Why do people on this site pretend to have never heard of people from popular culture

Sanity_Saviour

Every time a thread comes up about someone that everyone in the world knows (the Justin Biebers, One Direction, Rihanna etc.), the first comment is "Who?" or "I've never heard of them".

Is it a point of pride not to be involved in popular culture? Do these people think that appearing as if they are isolated from the popular stratosphere will actually provide them with an elevated social standing (on the internet)? Or, is it just pure unfettered smugness?

Links234

Who?

bodice ripper

I have never heard One Direction, it's easily done.

DEFTLEFTHAND

It's an internet joke, you see it all the time on other message forums and newspaper comment sections.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

The problem is more that people expect you to have a knowledge of pop culture.

Major names, fair enough, but c and d list celebs are genuinely not going to be known.

keith16

Links234 wrote: »

Who?

People on this site.

strelok

i don't listen to the radio, i don't watch tv and my friends are all in or around their thirties

I have no idea what the kids are listening to or .. yik yakking?

brummytom

I've seen plenty of 'RIP' threads here and things like that, for people I've never heard of. Not everyone follows 'pop culture' that closely.
Posting "Who?" in a thread like that is a bit cuntish though.

DEFTLEFTHAND

They only time it actually ever made me laugh was when somebody used it on a Daily Mail article featuring Queen Elizabeth.

Links234

keith16 wrote: »

People on this site.

Never heard of 'em.

ScumLord

Sanity_Saviour wrote: »

Is it a point of pride not to be involved in popular culture?

Yes, popular culture is a waste of time. Most of it will be forgotten within 5 years. It's especially easy to ignore current popular culture because it's got nothing new to say. They're just remixing the culture my generation made 15 years ago.

Tarzana2

Sometimes it's genuine. I remember listening to the radio is a shop queue a few years ago and they kept talking about Justin Beaver and I was wondering who Justin Beaver was. It was Justin Bieber. And I subsequently discovered that he was very famous and in the news a lot but at the time... genuinely not a clue.

gramar

Sanity_Saviour wrote: »

Every time a thread comes up about someone that everyone in the world knows (the Justin Biebers, One Direction, Rihanna etc.), the first comment is "Who?" or "I've never heard of them".

That answer is along the lines of:

'about three fiddy' (whatever the fuq that is about)
..'is there anything to be said for another mass'
..'daddy or chips'..(whatever the fuq that is about)
the 'Atari jaguar' option in a poll (whatever the fuq that is about)
and last but not least 'blast them with piss op'

You may also be surprised to know that some people get through life not knowing this kinda stuff.

Ruu

I didn't know who Bill Hicks was until I saw people posting quotes and jokes about him, thanks boards. There are loads of posters who go around 'as Bill Hicks would say..' It was genuine of course. Loads more examples I'm sure.

Depp

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hipster_(contemporary_subculture)

smash

It's an easier way of saying "who gives a shít"

draiochtanois

This post has been deleted.

theteal

I have to google a lot of the "celebrity" names that pop up on here because I'm a bit oblivious to the pop world. I'm not enough of a knob to post "who?" on a thread though. . .





. . .not far off mind

looksee

I suppose I could google it, but I have never understood the atari jaguar thing. I do know where the daddy or chips meme started.

Edit: atari jaguar was the last atari programmable game console. There you are now. Still doesn't make any sense though.

darkpagandeath

Because we all don't live on Instagram ? or FB or Twatter ? Being some semi famous persons cousin does not make one famous.......

Someone once asked me how I could possibly have not heard of some footballer who the whole world apparently knows about. It's easy, I don't watch football, I don't read about football, and I don't care about football. So I suppose a lot of it is like that, although I wouldn't be asking who someone was if it was clear it was about Jersey Shore or something else I have no interest in.

But making a point of ostentatiously being above knowing who Justin Beiber or someone like that is, is like claiming to live in an information vacuum while simultaneously being on the internet - it's just not believable (or Believerable, if you prefer).

brevity

Links234 wrote: »

Never heard of 'em.

