I've pretty much lost all interest in Japanese music.
 

Is anyone in this situation? I mean, right now the Western music I listen to sounds so much more superior than Japanese. I don't know how to put it though, it's almost like J-pop is starting to sound, cheap? I can't even listen to J-urban anymore bcz it's just a naff rip off of the real thing.

I still like certain artists I guess. I never thought of listening to Japanese music being a phase, but I guess it is. It hasn't even been two years yet. I'm stuck because I still want to post here too, but this is an Ayu/Japanese music forum. :(

Sorry if I should offend anyone. I'm offended myself...

I Don't See Why You Couldn't Still Post Here? There Are Plenty Of Topics That Don't Have Anything To Do With Japanese Music. And Maybe If You Stick Around You'll Become Interested In Japanese Music Again :D . I Know A Couple Times Where I Would Go A Few Months Without Listening To Japanese Music But Then I Heard Some Songs I Liked And I Was Back To Listening To It.

I feel kinda the same of course I'll have my Jpop artists I love but I really can't get into any more acts...jpop for the most part is so badly produced :(

that's why I got into jpop in the 1st place because 2 years ago or so , the music that's being produced in the Eng sector was becoming very boring & too predictable for my liking but it seems that right now in this point in time , the balance is starting to shift of sorts

don't fret about this Austin , I'm sure things will pick up soon in the JPop scene

Don't worry, you don't have to like Japanese music or Ayu to post here- case in point ME :) I don't know anythin of Ayu's music after My Story came out and I haven't been into any Japanese music for about 2 years... but hey I still love this place :)

Branch out. Look past the popular acts. There are tons of people out there. There are waaay more people out there than just the regular dancy-pop/RnB flavored females and Johnny's boybands.

I get like that for a while, where I'll have some English music and I'll listen to it instead of listening to my Japanese music because I just don't want to listen to anything in Japanese. It could just be a phase, and there's still plenty to do here that doesn't require a love of Japanese music~

You're welcome to move on, no one is going to bound and gag you and force you back. A person's senses and the way they perceive things can change over time, so your feel for the aesthetics will probably change over time as well. I think very few people in this world like the same music throughout their entire lives.

Thank you everyone~ It's a relief to know that I'm not the only one going through this! I guess you're right by saying that it works in shifts. I'll probably be addicted to Japanese music again a few months. Hopefully. I feel a lot better by making this thread actually, and I can still post here! Yay! :)

Maybe I should try K-pop. I've actually been listening to U-Go-Girl a lot recently! :P I wouldn't know where to start tho. I'll feel like a J-pop n00b all over again. =x

No wonder I don't tend to see your posts in the Asian Music section! :O And I agree, AHS is amazing actually. I'm on here 24/7~ :yes

^I second The Wonder Girls, they're awesome. Also, if you're into guy singers, try out Se7en, he's awesome!

^Very much so, a rabid fan introduced me to Se7en a few years ago.

You have probably picked up a few Western songs and enjoyed it more simply because you can actually understand it. :)

I understand were you are coming from, J-Pop, the majority (I didn't say all, turn the caps lock off please <3) of it is same sounding generic trash. Your ex-fave's are similar to mine, Crystal, Utada, Kumi & sifow? yeah?, I understand why its boring because the once good artists that you liked started to become sell-outs (Kumi) or went on a hiatus (sifow) :P Now there is a huge gap were they once stood.

UHM JUNG HWA@@@@@@

and I'm like oppisite of you right now. I can't get into any new western music atm. the only new person I like is Santogold, she isn't even that great but she caught my eye :cool

Ive had this before and somewhat still am. I use to obsess over Japanese artists and download them excessively. Trying new things, Getting impatient for leaks ... It was crazy - But now im listening to a lot more Western but i still listen to Japanese music in doses.

So what im saying is just take it easy and dont continually listen to it but make it a rare treat to get back into it all

austin, I went through the same thing a few months ago.

