Pros and Cons in the Complicated World of Genre Labels, by Braeden Pelko

As music has evolved, the amount of genres created is overwhelming, to say the least. Although it is helpful to categorize music into specific styles accordingly, some people obsess over this categorization. 

There has been a noticeable increase in the amount of judgment from others based on music taste and everyone has judged someone else’s preference before. I usually see, and use, this judgment as banter between friends. However, if you use social media, it is incredibly easy to see some users that are truly passionate about making other people feel like their preferred genre or style is basic, incorrectly labeled, or just bad. 

Genre labeling can create a healthy community in the genre itself and encourage others to seek out more music they may enjoy. On the other hand, it can create hostility in that genre and make some people feel like what they're listening to is incorrect or not actually what they like.

The pros of very specific genres can be useful in finding new music and specifying someone’s taste. You do not have to be well-versed in music to know your favorite type, but it can be good to use genres to help explore what else you (and others) might like. For example, if I ask you what kind of music you like to listen to, and you respond with “rock,” that could mean anything from Led Zeppelin, to Radiohead, to Nickelback. Instead, if I asked the same question and you said, “psychedelic rock,” I already have a better idea of what you listen to. From that, it's easier for you to find more music of the same genre from other’s recommendations, or it becomes easier to recommend artists to other people who might share a similar taste to yours.

Furthermore, finding the precise name of a genre you like  can lead you down a rabbit hole to find ultra specific ones. If you’re on the music side of TikTok, you might have seen a trend of people going “niche for niche” in music genres. This included users finding the most obscure and bizarre subgenres out there. The most prominently mentioned microgenres were Iraqi shoegaze and Japanese post-rock.  Despite this specification, there are usually only a handful of artists creating these types of music. 

Although it seems unusual to get this concise on a defined style of music, it can create a sense of connection and unity to those that do listen. I have my own personal experience in these microgenres. Two of my favorite genres of all time are slowcore and atmospheric post-metal. If I told the average person this, it would mean nothing to them and then I will turn into a professor of subgenres trying to explain what I mean. However, as soon as somebody recognizes one of those genres, an instant connection is made! That little interaction based on niche subgenres creates a bond, showing the unity created by the genre and the community of people that listen to it. 

On the contrary, the creation of specific subgenres can lead to a lot of negativity within the genre itself. Some listeners of a subgenre openly put down others that listen to it because of a genre label’s specificity. For example, if there is a person really passionate about their favorite kind of music, they’re going to make sure other people know it. This is usually done by telling others that are fans of their favorite genre that the artists they listen to are not really a part of that genre. People that do this are typically referred to as “gatekeepers.” 

Gatekeeping can be defined as anyone that thinks they have a superiority in their taste of media. This doesn’t include just music: Gatekeeping exists in movies, television, video games, etc. Anybody that thinks their preferences are better with no basis other than their opinion can be considered a gatekeeper. There is often no real backbone in a gatekeeper's argument.

In music, gatekeepers try and prevent others from listening to certain kinds of music; making comments towards others that are fans of an artist by making them feel like what they are listening to is incorrect given the genre. This can make new fans of an artist or genre feel like they are being ostracized which could prevent them from exploring music they might really enjoy.

Gatekeeping happens in every genre. From what I’ve seen, it’s by far the most common within the emo or metal communities. 

Emo music is one of those genres that has a whole subculture attached to it. It has a very specific aesthetic and theme demonstrated by the artists that make it and people that listen to it. Colloquially, emo is considered a subgenre of alternative rock that is more introspective in its lyrics with a direct image attached to it. As a fan of emo, my biggest gripe is the many gatekeepers of it. So many people care too much about whether or not a band can be defined as emo, and to what subgenre of emo they belong, to the point where it is nearly impossible to navigate. Personally, I love American Football’s self titled album, and always saw it labeled as a perfect example of midwest emo. Then, I saw a TikTok explaining how it isn’t midwest emo which immediately confused me because I thought everybody was in agreement of that album’s label.

Many more videos can be found on social media of users explaining what is “real emo” and what is not. This makes it confusing for people trying to find more recommendations of similar artists in the genre and draws people away from exploring the subculture altogether. 

Similarly, the genre of metal has its fair share of gatekeeping. The subgenre labels of metal are probably some of the most extensive and thorough in all music. You would be surprised at how specific a lot of these microgenres are. Some of the most specific I listen to are NOLA sludge metal, raw black metal and doomgaze. However, with this specificity comes a group of people that try to categorize artists in ways that negatively affect listeners of those artists. It gets to a point where there are heated debates as to what can be classified to a subgenre and what cannot, creating a level of disconnect within the genre’s community. Sometimes the differences between two artists are so subtle that it's extremely baffling as to why it's even an argument. This in turn can make people feel disconnected to their favorite genre because of the lack of clarity. 

On another note, there is a clear distinction to be made between actual criticism of music versus gatekeeping. There is of course a difference between disliking a genre and dismissing it entirely. You cannot dismiss a genre as bad if you have not listened to it before. You should instead give it a try and then form your opinion. If you find that you do not like a genre after listening to it, that’s totally fine, too. Besides, there are always going to be certain genres that just don’t do it for a lot of people (although, chronically online gatekeepers would argue that you “just don’t get it” and try to diminish your opinion). This is most commonly seen when people show preferences for more popular genres like modern pop and country instead of the previously mentioned niche microgenres. 

Ultimately, genre labels creating these controversies seems somewhat unnecessary. Most of the gatekeepers in a genre’s community likely have nothing better to do. It shouldn’t matter what a specific kind of music is labeled as, but what kind of music the listeners of that artist enjoy. If you enjoy an artist’s music or a specific genre, do not let people try and push you away from it based on their personal classification of what it is. You should not feel invalidated for having a specific taste, nor should feel invalidated for not correctly knowing where a genre fits. 

Genre labels are a confusing thing to navigate. Do not feel obligated to know the specifics of a genre you listen to. Put on whatever you find enjoyable and leave it at that. It may help to look further into what you like to find more genres that are similar. Don’t get caught up in the informal discourse of online gatekeeping that’s trying to keep you away from discovering new music. Do not let a die-hard gatekeeper or stingy subculture nerds stop you. Your preferred sequence of noises is no better or worse than mine or anybody else's. Love what you listen to and don’t feel ashamed of it.