Pop legend Robbie Williams has taken a not-so-subtle swipe at the era of algorithm-driven music and content.
Robbie, 50, is currently in Australia to promote his latest film, Better Man, and is set to perform an epic New Year’s Eve show at the Sydney Opera House.
Speaking with the Daily Telegraph, the Rock DJ hitmaker decried the increasing reliance on metrics as a measure of success, arguing that algorithms have made music far too niche.
‘It’s so niche, and if you don’t exist in these very niche markets and echo chambers we’ve separated ourselves into, you cease to exist completely,’ Robbie told the publication.
He added that the current landscape was an ‘interesting’ one for performers to navigate as a lot of success comes down to ‘luck.’
‘It’s a really interesting moment to be an entertainer and try and figure this out. Everybody doesn’t know what the f… they’re doing or how to do it. It’s the luck of the algorithm,’ he added.
Pop legend Robbie Williams has taken a not-so-subtle swipe at the era of algorithm-driven music and content
Robbie then revealed his own very niche, and surprising target algorithm.
‘My algorithm thinks I’m a menopausal gay Republican,’ he joked.
Robbie added that he deduced that he belonged to this very unique subset of society due to the types of advertising and music that were popping up in his social media feed.
‘I’m getting a load of menopausal remedies and exercises,’ he admitted.
‘And a lot of enthusiastic disco music mixed with Jimmy Dore and right-leaning information,’ he added, referring to the US comedian and conspiracy theorist who is the host of popular YouTube political-centric chat show The Jimmy Dore Show.
Robbie’s frank admission comes as he prepared to put in a bravura performance at the Sydney Opera House in what promises to be a mammoth New Years Eve celebration.
He was said to have undergone weeks of secret negotiations before he was officially signed up to be the face of Australia’s New Year’s Eve festivities.
Robbie described the gig as the ‘perfect’ way to end the year after his new biopic, Better Man, was filmed in Melbourne with the help of Aussie director Michael Gracey.
Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, the Rock DJ hitmaker decry the increasing use of ‘metrics’ as a measure for success, arguing that algorithms had made music way too niche
Everybody doesn’t know what the f… they’re doing or how to do it. It’s the luck of the algorithm,’ he said. ‘My algorithm thinks I’m a menopausal gay Republican. Robbie is pictured with wife Ayda Field
In a statement from the ABC confirming his performance, Robbie gushed: ‘I love and adore Australia, and the Sydney fireworks are truly magical.
‘To be ringing in the New Year in the country where my biopic, Better Man, was shot will be the perfect end to 2024 and the ideal start to 2025.
I can’t wait to perform and celebrate with my incredible Australian fans.’
His performance will be broadcast live on the ABC and ABC iview on December 31, with the night of celebrations kicking off from 8.30pm.
The New Year’s Eve show will be hosted by Charlie Pickering, Zan Rowe and Concetta Caristo before the epic Sydney Harbour Bridge fireworks will ring in 2025.
The former Take That star has reconnected with his love of Australia recently after filming his upcoming biopic Better Man in Melbourne.
Robbie’s musical biopic has been earning rave reviews following its Christmas Day US release and Boxing Day premiere in Australia and the UK.
The semi-biographical movie follows the singer’s meteoric rise to fame as a member of Take That and subsequent dramatic fall, as he battled with his personal demons and the challenges that success can bring.
Robbie’s musical biopic Better Man has been earning r ave reviews following its Christmas Day US release and Boxing Day premiere in Australia and the UK
But in a twist on the genre, the pop star, 50, is portrayed as a chimpanzee in the film, while everyone else in human, with Jonno Davies acting the movements via motion capture technology and Robbie doing most of the voicework.
And while critics have branded the decision a ‘huge risk’ and potentially ‘stupid gambit’, they declared it ended up being genius choice and ‘one of the most inspired bits of casting of the year’.
In his four star review for Roger Egbert.com, Clint Worthington said the chimp gimmick was a ‘smart move’ that allowed Robbie to ‘vulnerably share his lows while underplaying the pomp and circumstance of his highs.’
He added: ‘You won’t see another music biopic quite like “Better Man,” regardless of your level of familiarity with its subject. There’s a surfeit of charm here that helps sell the nonsensical gimmick’.