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Working Titles

  • Open Mind For A Different View
  • A Different View

Pudding.cool Pitch Form

What is your story about?* (Elevator Pitch)

"Open Mind For A Different View" is an investigation of the genres, generations, countries, and artists represented in The Metallica Blacklist, a compilation of Metallica covers released by the band in collaboration with three artists to commemorate thirty years of the Black Album. As the biggest metal act in the world, Metallica's fan base spans a wide range of music tastes, age groups, and national origins. The Metallica Blacklist is a small sample of Metallica fans who create their own music, but it is a well-curated selection that captures the range of Metallica's influence. "Open Mind For A Different View" visualizes this range while also commenting on what makes a good cover.

Can you summarize in one sentence the single point you’re making?

Metallica's influence transcends genre, generation, and geography, as demonstrated by the diversity of their audience and of The Metallica Blacklist forty years into their career.

Why is it exciting to you? Why do you want to tell this story? 

I'm a Generation Z Metallica fan. Although I knew their greatest hits before, I really started getting into their discography (and metal in general) around the same time Eddie Munson shredded "Master of Puppets" in Stranger Things. I never watched Season 4, but watching Metallica embrace new fans my age in response to gatekeeping from older fans gave me great respect for them. I'm obsessed with Metallica now, and as a fan who is also a young Asian American woman, I'm interested in subverting expectations of what it looks like to be a metalhead.

What makes this story interesting and sets it apart from others?

Metallica's geographic influence has already been visualized in data-driven pieces about their tours, but I have never seen a data-driven piece incorporating the age and gender demographics of their audience. The visuals and interactivity of this piece will allow readers an alternative, non-linear way to explore different tracks on the compilation album rather than just listening to each song in order (because let's face it, no one wants to listen to thirteen "Nothing Else Matters" back to back). Hopefully people will walk away with at least one new artist to check out, whether they've never heard the Blacklist before or skipped over that artist's contribution the first time around.

What data do you have? What is it telling you?

I have data from:

  • Spotify API (artists, genres, comparing audio features between covers vs. original)
  • EveryNoise archive (average age and % female listeners for each genre on the Blacklist)
  • Hand-collected data about each artist's generation, length of career, and which charities/causes the proceeds from their song went to. The data demonstrates great sonic and demographic range on The Metallica Blacklist, and the causes supported by the artists is particularly interesting because it highlights the social and political undertones of such diversity.

What makes this essay a visual essay?

This essay is an audiovisual essay that will include interactive charts, playable snippets of songs, and Metallica interview footage. Here's a Figma that I'm working on with the charts and styles I'm aiming for: https://www.figma.com/design/g2z0l1BQcqczqeCAqqaitP/Metallica-Blacklist-Data-Visualization?node-id=0-1&t=T78zDO3D6dRdBHsE-1

Conservatively, how long do you think this project will take?

I can probably work on it 5-10 hours per week... maybe 2-3 months?