United States and Canada
---------------------------------------------
Pop
------
Modern R&B and urban pop the most powerful forces in the Top 40 from 1992 to 1998. Popular artists include Usher, Aaliyah, R. Kelly, Whitney Houston, TLC, Seal, Jodeci, Mariah Carey SWV, Janet Jackson, En Vogue, Brandy, Boyz II Men, and Monica.
Teen pop carries over from the late 1980s into the year 1990, with New Kids on the Block at their peak and Debbie Gibson and Tiffany at the end of their careers. In 1997 teen pop comes back in a much larger way than it ever was in the 1980s with hit-factory groups including the Backstreet Boys and Spice Girls that overshadowed not only the acts of the 1980s like them, but all other music popular in the late 1990s.
A revival of the singer-songwriter movement of the 1970s, closely connected to Third-wave feminism and the Lilith Fair, this movement lasted up to about 2002 with artists like Norah Jones. Important artists include Alanis Morissette, Edwin McCain, Jewel, Natalie Merchant and Sheryl Crow.
Unsure pop was a brand of pop that also had R&B and Grunge mixed in. It started in 1993 with bands like Completely Uncomplete, Unamazing Grace, & Great Hiding Place. It became popular in about 1996 when CCMZ & Evil Laugh formed. It ended in 2002 when CCMZ first disbanded.
Rock
--------
The rise of the alternative rock sound and the fall of classic rock - 1990s rock was defined by lyrics relating to depression and awareness, and lacked both party songs and complex guitar solos.
Hair metal popular up to the year 1992, when Grunge took its place and Guns N Roses disbanded. The glory days of hair metal ended by 1990, from that point on, it was widely ridiculed and people waited for something new to take its place.
Grunge, the defining genre of the decade, was popular from 1991 to 1994. Nirvana are considered to have brought both Grunge and alternative rock, which dominates both the 1990s and 2000s rock scenes into the mainstream.
Pop-punk breaks into the mainstream by 1994 with the success of Green Day, The Offspring and Weezer - by the early 2000s this would merge with emotional hardcore and start the 2000s Emo trend.
Britpop popular in America and Canada in the second half of the 1990s - bands like Oasis, The Verve and Blur take over the grunge scene which transforms into adult contemporary rock and post-grunge.
Hip hop
-----------
At the beginning of the 1990s, MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice make hip hop popular to the pop audience, and mark the beginning of hip hop's so far permanent place in pop music.
By 1992, hip hop starts to rival rock music with artists like Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eazy-E, Nas, 2Pac and Notorious B.I.G., all of who made gangsta rap popular on pop radio and had a 27 Club-like status.
Pop rap in the late 1990s leads to the hip hop and Top 40 scenes becoming synonymous by the 2000s.
Alternative Rap became a popular contrast to gangsta rap, and Pop rap. With artists like De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Digable Planets, and Arrested Development (group)
Political Rap also became popular because of artists like Public Enemy, N.W.A, Paris (rapper), and The Coup
Country
------------
Garth Brooks the most popular artist of the 1990s, selling more concerts than Mariah Carey.
Artists like Faith Hill, LeAnn Rimes and Tim McGraw bring country music crossover success, see pop country.
Europe
----------------------------------------------------
Rock
----------
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Madchester movement, including bands like the Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, was popular and would influence the twee pop and indie rock of the 1990s and 2000s.
Britpop would define the United Kingdom scene of the 1990s, and enjoyed international success Down Under and in North America.
Pop
---------
Teen pop, which lost popularity in the United States in 1991, was popular in Europe throughout the 1990s.
Dance music and techno a strong influence on pop, bands like Eiffel 65 and the Spice Girls being examples. Teen pop reemerged in the late 1990s with the breakthroughs of artists including Britney Spears, *NSYNC, Christina Aguilera, Jessica Simpson, the Backstreet Boys, and Jennifer Lopez.
Electronica
----------
Techno and rave music, while popular in clubs in the United States, were popular in and out of clubs in Europe and the United Kingdom.
