In regard to how I feel about “award” shows, such as the audaciously generic Grammy Awards which took place last Sunday night, I defer to author Mark Twain:

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it’s time to pause and reflect.”

I’m not quite sure what it is about me that wants to constantly defy popular opinion. I mean, I do anything but hide the fact that I’m a skeptical contrarian. Nevertheless I am certainly capable of recognizing talent and I certainly can (and always will) give proper respect and praise when it’s due. I am by no means a bitter or jaded person and can definitely appreciate beauty and goodness in all its many forms.

I suppose my problem with “Pop music” or “Pop Culture” in general stems from the underlying idea that Pop music in the twentieth century has essentially become mass art, a commodity aimed at the largest possible number of consumers. To quote the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy:

…[popular music] must combine a high degree of standardization with relative accessibility, and so the same rhythms and structures appear again and again. Yet a constant supply of new “product” must be marketed to consumers. As a result, popular music competes with and replaces local and regional folk traditions (In the wake of the industrial revolution, genuine folk art is no longer possible.). In a commercial world where one popular song sounds much like any other, popular music cannot function as a medium of genuine communication. At best, a philosophically reflective stance sees that its standardization and commercial presentation reflects important facets of the socio-economic conditions that shape it. Its standardization reflects the alienating, oppressive standardization of modern capitalism. The momentarily pleasurable diversions offered by popular music are mere distractions from this alienation – a process that the music itself reinforces. Since it fails to satisfy any genuine needs, exposure to popular music encourages an endless repetition of the cycle of consumption, boredom, alienation, and fresh distraction through consumption.

To me The Grammys, which awards popular music, would be similar in nature to an award show that would give accolades to popular junk food, like chips, pretzels and cotton candy. The junk food seems to taste really good and gives you the feeling of being full but doesn’t really satisfy any essential health needs.

Tags:aestheticsgrammy awardsphilosopypop music