Ayu wasn't releasing anything, m-flo was well...just dead, and C-kay was letting her music go to the dogs---so I had to try other artists. I ended up getting into a lot of Johnny's groups, but I also discovered abingdon boys school and re-discovered T.M.Revolution. I dabbled in access (AXS), Masami Okui, JAM Project, ICEMAN, Kotani Kinya, Mai Hoshimura, Kazuki Kato, ON/OFF, ORANGE RANGE...I can't even begin to list all of the artists I fell in love with during that time!

I also recommend to you, K-pop. It seems (from my own experience) that a good k-pop album or single comes out around the time that the J-pop world is kind of dull. By the time you get sick of listening to the Wondergirls and SS501 for a few weeks, they'll be a new J-pop release just waiting for you to do the same.

As good as it used to be? You only started liking J-Pop 1 year ago :rolleyes

But yeah, K-Pop is pwning J-Pop so hard right now. WG, TaeYang, SHINee, Big Bang, Girls Generation... they're all killing it.

I agree with you that J-Pop is starting to be less good. Well, there's still new act like ayaka that is simply incredible. But yeah, it's not that great anymore. I don't think American music is superior though. American music is just not my thing.

I highly suggest you to move over to K-Pop music! That's what I did after I started getting bored of J-Pop and WOW. I'm so happy I did. I think K-Pop is definitely for you if you like urban stuff. :yes You'll find great artists like Brown Eyed Girls, Wonder Girls, Epik High, The Grace, Jewelry, Lee Hyo Ri, Rumble Fish, Nell, SHINee and my personal favorite band, Girls' Generation! <3

Maybe I should create a K-Pop download thread. :P

OMG That Would Be Awesome If You Did!!!!! :D

I truly don't see how anyone could get tired of J-Pop or anytype of Japanese music, the lyrics have real meaning. Western music is demeaning and over rated..

Japanese music is authentic, with good values <3.

I totally know what you're talking about.

I feel the same.. although, I think that all music sucks lately, hah.

There are just a few exceptions like The Pipettes, hitomi, Mika, Ayu (a bit)..

Whee.

LOL seeing how he likes J-urban over the rest of japanese music, I doubt he gives a crap about japanese lyrics :laugh I know I don't.

Well, if that's not a huge generalization of Western music, I don't know what is. And you certainly can't say all Japanese music has lyrics that 'have real meaning'.

Thats the problem with people today, they dont appreciate the lyrics to a song anymore. They only want to see an artist dancing around half naked.. Terrible what the worlds become :(!

lol I started listening to more K-pop now too. Just switch around...and American music....meh...the rhythm and beats of most of the songs are overused and the lyrics they use are just as overused.

Um, or they genuinely like the MUSIC of a song? I mean, it's called MUSIC, right? If you want good, deep words, you can read poetry. But I think the most important part of music is the melody and arrangement, not the lyrics.

Well, it's not that I don't admire the the lyrics, and also the most important thing on a song to me isn't ppl dancing half naked. What matters to me most is the melody, is how the composition blends with the vocals and arrangements. The fact I'm into japanese music is proof that I put lyrics at a very lesser degree of importance because I know nothing of japanese and I don't understand what ayu is saying when she's singing her songs at all. I just really enjoy her voice and the beat lol

Really? Although there are some good japanese artists with good lyrics, most of the time I find jpop lyrics a bit on the sappy and fluffy side, or it could be the weird Engrish distracting me...It may not be filled with sexual undertones like some western mainstream music, but to be honest, I find most of their lyrics generally within the same context.

astn☆彡 I think you shouldn't look at it in being "Japanese Music" or "K-pop" or "Western Music". I think you should view it as "I like this musician I want to buy their cd." Personally I go about music in my personal "I like you or This is garbage" format. Basing ideals like Japan's music is better and vice versa in my opinion isn't the way to go about things either. I think It should be about the musician, not the "scene" or "country", or whatever.

I never get tired of jpop and it's the only music I listen to (besides some English songs, korean songs of BoA and and sweetbox/jade).

I don't like korean music just because I don't like the sound of the language.
I only like some BoA's because they have REALLY good beats or they're pretty.
I tried others but didn't like how the singing sounds.

I stay with japanese all the way even if generally sometimes it falls.
I seperate my liking differently between artists, songs individualities, styles etc. inside of it.

