Winter 2024

 

Winter 2024

A new journey of our lives exists now.  First, Happy New Year today on January 1, 2024, on Monday. Some have maintained their faith, and others have lost theirs. Yet, we are still here with our faith and our convictions intact after decades of living on this Earth. As we enter the Winter season of 2023-2024, we realize that we are in a new era of our time. Being 40 years old now is certainly an amazing milestone in my life. Many of us older Millennials (like me) are in early middle age. I'm a middle-aged person now (being 40 years old since December of 2023), and that is very interesting. I remember many events like yesterday like going into Kindergarten in late 1988, the Dream Team playing basketball in 1992, 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, the 9/11 attacks, the start of the Iraq War, the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, the Ferguson protests in 2014, and the George Floyd global protests of 2020. Now, we witness a time nearing 2030. Time is going so fast, but the ultimate truth remains constant. The truth is that human beings should show love, improve their lives, and show integrity during their longevities. We have to expose deceptions too. One deception is the No Labels Party movement. This movement claims to be a "moderate" group, but they are funded by reactionary forces. Many people are sick of the two major parties, and that is understandable. Yet, the only person who will win the 2024 election will be Trump or Biden. Trump donors back the No Labels group according to Robert Reich in his video. Trump and Biden aren't equally extreme. Trump has been impeached twice, found liable for sexual assault, wants to abolish the Constitution, and is accused of multiple felonies too. Biden is not equivalent to the most corrupt former President of the 21st century, being Donald Trump. Trump has tried to overturn the 2020 election. Democracy barely won in the 2020 election with Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Michigan going for Biden. A fraction of the anti-Trump vote going to a third party may cause Trump to be President in 2024. There is no middle ground between democracy and fascism. Our advocacy for democratic rights is paramount in our lives. In other words, people are entitled to have liberty, human beings have the right not to be oppressed, and people have the right to live on this Earth with fundamental human rights. The House Republicans voting for an impeachment inquiry against Biden which is ludicrous as Biden is not guilty of the massive felonies that Trump is being accused of. 

We know he had sensitive intelligence in a binder about Russia that is now missing. Many people still don't know about its whereabouts. We should talk about these issues because Donald Trump can never be trusted as President again. New York state court throws out voting map that can pave the way for the House to have Democratic control of the New York state House. In Donald Trump's December 16, 2023, Saturday hate rally in Durham, New Hampshire, Trump spewed more racist, anti-immigrant rhetoric. Trump lied and quoted Vladimir Putin to say that President Joe Biden is a threat to democracy. Biden isn't perfect, the agenda of Trump is vastly worse than Biden's political policies. Trump also said the overtly racist comment that immigrants are "poisoning the blood of our country." This nonsense is what Hitler and white racists have said for decades and centuries. The truth is that America is made up of many different people and cultures including immigrants who made great contributions to American society. Trump praised authoritarian people like Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump has always praised leaders in other countries who executed anti-democratic measures. Trump admitted in a FOX News town hall that he would act as a dictator on Day 1 of his Presidency for a day. Trump said that immigrants from across the world are "pouring into the country." Trump called people who disagreed with him as "vermin." Xenophobes believe in the lie that immigrants collectively want to poison America when they are just seeking survival and human rights. Trump's anti-immigrant rhetoric has been used by racists who massacred people in Pittsburgh in 2018 and in El Paso, Texas in 2019. Trump is clear about what he wants. Trump wants to use detention camps to get undocumented immigrants deported, have a travel ban targeting various countries, and wants the police to be indemnified (to not allow crooked police to be sued). Trump is a white racist fascist who does not deserve our vote period. 

There are a lot of political news now. The Colorado Supreme Court said that Trump is disqualified from the GOP Primary Ballot. That result has 208 pages. This is very historic. Trump engaged in being involved in insurrection in trying to overthrow the result of the legal 2020 election. Trump agitated the crowd back on January 6, 2021, to try to stop the legal election proceedings at Congress. Later, the crowd engaged in terrorism, flying Confederate and Neo-Nazi flags, and harming police officers (while claiming to respect the police hypocritically). The Colorado Supreme Court used the 14th Amendment (in Section 3) as a means to disqualify Donald Trump from the GOP primary ballot. This decision may go to the U.S. Supreme Court via appeal by Trump's legal team. The Colorado Supreme Court took time to present its decision to the general public. They didn't take their responsibility lightly. The Kremlin media has praised MAGA people for supporting not giving aid to Ukraine. The Hungarian dictator Orban blocks EU aid to Ukraine for now. In the economy, we have many good news. We have inflation falling to 3.1 percent. Gasoline prices are down below $3 a gallon. We have the Dow having an all-time record above 37,000 eclipsing Trump's bragging about the stock market when he was President. We have a long way to go involving the economy though. Some food prices are entirely too high as we all know, but we have some blessings too. Trump betrayed the American nation and is a traitor. Consequences and accountability must be made against Trump. One of those consequences is legal policies that prevent traitors from running for office. 

Loving freedom is important in living life. We are certainly well aware that our rights are sacred. They are so hallowed that men, women, and children in many cases have died for the fight for these democratic principles. We have new threats to our democracy like many of Trump's fake electors (who tried to illegally overturn the 2020 election) holding official roles overseeing elections in many swing states. We have legacy admissions in abundance in universities while the Supreme Court hypocritically bans affirmative action in universities. Now, people are galvanizing for raising the minimum wage into a living wage (as no grown adult can survive in America in the income of $7.25 an hour. That's very infeasible), unemployment benefits, taxing the super wealthy, promoting unions, enforcing the rule of law, promoting reparation for African Americans, ending imperialism, having health care for all, ensuring environmental justice, promoting voting rights, and desiring justice for all. I have hope for the future, because we have been here before (and in many generations, kindhearted people have stood up for the revolutionary change that did cause benefits to humanity from the labor rights movement, the civil rights movement, the abolitionist movement, etc.). At the end of the day, there should be the growth of a powerful movement in 2024 to promote freedom and liberty comprehensively. In November of 2024, we have to vote. Also, we must be active in our communities, develop our arguments, and plan ahead in order to develop a better future in cogent ways. 

