We're just in a content era now. Everything competes for attention. Streamers, Video Makers, Musicians, Gaming, Makers, Educators, Vloggers, Writers, Films, and even old media like Television and Radio (remember them?)
I was ready to say, "we're not in a musical era, it's now a musical error". But you are correct - just like your "post-genre" idea, I find myself exploring all kinds of music on the internet that I simply can't find on the radio. It's both refreshing and freeing.
Yes. Good for you but I’m really set in my ways and cannot get myself to listen to new music cause I HATE auto-tune and my love for old music is too strong and there is still so much old music I haven’t heard. So the urge to do so is not present.
You can definitely still have that if you join the (still existing) mainstream. Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift, etc are all ubiquitous. However, if you're lucky enough to find someone who enjoys similar stuff while choosing freely instead of having the choice made for them, I'd say there's potential for higher quality and deeper bonding
Old music used to be pushed out of the way so new music could be heard. MTV could only play 1 song at a time. Maybe you had 3-4 radio stations in your area worth listening to. It was a zero sum game. Now everyone can listing to anything whenever they want. Stuff is never "uncool" now and never goes out of style because no one has to make choices about what to listen to anymore.
To add, the internet itself makes things timeless. You can discover things that have been around and have conversations with ghosts- reply to old comments, read old threads about something and peoples theories- the method of joining in a fandom of sorts is completely different than meeting people at a concert or in a record store.
@@vaderladylno beauty in that. No anticipation, no forethought, no expectation... Just endless possibilities creating both choice paralysis and diminishing the worth of music further. Human beings are just not designed to have it all always and whenever at disposal
@@darkogst It's FOMO. I find great music all the damn time - it's not even hard. Do I miss things? Of course. I don't care - there is SO MUCH good stuff that I don't need to worry about it.
It seems that we're in the Discovery Era. Kids are listening to their parent's and grandparent's music. If the #1 album this year is Rumours by Fleetwood Mac, that says it all.
Great songs are great songs, my daughter got into FM about 10 years ago she is 26 now, and my youngest is 16 loves FM now,. It was the first album I bought with my own money in 1980 ( I was six, used cassettes, rumours and queen- jazz, still have them), . Real music, real instruments, and great songs can't be beat.
It seems you refer to the year-end Billboard 200 list, and Rumours is not the #1 best selling album on it by a long shot. It is number 34 and was reported as the _highest-ranking rock_ album within that list (which apparently features only 29 rock albums in total). The highest sellers are pop, hip hop, R&B and country from the last few years. Although I see some higher ranking albums are categorized as rock or its derivatives on Wikipedia, but I don't listen to those and don't know if that's accurate. For example, at number 12 there is an album called Guts by Olivia Rodrigo and Wikipedia categorizes it as "rock, pop, alternative rock, power pop".
You are right. I was surprised by my kids making a 50s Crooners list on Spotify (grandparents music) and then really enjoying eg. Stevie Wonder, Toto, Steely Dan and Jamiroquai etc (my era) but also recommending Laufey to me (NOT Swift) amd J-pop. They discover past music but also wider contemporary music.
I'm 65, so I grew up through the 60s and 70s heyday of pop and rock (and even then, realized that a lot of it was crap: bubblegum in the 60s, disco in the 70s, etc.). Early on, when I was 13 or so, I started "rebelling" against the "dominant sound" that you'd hear on radio--I searched for the "alternative" FM stations, sought refuge by listening to jazz (Jarrett, Davis, Corea) and classical. Ever since then, I've hardly given whatever's "popular" or "trending" a second thought. The "post-genre" phenomenon that Beato talks about--I think it's great! We're also living in a "post-fashion" world--does anyone really give a crap any more about what the fashion designers are coming up with, and what everyone else is wearing? Same thing's true in the art world--just ask yourself what the "dominant trend" is. There isn't one, unless you break the timeline down into 10 minute intervals. I think this is all incredibly liberating.
“The problem with TV and entertainment isn’t that it’s evil-it’s that it’s addictive. It gives us what we want, but not what we need, leaving us empty and craving more.” - David Foster Wallace Now apply that with personal data collection & self referential silos
Some of us have always curated our own music. I was a teenager in the 80s, but I was listening to The Beatles, The Who, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Small Faces, Sex Pistols, T Rex, Led Zeppelin, King Crimson, The Jam, The Doors, The Specials, Selecter, The Beach Boys...
As a 24 year old musician, I love this age. So many people I know are into the grunge stuff, into the psychedelic rock of the 60s, into 80s pop, and are discovering new artists everyday. Removing the idea of a mass collective experience of music really makes you appreciate a person who has a similar music taste to you. I think there is a bunch of nostalgia for older heads who liked the shared experience of music, and I get it and would love to see what it was like back then, I personally love that I can be inspired by the artists of old and new with just a click of a button. It is transforming new musicians into something that Rick described above. My generation probably has the most musical influences of any generation because of this, and if you look deeper you’ll see how it manifests. I look at mk.gee as the perfect example of this.
Rick, It’s not just music! Everything in mass media has been impacted! News, cars, art, movies, all mass consumption now comes to “artificial life” through certain man-made algorithms instead of naturally through mass consensus. Great video.!
We are in a post rock era. Rock music now occupies the same cultural space as jazz did post 1970. One silver lining is that bands that were important to me in my youth are by and large free of commercial pressure to appeal to a wide audience which allows them the creativity to release albums like The Cure's latest album.
@@tmage23 you are talking about mainstream audiences, that play music casually. I am talking about real, long time fans that go with the hardcore stuff or go off the side of mainstream.
We're not out of ideas. I think the problem is that there are too many brilliant ideas hidden in an immense sea of shitty music (because everyone get to make music which is good and bad at the same time). And because nobody can make a living out of music, those ideas dry up and doesn't evolve, because there is no much support to keep it going. Well those are my thoughts, I might be wrong...
I just rewatched Running on Empty with River Phoenix, set in the late ’80s, and there’s this great scene where a music teacher compares Brahms and Madonna. Brahms is all about melody and complexity, while Madonna is driven by rhythm-easy to dance to and instantly “get.” It made me think about how today’s shorter attention spans, easy access to digital tools, and quick uploads to streaming platforms have pushed music even further in that direction.
Good point. Streaming and choice broke the song-length barrier, but consumers are choosing shorter content now so we may see a return to the "not longer than 3 minutes" song. Or maybe even something that is only 30 seconds long.
@ “Algorithms are the opiate of the masses by design.” Big Tech knows exactly what they’re doing. They work closely with behavioral researchers-like those at Stanford-who study how to make people addicted. They’ve even borrowed tricks from slot machines to keep us hooked. This kind of social engineering is a fascist government’s dream come true. Keep that in mind for the next four years…
@@joshuagodinez5867 “Algorithms are the opiate of the masses by design.” Big Tech knows exactly what they’re doing. They work closely with behavioral researchers-like those at Stanford-who study how to make people addicted. They’ve even borrowed tricks from slot machines to keep us hooked. This kind of social engineering is a fascist government’s dream come true.
Interesting how you didn't mention the 70s as a particular era. The 70s were interesting because several genres were really strong - punk came and went, trad rock was very strong, heavy metal was strong, pop was strong and disco was strong. What an era.