I preferred their earlier stuff.

con___manx1

Sanity_Saviour wrote: »

Every time a thread comes up about someone that everyone in the world knows (the Justin Biebers, One Direction, Rihanna etc.), the first comment is "Who?" or "I've never heard of them".

Is it a point of pride not to be involved in popular culture? Do these people think that appearing as if they are isolated from the popular stratosphere will actually provide them with an elevated social standing (on the internet)? Or, is it just pure unfettered smugness?

I dislike popular culture. Its ruining music and peoples IQs .Kids are brainwashed by popular culture. I heard recently justin bieber walked off stage because a few fans touched his legs at a concert. What a little spoiled bitch.People who are really interested in celebs lives like bieber are pretty sad and more than likely not very intelligent and have no idea what is going on in the world around them.

from_atozinc

gramar wrote: »

That answer is along the lines of:

'about three fiddy' (whatever the fuq that is about)
..'is there anything to be said for another mass'
..'daddy or chips'..(whatever the fuq that is about)
the 'Atari jaguar' option in a poll (whatever the fuq that is about)
and last but not least 'blast them with piss op'

You may also be surprised to know that some people get through life not knowing this kinda stuff.

What ?

draiochtanois

This post has been deleted.

gramar

from_atozinc wrote: »

What ?

Exactly.

Realt Dearg Sec

con___manx1 wrote: »

Its ruining music and peoples IQs ..

People's IQs are higher right now than at any point in human history.

It's also worth pointing out that every generation thinks the next one's music and popular culture is complete nonsense in comparison to their own. It requires a very selective memory about what was popular when that person was a kid themselves. Have a gander at the top ten charts for any random time in the 80s or 90s, it was complete and utter pabulum, not one iota different from now.

osarusan

There was a thread recently about worst comedians, and I didn't recognise the names of a good few people mentioned. In some cases I googled them and recognised the face, (oh, so it's that w@nker) but in a few cases, I still didn't recognise them at all.

If you're not into something, you can easily end up like that, to the bafflement of people who are into it. There are probably plenty of TV celebrities, authors, musicians and so on I don't know as I simply don't pay attention.

I attended a presentation last week where a young American woman kept pronouncing the Brazilian footballer Pele as 'Peel'. She'd obviously never heard of him until she did some research for the presentation.

Realt Dearg Sec

osarusan wrote: »

I attended a presentation last week where a young American woman kept pronouncing the Brazilian footballer Pele as 'Peel'. She'd obviously never heard of him until she did some research for the presentation.

That's brilliant!

I read the comedian thread and was amazed at some of the responses. Fair enough, Porter and Peter Kay or Michael McIntyre or whoever (although again, the hatred seems to be for their popularity as much as their undeniable crappiness). But people were mentioning Sarah Silverman, Louis CK, Stewart Lee. I can get not liking someone, but the notion that these people are AWFUL doesn't make sense and makes you wonder whether the person saying it was being genuine or just trying to look like they're ahead of the curve on popularity.

pq0n1ct4ve8zf5

I'm getting to the point now where I really don't know who a lot of pop cultural figures are. Like on the front of gossip magazines where they just refer to people by their first names ("Debbie DEVESTATED over Damien's diddling" and so on), I was never particularly interested but til fairly recently I'd usually have a notion who the people were. There seems to be some ability to absorb that stuff by osmosis that rapidly fades after the age of 25. Also my feet hurt and I get excited about washing detergent and all the music on the radio is terrible.

It takes as long to google someone as to post a reply on boards though, it really is pretty obnoxious behaviour

NachoBusiness

darkpagandeath wrote: »

Because we all don't live on Instagram ?

Instawho?

Samaris

If I do it (actually, not sure I ever have), it'd be genuine. I've seen a few threads where someone's posted "Who?" and I agree mentally because I haven't a clue either.