The History of Rock and Pop Part 6: The Rock and Pop Music of the 21st Century

The music of the 2000's saw massive changes vocally, digitally, and technologically. The music of the early 2000's was different than the late 2000's. Signs of the movements of the music of this decade existed by the late 1990's with the more electronic, fast tempo sounds of Timbaland, Pharrell, Destiny's Child, etc. Rock, pop, R&B, EDM country, gospel, indie, metal, and other genres of music witnessed the digital age reach into a new level. This decade saw Napster being gone after copyright legal disputes. CD sales declined by the end of the 2000's, and people saw diverse genres shining their influence in the world. Also, new genres existed like nu-disco and post-punk revival. People listened to the UK-invented grime, garage rock revival, new indie rock style, and chillwave being popular in America. There was a teen pop movement from the 1990's that carried over into the 2000's like *NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Mandy Moore, Jessica Simpson, Hillary Duff, Lindsay Lohan, and Christina Aguilera. Comebacks were abundant from Michael Jackson, Madonna, Cher, Mariah Carey, Brandy, Monica (with the album After the Storm in 2003), Mary J. Blige, and other artists. Michael Jackson released Invincible, Mariah Carey released The Emancipation of Mimi (being one of the greatest comeback albums in music history), and Madonna released Music. Contemporary R&B was very popular with artists like Usher, Alicia Keys, Beyonce, Rihanna, Toni Braxton, Amerie, Mya, Ashanti, Mario, Lyfe Jennings, B2K, Anthony Hamilton, Jennifer Hudson, Fantasia, and other legends. In 2004, the Billboard Year-End Hot 100 had 15 of its top 25 singles as contemporary R&B. Toni Braxton's Libra is one of her greatest albums of the 21st century and Beyonce had tons of empowerment anthems during the 2000's too. 

Rock and roll music saw diverse artists like Oasis, Coldplay, U2, Weezer, Blink 182, Fall Ot Boy, Avril Lavigne, 3 Doors Down, Seether, Daughtry, The Foo Fighters, Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit, Green Day, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, and other artists. Hip Hop grew into the mainstream and organized more into a business empire with Nas, Jay Z, Outkast, 50 Cent, the Game, Eminem, T.I., Missy Elliot, Busta Rhymes, Diddy, Black Eyed Peas, Timbaland, Souja Boy, Unk, D4L, Ludacris, Lil Wayne, Young Jeezy, Kanye West, etc. Hip-hop artists became business owners, actors, actresses, and setting up massive foundations by this time into the next level. Country music excelled. New artists started their careers with Corrine Bailey Rae, Adele, etc. By the end of the decade, a pop, dance sound existed with Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, and Miley Cyrus existed. Electronic music would be very popular. By the end of the decade, J-Pop and K-pop would flourish along with Indian pop music.  With autotune, Reggae, Reggaeton, and Narcocorrido music, the music of the 2000's saw experimentation as the order of the day. The 2000's saw traumatic and very important events like 9/11, Katrina, the Iraq War, and the economic recession (which caused thousands of innocent lives to be lost and mayhem globally). The war on terror started in this decade with debates about civil liberties (i.e. the Patriot Act, etc.) and global military conflicts expanding worldwide. Likewise, the 2000's saw a lot of opportunities where artists expressed their talents to the world in creative, fruitful designations also. 

 

 

The Pop Explosion Continues

The 2000s saw a massive pop culture revival in the musical scene. This scene grew because we live in a post-Cold War society and new cultures were rising up. By early January 2000, Christina Aguilera's song of What a Girl Wants was one of her most successful records. Savage Garden had the song of I Knew I Loved You. Mariah Carey worked with Joe and 98 Degrees with the romance song of Thank God I Found You. Lonestar had the song of Amazed. Later, Destiny's Child had the anthem of Say My Name which was shown everywhere. Destiny's Child inspired future all women groups everywhere. Santana with The Product G&B had the song, Maria Maria. Aaliyah by June of 2000 had the hit of Try Again from the Romeo Must Die soundtrack. Aaliyah always had a sultry, mysterious voice that matched the essence of her down to Earth personality. Music was shown by Enrique Iglesias, Vertical Horizon, Matchbox Twenty, NSYNC, Sisqo (with the song Incomplete with Lisa Raye), Madonna, Creed, and other artists. Janet Jackson released the great dance song of Doesn't Really Matter (whose message of being open minded in terms of dating is valued by many human beings). Destiny's Child had the hit song of Independent Women (part of the Charlie Angels movie soundtrack). The year of 2000 had many fun songs too. Mary Mary released the song of Praise You in gospel. Jennifer Lopez had the pop hit of Waiting for You. Samantha Mumba released the song Waiting for You being an Afro-Irish singer. Aaliyah had the hit of I Don't Wanna. The Chicks had the hit of Cowboy Take Me Away. Sisqo in the year of 2000 had the song of Thong Song when Sisqo was a superstar. Deborah Morgan had the song of Dance with Me. Pop songs like Alice Deejay with Better Off Alone was high on the charts. Tim McGraw had the song of My Best Friend and How Do You Like Me Now? Where I Wanna Be from Donnell had some of the most sentimental music. Pink had the pop song of Most Girls and There You Go before going into the Rock route in 2000. The Real Slim Shady by Eminem was released in 2000. Blue (Da Ba Dee) from Eiffel 65 was known by me in the year 2000 including Smash Mouth's hit of Then the Morning Comes. Faith Hill had the song of Breathe too. 

In 2001, everything was different. Shaggy released the song It Washn't Me with Ricardo Ducent. Crazy Town had the song Butterly. Angel was the song with Shaggy and Rayvon. Lady Marmalade was made with Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya, and Pink to show an ode to LaBelle's song of the same name in the 1970's. Hits were found galore with Destiny's Child with the song Bootylicious (and Survivor). Survivor was a song by Destiny's Child about them maintaining their integrity, not compromising their Christianity, and being survivors of the storms that go on in life.2000s Alicia Keys had the song Fallin' that changed her life. Keys can sing, play instruments, and write music. Alicia Keys is a one in a lifetime level talented artist. Nickelback had the song how You Remind Me. Music from Afroman was popular. Hero was the song from Enrique Iglesias that was popular. In 2001, Nelly had E.I., Dido, O-Town, LeAnn Womack, Moby, Gwen Stefani, Willa Ford had music, and Mariah Carey released the song Loverboy. Ja Rule mixed hip-hop and R&B music too. That style is commonplace now, but even in the early 2000's, that formula of music was very taboo in hip hop circles. U2 had the music of Beautiful Day. In 2002, Nelly Furtado made tons of music at the start of her career including 3LW. Jessica Simpson, S Club 7, Toya, Enya, Ricky Martin, Missy Elliot, and other musicians expressed massive talent. In 2002, Ja Rule and Ashanti had the song of Always on Time. Jennifer Lopez's career grew. In terms of hip hop, Nelly, Eminem, Nas, Jay Z, and other artists made music. Kelly Clarkson had the song of A Moment like This. Vanessa Carlton had the song of A Thousand Miles, Michelle Branch had music, and Christina Milian had music. There was pop music from Gareth Gates, Lenny Kravitz, Britney Spears, Phil Collins, Kosheen, A1, Kylie Minogue, and Christina Aguilera (with Dirty featuring Redman). Pink in 2002 went into rock. Robbie Williams, Enrique Iglesias, Moony, NYSNC, Daniel Bedingfield, No Doubt, Anastacia, and Ronan Keating made music. Celine Dion with the song of I'm Alive was popular. Shawna Twain had hits too. Sugababes made music like Round Round. Sugababes is a pop group. 