You can try stopping listening to it for sometime, you might want to listen to it again (miss it) after some months or a year XD

....and that's exactly why I gave up on western music and started listening to Jpop....!!!

i can't stand american music now. i still love jpop, and the only kpop i like is from the wonder girls, lol. :P but i prefer japanese over korean, anyway.

that's true :yes

Eng music used to be top dog but when Hip Hop came in & took over from Rock , ugh :dead2

it was getting a sight for sore eyes to see 1/2 naked chicks on MTV as time goes by if you ask me

J Pop I think's still quite conservative to a certain extent

I think music goes hand in hand with balence. I think someone mentioned this earlier. Myself, I listen to American music and Japanese music everyday. I listen to American music at the gym and at home I listen to Japanese music.

I know everyone has their own preferences, but I think you might want to explore new genres of music. I don't know what you listen to, but I found that true for myself. Years ago, I would ONLY listen to Rock, Alternative, and Metal. However, one day I realized, "What am I doing?! I'm limiting myself to so many amazing artists!" So I started to look for quality artists, instead of what was "popular". I've discovered that I like ALL genres of music: Rock, Metal, Alternative, Pop, Jazz, Soul, R&B, Hip-hop, Rap, Opera, ect.

I'm so much happier now too because I no longer think, "I can't like this artist! They are singing ----"

So I guess my main point is.....like someone said earlier....don't limit yourself to only Japanese, American, Korean, Pop, Urban, ect. Listen to what you like, and yes maybe Japanese music was just a phase, but that's part of living and maybe you'll come back to Japanese music again.

So go explore music! :yes

I always wonder about statements like "music these days is all about naked women dancing and sex and drugs" as if there was once a golden age of music where everything was deep and meaningful and pure and somehow utopian... there has always been shallow lyrically meaningless music just meant to hit the radio and sell a record or two (since the radio's been around I mean). I never understand the reference to 'now'. I mean... the other day I saw the video for Salt n' Pepa "Shoop"... I mean... dumb lyrics and sexy dancing to a beat certainly isnt a 'new' and terrible fad.

I like that song. lol

like me XD :hi5

I don't like american/eurpoean,etc music.
I only listen to jpop and well kpop (Wonder Girls).
I love asian music. :heart

but everyone has their taste and if you aren't happy with what ou are hearing right now, I just don't see why you shouldn't listen to something else
and you can still visit AHS!!! there are no rules 'bout that! you better not leave AHS !

it's like, we know english and speak it everyday. why not listen to another language for a change? at least we're being open minded and dicovering something else besides rap, rap, and more rap. because that's all i see on MTV nowadays.

oh, and also the HORRIBLE miley cyrus and overrated jonas brothers, LOL. like seriously. and i thought JE was evil. disney is just plain crazy with their music acts now.

There are a few new bright spots in Asian music for me. One of the biggest is Alan, she is so refreshing and amazing :heart

...

er Lisa , I do listen to Miley Cyrus & Jonas Brothers :dead2

don't you think the frontman of JoBros , Joe , looks a bit like MatsuJun :innocent

:yes

if not try Electrico , S'pore's no.1 band ! I always never fail to promote them to people who're non S'poreans :laugh

I know from experience that the emotions you get when you're still relatively new to the JPop scene can't be relived that easily using newer material in later time. Lowering your expectations towards everything can be a lifesaver, you know.

mmmmm thats weird i always thought it was the opposite..... try listening to Emi Hinouchi... shes a bit different from regular J-pop and you might like it. Youshud still post but in the chat room section probably lol

yeah i think you should try more 90s j-pop. especially, chara, TK family

and also, a new image for ami suzuki is superb!

if you wanna try hip hop, m-flo is the best

oops, haha. i made my post in a funny manner, so i hope i didn't offend anyone. i was just in a funny mood last night. :laugh

anyway, in a strange way, i do see that resemblence. it must be the hair, lol.

haha :laugh it's ok no worries :grouphug

Joe Jonas - YES I swear it's the hair & probably the eyebrows that's going on in him & the freaky thing was that prior to MatsuJun , I never notice the resemblances going on between both guys :roflmao

Joe Jonas and MatsuJun are like twins, I never realized :lmfao

me neither Triple D

it's a bit funny because prior to ARASHI , I have known Jonas Brothers's music for quite a while & of course I like Joe outta the trio :laugh

but when MatsuJun & co. came in , I was like eh separate from birth ? LOL

I still like J-pop, but nowadays I'm listening more to western music. Kelly Clarkson, Natasha Bedingfield and Carrie Underwood are the ones I'm listening the most right now.
And I like the Disney artists lol I miss Hilary Duff's golden era D= although I loved her last album lol

that happens to me regularly. I haven't been that interested in it too much asian music lately, at least about any new material. I haven't bought anything JPOP in ages and I'm actually feeling pretty good about that!

