The closest I ever came to being the target of discrimination were blanket inflammatory boys vs. girls statements on the playground: “Boys rule, girls drool,” “Boys go to college to get more knowledge, girls go to Jupiter to get more stupider,” – the kind of accusations that relied on an elementary knowledge of rhymes and could easily be reversed to insult the other sex.
That is, until the first time I let a friend see my iPod. Apparently, my eclectic collection of silly hits from when my parents were in high school, Top 40 singles and songs that played on Radio Disney long after my classmates decided they were too old to listen to it isn’t socially acceptable.
I’ve heard all sorts of scoffing remarks from music snobs and I doubt I’m the only one.
We can’t judge someone based on race, gender, sexuality or religion without being socially reviled, but it is somehow perfectly acceptable to make decisions about a person based on the content of his or her iTunes playlists, Netflix Instant Queue or bookshelf.
Do you own Nickelback’s complete discography? You’re obviously a loser with no ability to discern musical talent or originality. Watch “Portlandia”? Get out of here, hipster. Dare to suggest that maybe “Twilight” was a fun read and not meant to undermine feminism? You’re a terrible person with no literary taste.
But none of that is true. While some Nickelback or “Twilight” fans may lack taste, the majority does not. Judging a person based on the entertainment they consume is as ridiculous as judging him for the church he attends or her for the political party she supports.
Pop culture snobs reflect a larger trend of stereotyping individuals based on preconceived notions.
This trend seems to have grown during the past few years, when social media websites like Tumblr cemented the concept of individual fan bases. These select groups of hyperactive fans overshadow more casual ones, perpetuating stereotypes.
The legions of One Direction fans are an interesting example of this phenomenon. While they are divided among themselves – “Directioners” fight with “Directionators” about who loves the group of English crooners the most and both argue with “Beliebers” –together they are often ridiculed by outsiders.
I don’t actually know that much about One Direction, other than that they have a few fun songs and the boys are cute in an I-wish-I-went-to-high-school-with-them kind of way.
However, I feel hesitant to even admit that “One Thing” was a really catchy song and the last thing I listened to on YouTube, for fear of cruel comments from those hipster friends who adore Kings of Leon. (Hipster friends, is that too mainstream now? I can barely follow mainstream culture, let alone the indie ones.)
This shouldn’t be the case. We need to embrace our different pop culture tastes, whether they meet peer approval.
So let’s stop hiding our playlists. Music, books and movies don’t need to be guilty pleasures; they can just be pleasures. Stand up and proudly belt out the lyrics to your favorite song without caring about what the haters think.
Reach the news editor at julia.shumway@asu.edu or follow @JMShumway on Twitter.
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