In the year of 2003, Beyonce dominated that year with songs like Crazy in Love in 2003. 50 Cent and G unit blew up in popularity, Jennifer Lopez had her run with All I Have with LL Cool J. B2K with Diddy had Bump Bump Bump. There was Clay Wiken making music and Nelly. Ludacris worked with Chicago hip hop artists Shawnna in the song of Stand Up. Sean Paul, Nate Dogg, Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, and other people released songs. Outkast's Hey Ya! song changed music forever. Andre 3000 and Big Boi were a duo of artists in Outkast that went into movies and other facets of their entertainment career. 2003 saw many underrated music too. There were groups and people like Outlandish, REM, Delta Goodrem, Sarah Connor, Blu Cantrell, Evanescence, Moloko, Maroon 5, Blue, Johnny Cash with Hurt, and Mariah Carey (with Busta Rhymes). Avril Lavigne, Sylver, Tomcraft, Seal, and Lumbidee had a great following. Mis-Teeq, White Stripes, Black Eyed Peas (with the political song of Where is the Love?), Girls Around, Holly Valance, Dido, Kelly Rowland, John Mayer, and Stacie Orrico made music too. Jamelia had the song of Superstar and Rachel Stevens had music too. Shania Twain had the song of Thank You Baby. By 2004, R&B and hip-hop dominated the popular music landscape. Outkast, Sleepy Brown, Jamie Foxx, Twista, and Kanye West grown. We have Yeah! being the popular song by Usher with Lil Jon and Ludacris. Usher had the hit of Burn too. Usher was among the most talented R&B singers and performers of our generation. In 2004, Fantasia loved music as shown by her song of Truth Is. Juvenile, Soulja Slim, Eamon, and Terror Squad had music. Ciara with Petey Pablo had the song of Goodies. By 2004, Ciara was in the music industry at the next level. Many don't know that Ciara is a great songwriter too My Boo was the song with Usher and Alicia Keys. Snoop Dogg and Pharrell had songs in 2004 too. 2004 was when I was 21 years old. Kenny Chesney had the song of I Got Back. Beanie Sigel had the song with Miss Thing. Lloyd with Ashanti had the song of Southside. Britney Spears had the song of Everytime. Kanye West's Through the Wire also made him a household name in the industry. 

In 2005, many songs were popular like Mario's Let Me Love You, and Candy Shop by 50 Cent featuring Olivia. Let Me Love You was Mario's first number one single that was number one for nine consecutive weeks. This is the year where many pop artists used hip hop beats like Gwen Stefani (who had music with the hip hop artist Eve too) with her song Hollaback Girl with Pharrell handling the beats. Mariah Carey made her 2000s anthem hit of We Belong Together around this time. Inside Your Heaven was sang by country singer Carrie Underwood. Gold Digger was a popular song made by Kanye West and Jamie Foxx. Don't Forget About Us was a great song by Mariah Carey, and Chris Brown released the song Run It! early in his career. In 2005, Ciara had the song of 1,2 Step with Missy Elliot. Robbie Williams released the song of Advertising Space and tatu released music. Bad Day was the song shown by Daniel Powter. Because of You was released by Kelly Clarkson and Jesse McCarthy too. Weezer had the song of Beverly Hills and Big City Life by Mattafix. KT Tunstall had music. Boulevard of Broken Dreams was released by Green Day. Beyonce was becoming more popular with the song of Check on It featuring Slim Thug. Collide was the song made by Howie Day. Gorillaz had the song of Dare. Britney Spears had the song of Do Somethin' and Shakira had the song of Don't Bother. In 2005, Black Eyed Peas has many hits with Fergie. P__cat Dolls had the song with Busta Rhymes with Don't You. The Chemical Brothers released the song of Galvanize. Music came from Melanie C, Coldplay, Daddy Yankee (with Gasolina), Jennifer Lopez with Get Right, and The Backstreet Boys had the song of Incomplete. Simon Webbe had the song of Lay Your Hands. Moby had the song Life Me Up. Akon released the song of Lonely. Long Night was released by The Corrs. Eminem released music. Ludacris and Ciara had the song Oh, Ashanti had the song Only You, and Nickelback had the song of PHograp. Anastacia had the song of Pieces of a Dream. Rihanna just come out with Pon De Replay in the year of 2005 too. This was the genesis of Rihanna early music career in the mainstream level. Jay Z quickly signed her. Push the Bottom was made by Sugabees. Shriver was released by Natalie Imbruglia. Signs was shown by Snoop, Charlie Wilson, and Justin Timberlake. Kelly Clarkson had the popular song of Since U Been Gone. Solider was the song released by Destiny's Child with Lil' Wayne. 2005 would be the time of Destiny's Child last group album. Speed of Sound was made by Coldplay. Jessica Simpson, Natasha Bedingfield, and other people shown music too including other people like Sean Paul, Lifehouse, James Blunt, Westlife, etc.

