Was Music Better In 2016? The Comeback of 2010s Music
- Wen Ying
- 13 hours ago
- 4 min read
It was the year Shawn Mendes ran the charts, Rihanna hadn’t gone radio-silent, and we lip-synced to Drake on Musical.ly like it was a full-time job. But was 2016 really better, or just better remembered? Our Music writer, Wen Ying, rewinds the year that still won’t leave our heads.
One beat is all it takes to bring you closer to 2016.
It was the year We Don't Talk Anymore drifted from every car radio. We answered calls with a sad “Hello, it’s me,” acting like we were heartbroken like Adele. We spent the summer singing that someone could “treat you better”, before getting lost in the beat of Rihanna’s “work, work, work.”
Now, thanks to social media, 2016 trends flood our feeds again. But why are people particularly nostalgic about 2016?
Part of the answer lies in generational timing. The batch that lived throughout the 2010s were true internet kids who were fluent in memes and VEVO music videos. Now, they’re older, facing responsibilities, deadlines, and the weight of adulthood. Interestingly, this shift in trend creates a shared longing for the past. Much of that collective sentiment is tied to 2016’s music culture, which shaped a distinctive vibe they now remember as the “good old days.”
Not Too Loud, Not Too Heavy
So why 2016 — and not 2015 or 2017? In 2016, mainstream music began to change direction. Before that, EDM dominated the charts, especially big room house built for festivals and party atmospheres. Artists like Avicii with “Wake Me Up” and Calvin Harris with “We found love” defined an era of high-energy anthems made for stadium crowds.
By 2016, however, that intense EDM sound had reached its peak. Listeners were growing tired of constant loud drops and heavy beats, and the industry began to cool down. While 2015 still clung to big-room house and 2017 leaned further into darker, trap-heavy hip-hop, 2016 sat perfectly in between.
That year, amid a politically chaotic climate, there was a growing desire for calmer, more atmospheric sounds. In response, softer styles like tropical house and dancehall-pop rose in popularity. The music felt lighter and warmer, with smoother rhythms, gentler melodies, and catchy vocal loops replacing aggressive drops. Music moved away from the chaos of packed festivals and became more personal, fitting late-night drives and quiet moments with headphones, as heard in tracks like One Dance by Drake.
Additionally, this intersection in 2016 has also blurred the boundaries between genres. Beyoncé released Lemonade, boldly blending rock, blues, country, and R&B into a significant album. Meanwhile, Drake’s Views showcased a more experimental direction, incorporating trap, dancehall, with clear influences from African and West Indian sounds. By the end of 2016, the question was no longer “what genre is this?” but rather “what is the vibe?”
English comedian James Acaster (2019) claims in his book Perfect Sound Whatever that 2016 was the greatest year for music ever. Owning over 600 albums from that year, he explains that his obsession serves as a coping mechanism to navigate difficult moments. He emphasizes how music can provide solace, focus, and even therapy. Undoubtedly, this has reflected how the changes in the music industry that year created something truly distinct and emotionally enduring.
The New 2016?
It’s unlikely that we’ll ever get the exact same music or cultural impact that defined 2016 in the future. Building on the argument of cultural theorist Mark Fisher (2014), who described what he called the slow cancellation of the future, contemporary music culture increasingly struggles to produce genuinely new directions. Instead, it often recycles and remixes the past, leaving the present feeling flattened and the future diminished.
Much of this stems from changes in the music industry itself: artist development no longer works the same way, business models prioritize profits over creativity, and social media has transformed how music is consumed and marketed. Streaming also makes every era of music instantly accessible, so people have full access to their old favourites without needing to rummage through record stores. As a result, Fisher argues, listeners gravitate toward nostalgic sounds for comfort and familiarity, while innovation slows and culture increasingly looks backward.
Ultimately, the obsession with 2016 isn’t just about missing “simpler times.” It is a symptom of the cultural stalling Mark Fisher informed us about. It is not that we lack good songs today. There is no shortage of talent or beauty. But we yearn for the past because the present feels strangely disconnected. We look back not because we reject what’s new. We look back because the past has a distinct sense of identity, something that the present is still trying to figure out.
References:
Acaster. J. (2019). Perfect Sound Whatever. [online] Available at: https://books.google.com.my/books/about/Perfect_Sound_Whatever.html?id=P_KzwgEACAAJ&redir_esc=y
pmilat (2014). Mark Fisher : The Slow Cancellation Of The Future. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCgkLICTskQ.
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