Mind you, when watching TV series' or whatever, my partner will often pause it and say "Hey, it's X, who played Y, Z and C in *insert other shows here*". My response is almost always a blank look, but I was very impressed he recognized the woman who played General Beckman in Chuck bundled into a lot of furs as a redshirt in Enterprise.

I do not recognise people well. I couldn't name a single One Direction song, but I've probably heard them on the radio.

Squall Leonhart

gramar wrote: »

That answer is along the lines of:

'about three fiddy' (whatever the fuq that is about)

That's where it came from!!

The_Valeyard

I thought most of what was posted in AH usually concerns stuff happening in popular culture.

Also my car smells of mints

gramar

Squall Leonhart wrote: »

That's where it came from!!

I now know a little bit more about popular culture.

padd b1975

bodice ripper wrote: »

I have never heard One Direction, it's easily done.

I've heard of them, but I'd struggle to identify them in a line up of boyband types.

poeticmakaveli

Having heard of them is one thing as it can be stuck down your neck by the powers that be... Listening to them is quite embarassing, but everyone to their own as people say,even if it still is crap!
Not saying I am above anyone or anything but I thank my family now that even when I was as young as 11 they had me listening to Stevie wonder, Sam Cooke,Marvin Gaye, bon jovi,guns n roses and all that other craic:)

Medusa22

I often don't know which famous person someone is talking about, and it's genuine, going to the hairdresser is a nightmare because I don't watch Xfactor/Dancing with the Stars/ I'm a Celebrity, Get me out of here or TOWIE etc.

I don't watch tv very often because I usually watch netflix or I download shows and films so I'm not exposed to many ads and I rarely listen to the radio. I read the newspaper online alright and I browse boards/facebook. However, it means that a lot of celebrities, especially pop singers are completely unknown to me and people look baffled when I don't know who someone is and they think I'm being a hipster.

Paramite Pie

Tarzana2 wrote: »

And I subsequently discovered that he was very famous and in the news a lot but at the time... genuinely not a clue.

It was the same situation with my friend until I played him a video on youtube. He had heard the song on the radio but had no idea who sang it. Conversely I only knew who he was from youtube and had never heard him on the radio.

bodice ripper wrote: »

I have never heard One Direction, it's easily done.

See above. If you've ever been in a shop/cafe where the radio was on then you probably heard them - you just didn't know or care who it was.:)

Medusa22 wrote: »

I often don't know which famous person someone is talking about, and it's genuine, going to the hairdresser is a nightmare because I don't watch Xfactor/Dancing with the Stars/ I'm a Celebrity, Get me out of here or TOWIE etc.

I don't watch tv very often because I usually watch netflix or I download shows and films so I'm not exposed to many ads and I rarely listen to the radio. I read the newspaper online alright and I browse boards/facebook. However, it means that a lot of celebrities, especially pop singers are completely unknown to me and people look baffled when I don't know who someone is and they think I'm being a hipster.

It is getting easier to cut out the mainstream. Reality TV is something I'm absolutely clueless on. The good news is most xfactor & reality 'stars' are forgotten about rather quickly. Those who are remembered are usually remembered for being in a right 'state' outside some club. I learned to stop telling people which shows i've never seen to avoid the 'hipster' label -- everything is on my 'watch' list as far as most people are concerned.

Son Of A Vidic

osarusan wrote: »

There was a thread recently about worst comedians, and I didn't recognise the names of a good few people mentioned

You weren't the only one, I noticed a lot of Boarsdies didn't like this Al Porter chap. I hadn't a clue who he was until I did a quick google search. Never watching Irish TV channels probably didn't help my cause.

RayM

I make a conscious effort not to know anything about certain things (celebrities and almost all sport). If you asked me to name an Irish rugby player, without Googling, the only one I could think of is Brian O'Driscoll (and I don't even think he plays any more). It's a childish reaction to what I see as the overexposure of stuff I'm not interested in, and I'm not proud* of it. I absorb things quite easily, and I kind of resent it when stuff I think is worthless finds its way into my brain, so I switch off, turn the page or change the channel as soon as it's likely to happen.