Smells Like Teen Spirit
Nirvana Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Interesting Facts ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's fun to lose and to pretend
She's over-bored and self assured
Oh no, I know a dirty word
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
Yeah, hey, yay
I'm worse at what I do best
And for this gift I feel blessed
Our little group has always been
And always will until the end
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
Yeah, hey, yay
And I forget just why I taste
Oh yeah, I guess it makes me smile
I found it hard, it's hard to find
Oh well, whatever, never mind
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Hello, hello, hello
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial, a denial
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial
The song "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana was released in 1991 and is widely considered one of the most iconic and influential songs in the history of rock music. The lyrics of the song capture the disaffected and rebellious spirit of the time period and deal with issues such as boredom, apathy, and the search for identity. The opening lines "Load up on guns, bring your friends / It's fun to lose and to pretend" speaks to the nihilistic tendencies of young people who were disillusioned with the political and economic system at the time.
The chorus of the song, with the repeated phrase "With the lights out, it's less dangerous / Here we are now, entertain us," reflects the desire for entertainment and escape from the pain and chaos of the world. The reference to "a mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido" is believed to be an inside joke by Kurt Cobain and refers to a friend who described himself in this manner. The line "I feel stupid and contagious" speaks to the feeling of helplessness and frustration that many young people experienced during the time period.
Overall, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a song that captures the disillusionment and angst of a generation and continues to be celebrated as a seminal work in the history of rock music.
Interesting facts about the song:
Interesting Facts
Note: This section uses generative AI, which can be inaccurate.
Line by Line Meaning
Load up on guns, bring your friends
Gather weapons and bring your accomplices
It's fun to lose and to pretend
It's enjoyable to have nothing and act like you don't care
She's over bored and self assured
She's extremely bored and full of herself
Oh no, I know a dirty word
Oh dear, I'm aware of a profanity
Hello, hello, hello, how low
Greetings, how are you feeling down there?
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Having the lights turned off decreases the amount of risk
Here we are now, entertain us
We are present, so put on a show for us
I feel stupid and contagious
I feel unintelligent and like I can easily spread my feelings to others
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
A person with mixed race heritage, a person with no pigmentation, an insect that feeds on blood, my sexual drive
I'm worse at what I do best
I'm not very skilled at what I excel at
And for this gift I feel blessed
Despite this, I feel fortunate for this talent
Our little group has always been
Our small community has always existed
And always will until the end
And it will continue until the end
And I forget just why I taste
And I don't remember why I have this specific sensation
Oh yeah, I guess it makes me smile
Oh right, I suppose it causes me to grin
I found it hard, was hard to find
I struggled to locate it
Oh well, whatever, never mind
Oh well, it doesn't really matter anymore
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial, a denial
An inability to accept the truth
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: David Grohl, Krist Novoselic, Kurt Cobain
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
LukeTheDuke
Fun fact: you don't have to hate this song just because Cobain did, it's a pretty good song
LukeTheDuke
@Jordan Carreira He felt it overshadowed a lot of their better work, and he didn't wanna be known as a one hit wonder. In Utero is the album where Kurt achieved the sound he wanted to have with Nirvana. In his opinion Nevermind was too clean and commercial.
LukeTheDuke
@Jordan Carreira Well, I recommend listening to all of their albums in full to get the best effect. But some favourites of mine are: Dive, Very Ape, Serve The Servants, Sifting, About A Girl and Sappy. I could go on and on, once you get into them you'll love every song.
Satanic Daylight
He didn't actually hate it
He hated the fact it was TOO popular
Rianna
He hated the pressure from his record label to produce another "teen spirit" track. He wanted creative freedom.
John Munro
It's very common for artists to resent some of their most popular works.
Андрей Жовтоног
32 года прошло с тех пор, как появилась эта композиция. Сколько всего произошло и изменилось за эти годы, но только классика не меняется, она вечна. R.I.P. Курт, покойся с миром, бро…
SeyallElHeroe
muy bien dicho
An Ms
Can we bring this back? This feeling? This music? This vibe. The world needs more of this.
roundandsquareful
That's what I want, too. Just watching and listening to this again makes me feel wistful.