[Arxces]

Today's music industry is a ruthless, calculative, well-oiled behemoth, with the aim of making as much money as possible. It's all about 'market research' and 'target demographic'; they do not look for the talented, merely for fanwhores. However, they are not the ones to blame. The society of today has created this demand for the type of music being released; where there is a demand there will be a supply.

In today's Billboard 100, I saw Ludacris and Jojo in the <10. I can't bear to listen to even one of these. But if this is what people want, this is what they get. Yes, there does seem to be a shift: style over substance. However this trend has been going on for decades now. Who's to say this music is "tasteless", when so many acquire the taste for it? It reminds me of when I first listened to Linkin Park (yeah, long time no hear, huh?) and my mom asked me how I could enjoy all the screaming and shouting. It made me think: what would her parents think of her music (Beatles, Abba, Carpenters, etc...)? The point is that you can't be absolutely certain if a piece of music is any good, as it is subject to personal view. Don't get me wrong; I'm sick and tired of the whole "ghetto, imma pop sum lead in yo skull son", but other people may not be.

As for the dominance of style over substance, this is an ongoing trend caused by social dynamics. The emos huddle into the corner and listen to emo music, the punks blare it out loud and make stabbing gestures, the suburb kid drives around in his dad's escalade and gives the whole neighbourhood some secondhand rap, and basement dwellers like me play "Buddy Holly" on Winamp while surfing on the net. To each his own I say! Yes there is a "rebel" mentality, and this has caused the (temporary) defeat of pop music, and allowed people to enjoy the music that applies to their situation, to their 'little' niche. This is a promising development, but it does mean that some of us won't be able to appreciate music from other genres. We shouldn't be concerned with how the music sucks, but with music choice.

As a side note: The hip-hop scene in Malaysia is mostly underground, making it essentially indie music. None of the major labels want to even touch it! However, that does not stop thousands of people turning up for concerts at stadiums and stuff. We should embrace choice, instead of QCing music. If it truly sucks, it won't sell, plain and simple as that...