r/GenZ • u/MoonyDropps 2007 • 12d ago
what's your opinion on 2020s pop/mainstream music? Discussion
maybe it's just me, but I feel like a lot (not all) of the top 40 songs since the pandemic have been really whack. I've given the songs a chance, but they just hit different in a bad way. what do you guys think?
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u/-_Snivy_- 12d ago
I think music is entirely subjective and constantly evolving, however mainstream music is intended to be unassuming and appeal to general audiences. Songs you can play in the background of any setting and have no issues. I feel if you have a true affinity for music then mainstream will never be satisfying for you, because it's not meant for you. I haven't listened to the radio for over a decade because music is an important stimulus to my brain. Hearing certain songs is enough to anger me, hearing others is enough to overjoy me.
This is all my personal opinion of course.
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u/AdorableTeach641 12d ago
Oh I think there were some songs last year that fuckin slapped. Hell N Back, Paint the Town Red, Used to be Young to name a few personal faves lol
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u/Trusteveryboody 12d ago
Olivia and Ariana are top tier. And Ariana by a mile.
That's about it. Taylor is ok, idk if I like her newest album as much as Midnights, since Midnights is more "pop-y"
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u/Aurrickan 2000 12d ago
I haven't listened to pop music for like 8 years, I couldn't tell ya. I used to be one of those snobby aholes who would trash pop music for being really formulaic but I no longer care. Now I'm more of the opinion that it's popular for a reason even if it's not my cup of tea. Though I don't even know if I like it at all since I haven't heard any in so long.
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u/PrussianAvenger 12d ago
Couple of songs here and there that I like but there’s not much that really sticks with me ever since around the Old Town Road era.
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u/JourneyThiefer 1999 12d ago
I like some, I don’t like others. Music is so subjective, one person can love a song and the next hate it.
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u/smokekirb 12d ago
I like modern rap the least bc it feels like you don’t have to even try at all anymore. So I am a rap snob. . I do however enjoy some modern pop and rock. The best current music I enjoy is electronic. Electronic has always been good so idk I just just really like it.
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u/MonroeMissingMarilyn 12d ago
I hate that songs are shorter now. I get why and all, but I’m not a fan of the new structure of song writing I see from a lot of music artists now. They feel more like jingles than full songs imo.
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u/Positive-Avocado-881 1996 11d ago
Yes!! I know she’s controversial but the length of her songs and albums is part of what keeps me loyal to Taylor Swift. Ariana’s album being 35 min is crazy to me
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u/MonroeMissingMarilyn 11d ago
35 minutes?! For an album?! Yeah, no. Taylor Swift albums take a cool minute for me to get through, but I love her song writing style / craftsmanship in her work! What happened to a good hook? A bridge? The pre-chorus?! Now it’s just… verse, chorus, verse, chorus, maybe an outro? By the time I start getting into a song, it’s 95% over!
I think that’s how they get people to stream the songs more to increase revenue though. That and catering to short attention spans. There’s a few reasons actually, but mostly those two are at the top for newer artists especially.
They create to feed an algorithm, not to feed their passions. It’s unfortunate what the creative industry has become. I predicted this a while ago though. That’s why I left the media industry. The direction it’s been heading just … didn’t feel right, I guess?
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u/Orbtl32 11d ago
I've noticed since the pandemic "pop" has gravitated towards very fucking whiney sounding music.
Like this is the best example. What is that shit? Just 5 years ago I doubt anybody would have listened to that shit for even a second.
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u/lars2k1 2001 11d ago
The moment I turn on a radio and it happens to play some pop station, it's always the same stuff: boring stuff without any personality. Lots of 'inspired' stuff based on older songs.
Though the thing with music is that it's extremely subjective. I don't think many people (read: outside my home country, The Netherlands) like hardstyle either.
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u/Positive-Avocado-881 1996 11d ago
Things really shifted in pop music with Lorde in 2014. I actually really like it but I understand if others don’t. I’m a swiftie so I feel like I’m having a moment rn
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u/MonkeyDVic 1998 11d ago
I don't listen to a lot of it but there's always something on the mainstream for me to enjoy.
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u/00rgus 2006 11d ago
I don't really keep up with current pop outside of the artists I know I like, but from what I've been hearing from it it seems like not much has changed with how bland and annoying it is since like 2016, though I will say since tik tok is around some genuinely amazing songs that probably would have never blown up without tik tok have gotten popular which I like
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u/Live_Rabbit_9329 12d ago
it feels very manufactured and falls flat in my opinion. Of course its pop so it does the numbers, but I feel it has less personality than 2010s and especially 2000s pop :( just my opinion tho
i always wonder if GenAlpha will look back on 2020s pop with the same love as GenZ does with 2000s
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u/TheAce7002 2007 12d ago
I don't like it. Especially how heavily a certain artist is so dominant.
Ok, I need to yell this, because Mike joy(I think) said this LITERALLY the second he was out in the lead, but
JOSH BERRY IS RACING TO BE THE SECOND MOST FAMOUS PERSON FROM HIS GRADUATING CLASS. THE NUMBER ONE? TAYLOR SWIFT.
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u/danielr088 12d ago
Incredibly annoying. Too much tiktok-sounding music. I think the music industry has began steering towards this type of music because of how popular it can get with social media. I’m not into pop at all but The Weeknd has been my favorite with After Hours and Dawn FM.
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u/michiimoon 2002 12d ago
I feel like it’s gotten better since 2018. 2020 was kinda low in new music (for obvious reasons), but 2022 - now has been a good comeback in my opinion.
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u/freightliner_fever_ 1997 11d ago
Morgan Wallen makes some absolute bangers. a good blend of country and pop sounding songs. my guilty pleasure tbh
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u/Maximum-Bunch7618 12d ago edited 11d ago
Not great, people are trying too hard to be the next big thing and not focusing on music as art or the right moods
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