In 2006, past artists and new artists rose up. Grillz was the song shown by Nelly Paul Wall, Ali, and Gipp. Laffy Taffy was shown by D4L. So Sick was released by Ne-Yo. Ne-Yo is one of the greatest songwriters of the 21st century. He is that talented. Rihanna had the hit of SOS. Ridin which is about exposing police harassment of people was shown by Chamillionaire and Krayzie Bone. Hips Don't Lie is self-explanatory being released by Shakira featuring Wyclef Jean. London Bridge was the single released by Fergie. Nelly Furtado went into the pop and hip-hop route with the song Promiscuous with Timbaland (one of the greatest producers of all time). Taylar Hicks had the song of Do I Make You Proud. Justin Timberlake made the song SexyBack. This comes after Justin arrogantly and falsely said that he brought sexy back. Prince responded that sexy never left, and Prince was right. I Wanna Love You was made by Akon and Snoop Dogg. Ludacris and Pharrell had the hit of Money Maker. Beyonce made the song of Irreplaceable. In 2006, Leona Lewis had a hit called A Moment Like This, Christina Aguilera had that song of A'int No Other Man, and Nelly Furtado had the song of All Good Things (Come to an End including Maneater), and Mary J. Blige had the song of Be Without You. Will.i.am. had the producing of new songs. Call Me When You're Sober was released by Evanescence, Snow Patrol had the song of Chasing Cars. This is the time when Nicole Scherzinger made her own solo career with the song Come to Me with P. Diddy. Simon Webbe had the song of Coming Around Again. The 2000's anthem of Crazy was made by Granls Barkley (or Ceelo and Producer Danger Mouse). Dani California was made by Red Hot Chili Peppers. Beyonce had her song of Deja Vu with Jay Z in 2006. Nerina Pallot, Cascanda, Nickelback, Fergie, Madonna (with song Get Together including Jump), James Blunt, Flipsyde with Piper (of Happy Birthday), The Fray (How to Save a Life), and Anastacia made music. This time saw Cassie come out and The All-American Rejects with their songs too. Cassie was a young artist back then. In 2006, Corrine Bailey Rae had the song of Put Your Records On, and she is one of the most underrated artists of all time with her lyrics, vocal style, and haromonies. Robbie Williams, Monrose, Pink, Coldplay, Fort Minor, Nick Lashey, John Mayer, Keyshia Cole, and other people released music. Chris Brown had the song of Excuse Me, Chris Cornell had the song of You Know My Name, and Gwen Stefani had the song Wind It Up. 

By 2007, Beyonce solidified herself as the top pop entertainer of the world. Mims had the song of This is Why I'm Hot. Glamorous was the song of Fergie and Ludacris. Don't Matter was the record done by Akon. Give It To Me was the controversial song done by Timbaland, Nelly Furtado, and Justin Timberlake. Girlfriend was a song released by Avril Lavigne. Makes Me Wonder was done by Maroon 5, T-Pain and Yung Joc made music, and Plain White T's had the song of Hey There Delilah. The song of Rihanna with Jay Z called Umbrella was very significant globally. Umbrella made Rihanna into an explicit superstar in the music industry by 2007. Umbrella was shown everywhere in the world from stadiums to car sound systems. Sean Kingston had the song of Beautiful Girls, Big Girls Don't Cry was made by Fergie, and Crank That was released by Souja Boy. Kanye West made Stronger to further establish himself as a hip hop superstar. Kiss Kiss was the song by Chris Brown and T-Pain that grown both of their career. One of the most popular songs of Alicia Keys's career was No One. Fiest had the song of 1234, James Blunt released the song of 1973, Kyle Minogue released 2 Hearts, and Gwen Stefani had the song of 4 in the Morning. Sugabees had the song of About You Know. Calvin Harris, OneRepublic, Timbaland, 50 Cent made Ayo Technology (with Justin Timberlake), and Beyonce plus Shakira made Beautiful Liar. Ne-Yo had the record of Because of You. Maximo Park, Basshunter, Colby Caillat, Christina Aguilera, Gym Class Heroes, and Alex Gaudino with Crystal Waters had the song of Destination Calabria. Enrique Iglesias made the song of Do You Know, Rihanna had the song of Don't Stop the Music, Newton Faulkner had the song of Dream Catch Me, and Britney Spears had the song of Gimmie More. David Guetta had music too with Chris Willis called Love is Gone. This is the year where more techno beats existed in mainstream music. Cascanda had the song of Miracle. Finger Eleven, Cherry Ghost, Amy MacDonald, and Amy Winehouse made music (like Rehab). Natasha Bedingfield, Ville Valo, Billy Talent, and Jordin Sparks (made Tattoo), etc. had released music. Fall Out Boy and Christina Aguilera (with Diddy in the song of Tell Me), and Calvin Harris released music. The Pretender from Foo Fighters existed, and Gwen Stefani had the Great Escape with Akon. Keri Hilson made her music video debut with The Way I Are with Timbaland in 2007 That song shown Timbaland shown one of the most creative beats in his career. Keri Hilson is an underrated songwriter too. Linkin Park released What I've Done (that dealt with many political and social issues going on in the 21st century). Robyn with Kleerup had the song of With Every Heartbeat.  Amy Winehouse mase songs that predicted what her life was in You Know I'm no Good. 

In 2008, times would change involving music. There was more pop inspired music like Flo Rida with T-Pain with Low. Love in This Club was done by Usher and Young Jezzy. The singing UK superstar had the song of Bleeding Love. Mariah Carey shown Touch My Body. Lil Wayne with Static Major released Lollipop. Rihanna shown Take a Bow. Viva la Vida was shown by Coldplay. Katy Perry released music. Rihanna shown Distrubia which was the start of a massive change in Rihanna's style being more edgy. TI had the song of Whatever You Like. Pink had So What using the rock sound. Live Your Life was a song by TI and Rihanna. Britney Spears had the song of Womanizer, and Beyonce sang the anthem of Single Ladies (Put a Ring on it). 4 Minutes was the song with Madonna and Justin Timberlake. Music existed from A Fine Frenzy, Kid Rock, Madcon, etc. Estelle had the song of American Boy, and Leona Lewis had another hit called Better in Time. Circus was released by Britney Spears, Closer was shown by Ne-Yo, Crush was released by David Archuleta. Chasing Pavements was an early song made by Adele. Adele would grow to create her own legacy. Sugabees had the song of Denial. Moby had the song of Disco Lies. More unique songs were released by Shaggy, Daughtry, Chris Brown (with Forever), Leona Lewis (with Forgive Me), and Madonna with Give It 2 Me. Kanye West had the some of Homecoming and Adele had Hometown Glory. Katy Perry had the song of Hot and Cold. Music from the Killer, P__cat Dolls, Beyonce (with her song of If I Were a Boy), Lenny Kravitz, Jason Mraz, and Kylie Minoque had music. Lady Gaga had the superhit of Just Dance in 2008 starting her career into the next level. Christina Aguilera had Just Getting Better. Linkin Park released more music. The merging of genres is found in the song Let It Rock with Kevin Rudolf and Lil Wayne. Love Song was made by Sara Bareilles, and Taylor Swift started her career in the mainstream with Love Story. Duffy had the song of Mercy, Ne-Yo had the song Miss Independent, Yael Naim had the song of New Soul, and No Air with Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown came out. Paper Planes came by M.I.A. Piece of Me was shown by Britney Spears. Pocketful of Sunshine was released by Natasha Bedingfield. Duffy made the song of Rain on Your Parade. Leona Lewis made the song Run. Timbaland worked with Keri Hilson and Nicole Scherzinger in the song Scream. More music came from Kings of Leon, Metro Station, The Killers (with Spaceman), Keane, New Kids on the Block, The Tings, Alesha Dixon, MGMT, and Mariah Carey with Touch my Body. Kelly Rowland had the song of Work. Kelly Rowland is her own woman, and she is an advocate of exercise, fitness culture with her DVDs with fitness legend Jeanette Jenkins. 

