Why Older People Dont Like Younger Peoples Music

I find that most older people don’t like younger generations music.

“Back in my day, music was real, with real instruments.”

“This crap you guys listen to today isn’t music.”

“Rap is crap”

“Electronic music hurts my ears”

(Full disclosure, I’m making up these “quotes” but I’ve heard things like it)

I think since classical music, music might have gotten a little less technical and/or complex. Jazz is more musically interesting than the latest Deadmau5 song, however, I think there is more to the fact that older people typically don’t like younger generation’s music.

They don’t grow up with it.

I think music evolves as time goes on. Certain genres borrow from others. They blend together, and new music gathers inspiration from older music. I think at some point older people get out of the music game, and stop evolving with the music. They lose touch and miss the evolutionary steps that it takes to be able to appreciate where the music has gone.

I’ve liked hip-hop and R&B for a long time. It’s gone through a lot of changes and most recently seems to have really fused with the electronic house sound. Some older hip hop fans might hate this. I used to not like electronic/techno but as a result of this fusion I now like that sound and accordingly enjoy the turn hip-hop and R&B has taken with the electro sound. 

However, if I had resisted this sound, I would effectively not “evolved” with the music. Now I find myself listening to electro pop, indie pop, techno, house, electronica etc. What first attracted me to these genres was a few borrowed hip-hop elements in that sound and from there I was hooked. Music molds and blends together and that attracts people to genres that they normally wouldn’t ever listen to. I think the internet and the accessibility of music has made this process even easier and I hope to continue to be able to grow with music and not be that old guy in the corner not enjoying the current generation’s music.