Race/gender/sex. orientation and musical stereotyping

Dayvan Cowboy · 09-01-2010, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ImmortalDiotima

A lot of people seem to agree with this but I disagree. I think the first part of your list is good but I'm not sure about the second part. Here's my take:

1) Most people. Though it shouldn't be ignored that the radio is genre specific so these are people who listen to whatever is currently popular in the specific genre they like, be it pop, hip hop, or rock music. They do not delve or think very hard about why they listen to what they listen to.

2) This is a broad one and could include members of the first group. But if you mean people who listen to one genre only and are well versed and opinionated about that genre, I'd say its mostly older people who have decided what they like and want to listen to that. Some teenagers, though I think a lot of teenagers are in a place where they are trying to discover themselves and are more ready to search out and listen to different genres of music. This category could also include youngins like middle schoolers who either fall under category 1 and just listen to pop radio or who were like me, obsessed with one specific thing (musicals in my case). maybe I'm wrong but I feel like middle schoolers are less likely to search extensively through multiple genres of music.

I just came out of the seventh grade. I feel slightly prejudiced. (I failed grade 3, BTW.)

ImmortalDiotima · 09-02-2010, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dayvan Cowboy

I just came out of the seventh grade. I feel slightly prejudiced. (I failed grade 3, BTW.)

I'm not sure if by this you mean you feel that you are prejudiced (against someone) or that I am being prejudiced against you as a middle schooler. If it's the latter then that's a little silly since we are talking about stereotypes! I didn't get upset when many people stated that girls have worse taste in music, I just accepted that I am the exception.
Though seventh grade is almost high school so you barely fit in the category of middle schooler anymore

I think the argument about your school depends on what kind of school you're in. If you're going to struggle in 4th grade math because you never got past 3rd grade math and there is no way to help you catch up then i can see why your parents might have wanted to keep you back. But it seems to me like the best solution would have been to let you move forward and then get you some extra math help like tutoring to help you catch up. How did you feel about your parents decision? Do you think it helped you? haha this is so off topic.

IWP · 09-01-2010, 07:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidMC1982

I think pretty much everybody can be put into one of five categories;

1) Those who listen to whatever is on the radio.

2) Those who are limited to a specific genre.

3) Those who have developed their tastes and are limited to a subset of genres and bands.

4) Those that have a diverse taste in music but have only scratched the surface of most genres.

5) Those that are musically experienced in almost every way.

Dave

I'm a little bit of both 3 and 4, though I have been very open minded about music as of late so I'm probably more of a 4 nowadays. I mainly listen to metal, rock/hard rock from the 70s and 80s, 80s pop, and electronic dance, but I give other music a chance if I think it's good.

storymilo · 10-26-2009, 01:51 PM

^ I liked that analysis. It seemed mainly accurate... except that I'm a teenager and I would at least put myself in category 4.

NSW · 10-26-2009, 02:05 PM

Decent list there Dave. I feel like I'd fit into category 4, but I'm not so sure about that "higher than average intellect" thing. Mostly I feel like I'm just too scatterbrained to focus on one genre long enough before the next new and interesting thing comes along that I just HAVE to check out. Therefore I know just enough about each genre to get myself in trouble.

As far as stereotypes go, well, being white and living in the southern US of course means that we must love country music. I don't feel like this stereotype is enforced too much in larger cities though, where things are more urban and more of a melting pot of people and tastes.

This did remind me of a time at work though, when Gladys Knight's "Midnight Train to Georgia" came on the radio and I started singing it before Gladys got around to it. The black data entry guy was lookin' at me all crazy, and at first I thought it was because of my awesome (translate: absolutely terrible) singing, but as it turns out he just couldn't fathom a white girl knowing the words to a Gladys Knight song. It really surprised me to be honest. In this day and age when there are so many outlets to explore all types of music, I wouldn't be surprised by anyone's taste in music and in alot of ways I think it's strange that people still hold on to these musical stereotypes.

VEGANGELICA · 10-26-2009, 02:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidMC1982

I think pretty much everybody can be put into one of five categories;

1) Those who listen to whatever is on the radio.

2) Those who are limited to a specific genre.

