My walk to lectures through the picturesque streets of Cambridge has recently been soundtracked by one particular song: ‘Rein Me In’ by Sam Fender. With its plodding bassline, swirling, cyclical guitar patters, and lyrics seeped in nostalgia including “All my memories of you ring like tinnitus,” this song perfectly fits trudging through piles of leaves, dragging myself to yet another morning lecture. Since arriving at Cambridge, this song has persisted near the top of my ‘On Repeat’ playlist, specifically the original song accompanied by Olivia Dean.

This collaboration was released in June after the duo debuted the song live on Sam Fender’s ‘People Watching’ tour. Both artists have had an incredibly successful year with Fender winning the Mercury Prize and Dean selling out the O2 arena four times, so it feels natural that their collaboration grew to have the success that it did.

This got me thinking, what works so well within this song that combines two dissimilar genres? Whilst Fender’s indie rock and Dean’s pop/neo-soul differ, both artists share a talent for vulnerable songwriting, their collaboration highlighting the power of their honest words. Dean sings: “I see the tears of a man too proud to each for a hand / Well let my love keep you safe now.” From a song about heartbreak and emotional restraint, Dean’s female perspective transforms the track into a duet that highlights the failed connection yet deep understanding between two people.

“Music collaborations can, even if just for the length of a song, bring people together”

Let’s take a slight detour to the 2000s. A time of MySpace, extreme diet culture, Crazy Frog, and unlike these things, the many 2000s indie collaborations should not be left as relics of the past. Rapper Dizzee Rascal performed with indie artists including Arctic Monkeys and Florence and the Machine. Gorillaz blended alternative music with hip hop group De La Soul. The Postal Service were formed from electronic artist DNTEL and Ben Gibbard, member of American Rock Band Death Cab for Cutie. The list is goes on and on and doesn’t stop with the indie genre. Kanye West and Linkin Park created the EP ‘Collission Course’ together and Dido’s popular song ‘Stan’ featured rapper Eminem.

So why were these inter-genre collaborations seemingly everywhere in the early 2000s? Firstly, a song’s success wasn’t driven by streaming platform algorithms. Getting creative to gain profit from physical or digital song recordings, the labels combined artists from different genres so one track brought together two whole different audiences, leading to double the number of sales. Moreover, indie was in the mainstream with ‘indie-sleaze’ culture on the rise. Think ripped band tees, slept-in eyeliner, and most importantly, looking exhausted but still ready for a night-out a.k.a the average Cambridge student out at Friday Mash. This culture led to indie bands appearing as appealing and lucrative for other artists to work with. Popular television Channel MTV also hosted artists from a wide variety of genres, which gave its audience exposure to different genres, making them more receptive and desiring of inter-genre collaborations.

Whereas now, MTV’s music channels are being cut, and the indie genre has faded from the mainstream. Sales are now driven by streaming service algorithms. This prompts labels or producers to encourage artists to make music that fits one particular genre as their songs will fit into a Spotify generated playlist or get pushed onto someone’s social media feed: an echo chamber of similar sounding music. So therefore, collaborations aren’t needed to drive sales. Genres have also become increasingly blurred with mainstream artists including Billie Eilish blending various categories of music including pop, electronic and rock. So the need for inter-genre collaborations has arguably decreased.

“The blending of different voices, instruments or styles on the same song can lead to rare and beautiful sonic ideas”

It’s not to say that there aren’t indie artists right now who are creating some incredible inter-genre collaborations. Blood Orange is a fantastic example, having created many collaborative tracks, most recently with Caroline Polachek, Daniel Caesar, and Tariq Al-Sabir on the track ‘The Field’. At the chorus all three extra voices together create a call and response style section that sonically mirrors the feeling of loved ones missing each other. On the songs ‘Boredom’ and ‘Foreword’ Rex Orange County counters Tyler the Creator’s aggression with a softer, lyrical voice adding greater depth to the songs. It would be amazing to see more inter-genre collaborations and despite Loyle Carner explaining that featuring Fontaines D.C. on ‘hopefullly! ’ didn’t work out I maintain that this would be such an exciting collaboration. I would adore hearing a female vocalist add her perspective to the beautifully tragic indie ballad ‘Cariad’ by The Royston Club. It’s important that these collaborations are carefully chosen however. Can you even imagine a song between classic British band Pulp and American polished pop-star Tate McRae? No-one wants badly mashed songs as much as anyone wants to hear certain appalling mixes heard at Revs…

Inter-genre collaborations hold a truly special place within the music scene and my heart. The blending of different voices, instruments or styles on the same song can lead to rare and beautiful sonic ideas. An alternative perspective or additional side to a song’s story can be conveyed by another artist. The collaboration may provide a gateway into a whole new group of artists, the listener feeling encouraged to explore a new genre. Inter-genre collaboration often involves the mixing of different cultures as well, for example mixing British hip hop music, created by the Black British community, with British guitar rock. In a time of increased political and social division, it’s powerful that music collaborations can, even if just for the length of a song, bring people together.