though, you know what I mean? The Strokes are like, the coolest band. They just sell cool. To this day, so many people try to fight off that emo tag. It's because of those early 2000s hipsters thinking it's not cool.
Bryant, Tom (2014).Not the Life It Seems: The True Lives of My Chemical Romance. Da Capo Press.ISBN978-0-306-82350-3.
Diehl, Matt (2013).My So-Called Punk: Green Day, Fall Out Boy, The Distillers, Bad Religion—How Neo-Punk Stage-Dived into the Mainstream. St. Martin's Griffin.ISBN9781466853065.
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