It's definitely a fascinating era whatever it is. The amount of sub genres, most of them I've never heard of, that are being discussed amazes me. They'd never have existed in the old times, or at least would never have had so many fans. My son listens to a lot of my old favourites (mainly heavy rock, prog metal etc) but at the same time finds tons of tunes and genres himself. It's certainly not all doom and gloom but a very different reality for musicians.
Rick, don't forget ' American Bandstand' and 'Soul Train'. Also Casey Casion( sp) for the count down to #1 for that week, on radio of. course. Always have loved music, and boy, you bring it home!
My daughter liked the thought that the whole world listened to the same song the day, Now and Then came out. Maybe this was the last time we had a global experience in music.
You make some really interesting points about how our media consumption has become so personalized. It makes sense that the idea of a collective "zeitgeist" is harder to pin down when we're not all watching the same shows, listening to the same music, or even experiencing those things at the same time. Your examples are spot on: TV: We used to gather around the TV for must-see events, creating water cooler moments the next day. Now, we binge at our own pace, and those shared viewing experiences are rarer. Music: Albums used to be a cohesive artistic statement we'd absorb as a whole. Now, it's more about individual tracks and playlists, often shuffled. Movies: The theatrical experience used to be the way to see a film. Now, with streaming, that communal excitement of a packed theater is becoming less central. Given how personalized everything has become, it's hard to imagine a scenario where those large-scale shared experiences make a full comeback. We're so used to on-demand content and curated algorithms that cater to our individual tastes, it's unlikely we'll revert back to a more homogenous media landscape. This shift definitely has implications for how culture is shaped and shared. It'll be interesting to see how artists, creators, and the entertainment industry as a whole adapt to this new reality.
This is actually a very interesting and profound idea. It encompasses more than just music but shared cultural identity and history. It needs to be discussed further.
"Eras" used to be created by the radio waves and pop culture. Now everyone has access to whatever they want to listen to, so there isn't really an era anymore. It's just whatever you like.
I think the greatest positive of this new algorithmic era is people can discover new, underground music that would have been lost in other eras. The biggest issue is that no one is comfortable with a music style or taste they are not used to because many don't have the capacity to deal with change. It kills the sort of unity that music created in the older eras. Great video Rick
Since I subscribed to Spotify about a year ago, my musical discovery and sheer enjoyment is greater than ever before..and that is saying a lot! I am being introduced to German, Australian, Canadian progressive rock bands I never would have heard, all very talented and stimulating to my ears and brain!
What ive noticed is that since the mid 2000's there havent really been any artists that have that star power that manage to keep it. There are a few exceptions but i cant think of any bands from post 2006ish that are still selling out stadiums in the same way as Metallica or taylor swift do.
Rick, it sounds to me like " this possible New Normal is actually more transparent then ever in history..The record industry & distribution of music was absolutly obliterated by all of these platforms, it created a difficult to understand paradigm shift which made it seem like the sky was falling around us with record execs and artist alike fearing the loss of their livelihoods. On the other side of that coin is what you mentioned in this steam...A lot of listeners now have a plethora of music that would have never been avaiable before. Not to mention independant artists now have the ability to be recognized...in a strange twist, I think music & musicians are in the best place now...
As a child of the late fifties, my "sweet spot" for really getting into music if there is one, would be mid 70's back in So Cal. I played guitar a bit, but friends really blossomed into good players and shaped my taste to a certain extent watching them gig. I listened to music more like a musician loving the technical aspects of bands like Steely Dan and fusion bands of the 80's. Lately I find myself gravitating towards the Yacht Rock stuff strangely enough, mellowing out in my old age! We were spoiled in the 70's with so many great acts and to your point, great radio station with diverse content. I wouldn't be uncommon to hear Led Zepplin followed by Stevie Wonder. I'll leave it at that before I say something resembling what our parents would have said back then about "today's music" and how much better it was back when (I guess I just did!). Keep up the good work Rick! I'm certain this is why I love your channel for the same reasons.
Im 60 brother. I can proudly say ive never heard a TSwift song lol. I still honestly believe the 60s & 70s era will never be surpassed as the greatest music ever written
@@pitbullhab If you like the type of artists that were involved with Lilith Fair back in the day, check out Swift's album Folklore. It's stripped down, minimally produced singer/songwriter stuff
At the same time that I'm stumbling upon newer artists like Dora Jarr and Willow, I’m rekindling my appreciation for artists like Ralph Towner and Shadowfax. It’s a massive musical smorgasbord and a great time for both the artist and the listener. I still like to kick back and listen to an entire album or stream an album to see what comes up in the stream when the album ends, which is how I’m often introduced to new music or music I haven’t heard in ages. Now we just have to navigate the whacky world of AI and hope the truly inde artist can find their way. Interesting times. Cheers.
It’s a fascinating question Rick and it stretches far wider than music. The 80’s was alive here in the UK. Fashion and music went hand in hand. I personally rejected the 90’s and 00’s manufactured crap. Whilst Whitney was at No.1 and played non-stop for about 8 months, I was listening to NWA, Public Enemy and taking ecstasy at illegal raves. MTV didn’t know about Jungle. Whilst the media told us to pick Blur or Oasis, nobody cared one bit. We rejected the mainstream and refused the shite being sold. Maybe we are too out of touch to know what is happening underground with the kids of today but from the outside looking on, it looks long dead. Where are the new fashion designers? Artists? Where’s the angry youth with something to say? Sedated by their phones? Or having a good time on some old industrial site dancing away to music we haven’t been exposed to yet? I hope the latter.
0:39 My grandmas brother Creed Taylor produced this record and brought up a lot of young talent from Brazil and he even produced a lot of fusion guys later on
64 year old Australian guy here and I’m loving where we are now in regard to music. I love XTC, The Beatles, Bjork, Ryuchi Sakamoto, Steely Dan, Captain Beefheart, Radiohead, etc… BUT…due to streaming, I’m exposed to and listing to K-Pop, Regional Mexican, Geordie Greep, Fishermen, Otoboke Beaver… Loving it!
I agree. That's the main thing I love about the Internet, the exposure to classics as well as constantly evolving music I've never heard of and of course that diversity applies to all topics. There's something for everyone. 🙂
During each decade there were many successful musical genres. I’m pretty sure that during the 80s or 90s you couldn’t definitively say I’m living in the “synth pop era” or the “grunge era”. This is an insight one can get in hindsight after knowing what stuck in the long term .
We finally have a freedom of choice when it comes to music. No global player, no corporate trendsetter has now the ultimate power to influence, shape other peoples tastes. With that said, we can finally express our unique identities through the music we like. Each of us has a different DNA, different background, different habits and tastes. Let's keep it this way and all benefit from this abundance.
I'm 56 and couldn't live without music. not a musician but a sound engineer in the business long enough to work with analog and turned to digital when you couldn't do otherwise. Since 2010 that I hear 2 to 5 years later incredebile bands that were under my radar because I didn't know where to explore on the internet. The important thing is now you can better support your local bands than before.
I'm a 53 year old gen Xer. I can't say this is a bad thing. There's a plethora of great music out there to be found, both old and new. That said I myself mostly ignore the algorithm generated playlists and look for my own stuff.
Same. I've never spent more money on music than I do now, there's so much good stuff out there to find, both new and old. More than I could ever listen to. The tricky part is keeping new discoveries in rotation when they get displaced by more new stuff, and getting enough plays of the kind of challenging albums that need several listens to really cement themselves as truely great rather than just interesting oddities.
