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Do you guys know who the most popular artists of our time are? Reading this article and its mention of celebrities I was like "Who are today's celebrities anyh

by TekMol 2y ago

Do you guys know who the most popular artists of our time are? Reading this article and its mention of celebrities I was like "Who are today's celebrities anyhow?"? And typed most popular artists 2024 into Google. It came back with: Taylor Swift The Weeknd Lady Gaga Drake Karol G Bruno Mars Beyoncé Eminem Charli XCX Harry Styles I have heard 8 of the 10 names before. Never heard about "Karol G" and "Charli XCX". I can only think of one song performed by one of them: "Paparazzi" by Lady Gaga. Does that make me very disconnected with today's culture?

Modified3019 2y ago
I’m 4/10 on that one as far as name recognition. Similar to you, I can only could think of one song from lady Gaga. Eminem is the only one which multiple songs come to mind, not that I could name them. I grew up on 90’s and early 2000’s college radio, and am now a Doom/psychedelic rock kind of guy, and spend a good amount of time and money curating what I love. I am disconnected from pop culture. It has repeatedly failed to deliver what I enjoy, and typically comes bundled with advertisements so I have no reason to pay attention to it.
keiferski 2y ago
I don’t listen to 8/10 of these musicians, but I’ve heard of all of them except for Karol G. So yeah; I’d say you are very disconnected.
- gilleain 2y ago
  I thought they were saying they _had_ heard of 8 in 10? Strangely Karol G was also new to me. I'll resist searching for the name - I enjoy not knowing things sometimes.
  - keiferski 2y ago
    Whoops, either he edited his comment or I misread it. Probably my mistake.
- vixen99 2y ago
  Doesn't this just mean that some people don't connect with this kind of music. I don't. Possibly my loss but there's a lot of music out there and life is short.
  - keiferski 2y ago
    I think the commenter meant disconnected from popular music culture, not disconnected from music entirely.
mikrl 2y ago
Meanwhile I don’t listen to anyone on that list except for Charli XCX because I arrived at her music from a rave/hyperpop background and then became a stan with her last album Crash in 2022. I was tired of BRAT though about 2 weeks after release because I listened to the teasers so much… then it blew up and even attached itself to VP Harris…
- nonameiguess 2y ago
  Amusingly, calling a devoted fan of something a "stan" is a reference to an Eminem song. A lot of these people claiming they don't know who Drake is would probably recognize the meme even if they don't know his music. Also, not a response to you, but rather the parent, that Destiny's Child and Eminem both released their debut albums in 1997. Not being a fan is one thing, but saying you've never heard a single song of theirs goes a bit beyond being out of touch with "today's" culture unless you define today as this entire millenium and a few years of the last one, too.
- Izkata 2y ago
  That's where that came from? Never heard of it and all I could think of was either the Bratz dolls or that "brat summer" was short for "bratwurst summer", neither of which made sense.
- alfiedotwtf 2y ago
  I recognise some of these words
- iphoneisbetter 2y ago
  [dead]
christophilus 2y ago
There are many cultures. You’re on HN, so my guess is you’re connected with today’s hacker culture. I’ve heard of 6 of those names, but can’t name any song from any of them. It just means I have my own interests.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
Fraaaank 2y ago
These artists are definitely popular, but I doubt they are the most popular. The list doesn't fully match up with the most streamed artists list on Spotify, for example.
- TeMPOraL 2y ago
  Both Google results and Spotify "most streamed artists" stats are heavily gamed, but in different ways and by different groups, so no surprise they diverge.
sersi 2y ago
Same result here, never heard about karol G and Charli XCX but to be fair, I find most modern pop music to be very manufactured and boring. People like Max Martin can create a lot of hits but it makes the music rather uninteresting. Just listened to Brat from Charli XCX and yeah, not missing much. I feel that when it comes to Music, being in sync with pop music is more of a generation thing. On the other hand, I wouldn't describe myself as lonely... I'm not super social (I've worked remotely for 13 years because I don't particularly like working in an office) but I do meet up with friends 2 times a week (used to be more but with a kid at home, there's less time).
Dalewyn 2y ago
Something that's been talked about every so often is that there aren't representative (generational) pop icons for the past few generations (probably from millenials onwards). One theory from Japan, that I still remember and think is most likely, is that the democratization of entertainment since the 80s and especially from the 90s onwards with the invention of the internet has eliminated the very concept of pop culture. Back in ye olde days a person's choices for entertainment were fairly limited, basically a small regional selection. People in the same locale ended up consuming the same entertainment and thus gravitated towards forming similar tastes and directing their fervor on that small selection of entertainment. Entire generations identify with icons of their time like Gary Cooper, Gregory Peck, Marilyn Monroe, Ingrid Bergman, Elvis Presley, and so on. Entire generations sang "the song of their people" so to speak. Today, though? Everyone can access any entertainment they want from anytime anywhere. The entertainment consumed by one person is very likely completely different from that consumed by a person right next to him; entertainment has been democratized. There is no longer a "song of our people" because everyone has a "song of me", there are no longer generational icons because everyone has their own icon. The intense political push from the Left to make any form of social cohesion and loyalty undesirable also hasn't helped. The dismantling and removal of tradition, religion, and nationalism/patriotism from society means there can't be a "song of the people" from outside of entertainment either. So no, I don't think you're disconnected with today's culture. Rather, today's culture doesn't value social cohesion and unity as much as it does freedom and power. Everyone has their own icon and song, everyone is their own generation.
- johnnyanmac 2y ago
  Maybe Gen Z, but I'd say Millenials definitely had their generational Pop icons. Those icons simply did not live a good life once they left the spotlight. Like, most people I know don't really want to talk about Brittney Spears nor Micheal Jackson, even if they loved their music. But I agree with your core point. There is no "Spongebob" of animation for Gen Z (except for... Spongebob. Maybe). There's no Friends, nor Breaking Bad of the 2010's/2020's. There's barely any individual movies that break the cultural zeitgeist period. >The intense political push from the Left to make any form of social cohesion and loyalty undesirable also hasn't helped. The dismantling and removal of tradition, religion, and nationalism/patriotism from society means there can't be a "song of the people" from outside of entertainment either. we can have social cohesion without resorting to nationalism nor religion. It's just that when you give people infinite choice, we diverge at best to the pareto principle. But 20% of society not being in the know is still a lot of society you fail to connect with.
alistairSH 2y ago
Maybe if you're young (20s, early 30s)? I recognize 8/10 as well, but like you, can't name actual songs from most. Same would have been true if I was tested in the mid-90s (HS and college). Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Backstreet Boys - I know the names, but can't think of the names of songs. I'd test better on alt/grunge rock of the era - STP, Nirvana, REM, etc. And I don't think I'm particularly lonely - I happily married, have a few office friends, and see normal friends regularly. I'm not as social as I was in my 20s, but I assume that's normal.
MisterTea 2y ago
> Does that make me very disconnected with today's culture? Just disconnected with pop culture. I only know 6 of the names on that list and can only name Brain Damage by Eminem off the top of my head. I don't know what Taylor Swift sounds like though I have probably heard a few of her songs in my day to day without noticing. Just don't worry about it and do what makes you happy.
bitwize 2y ago
Charli XCX is a standard-issue pop singer. She's a brunette. She's probably best known for doing the singing bits on "Fancy", the only Iggy Azalea song you know (if you know any at all).

