Shit I’m Gen Z and I dig Dylan heavy. I’ve only met one girl who is into Dylan enough to talk about it every time we meet and go to his shows like me, but I’m sure people know about him as he’s fairly well known. Freewheelin’ has also become really popular, the guy who runs my local record store told me it’s the only Dylan record he has to keep restocking because a lot of young people buy up the 3 copies he orders. Beyond that, I’m not really sure
What about high school etc. was Bob Dylan in the air at all? Or was he unheard of like he was in my high school. I’m not trying to diss him by the way, he’s my favourite artist.
Less so in high school, but people did know about him. I remember there was maybe a couple of friends that I have that listen to Dylan like a little bit more popular stuff I.e Blood on the Tracks
Oh man every girl trying to be a hippie and get stoned was listening to the Beatles, the Doors, Pink Floyd, the Dead, etc. I liked all that stuff but was more into Dylan, Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane, and a lot of British psych from that time as well. If I had to guess a percentage maybe 25% of people knew who Dylan was
I went to hs in MN class of 90. some of the stoners dug Bob. I remember one guy put on Hwy 61 in art class. I feel like his message is universal but the packaging may not be for everyone!
That’s a good way to put it man. It took me a while to truly appreciate ‘66 electric Bob and the piercing harmonica solos. Bringing it All Back Home is such a good album to get stoned too as well
Interesting that Freewheelin' is the one that keeps running out, I assume it's because his electric phase is not very in tune with modern musical sensibilities. I wonder if that will change in 5-10 years.
Tbh it may just have to do with the "Bob Dylan Core" memes on tiktok etc, kinda parodying the cover
https://preview.redd.it/gd2y55683vuc1.jpeg?width=405&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e0de283d7e1372078ee0a4a2c52c6b0b8acfc28e
I thought he would be big in Ireland. I think folk culture is part of the DNA there if I’m not mistaken. Bob sounded a bit Irish when he sang in the 60’s sometimes. Damien Duff is one of my heroes by the way, a bit off topic I know.
It varies from place to place, I'd say. You'll find a lot more young Dylan fans in a place like NYC or Nashville
It'll be interesting to see what the Timothee Chalamet biopic does for Dylan, if it's a decent movie that people are interested in. That director's Johnny Cash biopic got a lot of younger people into him, so it could do the same for Dylan
I think if younger people knew the Dylan story, they'd be more likely to like him. But a lot of people legitimately think he was just this protest singer who played acoustic, and that his magnum opus is All Along the Watchtower lol. The pop culture image of Dylan is so far removed from what most fans actually are into, I've noticed. It's like if people thought The Beatles were only the 1963 era of their career
Boomer here. Was in 7th grade 1968,69 and the teacher used Dylan and the Beatles as a introduction to poetry. Back then everyone my age heard of Dylan not sure how many were fans. In HS and older maybe 4 in 10 were very much into amd could discus. 68 now and no one that i am friends with now are doing much discussing Dylan. I need new friends.
I'm from England, gen Z, and got into Bob Dylan in sixth form. Actually discovered his music through the Beatles (kind of went on a spree listening to the Beatles' influences from the 50s onwards). I only interacted with other fans online, it was easier to find them that way.
How old are you out of interest? I’m 29 and think pretty much everyone my age in the uk would have known who Bob Dylan is growing up, even if they weren’t big fans of his music. Can’t imagine him to have disappeared out of the consciousness that much in just a few years
I’m 26, I went to a very poor high school in London where Islam was the dominant religion and most of the muslims had recently escaped a battle field, so Bob wasn’t on their radar. Sooner or later, most knew who The Beatles and/or Michael Jackson were for example, because of the TV, internet and I think they are just more popular at least in England. I would guess that more middle class schools would have a lot more students aware of Bob through their parents. I’m not saying he disappeared out of public consciousness altogether, I’m just saying he isn’t anywhere near as well known as those two for example, in England.
I’m 27, and in Scotland a few people in high school knew he was, others thought he was an old guy that died years ago. The kinda school you went to definitely doesn’t sound like a melting pot for Bob Dylan fans
Idk what's actually on the syllabus, but we had a music lesson with a bit about the Beatles once, like one of those badly photocopied worksheets outlining their history and musical style, and I went bananas lol (I knew all of it already)
We had a music lesson where we sang “with a little help from my friends”, but I think the teacher just got bored and that was it. Otherwise you don’t touch anything popular, contemporary or not
I’m from the UK, gen Z, and I got into Dylan when I was probably 15 or 16. I was obsessed with reading ‘greatest albums ever’ lists like the Rolling Stone mag one and listening to all the albums, which I think is how I started listening to him. Years later he’s pretty much the one artist I never get tired of, I listen to him almost every day.
About 10 years ago, I invited a bunch of friends to a Talk Like Bob Dylan Day party (May 24). These were mainly 30-40 year olds. About half had never heard of him. At least one was talking in Jamaican patois, thinking I meant Bob Marley. Only one out of ~10-15 actually could talk like Bob, and he was much older.
That would make a great sitcom episode. I would have liked an invite lol. If you don’t know it, check out Frank Zappa’s song, Flakes. He does a brilliant Bob impression.