This. As if the "forced collective" experience of Britney Spears & Backstreet Boys was a high water mark of civilization. There's more hidden gold to find than ever before. In addition to re-discovering old records.
I was listening to many of your statements, and thinking.. Isn't that a good thing? Music producers aren't running the show anymore, artist can be more experimental and blend genres in more creative ways. I think the only real problem is, how does a good band (or artist) find an audience these days? I think the algorithms could work if they actually worked right. I have several albumns bookmarked, and the "new music" feed still shows me crap that isn't like anything in my list. If they could fix that... Then I might just discover them
Fascinating video. I agree in part, although sub genres have always existed and although, as you say, the 90s had grunge, it also had Eurodance, Brit pop, boyband/girband pop etc. I think as there’s so much choice now out there for people and, as you said, no clear music directors such as MTV, there’s no universal sound. The top 5 most streamed artists on Spotify last year perhaps best showcase this: Taylor Swift, The Weeknd, Bad Bunny, Drake and Billie Eilish are all completely different in style.
There is something to be said about the magic of music and how its value has changed throughout time. I feel that it’s cyclic. Myself and my other friends who are also musicians try pushing boundaries as often as we can. Nowadays, I believe it’s as easy as bringing back nuance. No auto tune. No quantization. Even if I make beats in a DAW I try to capture everything live. Try to honor the pulse. Seeking out the majestic groove, so to speak
It’s the new normal. Music has no value anymore. Subscribing and streaming in the background while doing other activities is the new music experience. When was the last time someone took us aside and said, “listen to this!”? Sitting still and just focusing on the sound doesn’t seem to happen outside of the studio anymore.
I think a big Point you're Missing here is the evolution of hip hop that happened simultaneously to popular music in the late 90s- early 2000s and finally broke through into the mainstream with Dr Dre's The chronic 2001 Album, the First Eminem Album, the First 50 Cent Album etc. At the Same time that Pop Artist Like Britney spears, Christina Aguilera etc started to become less relevant in the late 2000s, EDM rose to great prominence in the radio and the Internet. At some Point every Pop Song on the radio was so heavily influenced by EDM music with these huge choruses, massive synths and all electronically engineered instruments. Producers started to incorporate that into hip hop, which was one the Last breath of the Bling era at the time with artists Like Lil Wayne. With the merge of EDM and Hip Hop, Trap music evolved with some first Major Songs from Chief Keef or later Future. To say the Last 10 years werent the era of Trap music would Just because of a massive resentment towards the genre, because its obviously not sophisticated music, but this simple straight Forward formula definitely has been the Zeitgeist Up until now. Now we have reached a point of oversaturation, because it has become so easy to make a Trap song, that its slowly starting to die off again, being replaced with pop music artists like taylor Swift, Olivia rodrigo or Sabrina Carpenter.
I think it's hard to see the era that we're in. As time passes, people will go back to their old favourites when they're feeling nostalgic, and it's through those favourites that we will retroactively define the era. I also think it's different for different cultures, rap, rnb, hip-hop and disco have had their moments when they were big too.
For me, a child of 70s-80s music I find today my taste in music have grown with RUclips, spotify. I find myself listening to jazz, new and old. Classical music I have a deeper appreciation for music now and how it is created.
The coolest thing is that these galaxies of endless possibilities can be found even in the softest, coziest sub-sub-subgenres of music-like emotional hardcore or screamo inspired by post-rock. And if you flip to the total opposite end of the spectrum from what you just said-away from the mainstream-you’ll discover thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of independent artists with maybe a few hundred listeners on Spotify, tops. That's where you’ll find a treasure trove of sounds that often end up driving bigger trends later on. Dig under the rug. Point your ears toward more alternative vibes, and you’ll realize how much you’ve been missing. You’ll never hear this stuff on your radio.
My daughter listens to all sorts of music. Her year end streaming repost included almost 12,000 artists. Her friends are the same. They are hungry for “good” music.
So good to have a broad range! My kids have recommended music to me - like Laufey and J-pop - while we all still enjoy classical (Australian Chamber Orchestra is brilliant) and jazz - especially video games music played as jazz (The Consouls are amazing). Interestingly, the kids love 50s crooners which they found on Spotify (it's not my thing - that's my parents' music 😅).
We’re still in the infancy of the internet and streaming services. It’s still the Wild West of digital platforms and ease of access to musical content. Eventually, it will all be reigned in and we’ll be back at the mercy of corporate music distribution. For now, let’s just enjoy the moment of musical freedom.
You can say the same thing about broadcast television. Twenty years ago and further, we all watched the same shows (mostly) and that brought people together even strangers. Now the three people in this house watch different shows all the time, with one exception ...... Jeopardy, at dinner. Alas, it takes so much easy happy conversation away.
I can't remember the phrase, but we are living in an era where there are too many choices. As you have said, 10,000 songs added to streaming service each day!? So I, a boomer born in 1949 discover new music thru YOU. The only streaming service I use is youtube or I can listen, via the internet to my hometown(Chicago) radio station thru the internet or I play the records/cds that I have purchased in the past. If I were a teen today what is my music. First of all, your kids started listening to what you listen. Mine was Big band that my parents loved. I still like it! Then, in my era, radio. And radio expanded from AM to Fm and in FM anything goes. When it came out Led Zepplin was originally in top 40 radio. In my area there was a Sunday night program for that music(Zep, Sabbath...) to out there for top 40, even on FM. Where is that experience today? Somewhere in today's 10,000 songs uploaded to streaming - impossible.
It's funny that you mention the fashion of grunge, which was what the 80s punks wore here in the Pacific Northwest. The 90s Seattle Sound just refined it and brought it to the mainstream. I think today's musical identity is more exploration. There's something out there for everyone. I'm in my mid-50s and an eclectic listener. From early Rock & Roll to classic country, folk, the 70s singer-songwriters through the 2000s metal and into whatever I find along the way. We could call the modern music era "Limbo" or maybe even "Purgatory." Just depends on one's perspective. Or do we need to label and classify everything?
I have to agree. One of my young staff (20 years old) is into being a DJ. She mixes mostly Techno but is always looking for different sounds. I've been suggesting groups like The Flying Lizards, Wall of Voodoo, Cream, El Utilero, J-Ax, Love & Rockets, Little Big, Volbeat, Talking Heads, Afromental, Tones on Tail, OMD, Little Sis Nora, Bass Hunter, etc. to add to her mixes. Music from various genres for no genre DJ mixes.
The last era I got was the nu metal era in the early 2000s. With bands like Linkin park, limp bizkit, rage against the machine, papa roach etc.. These were huge and I loved them so much.
Sometimes the algorithm gets it right... Last year in an evening of watching RUclips I discovered the Beths, the Chats, Drunk Mums, Castle Rat, Gnome and Speed of Light. What a ripping evening that was.
The downside of this, no group or genera gets the organized effort to grow and evolve. Like if there were no major leagues in sports and everyone just formed their local leagues. Music is no longer ruled by the most popular style, instead, each style gets their growth based on demographics and algorithmic settings. Some would say it's more organic. But I would consider how the algorithms may be set to favor certain type of content for monetary or even political reasons.
