The Minstrel of Millennial Narcissism
Taylor Swift & the Subversion of Musical Arts
In the midst of the Taylor Swift hysteria, the Wall Street Journal published in its weekend “Review Section” an essay under the headline, “Streaming Is Changing the Sound of Music” (Sept. 16/17, 2023). The authors, Howie Singer, “former chief strategic technologist of the Warner Music Group,” and Bill Rosenblatt, “president of Giant Steps, a media technology consulting firm,” maintain that “the rise of streaming hasn’t just transformed the business of music; it has changed the music as well.” In other words, digital technology is affecting not only the marketing of music but also its style and content. Throughout the course of the article, the strategic technologist and the media technology consultant pronounce no judgment regarding the effect of this development on the quality of the music.
Since this is a piece in the Wall Street Journal, it is unsurprising that the principal explanation they offer is “commercial motivations.” Long introductory sections must be avoided:
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R. V. Young is Professor of English Emeritus at North Carolina State University, a former editor of Modern Age: A Quarterly Review, and the author of Shakespeare and the Idea of Western Civilization (Catholic University of America Press, 2022). He and his wife are parishioners at St. Ignatius of Antioch Church in Tarpon Springs, Florida. They have five grown children, fifteen grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. He is a senior editor of Touchstone.
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