Why do older people hate "today's music" I just don't get it?

[trinibaddie]

High chance their parents hated the music they listened to! So why hate on ours?

[ObscuredBeyond]

In the 80s: Dorky songs, genuine love ballads, songs that were just about sex, power ballads about the oddest topics, random wanton commercialism.

In the 90s: heartfelt romantic country songs that bordered on glurge, cheesy pop songs with disingenuous puppy love, the occasional ballad that was all about sex, abstract rap-pop that sounds like it was made on drugs, commercialism with more 'tude.

In the 2000s: cheesy infatuation songs, eclectic experimental songs, some religious ballads that were surprisingly not awful, tunes clearly only about sex, and some sex songs that jumped straight into softcore porn territory.

In the 2010s: Self-delusion, porno music, Beyonce's repetitive whiny demonic shrieking and lewd stage antics earning her grammy awards, Taylor Swift going from flagrantly superficial infatuation songs to hate songs, the mad dash to make every other female artist sound like Halsey or Adele, and to make every other new male artist sound like Bieber.

In the 2020s: Everyone is Adele, Phillip Phillips, Bieber, or Halsey. Or a clone. Or a robot. It's almost all about cheating, porn, and with rap and hip-hop even more obsessed with alcoholism now than country music ever was!

The 80s were all about nerds vs. jocks. Then the 90s had dorks, geeks, poindexters, skaters, punks, whatever ska boys were trying to be, etc. Then the 2000s saw goth and emo pop up everywhere, along with post-grunge.

Then, the 2010s killed them. It was thots and simps. Then, the 2020s hit. It was all Tide zombies, over 9000 genders, SINKs, Gnosticism, Ukraine, and whether you sided with Disney or DeSantis.

At this point, I'm with the dude in the monkey line, turning around to look at the chimp behind him and say: "Go back, we f*ked up," as an it-thing monstrosity in drag follows ahead of him, carrying some totally nerfed weakling excuse for a man like some sort of purse.

[DaySpring]

I forget the word for it in my textbook but wiki says:
Rosy retrospection - refers to the psychological phenomenon of people sometimes judging the past disproportionately more positively than they judge the present.

@trinibaddie This has been happening for centuries. There is a word for it but I can't remember what my textbook said. It's not just music.

[AmandaYVR]

They don't.

But they have more frame of reference (more to compare) so a lot seems derivative. And the more you know, the more you can parse through, filter, to come up with good/better/best.

It's partly cultural, contextual, but it's also relative. Young people know little in comparison. Ask yourself, on what do you base your judgment/assessment of what is good?

Why did 'boy bands' appeal to youthful females? Older people require more depth, more substance. Yes, sometimes they fall back on the influences of their own formative years. But, often it's about honing in on what has meaning, what goes beyond the surface.

I see little in the music of my childhood and teenage years. It's too simplistic for me now. What you see as new, innovative, and speaks to you now, may not when you are older.

[CoolCatMar1]

My grandparents said that new music lacks meaning and is just gabagooba and loud noise and nothing more

[trinibaddie]

Same

[CoolCatMar1]

Hahhahaa yeah I don't understand why they thought so...

[CoolCatMar1]

They like very few artists i listen to

[AmeerX]

Yeah I feel this way with most of today's music.

[CoolCatMar1]

@AmeerX not my fault that your taste is questionable... You haven't heard Daniel Di Angelo, Elvis Drew, 2Scratch, Night Lovell, Darci etc etc yet then

[AmeerX]

I like Taylor Swift a lot.
And why is my taste questionable if it's different. Everyone likes something different but thanks for the suggestions.

[CoolCatMar1]

@AmeerX Taylor is nice actually

[misogynistic_pig]

Musical preference is a personal and subjective matter, and does not necessarily depend on the person's age.

However, it is common for older people to have an emotional connection and nostalgia with the music they listened to in their youth, and therefore may feel that the music today does not have the same quality or meaning.

In addition, changes in technology and musical styles can cause some older people to feel disoriented or alienated by today's music.

They may feel that today's music lacks the complexity and depth they found in the music of their youth, or they may feel uncomfortable with new musical genres and forms of expression.

It's important to note that these are generalizations, and not all older people necessarily reject today's music.

In addition, there are many young people who also enjoy classical music and other genres that are considered "old school".

Ultimately, music is a form of expression and each person has their own personal preferences and tastes.

