More Songs, Less Recall: Sad State Of Telugu Albums

There was a time when songs outlived the films. You may forget the story. But the album stayed. At least 3–4 songs would click. Many heroes had longer careers because of hit songs. You hear one song, you know the composer, and you will remember that lyric writer, hero, heroine, and everything. In the modern Tollywood era, composers like Mani Sharma, Devi Sri Prasad, Yuvan Shankar Raja, Harris Jayaraj, and RP Patnaik haven’t just scored songs, but made sure they live eternally.

That phase feels far away now. Today, albums are bigger with nearly 7-8 songs, including some bit songs, and they are releasing lyrical videos, visual-promos, and full songs even before the film releases. Earlier, only the audio used to come out on cassettes and CDs. Despite doing all this, these songs are not staying in the loop of the playlist for a long time. Except for a few, songs trend fast and disappear faster. These days, songs are mostly one reel hook, one dance step, and one week of noise. Done. By the time the film releases, the album already feels old, and sometimes dead too.

Ever since music has become part of marketing, the makers are releasing one single song, building hype, and repeating the same to keep the film in conversation. But in that rush, something is missing, which happens to be depth, repeat value, and soul inside that song. Earlier, albums felt composed. Now, they feel assembled, and nothing is built to last. Except for a few composers like Anirudh, the rest of the brigade are consistently delivering forgettable songs only. Wonder where Telugu film music will head now!