I've been getting into more western bands than asian bands and honestly its nothing offending about that at all.

I don't go into the Ayumi or Asian media boards that much anymore but I still have fun around here.

I had a period where I just couldn't get into Japanese (or Asian, for that matter) music. So I took a break, listened to American R&B, and thought I was set. Then Utada Hikaru came out with HEART STATION, and I listened to the full album as an album - not expecting anything - and came out as a born-again fan of Japanese pop.

I recommend listening to new artists, or old artists you once dismissed.

It's hard to say that I know how you feel since over the eight years I've been into Japanese music not once have I started to loose interest or get bored of it. I think it's 'Cause I'm always finding new bands and that keeps fueling me on more and more. I do listen to a small amount of Western music though, although it's mainly Marilyn Manson and such.

Just listen to what you want. Find artists who aren't japanese to listen to and just take a break. You'll totally love what new music you've discovered and if you go back to japanese music you'll "rediscover" songs you used to love. You'll get bored of any music if you're constantly listening to the same few songs/artists all the time. Plus music tastes change. Or could always try checking out an artist or genre you've been meaning to but was unsure about. (Took me ages to buy one of Patrick Wolf's albums, though I could easily impulse buy a jpop CD, and OK it took me a while to become a big fan but now I love him and have all his albums!!)

I used to like Kumi and BoA, but not so much anymore. Get kinda nolstalgic for my Kumi days, but her music just doesn't do it for me anymore. And I've haven't checked out any new people who I've totally loved in ages. Bought a couple of CDs by people I hadn't heard before and although they're alright not "OMG amazing".

When I am looking for new music I tend to search for someone on Amazon and go through all the lists and guides and click on a CD I like the look of. That's a lot of fun!

mi|kshake~

I like her Dignity album , it's a much more grown up effort as compared to her bubblegum older material

Well everyone has different diverse tastes in music and there is certainly nothing wrong with not liking Japanese music. I've actually been trying to get into Western music and I have interest in only a couple of J-Pop artists. I don't really like Kumi and some related artists, but I still love Japanese music.

This is really not something to worry about. I've been listening to Japanese music for 11 years, but it's not like thats all I always listen to. I go through periods where everything starts to sound old or the same, and I just find what I feel like listening to. I even sometimes go through periods where there isn't any music in my possession, whether it be in Japanese, English, German, Spanish, or Russian that appeals to me. Your ears can get tired, or you can get too used to hearing certain music. Just find what you like and go with it; it's nothing to stress out over.

hm i guess i m about the same. i m bored of most of the j-pop artist in my library. try a variety of music, then come back. it might feel better. currently, ANIME MUSIC FTW for me XD

I wouldn't worry about it dude, I feel exactly the same way at the moment. It feels weird for me because I have listened to J-music for so long, but right now nothing appeals to me one little bit.

Maybe it's because I don't actually understand what I am listening to. A catchy tune can only attract you for so long, and even when I look up the lyrics to a lot of popular songs, I don't feel in the slightest bit inspired.

To be very honest, I think most of my love for Japanese music came from the fact that I was obsessed with Japanese culture. For me, it was the country to visit, and I wanted to live there etc. The music is tied into the culture so there you go. The more I read into it, the more I realised that I had these impossible pipe dreams for Japan and the less interesting I found the music. (there I sorta psychoanalysed myself :P)

Perhaps my interest will come back in time, but for now it's all about classic hard rock :cool

I stopped listening the all japanese music for a few months waaaay back and started listening to, god forbid, rap music :laugh. X Japan pulled me back in and i haven't left J music since. That said, before i discovered Jpop i had never actually been a fan of any music. I couldn't name one artist or group i liked, always just saying someone my brother or sister listened to. Through listening to Jpop and Asian music on the whole, i've found that I've opened up a lot more to western music, though what i like in minimal and not very mainstream (except for Shakira). I think it's possible to enjoy and accept all music if you like it. There's no reason to put a firm barrier down and say "I'll ONLY listen to Jpop".

