Rockin' the Suburbs?

I really enjoy music. I just don't enjoy most of the music that you hear on the radio these days. Maybe I'm just getting old, but I'm pretty sure that most of the music out there sucks. That's not to say that there aren't good bands putting out music, it's just that it's hard to find them because they don't get much air time.

I envy rock stars. I spent a lot of time as a teenager dreaming about becoming a rock star. The money would certainly be nice, as would having women throw themselves at you (that would be really nice). But even without that, I think that it would be an amazing feeling to take the stage while a crowd of thousands of people starts screaming. I suppose the same would go for being a star athlete, but I've always known that I didn't have that kind of talent.

When I was in elementary school my mom had us join the chorus, and then would ask us to sing any time we were around other family members. I think there are still some tape recordings floating around my parents' house somewhere, and they would always tell us how good we sounded (I know it's good to try and build up your kids' self esteem, but I was definitely lied to in this case). After this kind of attention, I actually started to believe that I could carry a tune and used to come up with scenarios in which some record producer would be on vacation and overhear me singing as I stocked the cooler at work (or something like that). I just knew that I would be offered a record deal on the spot. It's pretty funny to think about now.

What I'm getting at is that I can understand why thousands of people would line up for tryouts to get their chance at being a pop star. But that doesn't make it right that American Idol is now getting ready to begin ANOTHER season. I hate that show. I hate almost all of the reality shows on t.v. now, but this one is especially bad. Maybe it's because I can just choose not to watch the others, but with this one, once a season is over I am forced to listen to another crappy set of songs playing on the radio FOR THE NEXT YEAR OR SO. I personally think that it should take more than just the talent to sing to make it as a star. I'm not as impressed when someone is just belting out the words that others have written for them as I am when someone, whose voice may not be the best, is singing something that they have had the talent to write themselves. I'd much rather listen to someone who is singing about something they wrote while drawing upon their own experiences and feelings than someone who is singing something written because a group of people in a boardroom sat around and tried to come up with something that would sell. I don't think I'm alone in having this attitude, but it seems like people who think like me on this are getting to be more and more of a minority.

I'm just really thankful for some of the internet radio stations, or for my friends which subscribe to satellite radio from SIRIUS. There is good music out there, and places like that make it easier to find. I'll definitely subscribe to one of those once I have a real job and can afford some of the 'finer' things in life. I can hardly wait.