What the heck is with the "Emo" thing?

Question

I seriously do not get this whole "emo" thing. From what I've been told, it's a division of punk where the lyrics tend to get a tad bit more emotional. But it seems like everyone hates emo. What's wrong with a little bit of "emo" if they don't depress people?

Also, a lot of people are calling Green Day "emo". What's with that? I've always known them to be punk. They haven't changed that much lyrically, they're still talking about the same stuff they used to, just with a bit more depth.

Answer 1

You know what I think is funny? I love these emo questions...anytime someone on here asks what the deal is with emo, you can tell who the emo kids are because they jump on and start complaining about stereotypes. "Why does everyone need to stereotype? It's just stupid"....bottom line is, emo sucks because everything these bands have done has been done and done better by other bands. They're not as punk as good punk music, they're not as goth as good goth music, and the lyrics and melodies are simplistic and boring. The reason emo kids get stereotyped is because they slavishly follow the "scene" around like it's going out of style, which it will be in another couple of years, tops.

And as for Green Day, putting on makeup and black clothes doesn't make you emo. Green Day just had the unfortunate timing to do it during this whole emo revival and coincidentally, at the same time made an album that the public found easy to relate to.

Answer 2

"Emo" is supposedly a subculture (like the posers, metal-heads, preppies, etc.) and is for people who "can't control their feelings." (Emo=emotional.) Emo people are people who either show no emotion or constantly switch, while emo music is a type of music that can change your emotions several times while listening to it. Also, emo singers (or bands) usually have a set of songs that supposedly can leave you confused when you listen to several of them- you won't know what your emotions truly are, and will probably end up either very emotional or without any emotion.

Why is Green Day considered emo? Let's look at the song When September Ends- it can leave you angry about war, sad about the obvious hints of violence and death, happy because of the girl's loyalty in the video, etc. Also, I'd like to point out that Billie Joe Armstrong is both bisexual and a cross-dresser, so I doubt he really knows where he stands in life and is an obvious candidate for being "emo."

Answer 3

Emo is no longer a style of music so much as a style of hair. Emo came more from wailing, visceral, screaming lyrics than from anything like Green Day-style pop-punk. Seminal mid-90s emo bands like At The Drive In and Sunny Day Real Estate took emo to a more melodic level, and, to me, have the purist claim to the "emo" name. Their music has a sense of energy and urgency, and, while the genre (like most) is dominated by love songs, they deal as often with current relationships and violent breakups more often than unrequieted love and lonely reminiscence.

But I digress. Emo today is nothing, from a musical sense. It's just a bunch of "scene" kids, with long, straight, dyed black hair covering their eyes. And by "scene", I mean they hang out around Hot Topic in the mall.

Answer 4

NO, green day is still punk have no meanful lyrics all they talk about is messing up there lifes and enjoying it while emos intend crying and whining.

Emo songs r mix with hardcore punk, hardcore, Indie, and screamo, here r examples of and emo band:
rites of spring
death cab for cutie
AFI
Dashboard Confessional
At the drive in

Answer 5

The thing with Emo is that it's degrading to rock. Look at it this way, Emo is the Whores of the rock world. People think all rock is emo, just like people think all girls who wear skirts are whores. Just be cause we listen to rock, people now think we cut our wrists, abuse ourselves, and are now bi-sexual, just because that's what makes you cool these days. Download a song called "The Emo Song" by Adam and Andrew, it's making fun of Emo-kids, but still sums it all up.

Green Day used to sing about being bored(Basket Case), masturbating(Secret Song), and girls(When I Come Around), now they sing about being lonely(Boulevard of Broken Dreams), abusing drugs (Give Me Novacaine), and being a loser (Letter Bomb), so in essence, they are Emo, and like all of the others, deserve to be shot in the head with Ice projectiles to leave no bullet casings, and no evidence of who killed 'em!

Answer 6

pfft. stupid stero types. since when is Green Day emo anyway? they're kinda pop-ish. EMO is stupid. im such an emo kid so im going to wear tight pants and pretend to be depressed. its pretty dumb. EMO is just another lame high school stero type.

Answer 7

i totally agree with you. i question that too!! and yes green day has not changed mostly....good question!