It already is beggining to start doing that. The experimental/abstract/alternative hip hop music is relatively small right now, but its happening.

As for the next annoying trend in rock, I don't know what its going to be, all I know is that its going to start out original, and then crap all over itself within the next 5 seconds and continue for another decade until something else comes along. Then next trend also must heavily appeal either sex, angst and have some sort of culture to it. I mean, think of it, it seems that all popular music for the past few decades has been based around being poppy, being angsty, or being sexy in some way.

the jonas brothers. . . .

I agree, there will probably be the traditional vein with bands sticking to more roots instruments and going back to the simpler times, vintage sounds, instruments Analog recording will probably come back in a big way.
The "machine" pumping out pop princesses and boy bands will make an attempt to go even bigger than it was 5 years ago.
And I also think a slew of really experimental bands will emerge.. some really trippy slowed down tempo art rock bands and also some really heavy/hardcore stuff... like Everytime I die meets Circa Survive...
these are just my thoughts.. really anything could happen but one things for sure.. the majors will do anything to stay in the game! that's a FACT!

I'd put my money on the next big thing being something that is already here, just not mainstream yet. I don't think it's so much that a new type of music is just going to emerge out of the blue so much as it will emerge from relative obscurity and be fawned over by all the twats who only get their sources from the radio and MTV.
"next big things" are usually just a mass appreciation of something others have been enjoying on a far smaller scale.

Except Brittney pop. I don't know where the hell that came from.

This is usually true but the music industry is so messed up that people don't "appreciate" things for a quarter as long as they used to. So I think it's safe to say that a lot of trends burn out before they get out of that smaller scale.

i dont know...probably just rap or hip hop most of the time...i dont know if there would be a new thing in rock though.

how can you not think there will be something new in rock

There will be new things in Rock, but they won't take over and dominate in the same way that say, alternative did in the early nineties... the marketplace is so broad and diverse and everything and anyone can find an audience on the internet these days, regardless of distribution deals etc.... sure the big players that have big record deals have a sizeable advantage, but its not insurmountable anymore...

Plus there are so many genres around now its a real mish mash without any particular genre being dominant as far as i see it... there isn't a real divide in music, most people will and do take a little from column A and a little from column B in their tastes.

Ipods, Mp3 players allow people to dabble in music more instead of buying ful length albums and making a commitment to an artist or style...

So its all very post modern and diverse and i think to talk in terms of next biug things is sticking to an already irrelevant view of how the world of music and its distribution, and how people consume it works...

As far as metal goes, there is still a huge amount of people who say they love metal, but they only like Metalcore/Deathcore bands. And the entirety of the metal community seems to be moving towards grindcore as the next thing that is "cool" to like.

well dont listen to something because its cool to like listen to it because you like it lol