Does the genre of music you like change in different languages?

[wolfette]

I find that I'm not keen on love songs on the whole in English (although there's a few exceptions to that rule) but most of the love songs in French or Spanish that I've heard I like a lot more. I find that metal music in Scandinavian languages can often sound better than it does in English as well, although I don't really speak much of the languages to really understand what's being said anyway. I also quite like rap music in Finnish in particular. Although I have no idea what it is about Finnish rap music I like! I don't like it on the whole in English though. 

Do you find you like different genres in different languages? 

[FenWoFon]

Well, I do not think so, I really hate rap in spanish, it sounds kinda agressive for me even when rap in english is still agressive, it is way different than rap in spanish, the voices, lyrics and beats are way different.

[petesede]

My experience is that you do not see as near as much of a blend in music as you do in the USA.   there is either folk music, or there is rap and club music.  You do not see more mainstream music like the USA.   Or maybe that is just my age showing.

[Danili]

7 hours ago, FenWoFon said:

Well, I do not think so, I really hate rap in spanish, it sounds kinda agressive for me even when rap in english is still agressive, it is way different than rap in spanish, the voices, lyrics and beats are way different.

I actually like rap in Spanish, I feel like the language is better suited for rap than English is because it's a bit "harsher". 

But generally I like the same music in Spanish as I do in English. I am also quite embarrassed to admit that I like to sometimes listen to Chalga, a type of folk music from Bulgaria. I'm Bulgarian so I understand it but everyone in my country HATES is and makes fun of it. It's very embarrassing haha. But I like it probably because it reminds me of back home, and gives me them summer feels (when it's always played on the beaches).

[Mameha]

I actually like some Rap Italian songs, i think that this genre can fit with every language depending by how the singer is good with it... About othere gen i think that in Italian a metal song would sound awkward, i prefer them in english or some north Europe languages maybe. 

 

[Teira Eri]

This is an interesting thought.  When I think about it, there are some genres that I like better in one language over another.  For example, for the most part I do not like American heavy metal bands.  I don't find the voices appealing.  However, I will listen to metal in Japanese or German or Italian. I like Korean pop and rap, but I rarely listen to J-pop and English pop.  French and Italian rap are where it's at for me.  Sometimes the language increases the power of the music or flows better with the beat.  Yet, if the song is good, I'll listen to it, regardless of where it originated from.  

[Chris_A]

It does not really change for me. If the song is good and you like the music, it does not matter what language it is sung in, in my opinion.

[sillylucy]

I don't think it really does. I usually like rock and some funky indie music in English and the same goes for me when I listen to music in Spanish. I like indie music in Spanish and I also like fun rock songs I can jam to. Thanks for reminding me of some of the fun indie bands that I missed from Mexico. 

[CosmicSeven]

There's nothing that I've found in thai that suits my tastes, but I definitely love the happy funky folk asian vibe thing they have going in a lot of their music. I dont know if I'll find something more my style there but hey, I'm down to learn more about music from an asian country

[wamiller]

I prefer different music in languages that I am learning.  For example, I listen to more a cappella music in German so I can hear the words better.

[Baburra]

Not really, as I'm more attracted to the tone rather than the lyrics in most cases so as long as the lyrics form phonetically pleasing phrases I'm alright with not knowing what they mean. However, I am more inclined to give certain genres a chance in different languages since if I'm not familiar with what the song is expressing through words I can appreciate the tone a lot more and I'm more inclined to give it a chance if I'm not distracted by the words. All in all though I don't think it makes that much difference to me. 

[brooklyn218]

I love upbeat music in Spanish! It is so much more fun and lively! 

I am pulled to Italian music that is slow and romantic! The language itself is so gorgeous and fluid that it seems the language was meant to be sung rather than spoken! 

[Mameha]

23 hours ago, Teira Eri said:

This is an interesting thought.  When I think about it, there are some genres that I like better in one language over another.  For example, for the most part I do not like American heavy metal bands.  I don't find the voices appealing.  However, I will listen to metal in Japanese or German or Italian. I like Korean pop and rap, but I rarely listen to J-pop and English pop.  French and Italian rap are where it's at for me.  Sometimes the language increases the power of the music or flows better with the beat.  Yet, if the song is good, I'll listen to it, regardless of where it originated from.  

I don't know many Italian metal bands, but i want to recommend one named "Rhapsody of fire" (it's symphonic power metal), i really like the voice of the singer...he's really good! They sing in english but have some songs in Italian too

About rap too there are some good ones....i listened to some asian rap and i actually liked it anyway! 