By 2009, Beyonce and Lady Gaga's music were high on the charts. Kelly Clarkson made music along with Eminem, Dr. Dre, and 50 Cent. Flo Rida made the pop hit of Right Round. Lady Gaga made Poker Face. The Black Eyed Peas in 2009 had the song of Boom Boom Pow and I Gotta Feeling. Down was the song done by Jay Sean and Lil Wayne. Britney Spears released the song of 3. Jason Derulo had the song of Whatcha Say. Owl City had Fireflies and Jay Z plus Jay Z had the anthem of Empire State of Mind. Already Gone was released by Kelly Clarkson, and Alexandra Burke released Bad Boys. In 2009, Lady Gaga released Bad Romance making her come into the next level of stardom. Jordin Sparks had the song of Battlefield, being one of her best vocal performances. Akon, Colby O'Donis, and Kardinal Offishall had the song of Beautiful. Jeremih, Robbie Williams, Taio Cruz, James Morrison, Nelly Furtado, La Roux, Madonna, Daniel Meriweather, and Mando Diao released songs. Kid Cudi shown music. Dead and Gone was done by TI and Justin Timberlake. Alexander Ryback, Colbie Caillat, Cheryl Cole, Kasbian, Owl Cit, A-Ha, and Pink (with Funhouse) represent a new ear. Leona Lewis released Happy and Beyonce released Halo. Pitbull made club hits. Keri Hilson made her song of I Like. Marit Larsen, Britney Spears, AR Rahman, Snow Patrol, and Green Day (with Know Your Enemy) made tons of songs. Ciara shown songs during 2009 too. Pixie Lott, Nelly Furtado, Timbaland (had the song of Morning After Dark with Nelly Furtado and So Shy), Linkin Park (released New Divide), Lilly Allen, Mariah Carey (with Obsessed), and Miley Cyrus released Party in the USA. Kesha released music too. Rihanna had Run This Town and Russian Roulette. Beyonce had Sweet Dreams. By the end of 2009, we saw the prelude of what the 2010s would be filled with artists like Taylor Swift (Young Belong to Me), the Fray (with You Found Me), Kings of Leons, etc. 

Rock and Roll Continues

Rock and Roll during the 2000s was diverse and strong. The legacy of this time was that many people by the 2000s viewed rock and roll as passe, a fad, or lacking its original soul. Yet, like all musical genres (I do mean every musical genre, even gospel), times change. Musical beats and chords will differ over time. Many critics overlook many of the classic rock songs and albums during the 2000's. Here are many examples. There was the growth of nu metal band filled with Korn, System of a Down, Tool, Deftones, Slipknot, and Linkin Park. Linkin Park is based in California and made some of the greatest songs of our generation filled with messages about politics and social matters. The band had the rapper Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave Farrell, DJ/Turntablist Joe Hahn, drummer Rob Bourdon, and the late singer Chester Bennington. Their debut album Hybrid Theory sold more than 30 million worldwide. Their music with songs like One Step Closer, Crawling, Papercut, In the End, Numb, Breaking the Habit, Numb/Encore (with Jay Z), What I've Done (in 2007), and New Divide in 2009 make Linkin Park one of the greatest rock bands of all time. Back in the 2000's, there was a post-punk revival with The White Stripes, The Strokes, and The Killers. Green Day made some of its biggest comebacks in the 2000's too. We saw Weezer, Blink-182, Paramore, and My Chemical Romance. In mainstream rock and roll, many groups made huge records and many new comebacks. After Nirvana broke up after Kurt Cobain's passing, drummer Dave Grohl worked with others to create Foo Fighters. The Foo Fighters had massive energy. By 2002, their fourth album was One by One. In Your Honor in 2005 had a hard sound. They made influential songs like The One, All My Life, Best of You in 2005, the Pretender in 2007, and Wheels in 2010. During the 2010's and the 2020's, they have made more records like Show Me How, Making a Fire, and Rescued. Radiohead Queens of the Stone Age, and Coldplay showed music. Red Hot Chili Peppers has been around since the 1980's being based in California. After their Essential Album: Californication album of 1999, they made albums of By This Way in 2002 and Stadium Arcadium in 2006. Stadium Arcadium was one of their best albums with songs like Dani California, Tell Me Baby, and Snow (Hey Oh). That album was the band's first number one album. The album won 5 Grammy Awards. Anthony Kiedis, Flea, Chad Smith, and John Frusciante are current members of Red Hot Chili Peppers. Their recent albums are Unlimited Love in 2022 and Return of the Dream Canteen in 2022 too. 

Sounds of Hip Hop 

Hip Hop in the 2000s saw many different realities coming together. There was the growth of the commercialization of hip hop music making billions of dollars among executives. The paradox is that while this is going onward, many hip hop artists lacked unions and other health benefits to maintain quality lives. That is why many hip hop advocates want these artists to have more financial security when labels have record profits. Hip Hop music was the most popular genre of music in the 2000s. That is why artists wanted to join in collaborations with hip hop musicians constantly. There were artists like Nas, Jay Z, 50 Cent, Kanye, Eminem, Outkast, Jean Grae, and other musicians showing their talent. Many people expressed party rap songs and more conscious plus introspective songs. Busta Rhymes, Snoop Dogg, Common, Nelly, Black Eyed Pears, T.I., Jeezy, Gucci Mane, The Game, Ludacris, Timbaland, Shawna, Missy Elliot, and so many other rappers expressed themselves in albums and songs. Also, this time saw the mixtape and ringtone era giving people more focused access to the music with artists like Souija Boy being popular. In the 2000's, Southern hip-hop grew to an incredible level. For example, we saw Mannie Fresh, Trina, Three 6 Mafia, Ying Yang Twins, Bubba, Neptunes, and other musicians being creative with their talents.  There was the group Outkast among the top 3 greatest hip-hop groups of all time. Also, crunk, snap music, and other subgenres of these styles was very prominent from 2005 to 2009. Lil Jon, The East Side Boyz, Yung Joc, Dem Franchize Boyz, D4L, and other snap music were shown in public from clubs to homes. The hyphy movement was found in the Bay Area at Northern California from Mac Dre, Keak Da Sneka, E-40, The pack, and Too Shoot. Nas shown his introspective works with albums like Stillmatic, God's Son, Street's Disciple, Hip Hop is Dead, Life is God, the King Disease trilogy (2017-2022) and the Magic album trilogy (2021-2023). The Midwest had a huge hip hop culture too along with the West Coast. By the mid to late 2000's, there was another change in hip hop too. The songs of hip hop music evolved into alternative rap and indie rap with autotune and a version of techno beats. This was shown by Kid Cudi, The Cool Kids, etc. Alternative hip hop (some of it nicknamed backpack rap) was shown by Mos Def, Lupe Fiasco, The Roots, MF Doom, Aesop Rock, and Common. These artists wanted to use complex lyricism, introspection, studying philosophy, and criticizing materialism (and exposing other vices in society). Hip Hop has grown more international too in the 2000's. 