*Ok, I'm slightly proud of the fact that I don't know who 'the Kardashians' are, how they became famous or what they're famous for.

the_syco

Sanity_Saviour wrote: »

Every time a thread comes up about someone that everyone in the world knows (the Justin Biebers, One Direction, Rihanna etc.), the first comment is "Who?"

Because The Who are excellent!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdLIerfXuZ4

asherbassad

Sanity_Saviour wrote: »

Every time a thread comes up about someone that everyone in the world knows (the Justin Biebers, One Direction, Rihanna etc.), the first comment is "Who?" or "I've never heard of them".

Is it a point of pride not to be involved in popular culture? Do these people think that appearing as if they are isolated from the popular stratosphere will actually provide them with an elevated social standing (on the internet)? Or, is it just pure unfettered smugness?

As an engineer and mathematician I am hardon over LaPlace Transforms and Lagrangian Motion. Others would say whah?

RDM_83 again

I think celebrity culture is probably even quicker than the 15 minutes of fame that it used to be, loads of reality/scripted reality TV shows and each of the participants is a celebrity so the churn rate is faster.

Paramite Pie

RayM wrote: »

*Ok, I'm slightly proud of the fact that I don't know who 'the Kardashians' are, how they became famous or what they're famous for.

By their own admission they don't actually do anything or are famous for anything. They had money and could buy publicity and buy 'scandals' to keep in the media. It was a sex tape that started it all.

Whitewinged

I sometimes hear of "bands" and they are realising a greatest hits and I don't have a clue of anything they sing.

TV and The Charts have changed a lot. Years ago you only had a certain amount of channels so the majority of people saw the same things I guess.

Irish Guitarist

If someone doesn't watch the likes of MTV or has no interest in whatever the latest teen craze is then it's perfectly understandable how they might not have heard of these people.

I've heard of One Direction but I couldn't name a single song of theirs. I have absolutely no clue about what's happening in the world of sport either.

I once read a thread to see what the hell a 'broken Rihanna' was and made the unforgivable error of saying that I had no idea who Chris Brown was. I think I've since heard one of his songs.

cml387

There is no popular culture any more.
The audience is so fractured that nothing commands the audience who would have bought Bohemian Rhapsody or watched Dallas.

Here the thing...all the Christmas songs are old..OLD.
Merry Christmas everybody.!! That was 40 years ago,

I can guaranteee you (because I was around then) that they weren't playing songs from 1935 in 1975 on the radio. There is no more popular culture, just a rehash of the original.

L.Jenkins

What exactly is this Pop Culture? Should I have jumped on some band wagon that's been and gone? I don't watch football, I don't care that much for music and I find the current line up on TV to be somewhat mind numbingly dull and drab, rehashed and beaten to death. Should I follow the zombie hoard to be cool?

HalloweenJack

I live in Spain, I don't watch telly, I don't have twitter so don't follow celeb updates, I'm not interested in chart music, I don't follow any telly shows religiously and ditto for films or film series

It's perfectly possible for me to not know who certain pop culture figures are.

But at the same time, I don't see the need to go round mentioning that in every thread.

Azalea

I can sometimes genuinely think "Who?" in relation to teenybopper stuff, but I'd google it. As others have said though, it's probably meant tongue-in-cheek when the subject is universally famous.

Realt Dearg Sec wrote: »

People's IQs are higher right now than at any point in human history.

It's also worth pointing out that every generation thinks the next one's music and popular culture is complete nonsense in comparison to their own. It requires a very selective memory about what was popular when that person was a kid themselves. Have a gander at the top ten charts for any random time in the 80s or 90s, it was complete and utter pabulum, not one iota different from now.

It's significantly different in my opinion. Sure, there was crap in the charts in the 80s and 90s, but nowhere near to the same extent as today, due to the X Factor et al. Chart music of the late 70s/early 80s comprised a lot of stuff that is considered absolutely classic now.