The path to stardom for Nathaniel Motte and Sean Foreman is one of pure chance. Popularly known as 30H!3, these two had no previous musical background, but despite this fact, they grew into one of the most musically adept duos of the modern age.
Having significantly different backgrounds, Nathaniel and Sean found common ground based on their love for music. Each of them had a little something up the proverbial sleeve, with Sean being credited for working with influential musicians such as Katy Perry and even Little Jon. This made him the creative muscle, which is why he had a hand in co-writing all of 3OH!3’s songs.
In Foreman’s own words, their path to stardom wasn’t solely reliant on the songs they created blowing up the charts. It was more of their desire just to create good music, and most importantly, to have fun while at it!
30H!3 Rise to Fame
While their first album 30H!3 didn’t quite establish the band as a force in mainstream music, their second album, “want” broke right into the billboard charts! Released in 2008, this break out album went as far as achieving a gold award for record sales, and it saw fans begin to recognize and appreciate their music.
The immense success of this break out album became the starting point of their road to success. After this hit album, the band capitalized and went on to perform in Panama City Beach, MTVU’s spring break and all the venues in the 2008 Warped Tour. They also had a stint at the Alternative Press tour in 2009.
It was all pretty much downhill from there, as the next album, “streets of gold” was much less successful, and had far lesser hit tracks. My first kiss’ did have its day in the sun, ranking 15th in the billboard charts. Unfortunately, this was perhaps the only song on this album to get any decent airplay.
What Happened to 3OH!3?
So what happened to 3OH!3? And how did such a promising band plummet in such a short period?
The Downfall
It is quite clear that the name 3OH!3 doesn’t have the same appeal and recognition it did, and this has been attributed to a couple of reasons.
First, unlike other bands, who predominantly release one single at a time, 3OH!3 has been dedicated to releasing albums. This means they take years, at which point they fail to capitalize on real-time fame.
Their genre has also been termed as a little unspecific. From dubstep, electronic rock, crunkcore, to synth-pop. Add to that the fact that their lyrics had references to sex and underage drinking also didn’t speak too much in terms of creativity.
Taking 3 years to release their albums also didn’t help. No new content means you get left on the back burner as new artists and groups begin to emerge.
2011/2012 was particularly rough on Foreman and Motte, as their concerts had very low turnouts, and fans complained that they hadn’t put a lot of effort into their music. While they had earned a substantial $12.9 million in revenue by 2012, they had hit a snag, and this year marked a particularly low point for the duo.
Finally, emerging talents pushed 3OH!3 further down the pecking order, and the more they lacked new content, the more people forgot they existed.
Where Are They Now?
Although 3OH!3 has been on the back burner for quite a while now, there are still indications that they may make a comeback real soon. A recent interview with Papermag indicated that 3OH!3 is working on some new music. This is despite focusing their efforts on producing and songwriting for other artists over the past few years.
Although 3OH!3 music may not be palatable to everyone, it is still your feel-good, party music that is the favourite of many. This may change somewhat if they decide to make a comeback, but, until then, all we can do is wait.
Bottom Line
It is comforting for many to know that we haven’t seen the last of Foreman and Motte. Add to that the fact that they are coming out more careful about the kind of content they create is also a reason to look forward to their new music. Now we don’t have to speculate anymore about what happened to 3OH!3.
