Now, we finally enter the first decade of music that I was alive for. This is significant because I was actively present during this era of music and was impacted by the cultural changes. Music in the early 21st century took a turn from music of the 1990s. Though they have some commonalities from the culture of Y2K, the vibes of each decade are arguably different. They are the same but in different fonts.
For example, the 1990s music was more rooted in alternative rock that I would not be embarrassed to be caught listening to. (I actively listen to Radiohead, Nirvana, and Green Day). With that being said, I wouldn’t mind being caught listening to Fall Out Boy or My Chemical Romance, it’s just that I might actually start crying if I was. Now, to each their own, but I grew up being embarrassed of those bands and I will die being embarrassed of those bands. (even though they have amazing music).
But that was the culture of the early 2000s. There were artists ranging from Jay-Z to Taylor Swift, to Nickelback, to Jack Johnson. All very different vibes, but somehow, I could listen to each of their songs after the other. Because that was the 2000s.
There was pop, which was my favorite as a child. Artists in this genre were notably Katy Perry, P!nk, Kesha, and Maroon 5. These artists are still prominent today and have created much success, but I believe most of their success came from this decade of music.
Other artists in the pop genre of the early 2000s include 
icons like Britney Spears and Cristina Aguilera. Both these artists had songs that took over the decade like Spears’ “Oops!… I did it again and Aguilera’s “Come on over Baby (All I Want Is You).
Along with pop, Disney stars became extremely popular with their music. Nowadays anyone who rises to fame out of nowhere decides they can sing but back then, all of the Disney kids had amazing voices. There was the release of three High School Musical movies, with amazing soundtracks and heart throbs like Zac Efron and
Corbin Bleu.
There were also artists like Cheetah Girls, Hilary Duff, Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, Jonas Brothers, and Raven-Symone that were among the best-sellers if the decade.
Furthermore, outside of the Disney realm, Hip-Hop continued to be a highly listened to genre during this decade. It was more popular in big cities during the 1990s but grew in the 200s, reaching larger audiences, even international ones. There were artists like Eminem, OutKast, The Black Eyed Peas, 50 
Cent, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne, and Ludacris.
There was also post-grunge which was less abrasive and intense than traditional grunge. The most popular artists of this genre are Foo Fighters, Nickelback, Lifehouse, Hoobastank, and Daughtry (my moms favorite band back then).
Another genre of the 2000s that was never heard of before is Nu metal. This emerging genre merged new wave with metal and was similar to genres like rap-metal and rap-rock. The popularity grew from artists like Deftones, Bizkit, and Evanescence.
Now here are some of the top songs of the 2000s.
- Lose Yourself – Eminem
- In the End – Linkin Park
- Bring Me to Life – Evanescence
- Viva la Vida – Coldplay
- Crazy – Gnarls Barkley
- Seven Nation Army – The White Stripes
- Stan – Eminem
- Hey Ya! – OutKast
- Boulevard of Broken Dreams – Green Day
- Brightside – The Killers
Now for my favorites:
- Island In The Sun – Weezer
- Yellow – Coldplay
- Man! I Feel Like A Woman! – Shania Twain
- Put Your Records On – Corinne Bailey Rae
- Kiss Me – Sixpence None The Richer
- Hey There Delilah – Plain White T’s
- Sunday Morning – Maroon 5
- Hey, Soul Sister – Train
- Our Song – Taylor Swift
- Something That I Want – Grace Potter
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