Don’t Lie, You Were Jamming Too: 7 Singers & Groups We Used to Get Made Fun Of For Listening To

May 23rd, 2012 - By Clarke Gail Baines

I’m sure I’m not the only person who used to get soooo much crap for liking a certain musician or group who weren’t big with family or friends. For me, back in the day, if it wasn’t hip-hop or R&B, my brother used to get on me about digging pop musicians like Christina Aguilera, Fiona Apple, and Celine Dion. You listen to unique bands and singers today that don’t fit the BET mold and you look more cultured, deep and well-rounded, but back in the day, I just used to get called weird. Ah, well. Were you fans of any of these folks years ago? Well, now you know you weren’t the only one…

Source: marcellachamorro.com

The White Boy Bands

I used to say I liked the Backstreet Boys to my family, and often times, they would assume I was talking about BLACKSTREET. Uh, no boo boo, there’s a big difference. I couldn’t help it, “I Want It That Way” by the Backstreet Boys, “Bye, Bye, Bye” by N’Sync, and “Step By Step” by New Kids on the Block were THE jams. But if you played them around my folks, or asked someone to turn the radio back to the one of these tracks, folks would treat you like you were trying to listen to Insane Clown Posse. Shame…

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  • PoetDiva

    Lol *You are not alone* ~Michael Jackson voice~ I use to listen to all of them.

  • Guest

    I LOVE Alanis

  • http://www.facebook.com/deangala.miller DeAnga’la Sugafreesprite Mille

    I got to meet Hootie and the Blowfish love them. I wanted to be scary spice and Love *Nsync and the Backstreet boys, Shania. I was 10 in 96 so I grew up with this music and I aint ashamed to admit any of this lol.

  • Goddess8281

    MAN……!!! All of these! Spice Girls had some jams, “naked” was and still is the stuff. So is “Goodbye”. Shania “Still the one”, Backstreet Boys “Backstreet’ Back(Everybody), N’Sync “Ditigal Getdown”, nvr could get into Hootie or Alanis, but I do like her song “Uninvited” from City of Angels soundtrack. I’m weird, always known it and don’t care! Lol

  • Knotslanding

    I didnt listen to any of the groups mentioned.  Although, Im a 90′s kid.  I preferred the 80s.  Tears for Fears, A hA, Cindy Lauper…

  • Earthspirit1

    There is nothing wrong with having a diverse taste in music!  I loved all these groups. It kinds of reminds me of how for the generation x’ers (70′s early 80′s babies) could listen to the White bands that were imported Thompson Twins, Culture Club, Level 42 and so on and still put on a Mary J. , Faith Evans or Blackstreet C.D. If you had a chance to listen to some of their other songs , besides the most popular ones, you will find that they had something to offer for just about any demographic. For example, N’Sync was the all-american White, blond-haired blue eyed band with Bye-Bye and took a turn for a more “urban” sound with “Gone” and a few other songs. Spice Girls “Say You Will Be There” , etc… I loved these groups. Ahhh, the 80′s-90′s ..great music!

  • Lis

    OMG shania twain was the ONE. Her album was on repeat when I was younger…dd I go to far on that one lol

  • What?

    Yeah, I listened to all of the eighties and nineties pop with no shame.

  • Caroneisha

    OMG, I was always labeled as weird, cause I could literally turn to any station and sing the songs. I still can. Celine Dion,  Brittany Spears, Christina Augilera, P!nk, Mandy Moore, N’synce, Shania Twain, etc. I listened to all of them. Most music from the mid-90′s to the early 2000 I was a fan of them no matter the genre.

  • Natbu82

    i rocked ALLLLLLLLL these bands! i love being square. :)

  • Guest

    This article…YES.
    My cousins and I did dance routines to *NSYNC songs at the mandatory Christmas talent shows. I know the lyrics to all of the bubblegum pop songs from back in my time (legit 90s baby here). Spice Up Your Life is my current alarm. And I’m in the shower now singing “When The Lights Go Out” by 5ive.
    #teamweird

    • RJA

      OMG @ 5ive “When The Lights Go Out”, i’m sooo mad u remember that, thought i was the only one lol

    • summer

      wow i remember 5ive!!! i remember my mom asking me what i was singing about when i sang along to that!!lol 

  • RenJennM

    I enjoyed this article. I was a HUGE pop music fan back in the mid-90′s to early 2000′s. Prior to that, I only knew hip hop, R&B, soul, gospel, funk, and jazz. But then, my family moved from the hood to the suburbs, and that’s where I became introduced to pop. 

    Spice Girls, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, ‘NSync, and The Backstreet Boys were my favorites. (I even started to find white boys attractive for the 1st time ever because of one of the Backstreet Boys’ members named Kevin, but that’s a whole other story.) Anyway, admitting to my friends from my old neighborhood that I liked these groups was… interesting… to say the least. lol But other Black kids in my new neighborhood liked these groups too, so I didn’t feel too weird.