The Alternative scene still seems relatively fresh. I feel like there's a lot of 60s and 70s soul and folk influences in pop music now. I'll take this over the 2010s anyday
We are in the post musical era in regards to pop music. Jazz is the only genre still innovating and producing excellence. Rock is dead, the best selling rock album NOW is Fleetwood Mac rumours.
The late 90s and early 2000s pop music were the moment music took a huge drop imo. I'm really happy about the music right now cause your not spoon fed what you should listen by big corporation. It clearly affect artist cause you make less money but the music culture is pretty open minded right now.
Another outcome of the recent musical era we're in is that I'm more likely to listen to many different single songs rather than an entire album like I did back in the day
Why does everyone complain about new music in the comments? Do you guys even listen to anything that's not in the charts before saying that? Stop complaining about "new music" being bad when you're too lazy to even try to listen to it, i feel like nowadays if you can't find new stuff that you like, that's just a skill issue
For me a few things stand out. Ownership of media (vinyl, cassette, tape) is replaced by access to it (steaming). Ownership binds as there is a financial investment in to the music. Then , the experience now is like a throw away lighter. It works like whipe, next, bye. Where owned media like a CD also involved a time investment to select your record ,tape or cd push it into a machine and just listen. Please watch Mary Spenders last video and read ( or listen) to the books of Victor Wooten (we (society)are phasing out of true music experiences.
"A galaxy of possibilities", or, as Alan Moore said once, a culture of steam, constantly boiling - a permanent flood of content that we simply can't grasp. Too many images, too many sounds, too much of everything. All my life I've been led to buy certain albums because of one or two songs (usually one of the promotional singles), only to discover that there were other gems in the line-up. Sometimes it took me months to truly recognize these gems, which then became my favorite tracks (so it was with the track On A Plain, from the album Nevermind). This practice - of enjoying a cohesive set of songs over several listens - has been in decline for a long time.
Thinking about what you're saying makes me think back to the early and mid 60's when you could buy 45's. As you mentioned "Girl from Ipanema", around that same time there were songs on the playlist like the Beatles, Paul Revere and the Raiders, Peter, Paul and Mary, Mitch Miller was on TV, so was Perry Como and Dean Martin. The top 100 was coming off the charts, and the radio play lists. I think if they had the capability to do algorithms the marketing guys would have. I remember when Herman's Hermits came out "Henry the 8th", and "They're coming to take me away" by Napolean XIV, at the same time that the "Battle of New Orleans" by Sonny Horton came out. We used to buy those 45's... My grandparents were listening to Lawrence Welk... So there was quite the variety back then, and I think the ability to buy "singles" is simply "what's old is new again". Personally I think it's great, since quality albums are a thing of the past. In the late 70's and early 80's you had to buy an album for one or two good songs with a bunch of filler. When you cut your teeth on albums like Whos' Next, Cosmos factory, and 4-Way Street... it was hard to take. In my late 60's it's all too clear how the ad's on TV are group targeted, that's marketing. The music industry has the tech version of Payola now... so aside from being able to target better, it hasn't changed. There's so much talent from all spaces out there, it's nice to see when the quality music and real artists rise above the roar of the mediocre... Keep up the good work, love your channel...
I'm 26 and I'm absolutely obsessed with 60s - late 70s rock and I love blues guitar. My dad always had either CDs or our local rock stations playing and his favorite band of all time is ACDC with Bonn Scott being his favorite singer of all time so they heavily influenced my taste 🤘
Music listening is an All Music era. Musicians are influenced by the entirity of music history, not just what mass media chooses to repeat. Even AOR rock stations played the same 20 or 30 artists. It only shows that people don't want to put the effort into finding new music, but prefer to complain it's not spoon fed to them as it was pre-2000.
I think "postmodern" is still a good description of the current musical era. Postmodernism is "at its heart a general distrust of grand theories [genres] and ideologies [consensus distribution] as well as a problematical relationship with any notion of 'art.' [music]."
i had never heard of mr beast prior to your video. after discovering that he didn't know who prince was, i'm pretty sure that i don't need to learn more about him.
The change from 78 RPM singles, to 33 1/3 RPM LPs in 1948 really upended things. The long-play album was born. And then the arrival of the CD in 1982 killed album art. Then Auto Tune, then Napster, in the 90s, and now streaming services.
We're just in a content era now. Everything competes for attention. Streamers, Video Makers, Musicians, Gaming, Makers, Educators, Vloggers, Writers, Films, and even old media like Television and Radio (remember them?)
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As it has been, for ever. Its just the scale that has changed, its massive.
I was ready to say, "we're not in a musical era, it's now a musical error". But you are correct - just like your "post-genre" idea, I find myself exploring all kinds of music on the internet that I simply can't find on the radio. It's both refreshing and freeing.
Yes. Good for you but I’m really set in my ways and cannot get myself to listen to new music cause I HATE auto-tune and my love for old music is too strong and there is still so much old music I haven’t heard. So the urge to do so is not present.
Rumors should be album of the year every couple years when it's not Welcome to the Machine or Zeppelin 2
I like that the media and record labels don’t get to decide what we should be listening to, but I do miss the shared experience we used to have 🤷♂️
You can definitely still have that if you join the (still existing) mainstream. Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift, etc are all ubiquitous. However, if you're lucky enough to find someone who enjoys similar stuff while choosing freely instead of having the choice made for them, I'd say there's potential for higher quality and deeper bonding
Old music used to be pushed out of the way so new music could be heard. MTV could only play 1 song at a time. Maybe you had 3-4 radio stations in your area worth listening to. It was a zero sum game. Now everyone can listing to anything whenever they want. Stuff is never "uncool" now and never goes out of style because no one has to make choices about what to listen to anymore.
Excellent point.
and that is beautiful. Every single style at your disposition, any time, anywhere.
To add, the internet itself makes things timeless. You can discover things that have been around and have conversations with ghosts- reply to old comments, read old threads about something and peoples theories- the method of joining in a fandom of sorts is completely different than meeting people at a concert or in a record store.
@@vaderladylno beauty in that. No anticipation, no forethought, no expectation... Just endless possibilities creating both choice paralysis and diminishing the worth of music further.
Human beings are just not designed to have it all always and whenever at disposal
@@darkogst It's FOMO. I find great music all the damn time - it's not even hard. Do I miss things? Of course. I don't care - there is SO MUCH good stuff that I don't need to worry about it.
It seems that we're in the Discovery Era. Kids are listening to their parent's and grandparent's music. If the #1 album this year is Rumours by Fleetwood Mac, that says it all.
Great songs are great songs, my daughter got into FM about 10 years ago she is 26 now, and my youngest is 16 loves FM now,. It was the first album I bought with my own money in 1980 ( I was six, used cassettes, rumours and queen- jazz, still have them), . Real music, real instruments, and great songs can't be beat.
It seems you refer to the year-end Billboard 200 list, and Rumours is not the #1 best selling album on it by a long shot. It is number 34 and was reported as the _highest-ranking rock_ album within that list (which apparently features only 29 rock albums in total).
The highest sellers are pop, hip hop, R&B and country from the last few years.
Although I see some higher ranking albums are categorized as rock or its derivatives on Wikipedia, but I don't listen to those and don't know if that's accurate. For example, at number 12 there is an album called Guts by Olivia Rodrigo and Wikipedia categorizes it as "rock, pop, alternative rock, power pop".