by TekMol 2y ago

Modified3019 2y ago

I’m 4/10 on that one as far as name recognition. Similar to you, I can only could think of one song from lady Gaga. Eminem is the only one which multiple songs come to mind, not that I could name them. I grew up on 90’s and early 2000’s college radio, and am now a Doom/psychedelic rock kind of guy, and spend a good amount of time and money curating what I love. I am disconnected from pop culture. It has repeatedly failed to deliver what I enjoy, and typically comes bundled with advertisements so I have no reason to pay attention to it.

keiferski 2y ago

I don’t listen to 8/10 of these musicians, but I’ve heard of all of them except for Karol G. So yeah; I’d say you are very disconnected.

gilleain 2y ago
I thought they were saying they _had_ heard of 8 in 10? Strangely Karol G was also new to me. I'll resist searching for the name - I enjoy not knowing things sometimes.
- keiferski 2y ago
  Whoops, either he edited his comment or I misread it. Probably my mistake.
vixen99 2y ago
Doesn't this just mean that some people don't connect with this kind of music. I don't. Possibly my loss but there's a lot of music out there and life is short.
- keiferski 2y ago
  I think the commenter meant disconnected from popular music culture, not disconnected from music entirely.

mikrl 2y ago

Meanwhile I don’t listen to anyone on that list except for Charli XCX because I arrived at her music from a rave/hyperpop background and then became a stan with her last album Crash in 2022. I was tired of BRAT though about 2 weeks after release because I listened to the teasers so much… then it blew up and even attached itself to VP Harris…

nonameiguess 2y ago
Amusingly, calling a devoted fan of something a "stan" is a reference to an Eminem song. A lot of these people claiming they don't know who Drake is would probably recognize the meme even if they don't know his music. Also, not a response to you, but rather the parent, that Destiny's Child and Eminem both released their debut albums in 1997. Not being a fan is one thing, but saying you've never heard a single song of theirs goes a bit beyond being out of touch with "today's" culture unless you define today as this entire millenium and a few years of the last one, too.
Izkata 2y ago
That's where that came from? Never heard of it and all I could think of was either the Bratz dolls or that "brat summer" was short for "bratwurst summer", neither of which made sense.
alfiedotwtf 2y ago
I recognise some of these words
iphoneisbetter 2y ago
[dead]

christophilus 2y ago

There are many cultures. You’re on HN, so my guess is you’re connected with today’s hacker culture. I’ve heard of 6 of those names, but can’t name any song from any of them. It just means I have my own interests.

