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The current state of popular music is in a word: appalling. A few more words: bland, boring, mindless, uncreative, uninspired, unimaginative, derivative, repetitive. Think of the great composer/musicians of the past, Johnny Mercer, Jerome Kern, George & Ira Gershwin, Duke Ellington, Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Rogers/Hammerstein, Stephen Sondheim, Hank Williams, Chuck Berry, Brian Holland – Lamont Dozier – Edward Holland (great Motown composers), Jr., Lennon/McCartney, Jagger/Richards, Bob Dylan, Carol King, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Elton John, Paul Simon, Pete Seeger, Bob Marley, etc, etc, etc. From the 20s to the 50s you had the great jazz explosion. From the 50s to the 70s you had another explosion of musical creativity: the "British Invasion", Folk, Motown, Reggae, countless high quality rock & roll bands.
What do we have today? A musical wasteland. Interchangeable loud, talent-free "artists" like Justin Beiber, Beyonce, Bruno Mars, Miley Cyrus, etc, etc, etc, and of course endless obnoxious, vulgar, one note, no talent rap "artists" who would never stoop to actually learning to play a musical instrument. How many times can you repackage YO YO YO, F F F, N N N?
So the question is: When did music fall off a cliff and how did we get to the sorry state we have today? My guess is musicians figured out they don't really need to work too hard or have much talent, or write intelligent lyrics or come up with an original melody. You can make a fortune just by being loud and flashy and stupid people will buy just about anything you run up the flagpole just to be au currant.
Come on now. I agree that most popular music is pretty terrible, and I prefer the older artists you listed to any of the current pop stars, but it's a huge stretch to say that Bruno Mars is talent-less. Just because you don't like his music doesn't mean he doesn't have talent. I don't particularly like him, but he shouldn't be tossed on the same trash heap as Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus.
So the question is: When did music fall off a cliff and how did we get to the sorry state we have today? My guess is musicians figured out they don't really need to work too hard or have much talent, or write intelligent lyrics or come up with an original melody. You can make a fortune just by being loud and flashy and stupid people will buy just about anything you run up the flagpole just to be au currant.
Music didn't fall off a cliff. There is still a mind boggling amount of incredible music coming out all the time. It's easier to find than ever. You just won't find it on the radio anymore. The music and radio business is the problem, not the musicians.
The OP is having a "Back in my day" moment. I might not like too much of the new stuff, but then I'm not supposed to. That stuff is for my kids. There's a lot of good stuff out there, you just have to turn off the radio and find it.
What do we have today? A musical wasteland. Interchangeable loud, talent-free "artists" like Justin Beiber, Beyonce, Bruno Mars, Miley Cyrus, etc, etc, etc, and of course endless obnoxious, vulgar, one note, no talent rap "artists" who would never stoop to actually learning to play a musical instrument. How many times can you repackage YO YO YO, F F F, N N N?
So the question is: When did music fall off a cliff and how did we get to the sorry state we have today? My guess is musicians figured out they don't really need to work too hard or have much talent, or write intelligent lyrics or come up with an original melody. You can make a fortune just by being loud and flashy and stupid people will buy just about anything you run up the flagpole just to be au currant.
It fell off when if was clear that all that was needed to sell a "artist" was the right packaging. Videos of female singers hanging out of their clothes got attention and became the norm, the singers voice seemed secondary. Almost like they were saying, well she has the right look, let's get a catchy tune for her to sing, we can minimize her mediocre voice with backup singers and some autotune.
That's not to say you can't find people making good music today, there is still much talent about but most of it won't be on the radio getting massive airplay. Also start looking outside of the USA. You will find lots of good stuff you will never hear in the states. YouTube is the venue for new artists, I see many talented people on there.
Matt Andersen from Canada is as good as anyone from those good old music days you mention. You might not hear him on the radio in the states, but I'm sure he has had some tracks on radio in Canada. He is a story teller type of writer, a great singer and player. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSXjHUoPQlU
I rented a car that had XM Radio. I had never heard it before . . . The whole way down the PA turnpike and through Ohio, we listened to a station that was 60's and 70's am pop tunes. It was fabulous! the Tommy James and the Shondells, Turtles, Strawberry Alarmclock, the Raiders, Hermans Hermits, The Archies, Tommy Roe etc, etc, etc . . . They just dont write stuff like that anymore. Catchy, happy, harmless . . . There is nothing that comes close today in the mainstream media.
That formulated autotune/dance routine stuff is generic and uninspired. See if it gets played 40 years from now.
You just have to know where to find it. Most of the true talent is the stuff you wont hear on the radio. Dax Riggs is a great musician/songwriter but NEVER will you hear him on mainstream radio. Also, underground Metal has extremely talented musicians (many big university music scholars have shown respect for some of these artists) but most people just label it and dismiss it as noise without knowing anything about the work and tedious years of practice that goes in to playing instruments at precise breakneck speeds.
Mainstream music is selling because it's dumbed down and simple, people like simple. They don't want to think or hear lyrics pertaining to anything that don't make them wanna shake their a$$.
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