Mainstream Music Is The Worst (nowadays)

It did not always used to be this way, but mainstream music is terrible now. By mainstream music, I mean the songs played over and over again on the radio and the ones that become extremely popular, followed by mass hysteria.What we call popular music these days is simple, unintelligent, and disgusting.With this simple-minded work catching wildfire, respectable artists are now beginning to think they can dumb down their songs and bring down their standards.This trend needs to end!

Mainstream music was great in the late 1990s until around mid-2008. It was a time when mainstream music had heart and was not epitomized by empty words.Songs like "Move Along" by the All American Rejects, "When I'm Gone" by Eminem, "Face Down" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, and "Sexy Back" by Justin Timberlake could all share a medium that had respectable tunes and lyrics you could feel represented you.However, that has all changed now.

Mainstream music evidently does not need exceptional lyrics, nor does it even need to sound good to make it on America's radio stations these days.Look below! Which chorus do you think is better?

"I can see us holding hands, walking on the beach our clothes in the sand, I can see us on the country side, sittin' on the grass laying side by side, you could be my baby, when I look at my lady, girl you amaze me, ain't gotta do anything crazy, see all I want you to do is be my love (so don't give away), my love (so don't give away), my love (so don't give away), ain't another woman that can take my spot, my love....." : My Love by Justin Timberlake (2006)

"You make me feel so la la la la la, you make me feel so la la la la la, you make feel so la la la la la, you make me feel so la la la la la." : You Make Me Feel by Cobra Starship (2011)

Up above, you can see the major difference in lyric value between old mainstream and new mainstream. Both of these songs fell in the genre "pop" at the time of their release.It is sad to see how lame you can sound to make it on the top 40 radio station these days.The worst part about this is that former mainstream artists, that used to put out quality music, now can get lazy and write horrible songs.Maroon 5 is a great example of how mainstream artists turn bad.I remember some of the great songs of their past, and then I see a huge drop in quality of what they are releasing now.Once again, look below...

"I don't mind spending every day, I know your corner in the pouring rain, look for the girl with the broken smile, ask her if she wants to stay a while, and she will be loved, she will be loved." : She Will Be Loved by Maroon 5 (2002)

"Take me by the tongue and I'll know you, kiss me till you drunk and I'll show you, I've got the moves like Jagger, I've got the moves like Jagger, I've got the mooooooooooooves like Jagger." : Moves Like Jagger by Maroon 5 (2012)

Look above at the difference! Ten years ago, the lyrics to their songs had heart, and now, their lyrics have become empty and uninteeeeeeeeeeeeeligent.I don't mind simple songs with simple choruses, but I do hate simple-minded songs that sound like they were written in five minutes while eating a bowl of soup.And it is not Maroon 5's fault either; it is where the genre of pop and mainstream music has taken them.It is what they do, and they have to keep up with the repetitive, simple nature of the genre, nowadays.I understand that, but I think it may be time for them and others like Breathe Carolina and Pitbull to go back to their roots.

I can characterize mainstream music today for you in one paragraph.Mainstream music today is drop a Justin Bieber song, play "Call Me Maybe," play the new Flo Rida reincarnation of "Club Can't Handle Me," play any random David Guetta song, play anything involving a boy band, play anything with a recycled dance beat behind it, play anything featuring Wiz Khalifa, play "Moves Like Jagger," and drop a Ke$ha/Gaga here and there.There are maybe a few artists like Adele, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars, Gotye, and Fun, which do not follow the usual formula of mainstream music, but all mainstream radio stations had to do was play them about 1200 times before their best songs made me cringe.

Think about what popular music used to be, and think about what popular music is now. Popular music is simple-minded, cheap, and most of it sounds the same.It is sad to see that the lyrics cannot keep up with what they used to be.It isn't like Ke$ha is going to blow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow us away with heart-felt lyrics, but boy, we know she can drink.Pitbull may not give us everything we are looking for, but he's good for a cheap dance beat.But here is what we can expect out of mainstream music for years to come.One Direction will continue to sing about empty promises off key and Justin Bieber will continue to work with rappers to bring up his street cred...Anywho, as you can see by my analysis, modern mainstream music has no intelligence, has no heart, and has no place in my playlist.