I must admit though, there's not a huge lot of really decent artists coming out in the last year or two. Apart from enjoying the likes of Aya Hirano, personally I don't think Jpop has had a really decent new artist since YUI came along, whereas before her, we had the likes of Otsuka, Ayumi, Utada, Kumi etc... Nobody these days really seems to make an impact. Aside from discovering my ridiculous love for H!P in the last 2 years, i spend a lot of my times discovering OLDER singers. Like 80's artists and bands such as Rebecca, Mari Hamada and more. It's really nice to see how Jpop/rock has progressed over the years.

Anyway, don't force yourself to listen to jpop if you don't fancy it. Leave it a while and who knows, you may catch on to a new artist and start listening again in future.

While I thought for a while that listening to Japanese music was a big part of my life, I realized that I'm not even that into it. Really, I would just consider myself a fan of Ayu, Mr.Children, and Ketsumeishi - and I like a bunch of random songs from a bunch of artists. Even so, the only Japanese artist I listen to everyday is Ayu. At the end of the day, there's still a language barrier. I've been listening to a lot more Western music now, instead of spending hours on jpopsuki searching for new Japanese acts to get into when it just won't work.

^Yeah, I've recently realized that I'm not a big fan anyone except a handful of artists. I usually just like random crap, but I guess that's how I am with Western music too :laugh

it's probably just a phase that Austin's going through right now

I am definitely also losing interest in Japanese music!
Of course I only listen to the popular artists... I'm sure there are so many wonderful Japanese artists who aren't hugely popular.

Western music has gotten a lot better lately! I think bad western music was what caused me to look for other kinds of music, like Japanese.

I have phases like that, but it's not like I can diconnect myself that easily. I've been listening for about 10 years straight already (mind that I'm only 16), but I do see how you don't get as excited anymore.

If anything, I would look up older artists I do know (globe, Kahala Tomomi, Aikawa Nanase) and try out older stuff. It usually trumps the newer stuff. Especially old Amuro Namie and Utada Hikaru.

I think it's good to be an interesting person and know not only 'your area' music
that just makes you a bit developed in music spehere

I have been into j-pop for 10 years
the artists I loved are starting to calm down and that makes me sad cuz obviously I want them to remain
new artists mostly don't entertain/amaze me

sad. but I can't get away from j-pop at all :D

I have breaks like these but then they wither away

I think that you may be overexaggerating.

Perhaps you say that you're tired of j-pop music because that's what you've been listening to for a long time now consecutively/you've been listening to the same artists over and over. Why not get into some older artists, such as Seiko Matsuda? I have to say that current j-pop music is more interesting to me than the popular acts presently on the Western airwaves/MTV, but at the end of the day, every country has their generic garbage or whatever and their golden oldies. And I'm sure that if I had Japanese MTV that I'd probably get tired of a lot of the videos they show. LOL.

And to whoever said SHINee was an example of a group that's "killing" Japanese musical acts? LOL. Generic boyband garbage and they only have one great song... that's killing it alright!

Perhaps you just want something fresh to listen to but you don't know where to start. Well, what countries are you interested in? What languages fascinate you? Is the sound of the language important to you when you listen to the music?

Excuse you, but K-Pop is definitely doing much more interesting things than J-Pop right now. Take a look at the rest of this thread, SHINee, Wonder Girls, Big Bang, etc are all doing a lot better hip-hop and R&B work than anything Japan can muster right now.

Exactly my thoughts.

I think you've just been overplaying J-pop. Get into new artists. Take a break. I listen to whatever the hell I'm in the mood for. I don't limit myself to just J-pop. I'm all over the place with music. As long as I like it then it's all good.