You are right. I was surprised by my kids making a 50s Crooners list on Spotify (grandparents music) and then really enjoying eg. Stevie Wonder, Toto, Steely Dan and Jamiroquai etc (my era) but also recommending Laufey to me (NOT Swift) amd J-pop. They discover past music but also wider contemporary music.
Learned this from my kids in 7th grade literature class. "You cannot know what ers you are in while living it. Eras are assigned after they are over."
🤯
I guess this era is lasting longer than the others, because it's been 25 years, and still going.
I think they came up with Grunge pretty early during Grunge.
@@PincoPallino-zh8wm maybe because everything has been invented already? No more original stuff?
@@vaderladyl Likely. In fact, there are more covers and "sampling" going on now than ever before.
I'm 65, so I grew up through the 60s and 70s heyday of pop and rock (and even then, realized that a lot of it was crap: bubblegum in the 60s, disco in the 70s, etc.). Early on, when I was 13 or so, I started "rebelling" against the "dominant sound" that you'd hear on radio--I searched for the "alternative" FM stations, sought refuge by listening to jazz (Jarrett, Davis, Corea) and classical. Ever since then, I've hardly given whatever's "popular" or "trending" a second thought. The "post-genre" phenomenon that Beato talks about--I think it's great! We're also living in a "post-fashion" world--does anyone really give a crap any more about what the fashion designers are coming up with, and what everyone else is wearing? Same thing's true in the art world--just ask yourself what the "dominant trend" is. There isn't one, unless you break the timeline down into 10 minute intervals. I think this is all incredibly liberating.
“The problem with TV and entertainment isn’t that it’s evil-it’s that it’s addictive. It gives us what we want, but not what we need, leaving us empty and craving more.”
- David Foster Wallace
Now apply that with personal data collection & self referential silos
every one has an opinion
Some of us have always curated our own music. I was a teenager in the 80s, but I was listening to The Beatles, The Who, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Small Faces, Sex Pistols, T Rex, Led Zeppelin, King Crimson, The Jam, The Doors, The Specials, Selecter, The Beach Boys...
As a 24 year old musician, I love this age. So many people I know are into the grunge stuff, into the psychedelic rock of the 60s, into 80s pop, and are discovering new artists everyday.
Removing the idea of a mass collective experience of music really makes you appreciate a person who has a similar music taste to you.
I think there is a bunch of nostalgia for older heads who liked the shared experience of music, and I get it and would love to see what it was like back then, I personally love that I can be inspired by the artists of old and new with just a click of a button.
It is transforming new musicians into something that Rick described above.
My generation probably has the most musical influences of any generation because of this, and if you look deeper you’ll see how it manifests. I look at mk.gee as the perfect example of this.
‘I hate the word Influencer’
- Rick Beato 🤣
what is it?
This made my day =)
Yet, Rick himself is an influencer of music history 🤔
"I hate the word Influencer"
-Rick Beato, influencer 🤣
It’s a bit on the nose but I like Rick & his content (even if he is an ‘influencer’ 🤫 but don’t tell him) 🤣
Rick, It’s not just music! Everything in mass media has been impacted! News, cars, art, movies, all mass consumption now comes to “artificial life” through certain man-made algorithms instead of naturally through mass consensus. Great video.!
We are in a post rock era. Rock music now occupies the same cultural space as jazz did post 1970.
One silver lining is that bands that were important to me in my youth are by and large free of commercial pressure to appeal to a wide audience which allows them the creativity to release albums like The Cure's latest album.
I don't know. There has always been a fan base dedicated to rock since rock came out, not like Jazz
@@vaderladyl The best selling Rock album this year is a 47 year old Fleetwood Mac album and it barely cracked the top 40.
This is true, but interestingly, in many countries (such as Japan), metal is bigger than ever.
@@tmage23 you are talking about mainstream audiences, that play music casually. I am talking about real, long time fans that go with the hardcore stuff or go off the side of mainstream.
@SeabassGoose exactly my point!
This era should be called, "We've run out of ideas."
Yes, but mumble it and say "yuh" 4 times first.
My mother use to say that, 40 years ago. So... ?
everything after the 1920s should be called that
We're not out of ideas. I think the problem is that there are too many brilliant ideas hidden in an immense sea of shitty music (because everyone get to make music which is good and bad at the same time). And because nobody can make a living out of music, those ideas dry up and doesn't evolve, because there is no much support to keep it going.
Well those are my thoughts, I might be wrong...
@@Nothing-db1zyProves she was ahead of her time.
I just rewatched Running on Empty with River Phoenix, set in the late ’80s, and there’s this great scene where a music teacher compares Brahms and Madonna. Brahms is all about melody and complexity, while Madonna is driven by rhythm-easy to dance to and instantly “get.” It made me think about how today’s shorter attention spans, easy access to digital tools, and quick uploads to streaming platforms have pushed music even further in that direction.
Good point. Streaming and choice broke the song-length barrier, but consumers are choosing shorter content now so we may see a return to the "not longer than 3 minutes" song. Or maybe even something that is only 30 seconds long.
@ “Algorithms are the opiate of the masses by design.”
Big Tech knows exactly what they’re doing. They work closely with behavioral researchers-like those at Stanford-who study how to make people addicted. They’ve even borrowed tricks from slot machines to keep us hooked. This kind of social engineering is a fascist government’s dream come true. Keep that in mind for the next four years…
@@joshuagodinez5867 “Algorithms are the opiate of the masses by design.”
Big Tech knows exactly what they’re doing. They work closely with behavioral researchers-like those at Stanford-who study how to make people addicted. They’ve even borrowed tricks from slot machines to keep us hooked. This kind of social engineering is a fascist government’s dream come true.
These lessons are pure gold maestro. Never forget that you heal doctor. Music is medicine.
Grammar anyone?
Let me guess. English teacher?
@@GMitchell2012 please forgive my dangling participle. I don't have proper support
Interesting how you didn't mention the 70s as a particular era. The 70s were interesting because several genres were really strong - punk came and went, trad rock was very strong, heavy metal was strong, pop was strong and disco was strong. What an era.
Amen!! The 70's pop music and songwriting had the largest variety in history!! Several music genres were invented then, also.
Oh yes! And it was also a great era for prog rock, art rock, jazz fusion, and funk.
Well, for me, even though I don't really like it, but I believe we can define this current moment as K-POP era.
It's definitely a fascinating era whatever it is. The amount of sub genres, most of them I've never heard of, that are being discussed amazes me. They'd never have existed in the old times, or at least would never have had so many fans. My son listens to a lot of my old favourites (mainly heavy rock, prog metal etc) but at the same time finds tons of tunes and genres himself. It's certainly not all doom and gloom but a very different reality for musicians.
I am living this as an artist currently.. it blows. I grew up in the “handing out burnt CD era” of the early 2000s
Rick, don't forget ' American Bandstand' and 'Soul Train'. Also Casey Casion( sp) for the count down to #1 for that week, on radio of. course. Always have loved music, and boy, you bring it home!
Casey Kasem. American Top 40 and also the voice of Shaggy from Scooby Doo cartoons (that one blew my mind when I found out).
My daughter liked the thought that the whole world listened to the same song the day, Now and Then came out. Maybe this was the last time we had a global experience in music.
You make some really interesting points about how our media consumption has become so personalized. It makes sense that the idea of a collective "zeitgeist" is harder to pin down when we're not all watching the same shows, listening to the same music, or even experiencing those things at the same time.
