Serious Question: Why Aren't There More Sequels For Songs?

The day was March 11, 2010. Lady GaGa and Beyoncé had just broken the internet by dropping the nine-minute music video for ‘Telephone’; a video filled with iconic choreography, beautiful cinematography and most importantly, a “to be continued” tile card at the end. This card sent myself and the rest of the Internet gays into a frenzy as we waited for the sequel. That sequel never came.

But who are we to blame them? Sequels for songs simply aren’t a thing in the music industry. But, they could be. 

Ever since the GFC in 2008, we’ve seen movie production companies play it safe, with the majority of their cinematic output being that of a sequel, a prequel or a spin-off. It’s completely changed the way we view cinema, and it makes me wonder – if it’s so successful for films, why can’t there be sequels for songs?

It’s not like song sequels have never been done before. Kelly Clarkson dropped a happy-ending sequel to her heart-wrenching ballad, ‘Because of You‘, when she released Piece by Piece in 2015. And Rebecca Black took us to her hangover place, aka the day after ‘Friday‘, when she dropped her underrated bop, ‘Saturday‘. But, to be honest, there aren’t many other examples in pop music.

You could argue that remix culture is music’s way evolving stories that we thought had ended. With the Part II of ‘Empire State of Mind‘ and ‘Love the Way You Lie,’ Alicia Keys and Rihanna both provide the listener with the female perspective to male-dominated rap songs. To a lesser extent, remixes can also showcase other narratives within the settings we’ve heard before, such as the other people at Lorde’s house party in the ‘Homemade Dynamite‘ remix. 

Or is the phenomenon of sampling music the way of tackling sequels? What does Kanye West’s ‘Stronger,’ mean to the ‘Harder, Better, Faster’ vibe that Daft Punk established in 2001? Would Julie Andrews’ ‘Favourite Things‘ really be what Ariana dubs as “lashes, diamonds and ATM machines”? I suppose these two examples expose the music industry’s way of updating old concepts, but none that demonstrate a narrative of what happened sequentially after.

Just imagine, what sequels could look like if the music industry indulged in this concept. 

Does a dancing ‘King’ appear in ABBA’s world? Does Billie Eilish find a guy badder than her? Is Ed Sheeran’s ‘Castle on the Hill’ now an AirBnb? Does Camila return back to Havana (ooh na na)? Surely, Cardi B can afford the Balenciagas (that look like socks) by now! So many questions and yet, there’s not an answer in sight!

However, I think by the time the music industry catches up, the 18th Fast & The Furious film will have just entered theatres. So, I wouldn’t hold your breath.