For further reading, see the following:

The Problem with Mainstream Top 40 Radio Stations: http://expertscolumn.com/content/problem-mainstream-top-40-radio-stations

Top 5 Most Overrated Music Artists Today: http://expertscolumn.com/content/top-5-most-overrated-music-artists-today

New Boy Band Movement Worse Than Ever?: http://expertscolumn.com/content/new-boy-band-movement-worse-ever

Article Written by R. Turk

My name is R. Turk, and I have been a content writer and columnist on Experts Column for several years now. Check out my old articles, or read some of the new ones coming your way soon. I took a hiatus from writing, and now, I am back and better than ever.


Post Your Comment

Related Articles

  • What Ever Happened To The 2000s Alternative Rock?

    Alternative rock of the 2000s always used to be a reliable genre to listen to; it did not matter what emotions went through your head at the time. There was always a band or a song that you could listen to that accurately chronicled the events of your life line by line. Though most of the artists that found their home in this genre still exist, their styles have changed dramatically coming into the new decade.

  • Symbolic Speech: What Is Protected Under The First Amendment And What Is Not?

    In government and law terms, symbolic speech stands for a message someone is trying to convey by using actions rather than words. There are many forms of symbolic speech, and it has been interpreted that symbolic speech is technically protected under the 1st Amendment to the Constitution of the United States as freedom of speech. However, some forms of symbolic speech have been deemed as unconstitutional over the years and this article will tell you what is protected and what is not.

  • Do Not Use Triond: They Think They Are Too Good For You

    Today, I decided that I would try to expand my article writing business to other websites. I ended up looking into Triond as a great candidate to write for alongside Experts Column to maximize my profits and more importantly, my viewership. I have heard stories about writing cocurrently for two or more websites at once. But Triond must think they are too good for me because I wrote an article to introduce myself and submitted two articles I wrote first on this website and they ended up declining all of them.

  • Top 5 Best House Music Artists Today

    House and techno music, though not as popular in the United States today, still have very talented performers. There are many today that do not appreciate House music because of the fact that it sometimes has the tendency to sound a bit different than other forms of electronic. But in my opinion, difference should be embraced. This is my list of the top 5 best in House music nowadays. 

  • Top 5 Greatest Poets Of All Time

    In my literature class this year, I was introduced to many different poets from around the world, who are quite talented and whose styles are extraordinary. Poetry has been around since words have been recorded, which is why it is even more amazing that this artistic form of expression is still around and going strong. This is my list of the top five most eloqent and well-written poets of all time.

  • Top 5 Worst Movies Of All Time

    Top five lists are my favorite articles to make because I get to share my opinion and rank things where they should be placed. This will be a top 5 list of the worst movies ever made and released. These five movies should never had been producers. The producers should have taken one look at these scripts and said "start over." However, what saved some of these movies was that they were produced, directed, and written by the same person. So here are the five worst movies of all time.

  • Random Facts Set #10: Facts About U.S. Congress Legends

    This set of interesting and informative facts will all pertain to the United States Congress and its legendary members. As we all know, the Congress is a bicameral legislature made up of a House of Representatives, where representatives are distributed amongst the states based on total population, and a Senate, where each state has two senators. So here are eight more facts about some of the greatest men to ever serve in Congress.

  • Top 5 Anime Series Of All Time

    One of my biggest guilty pleasures is watching too much Anime. Anime are Japanese cartoons based, most of the time, off of comic books known as Manga. However, unlike the conventional cartoon, Anime can range from children's series like Pokemon to quite exotic adult series like FLCL. I have watched quite a few Anime in my time, and I think that, with the ones I have watched, I can officially make a top 5 list of best Anime series of all time.

  • Are Americans Quicker To Pass Judgement On Others???

    This article contains some language that is not suitable for children under 13, however this language is used to support the point I am making in this article. 

  • How To Deal With Extremely Bad Spring Allergies!

    If you are like me, then you dread the coming of Spring because of a terrible set of allergies. With the beginning of Spring comes allergy season and there are some major allergy sufferers out there that have difficulty dealing with them. When the pollen count reaches new astronomical proportions, my throat ends up feeling like it is going to close up due to congestion. If you are like me, then the tips I am about to share with you will be extremely important for you so you may go through your day.