A new survey of 1,000 respondents conducted by Ipsos for Rolling Stone and the Associated Press confirms what we’ve been saying for some time now. Half of the music fans in the 18-34 age group say that music isn’t as good as it used to be. Rewind almost a year ago to Jacobs Media’s Technology Web Poll where we asked a similar question. In that survey, an alarming percentage of radio fans echoed this sentiment.
The good news? FM radio is the main conduit through which music fans are exposed to the new stuff. Hang in there.
President & Founder at Jacobs Media
Fred Jacobs founded Jacobs Media in 1983, and quickly became known for the creation of the Classic Rock radio format.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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Does this survey have any trend data? Without it the 50% figure is relatively meaningless. What did 18-34s say two years ago? Five years ago? Ten years ago?
Plus, the survey question was, “Do you think music, in general, is getting better or getting worse?” Not specifically “ROCK” music … just “music.” Respondents also weren’t given a “it’s about the same” choice (although they could volunteer that answer, and quite a few did just that).
In other words, they were forced to make a very broad choice. Considering most peoples’ penchant for nostalgia … for fondly remembering the “good old days” … for looking at the past through “rose-colored glasses” … is this really surprising?
Yes, we’d love it if everybody thought music was getting better. But without any historical perspective on this issue, what can we really say about this data? Perhaps it’s always been this way.
Trending – and that’s the reason why we’re replicating last year’s Tech Web Poll. Now that we have a baseline, we can begin to better understand true trends.
Yes, and why we happily signed up to participate in the Poll. Looking forward to it!