Your examples are spot on:
TV: We used to gather around the TV for must-see events, creating water cooler moments the next day. Now, we binge at our own pace, and those shared viewing experiences are rarer.
Music: Albums used to be a cohesive artistic statement we'd absorb as a whole. Now, it's more about individual tracks and playlists, often shuffled.
Movies: The theatrical experience used to be the way to see a film. Now, with streaming, that communal excitement of a packed theater is becoming less central.
Given how personalized everything has become, it's hard to imagine a scenario where those large-scale shared experiences make a full comeback. We're so used to on-demand content and curated algorithms that cater to our individual tastes, it's unlikely we'll revert back to a more homogenous media landscape.
This shift definitely has implications for how culture is shaped and shared. It'll be interesting to see how artists, creators, and the entertainment industry as a whole adapt to this new reality.
This is actually a very interesting and profound idea. It encompasses more than just music but shared cultural identity and history. It needs to be discussed further.
"Eras" used to be created by the radio waves and pop culture. Now everyone has access to whatever they want to listen to, so there isn't really an era anymore. It's just whatever you like.
More like personal eras
I think the greatest positive of this new algorithmic era is people can discover new, underground music that would have been lost in other eras. The biggest issue is that no one is comfortable with a music style or taste they are not used to because many don't have the capacity to deal with change. It kills the sort of unity that music created in the older eras. Great video Rick
Since I subscribed to Spotify about a year ago, my musical discovery and sheer enjoyment is greater than ever before..and that is saying a lot! I am being introduced to German, Australian, Canadian progressive rock bands I never would have heard, all very talented and stimulating to my ears and brain!
What ive noticed is that since the mid 2000's there havent really been any artists that have that star power that manage to keep it. There are a few exceptions but i cant think of any bands from post 2006ish that are still selling out stadiums in the same way as Metallica or taylor swift do.
Absolutely love Laufey, she has made one of the most interesting blends of modern and old music we have in mainstream music today
Rick, it sounds to me like " this possible New Normal is actually more transparent then ever in history..The record industry & distribution of music was absolutly obliterated by all of these platforms, it created a difficult to understand paradigm shift which made it seem like the sky was falling around us with record execs and artist alike fearing the loss of their livelihoods. On the other side of that coin is what you mentioned in this steam...A lot of listeners now have a plethora of music that would have never been avaiable before. Not to mention independant artists now have the ability to be recognized...in a strange twist, I think music & musicians are in the best place now...
Sampler era..?
I didn't know Laufey, but now I will. Thank you everything Rick!
The best chanel is yours!
we are in the era of remixing everything. there will be a big cultural moment that will spark the new sound to follow.
The copy and paste era,
Not even... at this point its the "write an AI prompt, wait for the program to spit something out and then post it online" era
Does anyone believe that it is actually better now than say in the nineteen seventies????
@@johnnycarson67honestly never been better, more diverse, more available.
Or recycling era
I'm sure there is a postmodern critique to be had: simulacrum, pastiche, a change in temporal modes of consumption and consumer capitalism.
As a child of the late fifties, my "sweet spot" for really getting into music if there is one, would be mid 70's back in So Cal. I played guitar a bit, but friends really blossomed into good players and shaped my taste to a certain extent watching them gig. I listened to music more like a musician loving the technical aspects of bands like Steely Dan and fusion bands of the 80's. Lately I find myself gravitating towards the Yacht Rock stuff strangely enough, mellowing out in my old age! We were spoiled in the 70's with so many great acts and to your point, great radio station with diverse content. I wouldn't be uncommon to hear Led Zepplin followed by Stevie Wonder. I'll leave it at that before I say something resembling what our parents would have said back then about "today's music" and how much better it was back when (I guess I just did!). Keep up the good work Rick! I'm certain this is why I love your channel for the same reasons.
Im 60 brother. I can proudly say ive never heard a TSwift song lol. I still honestly believe the 60s & 70s era will never be surpassed as the greatest music ever written
i am 53, last month I decided during a car ride to hear the first three album of Taylor Swift, It is boring, nothing special. Except Blank Space
Couldn't karaoke a Swift song if you offered me her whole discography to choose from.
This is definitely a comment a 60 year old would feel compelled to make.
@@pitbullhab If you like the type of artists that were involved with Lilith Fair back in the day, check out Swift's album Folklore. It's stripped down, minimally produced singer/songwriter stuff
80's
At the same time that I'm stumbling upon newer artists like Dora Jarr and Willow, I’m rekindling my appreciation for artists like Ralph Towner and Shadowfax. It’s a massive musical smorgasbord and a great time for both the artist and the listener. I still like to kick back and listen to an entire album or stream an album to see what comes up in the stream when the album ends, which is how I’m often introduced to new music or music I haven’t heard in ages. Now we just have to navigate the whacky world of AI and hope the truly inde artist can find their way. Interesting times. Cheers.
A conversation like this seems incomplete without a mention of hiphop which has risen steadily and dominated the past 20 years if not more.
hiphop peaked and is on the downside just like rock, there are no dominant genres anymore
Dominated some markets. Many people never got hooked at all. Some dislike it and some find it irrelevant. So, dominated is a bit strong.
That fact is a sad commentary on the state of music in general.
Hip hop was merely uncriticizeable which is why it went way past its sell-by date
It’s a fascinating question Rick and it stretches far wider than music. The 80’s was alive here in the UK. Fashion and music went hand in hand.
I personally rejected the 90’s and 00’s manufactured crap. Whilst Whitney was at No.1 and played non-stop for about 8 months, I was listening to NWA, Public Enemy and taking ecstasy at illegal raves. MTV didn’t know about Jungle. Whilst the media told us to pick Blur or Oasis, nobody cared one bit. We rejected the mainstream and refused the shite being sold. Maybe we are too out of touch to know what is happening underground with the kids of today but from the outside looking on, it looks long dead.
Where are the new fashion designers? Artists? Where’s the angry youth with something to say? Sedated by their phones? Or having a good time on some old industrial site dancing away to music we haven’t been exposed to yet? I hope the latter.
The hybrid era, where artists smash together distinctive genres from eras past with louder mixes, to varying degrees of success.
That's being very charitable
I'd think the era we're currently in would be really obvious: autotuned to death era.
0:39 My grandmas brother Creed Taylor produced this record and brought up a lot of young talent from Brazil and he even produced a lot of fusion guys later on
Nice! Creed Taylor was the man
64 year old Australian guy here and I’m loving where we are now in regard to music.
I love XTC, The Beatles, Bjork, Ryuchi Sakamoto, Steely Dan, Captain Beefheart, Radiohead, etc…
BUT…due to streaming, I’m exposed to and listing to K-Pop, Regional Mexican, Geordie Greep, Fishermen, Otoboke Beaver…
Loving it!
I agree. That's the main thing I love about the Internet, the exposure to classics as well as constantly evolving music I've never heard of and of course that diversity applies to all topics. There's something for everyone. 🙂
Happy to see XTC at the top of your list
During each decade there were many successful musical genres. I’m pretty sure that during the 80s or 90s you couldn’t definitively say I’m living in the “synth pop era” or the “grunge era”. This is an insight one can get in hindsight after knowing what stuck in the long term .
Death Decay and Despair
When you missed the Spice Girls the first time...