The Music of R&B in the Modern Age

The R&B of the 2000's has been massively underrated. I wrote a series on R&B music spanning over seven decades, but it is always important to discuss about R&B music. I love tons of the songs of the R&B music of the 2000's for many reasons. One is that neo-soul was very strong in the 2000s with Alegbra, The Family Kindred, Maxwell, Jill Scott, and other artists. R&B music saw international success. Beyonce has grown into an international superstar by the 2000s and became an icon of music by the time she released the 2016 album of Lemonade. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) recognized Beyonce as the top certified artist of the 2000's. Groups like Destiny's Child became the most successful women R&B group of all time selling over 50 million records worldwide during the 2000's (with singles like Survivor, Say My Name, Jumpin' Jumpin', Independent Women Part 1, etc). Artists like Mariah Carey (she made the huge comeback with her album of The Emancipation of Mimi in 2005), Mary J. Blige (who made the hit Be Without You in 2003 being atop the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs charts for 15 weeks), Craig David, and Usher continued from the late 1990's into the 21st century. There was a huge olden age for contemporary R&B and urban soul music with artists like Janet Jackson, Jill Scott, Alicia Keys, Blu Cantrell, and Aaliyah. By this time, we saw Ashanti, Rihanna, Trey Songz, Cupid, Keyshia Cole, Bobby V, Jaheim, Musiq Soulchild, Fantasia, Floetry, Ciara, B2K, Pretty Ricky, Chris Brown, Ne-Yo, Sisqo, and other R&B artists establishing their own legacies too. You have Keyshia Cole (from Oakland, California) with a gritty sound that focus on romance, family, and resiliency. 

Queen Beyonce

For over 25 years now, she has been the premiere musician and artist of the 21st century. She is so great in talent that she is one of the most talented artists of all time. She stood the test of time from being in an R&B group to having an amazing solo career. She is Sister Beyonce Knowles-Carter, and she is 42 years old. She was born in the Deep South in the great city of Houston, Texas. Her parents are Matthew Knowles and Tina Lawson. Her younger sister is the musician, Solange Knowles. Ever since she was young, she wanted to be a star. That was clearly self-evident. Her mother was a hairdresser and salon owner, and her father was a Xerox sales manager. Beyonce was raised Methodist and attended St. John's United Methodist Church. Later, she went to St. Mary's Montessori School in Houston, where she enrolled in dance classes. She was inspired by dance instructor Darlette Johnson. Later, she attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and Alief Elsik High School. She was part of the choir at St. John's United Methodist Church where she sang her first solo and was a soloist for 2 years. 

She was in Destiny Child with Kelly Rowland, LaTavia Robertson, LeToya Luckett, Farrah Franklin, and Michelle Williams. The group was Girl's Tyme before. Destiny's Child sold millions worldwide, and later Beyonce started her own solo career. She starred in the film Carmen: Hip Hopera in 2001 and in 2002 with Austin Powers in Goldmember. Work It Out by Beyonce was the first major solo single of Beyonce in 2002. She was in the musical comedy The Fighting Temptations with Cuba Gooding Jr. 

In 2003, everything changed. It has been a little over 20 years ago in 2003 when she released the album of Dangerously in Love as her first solo album. Then, her popularity increased with B'Day, I am...Sasha Fierce, 4, Beyonce, and Lemonade. Lemonade came out in 2016 being her best album lyrically and vocally. That album made her an icon with themes about Blackness, infidelity, feminism, and womanism. Her Renaissance album in 2022 was dedicated to house music and her uncle. She is the first solo artist to have their first seven studio albums debut at number one in the United States. We will remember her songs for decades to come like Crazy in Love, Baby Boy, Irreplaceable, Me, Myself, and I, Halo, Single Ladies, Formation, Break My Soul, etc. Her work in Black is King and Everything is Love showed her versatility as an artist. She made over 200 million records worldwide being one of the best-selling artists of all time. She earned 32 Grammy Awards, 26 MTV Music Awards, 35 BET Awards, 24 NAACP Image Awards, 17 Soul Train Music Awards, and the 2015 Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Awards. That is unprecedented in music history. 

She stands up for women, especially black women. Every woman I know in my life (from conservative women, liberal women, religious women, and secular women) loves Beyonce's music or respect Beyonce's talent as a musician. From celebrating the Black Panthers in her Super Bowl Halftime performance to being involved in philanthropy, she is her own woman. She is married to the hip-hop artist and businessman Sean Carter. The couple has 3 children including Blu Ivy. Her Renaissance World Tour in 2023 set records. The tour is using the money to help small business owners and other people via Beyonce's BeyGOOD Foundation. Tour tickets will help members of Women of Tomorrow which helps at-risk young women. Modern-day artists are inspired by her like Normani, SZA, Tinashe, Jazmine Sulivan, etc. Beyonce can do R&B, hip-hop, pop, soul, funk, etc. By June 17, 2021, Beyonce was inducted into the Black Music and Entertainment Walk of Fame as a member of the inaugural class. Her voice is a Coloratura mezzo-soprano.