[FunkyMonkee]

Because there's no music involved and it takes no talent at all to come up with that shit!!
Yeah, my parents didn't like much of my music until they got older and started to like a lot of the stuff from the `50's and early `60's BUT, I was never one to focus on ONLY one era of music and blow off all the rest! So, you CAN'T say I'm like my parents! I liked their music, my grandparents' music, my great grandparents' music, the music of the two generations after mine and then, music went almost entirely to shit!! If it was still good, I'd still be into the music of today!
I grew up in the psychedelic era but I also liked some of the `70's music, LOADS of the `80's music, quite a bit of the music of the `90's, `00's and `10's, as long it's NOT rap, pop princess garbage, hardcore metal or that plastic disco shit you get off on so much!
But, if the music of my era is so bad, why do so many of you get into it and why are a lot of those bands still making records to this day? I wonder how many of your records will be classics in 40 or 50 years or if any pf your musoes will still be making records?

[AdithyaR]

I'll try to give a nerdy answer to this, there's a bunch of reasons and it could be any of these or a combination of these.
1. Music much like language is constantly evolving and changing and over time the pace at which it evolves is rapid. Humans and creatures of habit and often take time to adapt to sudden changes, especially in later years of life. So it's possible that older people are unable to adapt to understand the kind of music made nowadays or aren't able to relate to it so they dislike it.
2. While there are still plenty of soft songs and melody songs being made, the more mainstream stuff are definitely much more upbeat and loud. An older person can find this more difficult to enjoy.
3. Nostalgia is a very powerful feeling. This can be seen in various groups, you'll find gamers who claim an older version of a game was better cause it was the OG, or you'll find movies fans saying earlier movies in a cinematic universe were better done. People are more likely to associate things of "their time" as being better and that happens here as well.

[WindAtMyBack]

People always like the music they grew up with. That's true of every generation. As they get older they tend to expand their horizons, but they will almost always still like the music they grew up with.

What does "today's music" even mean? There are lots of types of music. I'm sure there are some types of modern music you think sucks. When you get older, you will remember the music you like and tend to forget the music you didn't like. So when you look back, you'll think about how good it was, even though you mostly think about the 10% of best music, not the music overall.

"High chance their parents hated the music they listened to"

Yes, my parents didn't like most of the music I listened to. They hated some of it. I didn't like their music either. Now with so much digital music like on YouTube to explore for free, I've learned to like a lot of music my parents listened to. It's not that their music really sucked. It just wasn't what I was into when I was young.

[genericname85]

it is an objectively measurable fact that music has gotten worse since roughly the 90s.

it has gotten worse in 3 objectively measurable ways.

1. lyrical depth. the ammount of meaning per sung verse has decreased drastically.

2. Musical composition complexity. you can pretty much use only 3 chords for every popular song since the 90s. music has devolved to now only have vew choruses and verses with pretty much 0 compositional variety. so it's just copy paste of the same musical motive over and over.

3. audio mastering has become flat. meaning the difference between the most silent and the loudest tone in a song is miniscule. songs used to have more demth. seconds of silence and audio contrast that's exciting, which is now pretty much gone. they even remove exaclty that in modern "remasters" of older songs. it in essence sounds mushy and uninteresting.

of course there's exceptions and "some" bands that are still great. but i'm talking about popular music here. not about the exceptions.

[AngryCarl2]

3. Is a pet hate of mine.

[genericname85]

@AngryCarl2 yeah man. Every time you see a "remaster" of a classic, you know all they did is remove the variance in loudness.

[420Rachel]

To be fair a lot of today’s “popular” music is overplayed, repetitive, and has no inspiration. There are a select few popular artists I feel have genuine talent and a true passion for music (I like to use Harry Styles and Post Malone as examples) but maybe I just really like Post Malone cause he’s got such a great personality lol. But me personally, I listen to heavy metal music and there’s no shortage of creativity and diversity of sound in heavy metal and its many subgenres. Hell if it weren’t for blues music, the rise of rock n’ roll like the Beatles, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Deep Purple, and Metallica may have never come to be! The old inspires the new.

[Anonymous]

It is common for people to have a certain level of nostalgia and attachment to the music they grew up with, and as a result, they may not enjoy or appreciate newer styles of music as much. Additionally, as people age, their values and interests may change, and they may be more likely to seek out music that aligns with their current tastes and preferences.

It's worth noting that not all older people hate "today's music," and there are many who enjoy and appreciate a wide range of musical genres and styles. It's important not to generalize or stereotype people based on their age or musical preferences, and to keep an open mind when it comes to exploring different types of music.

[bingbongbangbung]

did you use ChatGPT to write that

[Opinion Owner]

@bingbongbangbung no

[ElGato31]

Previously, music was music and not a product. Performers knew how to play instruments and how to write songs. Yesterday's music was crap too, but at least they were the first doing it, not one of many and the focus was on the music not on the shock value, that alone makes a difference. Those, real, musicians played music because they loved playing music, and there were no platforms to push some agenda and older people couldn't see them posting absolutely stupid shite.