When i get tired of japanese music or anything i usually have a western detox diet XD! Like right now i'm on my western playlist because i got a headache from listening to Nana Kitade XD!

I'm not into either. I just like certain artists, and don't care what type of music they make. =p E.g. I don't like J-Pop or Western Pop in general. I just like Ayu, a bit of Koda and Hikki and some other random artists.~~ I hate the whole Britney Spears / rap western type music, though. So awful.

I agree 100% with the guy that you quoted but I'm too lazy to search for the quote.

AUSTIN AUSTIN

LISTEN TO LISA'S NEW SONG "Leave", its nothing like typical J-pop music. lol!!!, It restored my declining interest in jmusic lol.

Yeah, I feel that jmusic this year is at its worse, all the divas are not pleasing me no more.

I've been listening to J-pop since... 2003... Utada introduced me to Ayu which is funny because I heard all Ayu being her competition and so I had a bias against her, but when I heard one Ayumi song, that's all it took... and then I delved deeper into Ayu's music which ultimately got me into J-pop... I haven't stopped listening since.

I think all that is happening to you and anyone else, is that your tastes are changing in music. There will be those certain genres and artist you'll never listen to, but the world is filled with so many artists with different sounds just waiting to be discovered and you won't always like what you're listening to, hearing at the moment all the time because as people we change, so does are likes, wants, needs, etc.. This just so I think falls into that change. I don't think you'll stop listening to J-pop honestly, because you'll stick with certain artists and follow their careers... and new artists pop in and out of the radar, some more meaningful than others. So ultimately, while artists come and go and new sounds are created or reused, whatever, you change with it and you may not like what you hear or you may, but no country has superior music than any other.

I think it also depends on luck too . At 1st when I started my JPop journey 2 years ago , I 1st was listening to female solo acts .

my younger sister said that I was so boring & urged me to try some male singers so late last year , I tried out abingdon boys school & then this year Ken Hirai .

JE knocked on my door around late May or so & since then I have been constantly expanding my Jpop list to include even more male & female acts/bands .

Try to diverse Austin , it never hurts , it will keep you from getting bored . It's the same if you keep listening to the same songs over & over again on repeat

Humming 7/4 Initiate due to this post

fanmail is in your situation.

You should take a break and listen to western music... Within weeks, you will be wanting J-pop again... That happened to me a few months ago, when i almost couldn't stand Hikki's music for no reason

It´s normal to get bored... Also keep in mind that 2008 is going quite boring compared to 2006 and 2007, at least in the mainstream J-Pop scene. Like it started really strong with new Ayu (who has been practicAly dead since April regarding new stuff) , Kumi (with all the damn scandal that is keeping her half inactive) , and Utada (who continues on her style of releasing new stuff whenever she feels like LOL) albums and singles and then it´s going like so boring... only a new ayaka album and some decent songs but all from the beginning of the year. (Minding Name who´s awesome this year in my opinion). 2007 was so great, and so was 2006 that I think the standard is quite high now. Also, in my opinion this year western music is going so well, that is hard not to be tempted. Nothing wrong in switching, anyway.

TRY K-POP my love! xD
I still love Japanese music, but you're right about J-urban style. That's why I am not a fan of it. But there are still good japanese artists out there so dont give up!
But If you want new stuff try K-POP like many people said:
Wonder Girls
BIG BANG
Gummy
Lee Soo Young and Lena Park (If you like good ballads)

Visit elepop's ^ thread cause it's awsome ehehe =P

I don't feel the same with J-Pop but I feel the same with Western Music. Everything sounds a rip off of each other, they're always doing "catchy music" to sell like crazy and forget about the quality of that. See Madonna? She worked with the ridiculous (sorry fans but) Timbaland, Justin Timberlake and others, and got a fuzzy album. Serious, WTF was that? The quality of her music was totally lost for me. I miss American Life days.

Well, as an opinion, give a try for K-Pop and C-Pop music. They maybe the style you like. :D

Well, i actually love Hard Candy, like all Madonna's releases, but that's COMPLETELY off topic haha

I lost interest in Hikki's music some time ago, i was sick and tired of her, and then i searched other styles, and that's when I started loving Koda... After some months, i started listening to Utada again and now I love her music more than ever