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

Fraaaank 2y ago

These artists are definitely popular, but I doubt they are the most popular. The list doesn't fully match up with the most streamed artists list on Spotify, for example.

TeMPOraL 2y ago
Both Google results and Spotify "most streamed artists" stats are heavily gamed, but in different ways and by different groups, so no surprise they diverge.

sersi 2y ago

Same result here, never heard about karol G and Charli XCX but to be fair, I find most modern pop music to be very manufactured and boring. People like Max Martin can create a lot of hits but it makes the music rather uninteresting. Just listened to Brat from Charli XCX and yeah, not missing much. I feel that when it comes to Music, being in sync with pop music is more of a generation thing. On the other hand, I wouldn't describe myself as lonely... I'm not super social (I've worked remotely for 13 years because I don't particularly like working in an office) but I do meet up with friends 2 times a week (used to be more but with a kid at home, there's less time).

Dalewyn 2y ago

Something that's been talked about every so often is that there aren't representative (generational) pop icons for the past few generations (probably from millenials onwards). One theory from Japan, that I still remember and think is most likely, is that the democratization of entertainment since the 80s and especially from the 90s onwards with the invention of the internet has eliminated the very concept of pop culture. Back in ye olde days a person's choices for entertainment were fairly limited, basically a small regional selection. People in the same locale ended up consuming the same entertainment and thus gravitated towards forming similar tastes and directing their fervor on that small selection of entertainment. Entire generations identify with icons of their time like Gary Cooper, Gregory Peck, Marilyn Monroe, Ingrid Bergman, Elvis Presley, and so on. Entire generations sang "the song of their people" so to speak. Today, though? Everyone can access any entertainment they want from anytime anywhere. The entertainment consumed by one person is very likely completely different from that consumed by a person right next to him; entertainment has been democratized. There is no longer a "song of our people" because everyone has a "song of me", there are no longer generational icons because everyone has their own icon. The intense political push from the Left to make any form of social cohesion and loyalty undesirable also hasn't helped. The dismantling and removal of tradition, religion, and nationalism/patriotism from society means there can't be a "song of the people" from outside of entertainment either. So no, I don't think you're disconnected with today's culture. Rather, today's culture doesn't value social cohesion and unity as much as it does freedom and power. Everyone has their own icon and song, everyone is their own generation.

johnnyanmac 2y ago
Maybe Gen Z, but I'd say Millenials definitely had their generational Pop icons. Those icons simply did not live a good life once they left the spotlight. Like, most people I know don't really want to talk about Brittney Spears nor Micheal Jackson, even if they loved their music. But I agree with your core point. There is no "Spongebob" of animation for Gen Z (except for... Spongebob. Maybe). There's no Friends, nor Breaking Bad of the 2010's/2020's. There's barely any individual movies that break the cultural zeitgeist period. >The intense political push from the Left to make any form of social cohesion and loyalty undesirable also hasn't helped. The dismantling and removal of tradition, religion, and nationalism/patriotism from society means there can't be a "song of the people" from outside of entertainment either. we can have social cohesion without resorting to nationalism nor religion. It's just that when you give people infinite choice, we diverge at best to the pareto principle. But 20% of society not being in the know is still a lot of society you fail to connect with.

alistairSH 2y ago

Maybe if you're young (20s, early 30s)? I recognize 8/10 as well, but like you, can't name actual songs from most. Same would have been true if I was tested in the mid-90s (HS and college). Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Backstreet Boys - I know the names, but can't think of the names of songs. I'd test better on alt/grunge rock of the era - STP, Nirvana, REM, etc. And I don't think I'm particularly lonely - I happily married, have a few office friends, and see normal friends regularly. I'm not as social as I was in my 20s, but I assume that's normal.

MisterTea 2y ago

> Does that make me very disconnected with today's culture? Just disconnected with pop culture. I only know 6 of the names on that list and can only name Brain Damage by Eminem off the top of my head. I don't know what Taylor Swift sounds like though I have probably heard a few of her songs in my day to day without noticing. Just don't worry about it and do what makes you happy.

bitwize 2y ago

Charli XCX is a standard-issue pop singer. She's a brunette. She's probably best known for doing the singing bits on "Fancy", the only Iggy Azalea song you know (if you know any at all).