Something most people have probably never heard before is a trombone being played alongside skramz. Skramz music can be identified by its high-pitched screamed vocals and intense melodies. For many skramz bands, a trombone might not sound right, but for the Dead Butterflies it works perfectly. They make melodies that don’t just work with a trombone but are enhanced by its warm and rich tones.
Dead Butterflies, a band from Fort Worth, Texas, is made up of seven teens fresh out of high school. What started out as a small band has grown into a popular group. By mid 2025, they had grown to a following of about 30,000 monthly listeners, but after recent viral TikTok videos, they have amassed over 240,000 monthly listeners. They deserve it; the sound of their music was always destined to reach a larger audience.
This massive increase in following happened during their current tour after recent videos of Stella Prewitt, a member of the band, playing the trombone onstage went viral. Multiple angles and clips throughout the tour have gone viral on TikTok. One video even gained 900,000 likes and 4.2 million views. These videos showed just how different this band is, a bunch of young artists that pour their hearts out into their music. When these videos blew up, a lot of the viewers turned to Spotify to find more of their music.
Dead Butterflies’ music is full of loud complex vocals that convey the raw emotions shared by the band. Skramz emerged in 1990 and has still kept the same distinct sound and Dead Butterflies is one of the bands that does it justice. The music is made with the group’s combination of talents and what they are so passionate about. Their songs have a basement sound to them, not something that is mass produced or written by people behind the scenes.
Sophomore student Wilhelm Jaimeson said, “The screaming kinda reminds me of metal or YAAMC [Your Arms are my Cocoon]. They definitely have a unique sound unlike almost all other music.”
Like many small bands that have gone viral on TikTok recently, they always have fans in the comments trying to convince the masses that they were there before the fame. Dead Butterflies’ recent growth wasn’t any different. Social media’s virality helps artists grow but fans don’t always support it. These fans often feel like what was once a hidden gem is then ruined by being exposed to a less invested audience. This really shouldn’t be a problem though, the search to be more underground and more niche than others eventually makes everyone the same. When people find music they love, whether through TikTok or not, their connection to it is still real. If they genuinely care about the music, they are real fans.
“I think that authenticity is still out there,” said Summit sophomore Kieran Carges. “The people who just cry niche don’t have the care for music that the real fans have.”
Social media may have the ability to make small artists and bands reach millions of listeners. But that doesn’t ruin their originality, it only gives the artists the platform to keep going. The real fans will continue to listen to their music without having to tell everyone that they were there first. The Dead Butterflies authenticity hasn’t changed, only their audience size and ability to support their future careers in music.
