Do Today’s Musicians Require Less Talent to Gain Respect?


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Now before any of you get all-out mad, I don’t hate today’s music. As much as I love modern music, I still have some opinions about it.

What I mean is, it appears that anyone can get on the top trending music lists, and anyone can publish a video displaying their music or band and quickly gain popularity. Access and visibility to display your “supposed” talent is easy with today’s advanced technology. But let me first take you back in time to the most respected musicians of the 17th and 18th centuries.

Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Chopin, Schubert, Tchaikovsky… You have probably heard of these names because they were legends in music, and will be forever. Classical music is known for being very powerful. When you listen to it, it’s as if the composer is telling a story through notes and instruments. To do this, they had to train for years and master the art of classical music, and it took much sacrifice, passion, and talent to be respected among their peers. Imagine all the people back then wishing one day they could be like Mozart! To this day, many people still listen to the music of these classical artists, and their music still inspires many young musicians.

Now fast forward all the way to the 20th century. This was the century of rock. Queen, Pink Floyd, Guns N Roses, Led Zepplin, AC/DC, Aerosmith, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Van Halen, Bon Jovi… I could go on forever, but these are some of the most respected and famous rock bands of the 20th century. Our love of rock is very similar to our love for modern music. It makes you happy. It can make you feel like you are not alone; it connects people. No matter the listener’s race, sex, or age, our love of rock and modern music connects the whole world. This is why we hear music in so many places. 

Now back to the original topic: Exactly how hard is it to be respected like the bands mentioned above? Well, in these bands, there are some of the greatest musicians in history. For example, take the band Guns ‘N Roses. First, the bassist, Duff McKagan is a bassist who is definitely very respected in the rock community. So is the drummer, Frank Ferrer. As long as you listen to rock music, you will definitely know their guitarist Slash, named one of the greatest guitarists in history. Buckethead, also a very respected guitarist also used to play for Guns ’N Roses. And let’s not forget about Axl Rose, the vocalist and keyboardist of the band. Every one of these members sold their soul to be gods of music, and that is how famous rock bands are formed. Well, at least in those times. 

I think that nowadays, musicians are finding easier ways to gain respect in the music industry. Green Day is one of my favorite punk rock bands, but when I listen to their music, all they are playing is the same chord progressions over and over. Many of you guys may not be metal fans, and I have heard many comments that metal doesn’t take any talent. But as a metal fan, myself, I can tell you that Suicide Silence didn’t just suddenly decide to do metal. Their crazy-paced drums and fast-paced guitar riffs are very hard to compose and to play. Metal vocals aren’t just screaming or groaning. Out of all the genres’ vocals, I can tell you that metal vocals are probably the hardest to perform. It takes a lot of practice to achieve the type of vocals that they need for their songs, and it’s very hard to harmonize their voices with their other instruments. Just try it yourself right now; you will be surprised at how difficult it is.

Finally, we come to modern music. In my opinion, it takes very little talent to gain respect. You see, most artists that we all know nowadays, Drake, Post Malone, Billie Eilish, Travis Scott, Ariana Grande, Lil Wayne, Lil Tecca, Lil Nas X, *and all the other lils,* Justin Bieber… Most of them have producers who send them some beats, they choose one of them, and then start experimenting with their vocals. This aspect of music has changed so much since back in the old days when the stars were not just centered on the vocalists, but more of the whole band together. Though there are still many talented vocalists and rappers these days, most of them don’t do as much work to gain respect. Also, technology is definitely a factor in music nowadays. Back then, you had to know how to play drums to make music. Now, you just program in the drums, the synthesizers, and everything else. You definitely still have to have some understanding of music, but not as much as before.

In conclusion, music has changed so much over the years, and in my opinion, it was a lot harder to gain respect as a musician in previous centuries than it is now. If anyone has a different opinion, please reach out to me by sending me a comment about this article.