I listen to heavy metal, as it is still about music. If a metal musician can't play his guitar, he will be ridiculed, and they don't get famous by imitating sex acts wap style, which by the way was probably the lowest point of pop music.

[ChillaxingLove]

Because most of the music that’s produced today are made half heartedly to be a cash cow quick money grab. Only a few artist actually make meaningful music, most of those artist are from the 2000s

like rap in the 90s was made by rappers that was telling a story of the life they lived and was like an outlet for the struggle they experienced

today not so. Gangster life is celebrated as if it’s a good thing. All the while many rappers getting killed in the street. And A lot of the rappers sound the same

overall a lot of the music you listen to don’t say anything it’s just a repetitive chorus that Sounds good. Next time you hear a new song or even the ones you like, just read the lyrics and see what’s actually being said. Might make you give you better ears for music sifting through the empty stuff.

in the end you like what you like, I just prefer quality

[TheSpaceGnome]

That is a misnomer. What is actually happening, is the type of music that gets aired on public media the most changes over time, and the crowd that likes that genre of music is pleased while everyone else hates on it. But because most media stations tend to only air newer stuff often, you end up with not enough variety in genres being aired, and the stuff that gets kicked off the list is still liked by people who liked them, even within the current generation, so they complain that "this generation's music sucks", but in reality, it has nothing to do with the generation, and everything to do with the music genre preferences.

[jshm2]

It's the cycle of trends, kiddo. It's how the world moves on.

Also, in terms of music, about 60% of it is just remixes or covers of older music anyway. So what they "hate" is the shit rehashed from older songs to make them "sound modern".

[altaboy]

I don't like most of today's music because the focus has changed. Popular music was often focused on the instrumentation rather than the vocals. That was true of blues, jazz and a good portion of rock music. Now that has entirely faded. I tend to prefer music from my father and grandfather's time mostly because of this. I love a good guitar solo; I love a good saxophone solo too. I find this aspect completely missing from popular music now. I know it is still out there, but it isn't on the vanguard of today's music anymore.

[megabamse]

Write the same question but in YouTube search bar. This is actually documented and explained. But not all old people hate today's music. But it also depends on what. There is lots of music i do like. But some i just can't stand. And what i cal "wisper rap" is what the actual amateur, untalented, no effort bullshit music is that? My god

[FastmoneyD]

Everyone hates on Rap but Im from the Bay and love rap music always will, I still listen to R And B and different types of music and songs but always mainly rap,

Nipsey Hussle (Damn near all his songs are good and have game in them)

Nicky900 From the valley Listen to that song I guarantee you will fuck with it

[trinibaddie]

I know people be hating on rap. Nipsey hussle is really good. Just Listened to From the Valley.

[najekim]

Well, of "today's" music, my favorite is from The Pretty Reckless.

I have heard other groups I thought was pretty good but the names I haven't found out yet.

But all of them are rock groups, not the noise from today's rap crap (But I do like Run-DMC and Beastie Boys) and pop poop that just throw things together without really thinking everything out or through.

The older groups like Rush, Led Zep, The Who, et al, they composed and arranged music like Mozart, Beethoven, or Andrew Llyod Weber. That music had true meaning and told stories with both music and lyrics intertwined to the point that same of the greatest songs of all time are still from the groups of the 60's, 70's & 80's.

Then came disco. . . (shudders!) ;)

[AngryCarl2]

It depends what you mean by "today's music". As an old guy myself I'm always on the lookout for new stuff to listen to.

But to address your main concern, when old folks look back 30 years or so to the music of their youth they only remember the good stuff. They forget that a lot of the music back then was crap too. And even the crap sounds better through the lens of nostalgia.

[Static_In_The_Attic]

Generation after generation has its own music & that music we grown up with & as new music comes out some people like it & some people don’t.

If older people hate todays music do younger people hate yesterdays music?

[RasmusAiken]

https://www.youtube.com/embed/2cZ_EFAmj08

I'm not a hater of today's music. It's good filler. And some artists still put stunningly good work into creating depth and meaning.

But there's unfairness in trying to compare the experience of today's productions with classic Rock. Like comparing a '72 Ford Pinto vs a high-end Tesla.

[OlderAndWiser]

We hate SOME of the contemporary music for the same reasons that you will hate some of the then-contemporary music when you are 45-50 years old. Don't you realize that EVERY generation believes "they" are different, and they then repeat the same patterns for which they criticized their parents?

[Roxxy99]

I think music becomes nostalgic for older people and they gravitate to the music of their youth and stop caring about new styles. Old music makes them feel young. Plus, new music can’t compete with stuff they’ve loved already for decades. We’ll all probably be that way someday.