As the singer for The Who, Roger Daltrey is an elder statesman of rock ‘n’ roll. That means he’s both committed to the future of the genre and has the authority to speak his mind when he’s not enthusiastic about something. Apparently, though, what he’s not enthusiastic about these days is rock ‘n’ roll itself—or at least the modern-day state of it. He’s actually way more into rap music now.
That comes from an interview Daltrey did with The Times (via Stereogum), during which he expressed some frustration with rock ‘n’ roll. “The sadness for me is that rock has reached a dead end,” he said, adding that “the only people saying things that matter are the rappers and most pop is meaningless and forgettable.” He also adds that when you watch rock musicians perform, “you can’t remember a bloody thing” about it. On the other hand, the story does suggest the possibility that his dismissiveness about rock music is less of an indictment of quality and more of a reflection on Daltrey getting old, since it notes that his “recall of modern bands” is “hazy” due to his hearing being “gone.”
These comments are an interesting departure from ones made by Gene Simmons back in March, with the Kiss frontman declaring that rap music is bad, not rock music. It’s tough to decide which one makes the more compelling argument, but since one is Roger Daltrey and the other is Gene Simmons, picking a side is actually pretty easy.