3) Those who have developed their tastes and are limited to a subset of genres and bands.

4) Those that have a diverse taste in music but have only scratched the surface of most genres.

5) Those that are musically experienced in almost every way.

If I had to apply stereotypes to the above categories, I would say:

1) Predominantly women.

2) Predominantly teenagers through to mid-twenties.

3) 40+ Dads.

4) More difficult to explain (see below).

5) Predominantly men (see below).

Dave

Dave, I also liked this explanation you gave, and definitely agree with the truth of Category 3 (based on my observations), although often it seems to me that teens may be fixated on a certain genre since they are young and just haven't had as much time to explore others. Plus, they are in a "learn myself/express myself/find myself" through music stage, I think.

I'd probably classify myself as a member of Category 4 since I don't listen to the radio, except when captive at work, and I don't really listen to any one genre. Plus, I think your explanation of Category 4 fits me perfectly, heh heh!

Quote:

Originally Posted by nonsubmissivewife

This did remind me of a time at work though, when Gladys Knight's "Midnight Train to Georgia" came on the radio and I started singing it before Gladys got around to it. The black data entry guy was lookin' at me all crazy, and at first I thought it was because of my awesome (translate: absolutely terrible) singing, but as it turns out he just couldn't fathom a white girl knowing the words to a Gladys Knight song. It really surprised me to be honest. In this day and age when there are so many outlets to explore all types of music, I wouldn't be surprised by anyone's taste in music and in alot of ways I think it's strange that people still hold on to these musical stereotypes.

Cute story, nonsubmissivewife, and a valid observation!

DiSTANToblivion · 05-02-2010, 07:21 AM

25 year old male from Australia that is into anything (wait when did this become a dating site?)...

Anything but not a majority of rap and rnb...

~~Sansa Stark~~ · 09-01-2010, 07:45 PM

How do you fail grade 3

Dayvan Cowboy · 09-01-2010, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paloma

How do you fail grade 3

I did really bad in math and my parents requested that I should re-do grade 3.

Freebase Dali · 09-01-2010, 09:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dayvan Cowboy

I did really bad in math and my parents requested that I should re-do grade 3.

That's a pretty harsh punishment for what could have been solved with a remedial tutor, given that grade 3 isn't entirely composed of mathematics.

10-26-2009, 02:05 PM	#5 (permalink)
NSW Bigger and Better Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Texas girl living in the UK Posts: 2,596	Decent list there Dave. I feel like I'd fit into category 4, but I'm not so sure about that "higher than average intellect" thing. Mostly I feel like I'm just too scatterbrained to focus on one genre long enough before the next new and interesting thing comes along that I just HAVE to check out. Therefore I know just enough about each genre to get myself in trouble. As far as stereotypes go, well, being white and living in the southern US of course means that we must love country music. I don't feel like this stereotype is enforced too much in larger cities though, where things are more urban and more of a melting pot of people and tastes. This did remind me of a time at work though, when Gladys Knight's "Midnight Train to Georgia" came on the radio and I started singing it before Gladys got around to it. The black data entry guy was lookin' at me all crazy, and at first I thought it was because of my awesome (translate: absolutely terrible) singing, but as it turns out he just couldn't fathom a white girl knowing the words to a Gladys Knight song. It really surprised me to be honest. In this day and age when there are so many outlets to explore all types of music, I wouldn't be surprised by anyone's taste in music and in alot of ways I think it's strange that people still hold on to these musical stereotypes. __________________ Hi. Last edited by NSW; 10-26-2009 at 02:23 PM.

05-02-2010, 07:21 AM	#7 (permalink)
DiSTANToblivion Music Addict Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Australia Posts: 505	25 year old male from Australia that is into anything (wait when did this become a dating site?)... Anything but not a majority of rap and rnb... __________________ last.fm Journal deviantART

10-26-2009, 01:51 PM	#4 (permalink)
storymilo Music Addict Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,845	^ I liked that analysis. It seemed mainly accurate... except that I'm a teenager and I would at least put myself in category 4.

09-01-2010, 07:45 PM	#8 (permalink)
~~Sansa Stark~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: The Eyrie, Vale of Arryn, Westeros Posts: 3,234	How do you fail grade 3