Ten Fearless Predictions For 2009
But I get paid to be a seer, a visionary, someone who cuts the cheese into fair and generous slices. Just as my predictions for last year came true--Choir Music went on one hell of a comeback tear--I fully expect these ten to be just as prescient when you look back in December.
10) Gasoline Prices Will Be Different Than They Are Right Now: Yes, whatever number you see right now hanging on a pole at your local gas station will be different throughout the year, spiking up when home heating bills spike, spiking up again when summer driving hits, spiking up when people are signing up for their "lock-in" rates and drifting down when no one really cares. This will affect the music business profoundly, since the less money in our pockets, the less money we won't have to spend on music we weren't going to buy in the first place.
9) The Economy Will Have Done Something: Will I be selling pencils on the street? Will you? If you read about the economy, it sounds like we're going to be heading towards the barter system. It might be time to save all those rubber bands your grandparents knew you'd need one day.
8) Kanye West Will Be The Spokesman For Something: I'm not saying he'll be the voice of a generation, but there might be an ED drug or a fizzy beverage that for the right price will snag this young entrepreneur's attention with a big fat paycheck. I'm hoping to be the next "Billy Mays" and sell you stuff that doesn't actually clean your shower, but sprays on nice and wet anyhow.
7) Miley Cyrus Will Record A Concept Album: This girl has got to have greater ambitions than merely being on lunchboxes and notebooks and pill dispensers. She's got to have dreams of writing an entire album about being a reigning princess back in the year 408 AD or something. I know in the age of the MP3, double albums are dead, but if anyone was going to bring back the manufacture of cardboard, it would be Miley.
6) Madonna Will Be Dating Someone Other Than Alex Rodriguez: Once she learns how futile Alex is in the clutch--as every Yankee fan can clearly attest--she'll move on to a younger, richer, more successful stud and Alex will be turned into glue.
5) The Jonas Brothers Will Discover They Have Another Brother: What's the saying, "Where's there's a will, there's a relative"? I've always had more friends come payday and I can't imagine that things would be much different for these successful young men. Surely, mom's forgetting someone and that someone is going to want to join the band if only to play the woodblock like a certain George Michael Bluth.
4) Rock N' Roll Will Fail To Make A Comeback For Seventh Straight Year: As long as Rock n' Roll continues to be the music of old people, it will fail to make inroads on today's youth. Sure, they'll see those pictures of a young Neil Young somewhere, but they'll know that he's really just someone's granddad trying to con them into parting with money they don't spend on music anyway.
3) Country Rock Will Continue To Be Ignored By Most Country And Rock Fans: This has to be the neatest genre ever. Alt.country, country-rock, call it what you will. But it manages to escape the interest of people who listen to either mainstream country or mainstream rock n' roll, leaving nothing but a bunch of middle-aged dudes who can't figure out how they've become the "lost generation."
2) The Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame Will Continue To Induct The Wrong People: This has become automatic practically since they let Billy Joel in. They just keep finding more middle-of-the-road performers and keep ignoring the bands that the kids actually listened to. Unless you have a highly influential lobbyist able to do your bidding, and even then there are no guarantees, you're not getting in unless your name is connected to...who? Clive Davis?
1) Magazines Will Begin Coverage Of The Past Decade Before June: It's the end of the ‘00s. The decade with no name because nothing happened. Don't believe me? Wait till the magazines start hitting in mid-May remembering the decade that wasn't. If you thought it was bad living through it, wait till you live through it again! In pictures!


As for Nickelback...they are just doing the same thing over and over until it don't sell. Thanks for being the voice of a generation Chad! (They refuse to make a new and interesting album, or take any ANY risks). Thus, Rock (mainstream at least) is stuck in a rut.
As for #3...HEY! I'm 14 years old and I LOVE alt. country!!! Old 97's was a great album, and I already got two of my friends to get in the genre...so maybe THAT prediction will fail...or maybe the people who said they like it like Soulja boy too...;(
All the other predictions seem about right...and their pretty funny too.
BTW Rob, how the HELL did you know choir was gonna make a comeback? No, seriously, it was on my cities newspaper a month ago, and I just saw like 5 articles about new choirs...its crazy!
Gas prices will change....you mean they've stopped at any time in the past, oh I don't know, history of sale?
Kanye will be a spokesman? For what, 'crybaby of the month'?
rock never needed a comeback, we jsut need to clean the crap out of the big picture, and put something that matters, something with balls on the screen, in your face and in your ears, and not the crap that the radio and t.v. will force-feed you.
Stop crying about it 'not coming back', when it never left. It's there, but its not asociated with the all crap-spewing trash thats thrown into very media outlet in north america.
How DARE you call Rob's list useless? Don't you know the meaning of importance on them? And how they are the answer to life? And the future?
And, yes, Rock needs a comeback, its no longer dominating charts, and some interest is waning
I agree with #4. It hurts me to say it , but it's true. We are certainly due for the next great artist to come along and shake things up. Sadly, as long as Fall Out Boy and Nickelback lead the way(which is pretty much pop/dance music with distortion)with the same song over and over again, we will all have to continue to look foward to our old favorites to reunite and make average albums.Ahhh! The future of Rock looks pretty lame.
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Great post.
Pete Wentz is still gay!
And despite whether or not true Rock and Roll makes this big "comeback" that you speak of... its the real fans of it that are all we need to keep it alive. Rock n Roll will never die, ever.
She Faith is a meaning full woman.