Reason for Musical Ambiguity
What is it about music that makes people say they are interested in all types and really “don’t like any specific style”? A guaranteed response from anyone who you ask “What type of music do you like?”, will be, “Nothing specific really, I like everything except maybe X style and Y style of music.” No other medium is like that. The question is usually phrased differently if it is posed regarding movies, books or TV shows, however, most people are more reluctant to commit to any specific genre in respect to music. Most people can’t even come up with a favorite band if you ask them, however, in general people can tell you what their favorite movie is without a problem. Are people’s musical tastes much more all inclusive than any other medium or is it that most are reluctant to be included into a social category that certain musical tastes connote?
Maybe that is the key. Music, more than any other medium associates itself in our minds as a strong identifier to a certain social group. When one thinks about liking Rap, Country, Indie, or Rave music a certain picture of each person is conjured in their head. This is much more, than say, if one were to say that their favorite book was “Catcher in the Rye” or they liked to watch “Lost” or that their favorite movie was “The Godfather”. Are people aware of these stereotypes regarding their musical tastes and unless they are deeply entrenched in the social group associated with that specific type of music they tend to shy away from identifying themselves as a fan of a specific genre?
It would be an interesting study to ask people that question and compare thier answers to what they had in thier musical library and how much thier identification with that music affected thier lives and interactions with thier various peer groups.
I am not one of these people but would like to say that MAYBE it’s because music is much more of a mood setter, and people’s musical preferences vary with their mood. I like to listen to Bob Marley when it’s raining, Jack Johnson when i’m in traffic, and shitty gay holiday music during Christmas…but i wouldn’t call any of these my “favorite genre”