Threads is buzzing!? ...Do whatever you want!

The other day, there was a lively discussion on Threads about how "Hiroto Komoto is a bad singer."

To be honest, I was watching it with a bit of amusement.

Hiroto's singing ability has been a topic of debate for a long time.
To those who prioritize pitch and vocal technique, he might sound bad, but to those who value expressiveness and presence, he looks like a one-of-a-kind vocalist.

That's why I just felt, "I guess some people think that way."

What actually bothered me was what happened afterward.

Seeing even the people who like Hiroto get dragged into it and desperately trying to argue back, I felt a slight sense of discomfort.
Of course, I understand the feeling of wanting to react when something you love is denied.

However, that reminded me of the lyrics to a song by THE HIGH-LOWS, a band I used to love.

I loved these lyrics.

Instead of debating whether rock is dead or not, it just says, "If it's dead, then so be it."

It doesn't try to defend a definition.
It doesn't get involved in the controversy.
And yet, it doesn't let go of its own sensibilities.

Thinking about it now, I wasn't drawn to these lyrics because of the rock theory.
I think I was drawn to the attitude of not delegating the criteria for evaluation to others.

So, this incident was also something that could have ended with,
"I'm sure there are people who think Hiroto is a bad singer."
That's their business.
It doesn't contradict what I love.

And conversely, I felt the same thing about the people who like Hiroto.

"Don't you think you don't have to defend him so desperately?"

Of course, I understand the feeling of being anxious for a moment.

What if the younger generation sees only this opinion and assumes, "Hiroto is a bad singer"?

But, thinking about it a little, I felt that wasn't quite right either.
People aren't that simple.

Those who resonate with someone's opinion probably already had a part of them that felt that way.
Conversely, it won't resonate with those it doesn't reach.
I myself didn't start liking The High-Lows because someone recommended them to me.
I listened to them myself, got curious myself, and started liking them myself.

If that's the case, isn't it the same for young people today?
There will be people who get swept up in viral opinions.

However, there are people who will actually listen to it and judge for themselves.
I want to believe in them.

So, in the end, what I thought when looking at this whole commotion was,
"Whether Hiroto is bad or not"
is not the point, but rather,
"If Hiroto sounds bad to you, that's your own business."
is what it came down to.

I watched it, thinking it was a truly Threads-like controversy.
However, before I knew it, I felt more uncomfortable with us, who were desperately reacting to it, than with the opinion that "Hiroto is bad."

At this point, 63-year-old Hiroto seems more capable of handling social media than we are.

An article I remembered writing about these lyrics in the past

Well, do whatever you want!!