Late Twentieth Century

The eighties and ninties were interesting times in the musical world. Such things as glam metal (or hair bands), boy bands, punk, and alternative music came onto the scene. Glam metal actually had its origins in the early 70s, but did not really come onto the scene until the 1980s. Glam metal derives its origins from hard rock, glam rock, and heavy metal. Important Glam Metal bands included: Quiet Riot, Twisted Sister, and Motley Crue. The Glam Metal subgenre reached mainstream popularity around 1984, but declined in popularity starting around 1991. Although Glam Metal made a comeback starting in 1997, it has never really regained as large a following with the new generation, and bands that are classified as Glam Metal could also be classified as Rock.

Another genre that became prevalent during the eighties and nineties is the boy band genre. A boy band usually consists of four to five teenage males who both sing and dance but do not play instruments. Usually, the members of the group are chosen for their looks and dancing ability, rather than their actual musical talent. Actually, boy bands can be traced to the 1960s with such acts as the Monkees and the Jackson 5, who had many of the musical conventions of modern boy bands. The bands used some of the mucsical conventions associated with modern boy bands such as close harmonies and catchy pop hooks. The members of the Monkees were originally chosen for a TV show by the same name that aired from 1966 to 1968. Although the term boy band was not actually used to describe these groups until the 1990s, the 1980s produced what is considered the first conmercially successful boy band, and possibly the most well-known, New Kids on the Block. Lou Pearlman is possibly the most successful producer of boy bands, taking credit for producing both N*Sync and the Backstreet Boys, two of the most popular boy bands of the 1990s.

Parallels are often drawn from boy bands of the 1980s-90s to boy bands of the 1960s-70s. The target demographic for both generations were pre-teens, usually pre-teen females, and the bands often lose popularity after around five years of mainstream play, however, with new decades, new boy bands appear on the scene to market themselves to a new generation of pre-teens. Another odd coincidence is that one member of the boy band usually is favored more than the others, and achieves much more notable success than his bandmates after leaving the group. Examples include Michael Jackson of the Jackson 5, and Justin Timberlake of N*Sync.

Grunge was another genre of music that became popular in the 1980s. The grunge movement actually began in Seattle. The grunge movement was largely influenced by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock. Although many people believe that Nirvana started the movement, but it actually began earlier with bands such as Mudhoney and Melvins. However, Nirvana and Pearl Jam were responsible for the mainstream success of the movement, while the tragic death of Kurt Cobain was the beginning of the end for the grunge movement, as well as most grunge bands being uncomfortable with commercial success. Eventually, the grunge movement and the alternative movment merged together.

The eighties and nineties served as a gateway for many new genres and subgenres of music to gain mainstream recognition. While some new types of music did not survive into the new millenium, others have become bases for today's popular music.