We finally have a freedom of choice when it comes to music. No global player, no corporate trendsetter has now the ultimate power to influence, shape other peoples tastes. With that said, we can finally express our unique identities through the music we like. Each of us has a different DNA, different background, different habits and tastes. Let's keep it this way and all benefit from this abundance.
This is why Rick is the best
I'm 56 and couldn't live without music. not a musician but a sound engineer in the business long enough to work with analog and turned to digital when you couldn't do otherwise. Since 2010 that I hear 2 to 5 years later incredebile bands that were under my radar because I didn't know where to explore on the internet. The important thing is now you can better support your local bands than before.
I'm a 53 year old gen Xer. I can't say this is a bad thing. There's a plethora of great music out there to be found, both old and new. That said I myself mostly ignore the algorithm generated playlists and look for my own stuff.
Agree. Do a little research folks. New, good music is out there. It's just pushed down because of the "algorithm".
Yes, I agree. So much great music. This such a great time to life in.
I am here. 💫
Same. I've never spent more money on music than I do now, there's so much good stuff out there to find, both new and old. More than I could ever listen to. The tricky part is keeping new discoveries in rotation when they get displaced by more new stuff, and getting enough plays of the kind of challenging albums that need several listens to really cement themselves as truely great rather than just interesting oddities.
idk i feel like this channel has become "old man rants about modern music" channel but honestly i like it 😂
If you like music, you don’t need your music created by record labels and mass media. You can find great music on your own.
This. As if the "forced collective" experience of Britney Spears & Backstreet Boys was a high water mark of civilization.
There's more hidden gold to find than ever before. In addition to re-discovering old records.
I was listening to many of your statements, and thinking.. Isn't that a good thing? Music producers aren't running the show anymore, artist can be more experimental and blend genres in more creative ways. I think the only real problem is, how does a good band (or artist) find an audience these days? I think the algorithms could work if they actually worked right. I have several albumns bookmarked, and the "new music" feed still shows me crap that isn't like anything in my list. If they could fix that... Then I might just discover them
Fascinating video. I agree in part, although sub genres have always existed and although, as you say, the 90s had grunge, it also had Eurodance, Brit pop, boyband/girband pop etc. I think as there’s so much choice now out there for people and, as you said, no clear music directors such as MTV, there’s no universal sound. The top 5 most streamed artists on Spotify last year perhaps best showcase this: Taylor Swift, The Weeknd, Bad Bunny, Drake and Billie Eilish are all completely different in style.
There is something to be said about the magic of music and how its value has changed throughout time. I feel that it’s cyclic. Myself and my other friends who are also musicians try pushing boundaries as often as we can. Nowadays, I believe it’s as easy as bringing back nuance. No auto tune. No quantization. Even if I make beats in a DAW I try to capture everything live. Try to honor the pulse. Seeking out the majestic groove, so to speak
It’s the new normal. Music has no value anymore. Subscribing and streaming in the background while doing other activities is the new music experience. When was the last time someone took us aside and said, “listen to this!”? Sitting still and just focusing on the sound doesn’t seem to happen outside of the studio anymore.
Fun fact: The algorithm is the reason why I'm watching this video.
I think a big Point you're Missing here is the evolution of hip hop that happened simultaneously to popular music in the late 90s- early 2000s and finally broke through into the mainstream with Dr Dre's The chronic 2001 Album, the First Eminem Album, the First 50 Cent Album etc.
At the Same time that Pop Artist Like Britney spears, Christina Aguilera etc started to become less relevant in the late 2000s, EDM rose to great prominence in the radio and the Internet. At some Point every Pop Song on the radio was so heavily influenced by EDM music with these huge choruses, massive synths and all electronically engineered instruments. Producers started to incorporate that into hip hop, which was one the Last breath of the Bling era at the time with artists Like Lil Wayne. With the merge of EDM and Hip Hop, Trap music evolved with some first Major Songs from Chief Keef or later Future. To say the Last 10 years werent the era of Trap music would Just because of a massive resentment towards the genre, because its obviously not sophisticated music, but this simple straight Forward formula definitely has been the Zeitgeist Up until now.
Now we have reached a point of oversaturation, because it has become so easy to make a Trap song, that its slowly starting to die off again, being replaced with pop music artists like taylor Swift, Olivia rodrigo or Sabrina Carpenter.
I think it's hard to see the era that we're in. As time passes, people will go back to their old favourites when they're feeling nostalgic, and it's through those favourites that we will retroactively define the era. I also think it's different for different cultures, rap, rnb, hip-hop and disco have had their moments when they were big too.
For me, a child of 70s-80s music I find today my taste in music have grown with RUclips, spotify. I find myself listening to jazz, new and old. Classical music I have a deeper appreciation for music now and how it is created.
The coolest thing is that these galaxies of endless possibilities can be found even in the softest, coziest sub-sub-subgenres of music-like emotional hardcore or screamo inspired by post-rock. And if you flip to the total opposite end of the spectrum from what you just said-away from the mainstream-you’ll discover thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of independent artists with maybe a few hundred listeners on Spotify, tops. That's where you’ll find a treasure trove of sounds that often end up driving bigger trends later on. Dig under the rug. Point your ears toward more alternative vibes, and you’ll realize how much you’ve been missing. You’ll never hear this stuff on your radio.
My daughter listens to all sorts of music. Her year end streaming repost included almost 12,000 artists. Her friends are the same. They are hungry for “good” music.
So good to have a broad range! My kids have recommended music to me - like Laufey and J-pop - while we all still enjoy classical (Australian Chamber Orchestra is brilliant) and jazz - especially video games music played as jazz (The Consouls are amazing). Interestingly, the kids love 50s crooners which they found on Spotify (it's not my thing - that's my parents' music 😅).
We’re still in the infancy of the internet and streaming services. It’s still the Wild West of digital platforms and ease of access to musical content. Eventually, it will all be reigned in and we’ll be back at the mercy of corporate music distribution.
For now, let’s just enjoy the moment of musical freedom.
We are in any musical moment you want now.
Apparently I'm in the minority but I see it as a good thing. In order to stand out you need to have your own individual sound.
You can say the same thing about broadcast television. Twenty years ago and further, we all watched the same shows (mostly) and that brought people together even strangers. Now the three people in this house watch different shows all the time, with one exception ...... Jeopardy, at dinner. Alas, it takes so much easy happy conversation away.
All I know is it’s not the era of instrumental virtuosity or the era of poetic lyrics or the era of musical innovation.
So true
Maybe not in the mainstream, but lots of niches have these.
I am grateful for this era
We're definitely in the "Auto-Tune" era
Well done for articulating what I could not haha.This is an important video!
I've been in my own musical era since 1973
I can't remember the phrase, but we are living in an era where there are too many choices. As you have said, 10,000 songs added to streaming service each day!? So I, a boomer born in 1949 discover new music thru YOU. The only streaming service I use is youtube or I can listen, via the internet to my hometown(Chicago) radio station thru the internet or I play the records/cds that I have purchased in the past. If I were a teen today what is my music. First of all, your kids started listening to what you listen. Mine was Big band that my parents loved. I still like it! Then, in my era, radio. And radio expanded from AM to Fm and in FM anything goes. When it came out Led Zepplin was originally in top 40 radio. In my area there was a Sunday night program for that music(Zep, Sabbath...) to out there for top 40, even on FM. Where is that experience today? Somewhere in today's 10,000 songs uploaded to streaming - impossible.
