what the F happened to 2k9?

And what do we have to show for it in the way of music? In my opinion... not much. I will say though, I have opened up more than I ever have to female singers. It's weird, I have always been so dead-set against chick singers. And to be honest I never really knew what it was that turned me off about them. I guess I sort of liked Avril Lavigne, It was cool. It was Pop-punk. catchy sing-a-longs... and not bad looking either. More recently, though, we have had bands like Paramore (amazing), and Versa Emerge (also amazing) that have opened the door for an appreciation of other artists like dare-I-say Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, and everyones favorite Taylor Swift. (Disclaimer: When I say "opened the door" I don't mean for the success of the artists mentioned. Yes, we all know that Britney Spears practically CREATED singing.. gross. I meant that it opened the door, or opened my eyes rather, to an appreciation of the other music out there. ...is all)

Now, before you hit the X button at the top of your browser and discount all of my opinions from here on, please hear me out. Take "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus. It's one of the most uplifting ballads I've heard since "God Bless the U.S.A."(I would insert the artists name here but I'm too lazy to look it up. It's the "...proud to an American.. " song). It doesn't matter if she wrote it, or if she had multi-million dollar producers helping to sculpt it into the perfectly constructed song that it became. Same Goes for her "Party in the U.S.A" Incredibly catchy song. Let's Move on to Taylor Swift. Just about every song that comes out of her mouth is an instant hit. And with good reason. Whether you "like" it or not, you absolutely HAVE to admit that it accomplishes what they set out to do; make incredibly catchy, powerful music, that a really broad group of people can relate to. And, We can't leave Katy Perry out. She's perhaps the catchiest of them all.

So, if we can take ANYTHING away from 2009, let's all try to be more open minded when it comes to making the list of what we like. I don't mean go find that bands that you hate and listen to them anyway. I'm saying that it is best to not discount a particular artist just for who or what they are.

Take a listen.
Discover that it may actually be "Good Music"
THEN if it doesn't happen to be your cup of tea, you never have to listen to it again.

My words of wisdom for the day... Just because you happen to like the same song or music as a 13 year old girl, doesn't make you a 13 year old girl. Listen to what you like and be proud of it.

Thanks kids,
Mark/TMS

P.S.
I'm going to start leaving you with an artist or album to check out on your own time. Most of the time it will relate to the post. It will usually be someone that I think it worth checking out. Other times it may be something that I want to be burned down, but needs to be listened to anyway.

Artist of the day: VersaEmerge
It's really good.