Challenger

In this day and age, popular music has turned into a cookie cutter pattern. Originality is at its all-time depression. And even worse- you must be a certain type of person to listen to certain type of music.

Lately when listening to the radio, you can probably expect to hear the latest rap superstar (they seem to come and go so often) or maybe a mushy love pop song straight from the suggested musical template. These songs (if you listen carefully, you’ll notice) are very repetitive. The tunes and beats may be different, but it’s almost a sure thing that at least 70% of pop or country songs have something to do with one of the following; A) the artist’s love-life B) the artist’s lack of love-life C) the artist’s break up with a partner or D) the artist’s tractor/dog/other inanimate farm equipment.

This applies similarly to most rap songs, except the topics are different: A) the artist’s bruthas in the hood B) the artist’s sistas in the hood C) the artist’s past life involving raging violence and/or drug use or D) various sexual acts that I need not mention. (Rock and the pop/punk genre’s have similar lists of topics, but we need to get on with the tale, here.)

Music that has still retained some original juices, at least to some extent, may apply to only a few ‘genres’. Namely folk music and Indy, seeing as they both tend to stray from the beaten path. The best songs are the ones where you don’t just hear the story, but are left to guess what the song is about. Other, more popular more popular genres fail to do this. Better still, the artists in the folk/Indy genre write they’re own music. They’re not left to the vices of writers who are apt to dull their creativity.

In no way do I intend to disrespect the aforementioned artists. They work hard, this is apparent. But this ‘epidemic’ is becoming more widespread. In the music world, originality and innovation are an artist’s best assets, even more than their voice or stage presence. Without a creative mind, most musical genres eventually disintegrate into messy copy of everyone else. It doesn’t look, or sound like they’re doing anything to change their sound. Do all the musicians just settle for mediocrity? Will those of us who stray from the popular music of today forever be forced to dig into the instrumental underground?

Originality in music has always been based on what’s popular in that era. But over time, originality has been redefined to mean, solely, popularity.
You can not have good music if it all sounds the same, and even then, you can’t just expect the newest hip-hop mogul to spout out a new style and no-one attempt to latch onto his or her success.

Music requires intuition and a well founded mind. Not just a writer and a publicist.
Many popular artists are too focused on pacifying the media and the masses. The matter is no longer the music but the money. Sorry for the “M” alliteration.
When will the originality return to it’s ivory tower and regain entire control like day of old?

Maybe never but it’s sure not going to be anytime soon.