I can only speak from my perspective.
my tastes hasnt been changed that much, I realized I love the same ol' artists I loved the most back then (when I was a teen) and anything outside of that box rarely excites me. My taste leans towards rnb music and I dont care 'what is popular', I only love to see my fave got popular or when my fave gets some hits, but thats rare nowadays.
You asked whats lacking. Well, rnb music lol. Im not really diggin' this 'new wave' of rnb in the form of 'Frank Ocean' or 'Drake'. That's too mellow for my taste but as long as some urban music gets some mention Im okay cause from my point of view (european) dance pop pretty much is dominant on charts or on the radio.
Pop music has its trends, so there's not much too worry. There are always certain themes and melodies that work in pop music and that hasnt been changed at all. For example, Taylor Swift's 'We are never ever something back together something' could have been released 10 years ago and it would still work.
What makes me like a certain artist?
1. Releasing
good music (according to my taste)
all the time. One bad single would mean that artist no longer appeals for me. I'm not a person who waits or hopes. There's plenty of fish in the sea.
2.
Image that suits my morals. I'd never support someone who promotes something Im against.
3. Singer has to
convince me that she/he feels what she/he sings. If singer ain't connected to its music how could I be connected?
4.
Lyrics that suits my age and state in life.
and this is just a bonus:
5.
Creative covers and videos. but thats not really important to me since I dont watch videos, but when album is pretty and I enjoy the booklet Im lovin' it
