The Decline of the Music Industry

Personally I find most of the music that Frank Zappa did himself to be pretty much noise, which is probably why most people, even if from that "age group" can't tell you even one song he does. Perhaps he is not the best person to judge?

I would trace the beginning of this slide to the mid to late 70's when music really became a big business, which soon led to music being labeled as "corporate rock" (Journey, REO Speedwagon, etc). For me, the final nail in the coffin was the 2016 SXSW Music Festival.

I had attended SXSW every year from 2002 - 2016. Opening night (Wednesday) always featured unknown and/or unsigned artists. From 2002 - 2015, I always made multiple worthwhile discoveries; but, in 2016 every showcase that I attended on Wednesday featured people (I refuse to use the word "artist") that: 1) Could not write a decent song  2) Could not competently play their instruments  3) Could not competently sing their songs.

@bob540, your post makes many valid points and they reminded me of the following lyrical gems:

A) "The world is turning Disney and there's nothing you can do" - THE BEAUTIFUL SOUTH (1996).

B) "I am using you, am I amusing you?" - MARTHA & THE MUFFINS (1983) 

@bob540,

Given a choice between Nelly doing Hot in Herre, or Shirley Ellis doing Name Game I will take Hot in Herre any day. How repressed does society need to be for a song like "name game".  I don't pine for that lost era one bit.

Ed Sheeran and Adele are two of the most popular artists today. Are you claiming they are not talented. I can't stand Drake personally but obviously talented, like Eminem whether you like him or not.  The Weekend?  Latin pop? 


With almost no sales of recorded material, just streaming, it is difficult for artists to get started and hone their craft. "Groups" can't hold it together long enough to get good and get their break. I think that is why solo artists dominate now. Even simple societal things like an excess of structured play (even including music lessons) can have negative unintended consequences.

You might as well admit it. Music of the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s were the best time for popular music. Is too obvious at this point. You still hear and see the influence from those 4 decades because it was innovative, ground breaking and artists actually cared for their craft and were original.

Music in those 4 era’s was the main thing in youth culture. There's a reason why Prince said the it was the golden era. 

Music declined in the 90s