Remember when everyone told us that music piracy would kill music and nobody would make music if they couldn't sell $18 cds.
It's funny that you mention the fashion of grunge, which was what the 80s punks wore here in the Pacific Northwest. The 90s Seattle Sound just refined it and brought it to the mainstream.
I think today's musical identity is more exploration. There's something out there for everyone.
I'm in my mid-50s and an eclectic listener. From early Rock & Roll to classic country, folk, the 70s singer-songwriters through the 2000s metal and into whatever I find along the way.
We could call the modern music era "Limbo" or maybe even "Purgatory." Just depends on one's perspective.
Or do we need to label and classify everything?
I have to agree. One of my young staff (20 years old) is into being a DJ. She mixes mostly Techno but is always looking for different sounds. I've been suggesting groups like The Flying Lizards, Wall of Voodoo, Cream, El Utilero, J-Ax, Love & Rockets, Little Big, Volbeat, Talking Heads, Afromental, Tones on Tail, OMD, Little Sis Nora, Bass Hunter, etc. to add to her mixes. Music from various genres for no genre DJ mixes.
It’s safe to call this era the dark ages of music.
Correct, like the Bubonic Plague of the 1300s
The last era I got was the nu metal era in the early 2000s. With bands like Linkin park, limp bizkit, rage against the machine, papa roach etc.. These were huge and I loved them so much.
Your channel is not just a place for entertainment, it is a source of inspiration and wisdom. Thank you for your creativity and diligence!🌏🐵✌️
Sometimes the algorithm gets it right... Last year in an evening of watching RUclips I discovered the Beths, the Chats, Drunk Mums, Castle Rat, Gnome and Speed of Light. What a ripping evening that was.
We're in the "Blah Era" of music.
The downside of this, no group or genera gets the organized effort to grow and evolve. Like if there were no major leagues in sports and everyone just formed their local leagues. Music is no longer ruled by the most popular style, instead, each style gets their growth based on demographics and algorithmic settings. Some would say it's more organic. But I would consider how the algorithms may be set to favor certain type of content for monetary or even political reasons.
The disposable era
🎯
Remember Disco? Thought that would never go away, that was a long time ago,
we're in the BASS era
"BASS" stands for:
Bass
Around
Sthe
Sworld
(Dave 504) :P
The Alternative scene still seems relatively fresh.
I feel like there's a lot of 60s and 70s soul and folk influences in pop music now.
I'll take this over the 2010s anyday
Watching your videos is a real pleasure! Thank you for your contribution to the RUclips community.🏵⭐️😨
We are in the post musical era in regards to pop music. Jazz is the only genre still innovating and producing excellence. Rock is dead, the best selling rock album NOW is Fleetwood Mac rumours.
This is the disco era. For me. It’s what I’m into right now. Everyone else can do their own thing as they please.
The late 90s and early 2000s pop music were the moment music took a huge drop imo. I'm really happy about the music right now cause your not spoon fed what you should listen by big corporation. It clearly affect artist cause you make less money but the music culture is pretty open minded right now.
I agree Rick! Great to have more variety these days.
Post musical era
Another outcome of the recent musical era we're in is that I'm more likely to listen to many different single songs rather than an entire album like I did back in the day
Why does everyone complain about new music in the comments? Do you guys even listen to anything that's not in the charts before saying that? Stop complaining about "new music" being bad when you're too lazy to even try to listen to it, i feel like nowadays if you can't find new stuff that you like, that's just a skill issue
Majority people here are 40 plus complaining about young people and time passing them by.
Nothing compares to 1964-1982
Nothing.
Am gen z and the answer is mainstream music sucks not the music others personally pick, mass consumption copy pasted music sucks
Life is a series of valleys and peak; music now is in a deep valley.
Down in the Valley. Life is a Joke and then you croak.
For me a few things stand out.
Ownership of media (vinyl, cassette, tape) is replaced by access to it (steaming). Ownership binds as there is a financial investment in to the music. Then , the experience now is like a throw away lighter. It works like whipe, next, bye. Where owned media like a CD also involved a time investment to select your record ,tape or cd push it into a machine and just listen. Please watch Mary Spenders last video and read ( or listen) to the books of Victor Wooten (we (society)are phasing out of true music experiences.
"A galaxy of possibilities", or, as Alan Moore said once, a culture of steam, constantly boiling - a permanent flood of content that we simply can't grasp. Too many images, too many sounds, too much of everything. All my life I've been led to buy certain albums because of one or two songs (usually one of the promotional singles), only to discover that there were other gems in the line-up. Sometimes it took me months to truly recognize these gems, which then became my favorite tracks (so it was with the track On A Plain, from the album Nevermind). This practice - of enjoying a cohesive set of songs over several listens - has been in decline for a long time.
Thinking about what you're saying makes me think back to the early and mid 60's when you could buy 45's. As you mentioned "Girl from Ipanema", around that same time there were songs on the playlist like the Beatles, Paul Revere and the Raiders, Peter, Paul and Mary, Mitch Miller was on TV, so was Perry Como and Dean Martin. The top 100 was coming off the charts, and the radio play lists. I think if they had the capability to do algorithms the marketing guys would have. I remember when Herman's Hermits came out "Henry the 8th", and "They're coming to take me away" by Napolean XIV, at the same time that the "Battle of New Orleans" by Sonny Horton came out. We used to buy those 45's... My grandparents were listening to Lawrence Welk... So there was quite the variety back then, and I think the ability to buy "singles" is simply "what's old is new again". Personally I think it's great, since quality albums are a thing of the past. In the late 70's and early 80's you had to buy an album for one or two good songs with a bunch of filler. When you cut your teeth on albums like Whos' Next, Cosmos factory, and 4-Way Street... it was hard to take. In my late 60's it's all too clear how the ad's on TV are group targeted, that's marketing. The music industry has the tech version of Payola now... so aside from being able to target better, it hasn't changed. There's so much talent from all spaces out there, it's nice to see when the quality music and real artists rise above the roar of the mediocre...
Keep up the good work, love your channel...
I'm 26 and I'm absolutely obsessed with 60s - late 70s rock and I love blues guitar. My dad always had either CDs or our local rock stations playing and his favorite band of all time is ACDC with Bonn Scott being his favorite singer of all time so they heavily influenced my taste 🤘
You should check out Rory Gallagher so, Irish Tour 74 , Live in Europe
Music listening is an All Music era. Musicians are influenced by the entirity of music history, not just what mass media chooses to repeat. Even AOR rock stations played the same 20 or 30 artists. It only shows that people don't want to put the effort into finding new music, but prefer to complain it's not spoon fed to them as it was pre-2000.
I think "postmodern" is still a good description of the current musical era. Postmodernism is "at its heart a general distrust of grand theories [genres] and ideologies [consensus distribution] as well as a problematical relationship with any notion of 'art.' [music]."
The future industry metric: Minutes Listened
Gone are the days of “Units Sold”
Music is no longer a product
It is now content
It is *The End.*
i had never heard of mr beast prior to your video. after discovering that he didn't know who prince was, i'm pretty sure that i don't need to learn more about him.
The change from 78 RPM singles, to 33 1/3 RPM LPs in 1948 really upended things. The long-play album was born. And then the arrival of the CD in 1982 killed album art. Then Auto Tune, then Napster, in the 90s, and now streaming services.