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift is one of the most popular pop singers of our generation. Regardless of how people feel about her, she has a prominent role in the evolution of pop culture. She is a singer, songwriter, and entrepreneurship. She has been a subject of widespread media coverage writing since the age of 14. She has a large fan base too. She dreamed of being a country singer when she was young. She was born up North in West Reading, Pennsylvania. She worked in county music for years starting with Taylor Swift (2006). Her next, Fearless (2008), explored country pop, and its singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me" catapulted her to mainstream fame. Speak Now (2010) infused rock influences, while Red (2012) experimented with electronic elements and featured Swift's first Billboard Hot 100 number-one song, "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together." She departed from her country image with 1989 (2014), a synth-pop album supported by the chart-topping songs "Shake It Off", "Blank Space", and "Bad Blood." Media scrutiny inspired the hip-hop-flavored Reputation (2017) and its number-one single "Look What You Made Me Do." Swift signed with Republic Records in 2018. She released the eclectic pop album Lover (2019) and autobiographical documentary Miss Americana (2020), embraced indie folk and alternative rock on 2020 albums Folklore and Evermore, explored understated pop styles on Midnights (2022), and released four re-recorded albums subtitled Taylor's Version after a dispute with Big Machine. These albums spawned the number-one songs "Cruel Summer", "Cardigan", "Willow", "Anti-Hero", "All Too Well", and "Is It Over Now?". The Eras Tour, her 2023–2024 concert tour, is the highest-grossing of all time. Swift directed music videos and films such as All Too Well: The Short Film (2021). Her music talks about her and her romance stories. 

One of the world's best-selling musicians with 200 million records sold, Swift has earned 117 Guinness World Records and received the Global Recording Artist of the Year award three times from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. She is the highest-grossing female touring act, the most streamed woman on Spotify and Apple Music, and the first billionaire with music as the main source of income. A Time Person of the Year (2023), Swift has appeared on lists such as Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time, Billboard's Greatest of All Time Artists, and the World's 100 Most Powerful Women by Forbes. Her accolades include 12 Grammy Awards (including three Album of the Year wins), 1 Primetime Emmy Award, 40 American Music Awards (including Artist of the Decade – 2010s), 40 Billboard Music Awards, and 23 MTV Video Music Awards. Taylor Swift is a philanthropist and an advocate for artists' rights and women's empowerment.

The Merging of Genres of the 2010's

The 2010's was the time when I was in me from my 20s to my late 30s. In 2010, I was 27 years old, and in 2019, I was 36 years old. This decade saw the progressive movement reach its political, social, and cultural zenith. What conservatives saw as their time to shine in the 1980's is what liberals saw in the 2010's when liberals showed out to present their views to the world to the next level. This decade saw an economic recovery, massive infrastructure investment, political unrest in the Middle East (with the Arab Spring that desired political reforms in the Middle East), new wars (from Libya to the growth of ISIS), social movements spreading, and new technologies growing. A higher awareness of climate change existed, Black Lives Matter was formed, and America legalized same-sex marriage in America in 2015 with the Supreme Court decision of Obergefell v. Hodges (along with more mainstream visibility of transgender, non-binary, and gender nonconforming human beings), and the Presidencies of Obama plus Trump existed. The music of this time saw a revitalization of the pop and techno sound. There was dance-pop, electronic dance music, hipster culture, and electropop. People saw globalization and the growth of streaming services (replacing CDs) like Spotify, SoundCloud, and Apple Music. We saw K-pop, hip hop, Latin music, and more online streaming services growth like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and Disney+. Hip hop and R&B surpassed rock as the biggest U.S. music genre in 2018. EDM or electronic dance music was very powerful during the early to mid-part of the decade. Famous DJs and digital music producers like Skrillex, Tiesto, Avicii, Steve Aoki, Deadmau5, Calvin Harris, Baauer, and the controversial Diplo made many beats. Country music saw a resurgence in the 2010's in the United States of America with Florida Georgia Line, Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood, Eric Church, the progressive Kacey Musgraves, and Chris Stapleton. Ironicall, some country artists used hip hop elements in the 2010's and the 2020's. The 2010's saw independent music going about like Dr. Dog, Florence and The Machine, St. Vincent, Ellie Goulding, Fiest, Lorde, Lana Del Rey (who uses old school themes in her music videos), and other people. During this time, artists like Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Beyonce, Kanye West, Nicki Minaj, Bruno Mars, and other people made a huge amount of influence growing popular music. Drake sold a lot of records too. Many bands existed like Imagine Dragons, hip hop group Migos, Maroon 5, Twenty One Pilots, and other people existed. Ariana Grande, Britny Spears, Kesha, and Ed Sheeran made songs. Rihanna earned the most number-one singles of the decade being nine. Adele sang music. Swift and Beyonce were the only 2 woman acts in history to have six consecutive number one debuts on the Billboard 200 chart.

Rock bands continue to have massive popularity with artists like Alice in Chins, Green Day, Red Hot Chili Peppers, David Bowie, Metallica, Muse, Gorillaz, Blank 182, Fall Out Boy, The War on Drugs, etc. Rock became diverse with indie rock, alternative rock, and metal flourishing in the 2010's. The pop rock existed with Alessia Cara, Billie Ellish, Halsey, and other people. During this decade, alternative R&B existed with SZA, Kali Uchis, Syd, Jhene Aiko, Normani, Ravyn Lenae, H.E.R., Jorja Smith, Summer Walker, Ella Hai, Bryson Tiller, Sampha, Giveon, and so many other artists. With Janelle Monae, Ceel-O Green, Miguel, Usher, and other Alicia Keys, R&B music has grown. Beyonce and Solange Knowles made some of the best music in R&B culture with Lemonade and Solange's A Seat at the Table (that addressed issues like black hair, women issues, mental health matters, and ownership) respectively. Monica, Kelly Rowland, Brandy, Maxwell, D'Angelo, and Janet Jackson released excellent music in the 2010's. By this time, R&B artists experimented to dance sounds like Everything to Me by Monica, Refill by Elle Verner, and Thinking Bout You by Frank Ocean. Motivation was an anthem by Kelly Rowland, Brandy had Put It Down and the Human album and No Sleep was by Janet Jackson with J. Cole. Chris Brown released music too. Hip Hop by the 2010's had massive popularity with hip hop labels and artists from Kendrick Lamar, Kid Cudi, Big Sean, Wale, and Azealia Banks. Later, more men and women were in hip hop by the end of the decade like Juice WRLD, Migos, Logic, Lizzo, Megan Three Stallion, YBN Cordae, and other people. Mumble rap existed too. Hip hop even influenced country with many country artists using rap sounds and themes in their music. Reggaeton flourished along with K-Pop. K-Pop is especially popular among young people with BTS, Blackpink, and 2NE1. J-Pop and C-Pop grew too. In Africa, the Afrobeats movement existed with African award shows and artists like Guru, Wizkid, Davido, etc.

