THIS REBRANDING IS TAKING 5SOS TO ANOTHER LEAGUE

With the release of “Everyone’s a Star!” album and world tour, 5 seconds of summer is really showing their full potential. They have been in the industry for 15 years now, and their eras have constantly fluctuated in concepts and sounds. Everyone’s a star in particular, really takes their roots and original sound to a more upgraded and mature concept, but guess what? They are still the same kids singing about underwear.

IS EVERYONE REALLY A STAR?

The 5 seconds of summer members, Michael Clifford, Ashton Irwin, Luke Hemmings, and Calum Hood; they all have a very noticeable star power on-stage. Don’t get me wrong, they’ve always had a very unique stage presence, but for this tour specifically, they really channelled their inner pop star. This era is characterized by the “boyband pop stars” persona and making a social criticism to the industry and fame as a whole. Lyrics like “Eating gum for dinner and I’m smiling through my teeth”, really represent that fast moving industry where artists have to be perfect to appeal to an audience.

“Boy in a boyband, imaginary boyfriend” talks about the parasocial relationships with fans, the expectations that both the media and the audience have on them, and the reality of what they have to do to remain relevant. It is actually impressive how a band 15 years into their career is still writing about so many new topics, and with this level of self-awareness. It’s a type of honesty that has always characterized 5sos’ song writing.

SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE

Their social media interactions are very “Gen Z like”. On TikTok especially, they have been commenting on fans’ content with very comical and “5sos lore” tone. It is actually really refreshing to see that image of an artist on socials, relatable and approachable, but still having that star power on them. It may be a social media manager most of the time (even if they deny it constantly), but fans still feel seen and heard.

One of the reasons 5 Seconds of Summer struggled to capture new audiences during their “experimental” years was that the distance between the band and the image of individuality towards the members, grew. Social media is how artists keep themselves relevant between releases now. The TikTok strategy for this era has been genuinely smart because it keeps the conversation going and it brings in people who might not have been fans before.

SOLO CAREERS

Every single one of the members have released their solo projects. This has given them a space to create separate from the band, and showcase their own image and talents. We know the members to have a specific role withing the band, but do we really know who they are?

During this tour, every member had a space to sing on of their solo songs with the rest of the members playing the instruments for them, which honestly is such a cute experience. To see all the members supporting each other throughout their solo stage is so heartwarming to see as a fan. Yes, maybe some solos shine more than others, but that doesn’t take away the talent and effort put into every single one of their projects.

It is very clear to me, as a fan, that allowing the space to the members to create their own projects, allowed them to come back stronger as 5 seconds of summer. It gave them clarity of what direction they were heading towards as a band vs solo.

CONFLICTS WITH LABELS

5 Seconds of Summer spent years in this space where their original fanbase had grown up with them, but the industry kept trying to sell them to audiences that were not necessarily theirs. They were too pop for rock spaces and too rock for mainstream pop. New fans were hard to capture because honestly, their identity was not fully structured. With the lack  consistent image it is very difficult to build the kind of “aesthetic” and image that keeps a band relevant beyond their music.

What changed with "Everyone's a Star!" is that now the band is fully in control of their own narrative. In the album you can hear a group that has understood  out what they want to say and how they want to say it. This all comes directly from having the creative freedom to make decisions without a label pulling them in a commercial direction, especially one they did not want to go in.

BACK TO PUNK

Their debut album “5 Seconds of Summer” or Self-titled was heavily influenced by a punk-rock sound. For their sophomore album, they pretty much kept the same influences and base sound, before experimenting with their following projects. Everything was experimental for them, especially their fifth album “5SOS” where the sound was more whimsical and eerie. Then we come to Everyone’s A Star!, which clearly reconnects with their original punk sound and visuals.

The lyric: “Raised on Pop, Punk and Bubble-gum” really showcases that for this project, they wanted to go back to what made them 5 seconds of summer, a nostalgic feel to the album, but still felling evolved and new. A lot of bands that try to go back to their roots, and end up sounding like they are cosplaying their own past. 5SOS managed to make it feel natural, and that is a really significant achievement after everything they went through.

GENIUS MARKETING

Before the release of the album Everyone’s a Star! In November 14^th, 2025, 5sos made a public appearance in times square, NYC. Coming in with a hot pink limousine and a whole sound system on the roof, they made a live performance in the middle of NYC streets. Fans gathered around and listened to the album, even before the launch.

The Daily Sauce, your trusted source for 5sos media, is a “newspaper/magazine” created by the PR and social media team of the band. It is a very smart move since it goes hand in hand with the media criticism viewpoint and it also serves as an updates account for the fans.

TikToks: Yes, your favourite unc “boy” band is making TikToks to trendy sounds, and people eat it up EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

World Tour: During every show, they have created spaces not only for them to sing the album, but to participate and let fans be a part of the show. I went to the Dublin show, and omg, I’ve never had worst post-concert depression. I swear, I kept telling my roommate how I wished I had bought tickets for other cities as well, cause it was an amazing experience. The band does specific presentations to relate their culture/lore to the city they are playing in, as well as fans voted songs for them to play. Unfortunately, for some reason, they didn’t do that in Ireland, but oh well, I still had the best time.

The rebrand is working because it is not really a rebrand at all. The marketing, the social media, the tour, the Times Square moment, all of it is built around that same idea. They are not trying to be something new. They are reminding everyone of what they always were, and doing it better than ever.

Is this their best era yet? I think so. And if the Dublin show is anything to go by, the rest of the world is starting to agree.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments!