What would you say was the last year that songs had a 90s feel to them?

My vote is for 2005. Here's why:

- There were many songs on the radio that year that sounded like they could have come out in the late 90s or early 2000s, like Gwen Stefani's "Rich Girl" and Pretty Ricky's "Grind With Me."

- Several artists that year were in fact big in the 90s, like Gwen Stefani (with No Doubt), Mariah Carey, and Green Day.

- Music stopped sounding 90ish thanks in part to ringtone rap and Timbaland's techno beats, which became especially prominent in late 2005/2006.

Do you agree? Why or why not?

What would you say was the last year that songs had a 90s feel to them?

My vote is for 2005.


2000 to early 2001 before 9/11

August 31st, 2006 11:59:59 PM was the last time music sounded 90s-ish. We've never ever been in the same world since then.

Eh i don't think so.

What would you say was the last year that songs had a 90s feel to them?

My vote is for 2005. Here's why:

- There were many songs on the radio that year that sounded like they could have come out in the late 90s or early 2000s, like Gwen Stefani's "Rich Girl" and Pretty Ricky's "Grind With Me."

- Several artists that year were in fact big in the 90s, like Gwen Stefani (with No Doubt), Mariah Carey, and Green Day.

- Music stopped sounding 90ish thanks in part to ringtone rap and Timbaland's techno beats, which became especially prominent in late 2005/2006.

Do you agree? Why or why not?


I typically agree with you but not on this.  While other aspects of '90s culture lasted longer in the '00s, music was transitioning as early as 1998 and was for the most part the '90s sound was gone by the second half of 2001.  2005 Green Day in my opinion had a slightly different sound to it than 90s Green Day.

Ugh, another thread contributing to the compulsive obsession of discussing the 90sness of the 2000s, like geez, why are so many people literally obsessed with that.

Also as to answer the question, short answer: absolutely not. Long answer: no, because music already started to move away from 90s production values already by 2001 when the popularity of teen pop faded away and the shift to urbanized pop with r&b/hip hop influences was already set, so it will be a No for claims like "ringtone rap killed 90s music" (though I can't deny Timbaland's influential inprint on the 2000s though it was already apparent in the 90s themselves that the new sound he concocted was in amidst of spreading influence). None of the two songs listed sound particularly 90s, "Grind With Me" is just your typical early 2000s R&B jam, just a tad slower, but have easily been a Nelly or Ashanti song. "Rich Girl" sound like a Black-Eyed Peas song, nothing else to say.

For the 90s artists that were still around in the mid 2000s, it's like saying the late 90s sounded 70s-ish because you had artists like Elton John, Aerosmith and Cher making hits...

Decadeology! Locked!


Cat