How to Properly "Hate" Pop Music

       If you asked me if I like pop music, my answer would be a heck no. I'll say it's trashy and repetitive and unoriginal and that it lacks meaning, and to a certain extent, I'll mean it. But, if I meant it completely that would make me a complete hypocrite, but I don't, which makes me only 4/10ths of a hypocrite and I can live with that. I may not have a whole lot of respect for Jason Derulo as an artist, but when “Wiggle” comes on the radio, you better bet I'll be singing along.

       Hating pop music is kind of a hard thing to do. On one end, pop music really does suck sometimes and your hatred of the genre is completely justified, but on the other end, you can't hate something so basic without being deemed a snobbish hipster who only listens to obscure indy artists that, quite frankly, aren't all that great either. So how do you properly detest such a thing?

       Step One: Don't completely hate it. Pop musicians are artists, too, and probably posses at least a basic understanding of music theory, or so we hope, to validate their position in the musical world. Give them a little bit of credit.

       Step Two: Have an actual passion for music. Hating pop music because it's too “mainstream” is not a good enough reason. One of the most annoying things in the history of forever is when people try to have strong opinions about something that's not really relevant to their life. Hate is a pretty strong word, so if music isn't a serious part of your life, maybe consider a position towards pop music that is along the lines of “strong dislike”.

       Step Three: Don't write off pop music completely. Sure, the mindless spewing of words on topics as advanced as careless partying, substance abuse, and sexual intercourse, does in fact offers no sense of class to our generations musical culture. But, alas, pop music is still a very large part of our culture. Katy Perry may not be a musical genius, but she certainly defines pop culture today, and such a defining figure cannot be written off so carelessly. While I primarily dislike the musical stylings of Miss Perry, I will keep an open mind about her music.

       It's really hard to hate something without coming off as a real jerk, especially something that is so widely loved. The key to true loath, however, is to keep an open mind. The spectrum of human emotion is not black and white, but hate, is a very black word. Instead of trying to jump into a pool of thought that is completely white or completely black, try dipping your toes in the grey area. Hatred is charcoal grey, but ignorance is entirely black, and as they say, “once you go black, you can't go back”. So please, hate pop music-hate it with all your might-but do it with a bit of greyscale-esque class.

Photos found here and here.