How does music get classified into genres? Is there a definitive list of artists and genres somewhere?
OK……to be more specific, Music is classified into genres by anyone who cares to do it. Anyone who can publish a list can state their opinion and put it out there for the world to see. It is all just subject to opinion, as very few artists can actually be reduced to a single tag or label. I was attempting to explain the premise of the media’s angle on this, as they, combined with the record industry, seem to be the most interested and influential in labelling bands and putting artists into little slots. I am sorry that there is not a simple black and white answer to this. If you look long enough, you will find a list that you are happy with, but like I said before, it’s really all opinion.
I’m not so sure how music gets classified. However, my definitive resource is the All Music Guide at www.allmusic.com. If you look at album or artist details you will see each listed as one particular genre (except for artists that change their ways of course). All of these other categorizations of music, are actually different styles of music. Some people refer to them as subgenres, but my opinion is styles. For example pop, classic rock, powerpop, hard rock, heavy metal, and etc. are styles under the genre of rock. Bluegrass is a style of country. Hope that helps a bit.
