Drew Duff is a junior telecommunications major who writes "Dr. Drew" for the Daily News. His views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper. Write to Drew at aaduff@bsu.edu.
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Far too often in this age of music, artists are looking to make money and put out less than stellar content, rather than taking the time to create a quality piece of artwork. After all, isn’t that what music is about?
Musicians used to look at a song as a message, or an expression of innermost feelings. Many still do believe this, but that population is starting to shrink. What happened to modern music?
In a study done by Nature Scientific Reports, a computer analysis of almost 500,000 songs recorded between 1955 and 2010 showed that pop music has become less original over the years. The report claims that “the diversity of chords and melodies has diminished in the last 50 years.”
Research has also proven that pop music lovers are less creative. Heriot-Watt University published the largest study of musical taste back in 2008. The study took three years to complete, involving 36,000 people and 60 countries. Creativity was the most common trait among people who listen to all genres. But lovers of pop showed a significant and genuine lack of creativity.
To further prove my point about the downward spiral of ingenuity in the modern music industry, I will be comparing two songs from the digital era (post 2000). There is a vast difference in the lyrical stylings of the American jam band Phish and Canadian artist Justin Bieber.
“Baby,” Bieber’s 2010 single from his album "My World 2.0," has not a single ounce of creativity. Here are the lyrics to the chorus:
Baby, baby, baby oh
Like baby, baby, baby no
Like baby, baby, baby no oh
Thought you’d always be mine, mine (x2)
With the song “No Men in No Man’s Land” from their 2016 album "Big Boat," Phish pumps out an upbeat and funky jam, with lots of different instrumentation. Here is the first verse:
How far have we fallen? How far can we go?
How far will we fall, if there’s nothing below?
You stand on a rock, suspended in air
Emblazoned with sunlight keenly aware
That we’ve broken free, something has changed
A tear in the fabric, some tiles rearranged
If you read Phish's lyrics back out loud, they sound like a poem; which is exactly how music is supposed to sound.
So, there you have it. The music industry strayed away from originality. What can we do about it though? We can start supporting original art.
Next time you hear a song you like, look up the lyrics and read them. Look for a deeper meaning hidden within the song. If we as consumers support creative music, it can and will thrive again.
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