[Soa]

I certainly think so. I am learning Chinese, but I usually speak English or use american sign language. in English I listen to a lot of different genre's of music but in Chinese oddly enough I have only found one. I've tried to listen to them but they just aren't appealing to me and I believe that has mostly to do with different the cultures are. It's just not what I'm used to. My favorite genre of music in English is pop and soul and I like that as well in Chinese. I also listen to rap music in English and I love it. In Chinese...not so much. Which makes complete sense considering that the reason Americas rap music is the way it is because of who the artist were and what they went through. Which of course will be different from someone in another country. One genre that I like in Chinese and not in English is classical, and the reason behind it is one I am still not entirely sure of.

[Trellum]

Yes, actually now that you mention it yes.  When I was younger I loved viking/black metal and almost any kind of metal, but only in Swedish, Norwegian & English.  But never in other languages, I'd never listen to metal music in Spanish... BIG YIKES! But then again, I'm not a big fan of music in Spanish, unless we are talking of oldies. I love most music in french though, but no metal!  That sounds just ridiculous. 

[kimseokjin]

Certainly my taste in music differs based on the language. When I want rock/emo/punk, I'll listen to it in English. Even though I love K-pop, when the Koreans try to emulate it, it's just not the same (and frankly comes off a little cheesy to me). That said, I will only listen to rap if it's in Korean. I think the language is really rhythmic and is really fitting for the genre. And of course, when it comes to ballads, no one does it best like the Chinese. I generally hate slow songs, but if it's in Chinese I'm able to hate it a little less haha.

[lushlala]

I'm not into love songs, if I'm being totally honest. The few that I do like are fine in English, but the minute I hear the French/Spanish/Italian versions, they do seem to gain a certain je ne sais quoi about them, a certain level of sexiness and romance that somehow doesn't quite shine through in the English versions. However, I don't really seek out foreign language music as such.

On the flip side, I think rap music sounds better in English, especially American English. When I hear artists trying to rap in Setswana, French, Spanish or whatever other  foreign language, it totally sucks. It just sounds stupid and pretentious IMHO.

[Rooks57]

My native tongue is English.  So my favorite genre is metal, rock, punk, rap, and music that has meaning and is serious with meaning.  But when I listen to music in Korean, I love k-pop which is like a super sweet and superficial versions of the U.S pop music.  The music is so fun and catchy that it's really easy to listen too.  I also like indy music in Korean.  I don't like rock done in Korean or Japanese because they don't go as hard as English singers.  I also like listening to softer ballads in Korean because of how gently they sing their songs.

[LeHolic]

Definitely! When I listen to music in English, I tend to like pop and rock mostly.

On the other hand, I don't really like rock in Spanish, also, I do not like pop music in Spanish because -while their rhythms could be similar to songs in English- I feel them as being forced and unnatural. It is as if the singers were trying to imitate the foreign style, not being genuine (or at least I perceive it this way).

In my opinion, every culture has its "natural rhythms" and more often than not the delicious and meaningful form of them are not transferred well to other languages.

[blue_plume]

I love singing in other languages! It's a fun way to learn. I find I prefer songs sung in one of the romance languages best. This is simply because the words of those languages, even when spoken, have much more of a musical rhythym. 

When the movie La Vie en Rose came out, singer Edith Piaf became a favorite singer in our house. For me, there is something about singing in French that feels so much more romantic (Though I know people who have heard my voice think differently !)

Did you know the Beatles have a song in a foreign language? No, not Michelle. It's much rarer than that popular one. On the Past Masters album you can hear them sing "She Loves You" in German. Sie liebt dich, yah, yah, yah!

[lingvo]

Jpop and Jrock sounds like an entirely different music genre for me. Japanese vocals are uncanny and fascinating at the same time, I don't find their voice's tone  in any other language. Also, their instrumental rythms are kind of weird but sounds pretty cool overall. I like it a lot.

[VinayaSpeaks]

For me, the genre changes when the language changes. When I am listing to English songs,I prefer Rock, however, when I am listening to Hindi, I listen to Bollywood music,and when I am listening to Nepali music, I listen to soft rock.

[sidney]

Yes, but I didn't actively sought them out. I just stumbled upon those songs and I happened to like it. I listen particularly to this German band called Rammstein, they play rock music.

[Baburra]

It doesn't change for me or at least not by that much. I admit that some genres that don't sound that good to me in home languages will sound a little better to me when another spoken language is used but my type of music will always be around the same genre regardless of the language used. For the most part it just deviates a bit as I can maybe appreciate some songs in certain genres I don't tend to like but since they are just specific songs I wouldn't say my taste in genres start to differ when the language is changed exactly. 

[Norm A]

All my favorite songs just happen to be in English. There are a lot of other songs that I hear in different languages that I know are good, they definitely sound great, but I think for me it's more of a result of my early conditioning that I prefer songs in English to any other language.