Early 10s vs late 10s music?

[Don CT]

I would argue that Gaga has better acting chops than Madonna, more staying power than Alice Cooper. She really is a triple threat. Sing, put on a stage show, and act. I don't see her going away anytime soon.

 

[MVB13]

The over the top costumes and outrageous stuff that Gaga used to wear, do and say were also part of her marketing ploy at that time. Back then she was in the news often for wearing outfits made of meat, styrofoam, bubbles and other materials, and those often made headlines following awards shows and other performances. Those things got her name into mass media and often kept it there. I still recall a passing interviewer at the time saying "Lady Gaga, your name is always in the news for your outfits, your hairstyles and the over the top things you often do and say...But in the end we actually know very little about "you". She looked at the reporter, said "Exactly!" and walked away. Many took it to mean that she was actually a cunning businessperson: She kept her "Lady Gaga" image in the headlines and discussed sometimes ad nauseum, but at the same time she played it so her personal life and "Stefani Germanotta" (her real name) remained relatively unknown and out of the spotlight.

I went to see Gaga in concert when on her Moster Ball Tour. It was one of the best concerts I'd seen in a while, and along with her music, the theatrics and sets were impressive. I heard the concert required several tractor trailers' worth of sets and props, where they'd set up the first group for the opening, and as the show moved on throughout the evening and there were set and scenic changes, the crew were constantly offloading one truck while packing stuff back into another as stage pieces were disassembled. For me the only low points to that show were when she'd often get caught up in voicing positive affirmations, talking for several minutes at a time about the need for self-love, and at times making it seem more like a giant group therapy session rather than a concert.

I know someone who went to high school with Lady Gaga. She was really nice.

 

[vchimpanzee]

Parents were still spinning 78's of Glenn Miller, the Dorsey Brothers and the McGuire Sisters on their phonographs, while the youth were discovering Elvis, Chuck Berry and Little Richard 45's.....and the rest is history!

But I quoted this: "It took a long time starting in the 1960's for 'Rock-and-Roll' to truly gain a foot-hold with teens,"

 

[Don CT]

But I quoted this: "It took a long time starting in the 1960's for 'Rock-and-Roll' to truly gain a foot-hold with teens,"

Who won them over, Elvis or the Beatles.

 

[oldies76]

Who won them over, Elvis or the Beatles.

Of course, the parents were against the mop top long hair look of the mid-late 1960's.

 

[ZantennaG1]

What happened in the 50s then? With the possible exception of Ricky Nelson, I can't see the parents liking rock and roll.

Most of the popular bands in the 50's were still the Big Bands from the 1930's and 40's. Elvis did see popularity in 1956-57, but evidence shows that he had two careers, and the one after 1968 was the more successful one. I bolded that last part of your quote, because it's exactly true. The way kids discovered music was not through Spotify, but their own parents most of the time. But, you know, thank goodness television started to really spread by the time Presley became a household name. This control is why new formats took a little while to catch on back then.

Also, I apologize for taking so long for responding back to you! I've been busy, and my internet connection has been a bit sloppy.

Parents were still spinning 78's of Glenn Miller, the Dorsey Brothers and the McGuire Sisters on their phonographs, while the youth were discovering Elvis, Chuck Berry and Little Richard 45's.....and the rest is history!

But I quoted this: "It took a long time starting in the 1960's for 'Rock-and-Roll' to truly gain a foot-hold with teens,"

Who won them over, Elvis or the Beatles.

Of course, the parents were against the mop top long hair look of the mid-late 1960's.

All of this is basically shows how slow things were back then, but progress was beginning to happen technology wise. I feel like the youth in general began to have one "coherent" voice starting late 50's early 60's, but it wouldn't be until the 21st century that the internet helped them realize their own numbers and their own interests. Back then, who knew what the kids liked a state away? Now, the youth in NYC, St. Louis, Denver, LA, Chicago, and Seattle, and even London can be on the same trend in minutes or hours!

 

[vchimpanzee]

Who won them over, Elvis or the Beatles.

Ed Sullivan said Elvis was good and decent.

Ricky Nelson was too, I assume.

No one ever said this about The Beatles, though Paul and possibly Ringo might have been.

 

[vchimpanzee]

I think it was "Jeopardy" where I heard a reference to "Thrift Shop" by Macklemore & Lewis. That's one of a handful of rap songs I like.

"Despacito" is another song from the era I like.

Other than that, most of the songs I like from the '10s are country--and I mean real country, not what passes for country.

"Happy" by Pharrell Williams and "Forget You" by Cee-Lo Green also come to mind.

 

[ZantennaG1]

I nearly forgot about Andy Grammer's "Keep Your Head Up" was one I really liked from 2011, or the early part of the decade. They even featured it on the National "Local on the 8's feed" for a while at The Weather Channel.

 

[CTListener]

Bennett also saved Amy Winehouse but her demons were too deep.

The problem with Katy Perry is she was always aimed at the teenager market. Could she ever grow out of that. Sure she would go back to singing church hymns but do people want that.

Perry is aiming a bit higher demographically with her new collaboration, "Where We Started." It's with country star Thomas Rhett and just came out a week or so ago. Not sure if the label is working it country or pop. It has the "snap" sounds common to many recent country hits, but the arrangement is pure CHR, verging on AC. It's on Rhett's new album, so I have a feeling country radio will get it first, at least.

 

[boombox4]

I nearly forgot about Andy Grammer's "Keep Your Head Up" was one I really liked from 2011, or the early part of the decade. They even featured it on the National "Local on the 8's feed" for a while at The Weather Channel.

Exactly! Loved that song. Very upbeat, well written, well sung and the arrangement was cool. Same with quite a few other songs from that part of the decade.

Dynamite by Taio Cruz is another upbeat, infectious pop song from 2010 or 2011. I first heard it in 2011 or 2012. Songs like that got me into listening to CHR hit radio again. The rock of that era, aside from a couple standout artists, was weak. Still is, actually.

Two to three good artists and an hour of "classic" rock I've heard beaten into the ground a gazillion times since 1971 doesn't make a great radio format.

Or maybe it does, and I am just one of those famous "outliers".

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

The expansion of the internet as a prime source for music listening thinned the slices of the pie. The same thing has happened in book and magazine publishing. The new internet-based business model has changed the way the masses consume their entertainment, and pop music is included.

EDIT to add: another factor that may come into play is there was a change in generations during the 2010's. The Millennials, who grew up during the 00's and early 10's, had gotten out of school and college, and moved on to 'real life', and although they may still listen to pop music, they were replaced by Generation Z, and perhaps a lot of what we hear that changed in pop music during the 10's is merely a change in generational tastes. A lot of Millennials were in their 30s by 2018-2019.

Just throwing that out as a possibility.

By 2020 the music industry had to considered new venues on apps too like Tik Tok. Yes traditionally places like TuneIn, Iheart, Audacy, Live365, YouTube were the home for music content but then again the major labels like Warner Music, Universal Music and Sony had to adapt to trends where GenZ were going like Tik Tok and Spotify.