The Music of the 2020's

The 2020's is the decade of our time and the third decade of the 21st century. We are blessed to live in the 2020's. I am 40 years old since late 2023, and now it's early 2024. With the growth of A.I., the 2020's is an interesting time of massive technological development. This decade saw the rise of COVID-19 which killed millions worldwide being a global pandemic. We saw the war in Ukraine, the war in Israel and Gaza against Hamas (with massive outrage at innocent Israeli and Palestinian deaths in this conflict), the end of the War of Afghanistan, and Charles III being the new King of the United Kingdom. Protests against police brutality and racism existed worldwide including America in 2020. There have been protests in Hong Kong in favor of democracy. Military conflicts, strikes, and the refugee crisis continue. On November 15, 2022, the world population grew to over 8 billion people, and in 2023, India overtook China as the most populous country in the world. Music in the 2020s is very diverse with a merging of genres constantly. The 2020s have been affected by the COVID-19 disaster. Many cancellations or postponements of many musical events happened in the early 2020s. That would change by 2023. Music has been genre-less in many cases. The use of the internet, streaming media, TikTok with its algorithm, playlists and unlimited access contributed to the genre less musical movement. However, by mid-2023, the music Industry recorded its highest annual revenue of all time ($8.4 billion), propelled by the exponential growth of streaming subscriptions. Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa, Olivia Rodrigo, the Weeknd, Harry Styles, Beyonce, Megan Thee Stallion, and Doja Cat have been some of the leading music artists of the 2020s so far. Success of "Good 4 U" by Olivia Rodrigo and "Happier Than Ever" by Billie Eilish indicated pop rock revival.

In 2020, LP records surpassed compact disc (CD) sales for the first time since 1986, LP records 28.7% ($619.6 million) with the rapid decline in CD sales by 23% ($483 million), with 62% ($1.1 billion) of revenue derived from physical music sales across the United States according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), 2020 Year-End Music Industry Revenue Report. The early part of the decade carried on the cross-genre trap music influence which started in the late 2010s, Despite Trap Music's sustained influence. In the middle of the decade of the 2010's, the sound of the hip hop landscape gradually began shifting towards drill, plugg, rage, reggaeton, and jersey club. Thanks to the rise of social media platforms such as TikTok, music genres old and new had a moment in the spotlight. Genres such as synth-pop, Indie Pop, Hyperpop, nu-disco, pop-punk, emo-pop, house, indie rock, drill music, K-pop and Afrobeats garnered considerable attention in the mainstream media. The drive for nostalgia and desire to return to pre-pandemic life has played a role in the shift toward older music. According to data observed throughout 2021 and 2022, 70% of music demand is for vintage songs and it is increasing every year. The top 200 most popular songs only accounted for 5% of total streams — and that small percentage has fallen by half over the last three years. Older musicians such as Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, and Bruce Springsteen were selling their music rights for hundreds of millions of dollars. These big names have always been popular, but according to some research, the vast majority of new downloads today are songs that are at least two years old. There is the popularization of Verzuz started by producers Timbaland and Swizz Beatz. 

Late in the 2010s and early 2020s, a generation of artists emerged with party rap music that emphasizes many forms of empowerment. Artists such as Megan Thee Stallion, Cardi B, SZA, BIA, City Girls, Saucy Santana, Baby Tate, Saweetie, Coi Leray, GloRilla, Flo Mili, Lil Nas X, Doja Cat, Latto, Rico Nasty, and Ice Spice became prominent hip hop artists. Women rappers achieved widespread popularity and helped create the market for women in the predominantly male mainstream hip-hop genre due to their openly adult-related lyrics, unapologetic swagger, and danceable instrumentation. As for rock, soft rock and hard rock grew from AC/DC, Iron Maiden, etc. Supergroup Boygenius released their debut album, The Record, to instant acclaim. The Record became the highest-charting album for any of the members thus far, debuting at number one on the UK Album Chart, and number four on the US Billboard 200. In 2023, Paul McCartney announced plans to release "the final Beatles record" later in the year with the assistance of an AI de-mixing technology previously used for Beatles documentary Get Back to be used on a demo John Lennon recorded shortly before his death. The track, "Now and Then", was released on November 2, 2023.

Epilogue

Music has differently changed throughout thousands of years. Now, we are in the 2020's. During this time, we saw the Russian-Ukrainian war, the COVID-19 pandemic, the growth of RSV worldwide, the end of the Afghanistan War, and the Israel/Hamas war that started on October 7, 2023. Climate change has grown with ecological crises have escalated with droughts, floods, and massive earthquakes worldwide. Many people are using teleconferencing, online learning, streaming services, e-commerce, and food delivery services at a higher level than in the 2010s. The rise of A.I. has changed music and culture too. We have the advanced robotic humanoid named Ameca showing human gestures in this Fourth Industrial Revolution of the 2020's. Now, we have A.I.-generated songs that some people threaten to sue to prevent A.I. from using their voices on songs. The ninth generation of video game consoles existed like PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X being released in 2020. Decorative face masks are in vogue in the 2020s. Among Zoomers and other human beings, Tik Tok became a major influence on music and popular culture in general. Apple TV+, Max, and Paramount+ give shows and movies constantly in the 2020's too.  Avatar: The Way of Water is the highest-grossing film of the decade, and currently the third highest-grossing film of all time. 

Other financially successful films at the box office include Top Gun: Maverick, No Time to Die, Jurassic World Dominion, and Oppenheimer. Superhero films mostly continued to do well financially, with Spider-Man: No Way Home being the second highest-grossing of the decade. Other successful superhero films include The Batman as well as most of Marvel Studios' "Multiverse Saga of the MCU." In terms of music, there is an increase of merging genres into one. Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Megan Thee Stallion, Dua Lipa, Jack Harlow, BTS, Beyonce, and tons of other musicians have expressed their music to the world. A retro embrace of vinyl records is here, and rock is not dead. The Beatles, Haim, U2, and other artists have shown their talents. A new generation of country stars like Kacey Musgraves, Zach Bryan, Luke Combs, etc. have existed. Music readily reflects society, and the 2020's being so complex represents the more complex nature of modern-day music in our generation indeed. As we approach the mid and later part of this 2020s decade, we are reminded to maintain our core views of justice for all, tolerance, being anti-imperialist, supporting religious freedom, caring for the environment, loving civil liberties, endorsing voting rights, respect the rights of minorities, and desiring liberty to reign in society for real without exceptions.

By Timothy