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Post by The Curmudgeon on Mar 20, 2013 12:40:45 GMT 2
The Curmudgeon and Mrs don't have kids yet, but one thing we always agree on is when we DO have them, they won't be getting raised on any modern kiddie shit. It'll be classic (i.e, stuff we grew up with) material only, and no way will they be listening to the shit that passes as music nowadays. They'll get to know real music.
But is that even remotely realistic? And is it fair? One thing that helps kids bond with others is familiarity. If every kid knows the latest drivel from Nickelodeon but there's one kid talking about "that episode of Dungeons and Dragons where they so very nearly got home" that kid is going to look completely out of place.
Example; I was talking to a guy that I used to go to school with. He now had a seven year old girl and he had been turned, by proxy, into a huge One Direction fan because his daughter played their songs all the time. And on that Cracked Bieber article there's an interview with a British parent who says, straight faced, "we all loved him but we hate him now." Clearly, these are parents who think, "eh, it's what kids like nowadays. Run with it."
So what do YOU do, parent? Do you embrace all the new stuff you actually hate because it's relevant and thats what todays kiddiewinks are into, or do you stand your ground and brainwash them with some decent stuff from your era?
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Post by trashcanman on Mar 20, 2013 22:35:45 GMT 2
Well, I know what it's like to have a controlling parent and I'd have to advise against it even if it was practical (and it is not). There is a comic I saw that pretty much sums it up:  Independence should be encouraged for better or worse and being forced to only like what your parents liked and do only what your parents do is no way to grow up. Unfortunately, this means making a lot of mistakes and liking a lot of crap, but so long as you give them the opportunity to be exposed to stuff that does not suck and don't let pop culture raise your child, they'll hopefully grow up fairly well balanced. I had hoped to raise my son on Star Wars and Bob Dylan and whatnot, but he has utterly and completely resisted me at every turn. He likes what he likes (which is crap), and there is nothing I can do short of deprive him of anything in life he legitimately enjoys, and I just can't do that. |
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Post by Ben on Mar 22, 2013 21:38:20 GMT 2
I have no kids of my own yet, but that's not too far off. I think it's a mistake to label everything a "can" or a "can't," especially just based on what you think has artistic merit, but I understand parents who don't want their children exposed to certain things (pornography, gratuitous violence, sports like hockey that cost thousands of dollars to play). That said, it's impossible to control everything (or even most things) kids hear and see, and it's embarassing to have to listen to your friends talk about stuff you have no idea exists. The defining characteristic of children is curiosity; just leave your most treasured albums within easy reach, and your young'uns will probably explore them all on their own. That's how I discovered AC/DC and Sabbath.
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Post by trashcanman on Mar 23, 2013 20:17:53 GMT 2
Yeah, it's funny how your parents' music can subconsciously infest your mind like that. I pretty much wasn't allowed to choose my own music until I was in high school and finally got my own stereo and I listened to almost nothing but rock, punk, and metal (all the stuff that was banned) for over a decade. Then all of the sudden I wanted to hear all the stuff I grew up on; The Police, Michael Jackson, Motown, Madonna; all the stuff my mother and older sister listened too when I was little. That is to say, being quarantined from what my mother thought was objectionable only fueled my love of it, but at the same time the stuff she exposed me to as an alternative found a pleasant place to nest in my head as well and I ended up coming back around to that. So I guess at the end of the day, you're going to be who you're going to be and like what you like, but that doesn't mean a parent doesn't have influence on a deep level.
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Post by The Curmudgeon on Mar 24, 2013 12:16:47 GMT 2
Yeah, I think that makes a lot of sense. The only song I can remember my mum playing in the car that I actually enjoy now is Wuthering Heights by Kate Bush (the rest was mawkish, adult pop ballads like "I Want To Know What Love is") but I grew up with a knowledge of, and later an enjoyment of bands like he Beach Boys, Dylan and Beatles.
My own music taste was totally separate from that. As a teenager my absolute obsession with Prince came out of nowhere, and listening to the likes of Marilyn Manson, Korn, Foo Fighters had nothing to do with my parents. I guess forging your own identity is the healthiest option.
Saying that, I heard a teenage girl in a record shop talking to her Dad. She called the CD's he was browsing through "old crap" (it was a Led Zepplin record) and she then picked up a One Direction album.
Sometimes strict guidance is preferable.
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Post by Ben on Mar 24, 2013 18:41:25 GMT 2
I'm with you, Trashcanman. Nothing makes children want to do something more than when you tell them they can't. In fact, I think that's true of most people, not just kids.
Curmudgeon, I empathize with you, but chances are your miniatures will want to listen to what all their friends are listening to. My gravitation to classic rock was slow and steady, but I didn't completely jump ship from the radio train until I was 12. Strict musical guidance is fine, but you should prepare yourself for its failure as well.
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