Ever since the 60's this question has been asked, however since the year 2000 it seems to be making a reappearance with the rise of the internet. I have read multiple articles discussing this topic and I have decided to through my hat into the ring as well. Of course all forms of media is subjective and there is no right answer here. That said, lets dive into the age old question. Does new music suck?
First off we should clarify what counts as "new". For the purposes of this article, I will say that music released in the new millennium is new, and anything before is "old".
Lets start off with the argument that new music does suck. From what I have read online, the general agreement is that the overall over-sexualization of the music industry, swearing, auto tune, and stealing material from older artists and incorporating them in their own songs (plagiarism). Another big problem supporters call out is the large amount of marketing and money that happens in today's generation.
Mandatory.com posted a list in 2015 titled "11 Reasons Music Sucks Now More Than Ever". The article supports most of the arguments I have all ready stated and in response I would like to discuss them one at a time.
1. The statement that there is too much sex in the music industry, or too much swearing for that matter is quite honestly a reflection of the culture and the new openness that the western world has created over the past 2 decades. And since music is inherently tied to the culture it is born into, one would have to criticize the western civilization as a whole, not just the music which stemmed from it. In all honesty the amount of skin hasn't really changed much since the golden age of music because we all adapt to what we are shown. Those who argue that artists were more modest 50 years ago forget that there were still those who pushed the envelope and were appalled even then. Elvis Presley is one of the most famous voices of all time, but when he was popular everyone though he was very sexual for moving his hips back and forth. In short using sex or swearing as an argument that new music is inferior is not a solid argument as it all evolves with the times.
2. Auto tune came with territory of new technology. However this argument does hold some weight behind it as abusing Auto Tune can hide whether an artist can sing or not. This tied into the current trend of overproducing music is something I don't really like personally. On the other hand using new production techniques in order smooth over certain vocal mishaps does improve the quality of the on disk tracks. There is a certain balance of these techniques that should be applied if they are going to be used and if one looks a current pop music, generally speaking, they are using it responsibly.
3. Stealing music samples and ideas from other artists has been around for decades and is not at all a new practice. There are even court cases dating back 30-40 years. Because of this, plagiarism is really an issue that should be applied to all aspects of media regardless of age as there will always be people trying to copy and sell other peoples work.
4. Again, the music industry has always been a big money maker so I don't get why people are surprised when they see an increase of sales due to the rise of the internet. Since the 1980's and the rise of MTV it has been an extremely marketable business, and the more technology we get the more that aspect of the art will increase. It is not an issue with industry in particular, it is an issue with the interconnection of the current generation. Artists and Record Producers have merely taken advantage of it.
That said, new music is not perfect. With the rise of the internet it has allowed certain artists to find fame who would have never gotten famous 40+ years ago. One hit wonders such as Rebecca Black and more infamous stars such as Justin Bieber more than likely wouldn't have become massive successes.As a final point, it seems that people who argue that the majority of new music isn't good, fail to realize that the majority of old music wasn't good either. That's the nature of the beast. Sure there were a lot of amazing music released in the glory years however there was an exponentially large amount of sub par music made as well. The same thing is happening today, and it will continue to happen forever. Especially when in an over saturated market like the music industry, whenever you have a large amount of releases, the majority of them will most likely not be an OK Computer, or a Back in Black.
In conclusion, New Music does not suck. But it is not a golden age either, because I believe such a time has never existed in the music industry. Sure the brand new technology introduced recently needs to be regulated and used in moderation, however even back in the 60's and 70's new technology was introduced and they were able to use it to its full potential. The art of music is alive and well and acting as it should be, evolving with the culture and times adapting and changing as it should. Because if it remained the same all these years it really wouldn't be an art form now would it?
Just to clarify about the over-sexualization part. I do not at all agree with the objectification of women. I think anyone who does things like that are extremely short sighted and immature. I was just making a point about how people who say all that is wrong with current music is that there is too much sex, which is not the only problem. I do not agree with the objectification of women, but the industry will always do whatever it can to draw attention to itself and its artists. And the current culture seems to be willing to show more skin than any other before. But like I have already said, culture adapts and evolves so it is to be expected when looking at the progression during the 20th century.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting read. I myself used to be one of those people that said all new music sucks, until I expanded my tastes and found new artists I appreciate. They are still really underground but it still shows that new music can be just as good. It's important to remember that art is subjective and you can't generalize such a diverse field such as music.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I believe that new music doesn't suck. I think that people are just sometimes uncomfortable to new sounds or a twist because it unfamiliar to them. But you have very valid and interesting points. Good Job!
ReplyDeleteIn retrospect, I don't think that our music industry has changed all that much since the late 60's. A time in fact when most rock songs were written by men in their thirties about fifteen year old girls. I agree that the quality of the music today can be found if one just looks in the right places. Perhaps what is popular isn't best represents our time. This was really well written and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Great job.
ReplyDeleteFor me it really depends on what type of music you listen to, I know that today people don't really have a certain type of genre they listen to what sounds "good". But for someone who listen to hip hop daily for me, you can tell that the new music coming out is not so great. Rappers nowadays are relentlessly stealing from each other, from stealing each others style and flow, to even making remixes that sound exactly the same, its even gotten to the point where new rappers are starting to sound the same. A few rappers in this example is Trill Sammy, Playboi Carti, David Haze, Lil Yathcy and Lil Uzi.
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