    • lei

      Renjennm, you know Kevin is back right. Don’t worry there are plenty of sisters out there who have been sweatin’ Kevin. I went to a very diverse school, so I listened and still do to everything. I have been to 5 Backstreet Boys tours including the one they did with NKOTB and I will be at the next one they do. I missed out on seeing NKOTB back in the day because most of my friends thought they were corny. I have no shame now. Wish I was the same way before. I had every single NKOTB cassette and got rid of them because I was ashamed. Then when NSYNC and BSB came on the scene I didn’t make the same mistake, I own everything they have come out with. Well with the exception of the very last BSB one, couldn’t get into it.

      • RenJennM

        Kevin’s back? What do you mean? Where?

        • lei

          He is back with the group. They announced it last month. So when they tour again, he will be with them. Get them concert ticket funds ready :)

          • Guesting

            Had to check to make sure this is true and it is!!!! I’m so happy he’s back!

            • lei

              I actually saw them announce it at one of their recent concerts. Very very true.

  • LiiSH

    Shhhhhoooot….. I thought I was gonna grow up to be Scary spice (aka Mel B) lol… platform sketchers and all.

    • Caroneisha

      Yes, I was like that’s gon’ be me one day. Lol!!!

    • Mynx530

       I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who had a pair of platform sketchers in her closet!

    • Truthhurtz

      Girl yes! You couldn’t tell me I wasn’t Scary spice back in the day. Lol.

  • Can

    Loved PM Dawn’s “I’ll die with out you” from Boomerang. Everyone loved that song. 

    • Naaj21

      had it on repeat the other day!!! “is it my turn to wish you were lying there…”!!!my jam!

  • Guest360

    You literally just wrote my entire life. No joke lol. I listened to EVERYTHING on your list and always got the “You listen to THAT kind of music” face from my family too. But I didn’t care. I wore my Spice Girls cassette tape (remember those? lol) out and begged my mom to get me another one after it broke. The first Backstreet Boys album was the first cd I ever bought. Nsync, Christina Aguilera, Old school Britney Spears, 98 degrees, Alanis Morrisette, Jewel, Fiona Apple, Sublime. You name it. If it was a pop song, I had it and listened to it non-stop. It’s funny how things change because the music nowadays sucks in my opinion. I’d much rather listen to music from the 90s/early 2000s than I would anything currently playing on the radio.

  • Blackrussian77

    Proud card carrying member of club “weird!” I listened to all of them back in the day and most of them have at least one song still in rotation in my ipod! Music should not be listened to solely based on race and musical genre… I luv it all Pop. Country. Rock. Jazz. R&B. Hip Hop (not rap) somebody please feel me on the difference between the two..
    But that could be a whole new convo!

  • http://profile.yahoo.com/FTHIDMNTLTJAIILXEWRQ3UADBY StephanieR

    I listened to all of them back in the day..even saw Shania in concert :)

  • ms.re_re504

    All were good artists and had some great songs and I’m proud to say I listened and still would listen to most of the artists on this list and quite a few more that have caused me to get a good bit of side eye glances…. lol… that’s the problem with ppl though they think music is supposed to be race and gender assigned and that isn’t the case good music knws no boundaries

  • http://www.facebook.com/bryantcl1 Candice Bryant

    LOVE this article! I hate what passes for music now-a-days. Usher, Chris Brown, Pitbull etc. what are you doing? I think it’s great to have eclectic tastes and listen to music that isn’t exactly “popular.” Fiona Apple, Sara Bareilles, Alanis Morisette and of course Jill Scott will always be some of my favorites!

    • RenJennM

      Whoa! I’m going to need you to chill out when it comes to going in on Usher, Chris Brown, and Pitbull. Firstly, they are nowhere NEAR being the worst of today’s music (uhh, Nicki Minaj! Ugh! Hello?!); and secondly, I’m a dancer, and they are some of few the artists that make amazing dance music that I enjoy. But if you don’t dance (I’m talking dubstep, tutting, and hip-hop choreo), I get it.

      • http://www.facebook.com/bryantcl1 Candice Bryant

        Just my opinion. If you like to dance obviously you would enjoy their music, but imo they really aren’t doing anything different than any other artist right now that is putting out the same type of music. So you can enjoy dancing to them and I’ll enjoy listening to the other artists I mentioned. Just a matter of preference. 

    • http://www.facebook.com/minkysmom82 Alexis Morris

       usher is great!!!!!

      • http://www.facebook.com/bryantcl1 Candice Bryant

        Definitely agree! I still listen to Usher’s older music for sure. Just not really into his newer stuff. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/barbara.codner Barbara Codner

    I listened to all of them!!  ;-)

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