I've been listening to a lot of pop music recently.
Not just "pop music" in the acceptable-because-obscure genres.
We're talking, like, the good the bad and the ugly of today's pop scene.
the FRONTIER.
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There are two pieces of advice I'd give to the thinking person looking to navigate the waters of Actual Current Pop Music:
1. There will ALWAYS be something to embarrass you about any given song; I think that's what puts the "bleeding" in "the bleeding edge of current pop music".
2. No, most songs on Top 40 are not great. Most are not even good. But the way I see it, very FEW songs are actually good at all, just in general.
So if you hear something at least once or twice an hour on Top 40 radio that makes you
tap your foot or your hand or
has a hook that gets stuck in your head or
makes you want to roll the windows down and turn it UP
that's actually a pretty good hit rate considering the odds.
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Then there are two more, just thoughts about the issue of appreciating POPULAR popular music:
1. There are two schools of thought in this world: "People are stupid. So if a lot of them like something, it must be stupid."; and "People are stupid, but if a lot of them like something, it could actually just be SO good that it penetrated the stupidness of people."
Because, yes, people are stupid and never more so than when considered in large groups. BUT people are also innately musical AS A SPECIES and programmed to love love AS A SPECIES, so it's not like even large groups of people can't recognize a good pop song (which is nothing simpler and nothing more complicated than a piece of art appealing to those two qualities of people).
2. Yes, pop music uses a lot of computers. Sometimes in ways that are stupid. But ALSO sometimes in ways that actually enhance the overall sound of the song.
and FURTHERMORE, it's not like someone has invented a Pop Music Song Creating Program.
It's still all humans, all human thoughts and human words and human tastes when it comes down to it. We use tools! And a computer is a REALLY GREAT TOOL.
So for every song that comes on the radio that makes you want to roll the windows down and turn it UP
there was a human in a studio somewhere who felt that feeling too and was smart enough to recognize it for what it was.
and god damn it aren't we all brothers and sisters????????????????
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Okay. That's all the philosophizing I had for today. Enjoy this song. It fucking RULES.
The song: Flo Rida feat. Sia, "Wild Ones"; 2011
Yrs,
AW
