Hating pop music does not make you cool
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
This rise in hate of pop artists has gotten out of control in the last couple of years. Hating a popular pop artist does not make you cool. But it does make you a hater.
I have noticed a growing trend on social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok, where people like to flex about not liking certain female pop artists currently in the music industry. Specifically artists such as Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, and Charli XCX. You are not being cool and different for posting hate on these girls; you are just being mean.
Disliking an artist for a reason outside of their music is a totally different scenario. Many people hate big artists like Taylor Swift for her excessive private jet usage, but this is not what I am referring to. I am referring to the constant degradation of female pop stars because of their talent exclusively.
Pop music is not for everyone, and that is okay. Everyone is entitled to choose what music they listen to in their free time and to support artists of their choosing. I personally do not listen to Sabrina Carpenter’s music because it just is not for me. But, I can still recognize that she has a lot of vocal talent and has catchy songs that captivate her audience.
A large issue with the degradation of pop girls is the obvious fact that much of this hate seems to stem from them being women. Historically, male artists have received less criticism than female artists, and some people refuse to leave this fact in the past. Calling female artists annoying, pick-me, spoiled, and various other offensive terms may not be intentionally sexist, but they all tie back to the sexist roots they originated from.
This idea can similarly be applied to the fanbase of pop girls. A large portion of the fanbase is female-dominated, and teenagers and young women are especially vulnerable to these insults. I have specifically noticed many insults directed towards the fanbase that imply the fanbase lacks intelligence because of what music they have chosen to listen to.
These insults and claims are based on nothing! Internet trolls sitting behind a screen and calling teens in their formative years dumb can have a detrimental impact on their development and self-confidence. It may seem like a slight jab, but young people of all genders can easily be affected by insults from an anonymous online person.
I am incredibly disappointed in the influencers and internet personalities that partake in this hateful train. I can only imagine a young girl going on social media only to find her favorite internet celebrity calling her favorite musician dumb and saying anyone who listens to her must be stupid as well. Social media has enough hate being spread. A little kindness could never hurt.
The fanbase of pop icons has always included the LGBTQIA+ community, which is more apparent now than ever. Members of the queer community find a safe space is a constant and unnecessary struggle, but unfortunately, this struggle continues even within the pop realm. The girls and the gays is a term that members of the queer community and allies have been using, but recently many have increased the hate on this term as well.
This is all to say that hating something that has no harmful effect on you is unnecessary and can be hurtful to people worldwide. Nobody will force you to listen to every single one of Taylor Swift’s albums in order and quiz you on the songs, so do not force people to listen to your whining and hateful comments about how you do not like pop! It is not cool.