Whether it is a soft jazz melody in a restaurant, an overplayed pop hit on the radio, the ice cream truck, house music in a club or that tune that elicits a smile while brushing teeth, music plays a major role in the lives of listeners. In fact, music has the ability to produce nearly any emotion and completely alter an otherwise dull circumstance.
Music has the unique ability to influence the minds and mindsets of listeners for years. In fact, the psychological connection to music has been proven to advance many components of human lives.
“Music is a tool that we’ve experienced a natural gravitational pull toward since an early age and emits emotional reactions. It is a tool that can boost motivation, increase focus, and alter your mood,” Heather Auten, AP Psychology teacher, said.
Not only does music elicit vast brain activity, it also has a major cultural impact. People of various ages form bonds over a shared love for certain music and the biggest album/artist shapes generation to generation.
The music of 2024 is a great example of how music can impact and shape the lives of listeners, especially high school students. With everything that happened in 2024, music made a big difference.
For 2024, the album that had the biggest cultural impact was Charli XCX’s “Brat.” Effectively starting a cultural movement, this album combines art and artistry in a unique way. Not only was the execution of Brat a highlight for a great year, effectively starting a cultural movement, it sent “brat summer” into effect, a lifestyle focusing on having care-free fun and a bold attitude.
Many trends emerged at the release of the album. Bright green became fashionable, a new TikTok dance created to Charli XCX’s “Apple” and electronic music exploded everywhere.
TikTok was also a large contributor to “Brat’s” success. The song was popular among meme culture and appealed to a younger audience with a doctrine surrounding accepting vulnerability while loving oneself.
Although Sabrina Carpenter was already a household name for her role in the hit TV show “Girl Meets World,” her singing career exploded with the release of “Short and Sweet.”
Similarly to Charli XCX, Carpenter created a world surrounding the album artistry of her recent album. Both artists used clever marketing tactics by subtly incorporating what things they wanted to be associated with leading up to the release of their albums. For example, the bright green color of “Brat” and the kiss symbol for “Short and Sweet” are memorable.
For Carpenter’s album, the visual cues led to greater exposure of the album and played a key role in its popularity.
Also in 2024, genres such as house/electronic music grew in popularity for the first time since club culture exploded in the 80’s. Indie music, which emerged in the 80’s and 90’s, continued to strive this previous year as it has for the last decade.
2024’s Coachella’s lineup thrilled many EDM fans as it contained many more house music artists than previous years such as FISHER, Purple Disco Machine and BLOND:ISH. The 2024 music festival had more electronic artists/producers than ever in its 25 year history.
The Grammys, which took place on February 2, 2025, served as a victory lap for songs, albums and artists that dominated 2024. Joining Charli XCX and Sabrina Carpenter, songs and albums from Billie Eilish, Chappel Roan, Taylor Swift and Beyonce left an impression.
CSD students had a lot to say about both the music and the Grammys.
“Billie’s album, ‘Hit Me Hard and Soft,’ I truly connected to, especially the song ‘The Greatest’,” Maggie Neale (‘26) said. “I was shocked it didn’t win a single Grammy.”
2024 chart topping artists who weren’t Grammy nominees are also worth mentioning.
Despite not releasing an album since “Blonde” in 2016, Frank Ocean’s “Channel Orange” continues to receive praise and recognition (which is unique to other bigger artists whose popularity usually fizzles).
“Frank Ocean gives his fans absolutely no new music or content and yet they still worship him,” Brianna Padin (‘26) said. “That’s what makes him special.”
It seems 2024 stands out as a monumental year for music as not only did the success of the nominated albums fulfill the creator’s careers but there is a notable shift in “mainstream” music as genres like electronic, folk and indie dominate the charts.
Looking ahead to 2025, CSD Spartans wonder if the new year will even come close to what was released and what was popular in 2024.
“The music in 2025 will not amount to 2024, especially since a lot of artists released an album in 2024, making new music unlikely,” Makayla Smith (‘26) said.
Only time will tell.
(Check out the Spartan Sentinel’s playlist of songs from 2024 here on Spotify.)