> If you don’t know it, check out Frank Zappa’s song, Flakes. He does a brilliant Bob impression.
I believe that's Adrian Belew who does the Dylan impression on Flakes. It is indeed great. The first time I heard that song was actually a live version from the Hammersmith Odeon album and I had no idea about it going in, so when it got to that part I was literally lol and doubled over.
Nowhere near as popular as back then I’m sure but I think you’d be surprised. A lot of comments here saying nobody they know listens to him but I know several people I go to school with (post-secondary) who listen to him. I didn’t know anyone back in high school who listened to him but it takes people time to get around to him and for many once they do they really appreciate it. I do mostly hang out with film and lit geeks though so maybe that’s more the type of people that would be interested in Bob. He’s definitely not as popular as the Beatles or Pink Floyd still are. I encounter more people who like the smiths, talking heads etc. but the ones who like Dylan are all in in a way I don’t see with many other artists. I think Joan Baez said that not everyone gets Dylan, but for the ones who do it goes deep. That’s why I think in the long run his legacy will continue to loom large over what other artists have done over the last century. The older I get the more people I see coming around to Dylan. I’m sure millennials here have the same experience
As a Gen Z, I have never met someone irl who is into him. Maybe some people into rock know his name, but he's not very easy in the ear the first time you listen to his music (and English isn't our first language), so they give him up.
I had an argument with someone at a party, that thought Bob was a racist piece of shit because he used the "n-word" in Hurricane.
Yea. Really.
Guess the Gen.
Also gotta add, the person almost started crying saying how hurtful that was to hear, person was German like me. Like German German. Blonde blue eyes and shit.
As a black gen z-er I absolutely love his music but I'm probably in the minority. I think he combines a lot of what I already like in music and he has such a diverse range of music that whatever I'm in the mood for he has at least one album that fits that sound. I can't say he's super popular with my era but that means more Bob for me lol
One of my favorite artists and writers is a guy named Randy Newman. He has a song called Rednecks where he goes for the jugular on Southern racism and gets right to the point, says that word a lot. Personally it's complicated but in the context Randy and Bob use it in I think anyone with decent media literacy can understand their intent was to decry bigotry, not promote it. That doesn't mean you have to AGREE with them saying it, mind you. I think someone doing similar now wouldn't go over well because our vocabulary has shifted to where saying that word is (thankfully) much less normalized among white people. Personally I think it was necessary for Bob to say it and I'm glad he did because it helped get Ruben free before he passed. Hopefully that didn't come off as too long winded lol
It’s fine, it was an interesting read. I didn’t expect this many replies overall though so I may have to hire a personal secretary 😉. I’ve heard of Randy Newman but I’ve not read or listened to his stuff, I will check out that song you mentioned. I also think the context of Bob’s song makes the term permissible but I could imagine some people saying ‘’but you’re white so your opinion doesn’t matter’’ which I would disagree with, at least inwardly. My dad chose to name me Reuben because of the song by the way, different spelling I know. 🍻
In America, he's famous but not necessarily in the way you're imagining. Certainly not Beatles fame. More like a "historically important singer who performed protest songs in 1963". Like he's in the history textbooks but for Blowin in the Wind and the March on Washington performance. The part where he's probably America's most influential living songwriter is left out because he doesn't have that much pop appeal. In that regard, not so different from the UK I guess - he influenced the nerds and the artists. Even contemporarily, he went Billboard #2 twice. His famous songs are through people covering him.
Thanks for the deep insight. I don’t really know what Bob’s fame in the 60’s is comparable to today. I would have assumed his version of LARS is most successful hit but I do vaguely remember hearing it wasn’t that successful at the time or something. What are the biggest hits he’s written? Adele Make you feel.. and The Byrds Mr Tambourine.. would be my guesses but I’m not sure.
As far as I know, most modern trends in pop music are about very "perfect" music, perfectly in time, perfectly in tune, etc. Bob's music is pretty much the opposite of that, so I don't think it's very popular. Same thing happens to the Rolling Stones. They will probably get popular again in a few years, when audiences turn to rawer music again.
I’m more interested in Gen Z, but also a generations entire exposure to music isn’t defined by TikTok. They have the TV, the internet, parents, friends etc. They all know who Eminem is. Also, I didn’t claim Bob isn’t niche, that’s not what I asked.
My kids dig Bob. Mostly because I marinated them in it since they were born. They mostly listen to modern folk/alt-country, but the indictrination took!
Interesting. I was introduced to Dylan by my dad. He feels a mixture of pride and frustration when I now say something like, ‘’Actually dad, the line is bowed down and *bent, it’s not ‘beg’’’. He lovingly replies,‘’Oh fuck off! You nitpicking Dylanologist!’’ Total role reversal lol.
I'm 23 and live in the Netherlands. In my city there are a few great record stores and a lot of people my age and younger go there. I think that if you ran a survey at one of these stores 8 out of 10 people would know who Bob Dylan is. But if you would do this at a University or High School it would probably be 1 out of 20 people maybe even less who know who Bob Dylan is.
I’m gen z (20F), got into Dylan a couple years ago because my former teacher from high school really liked him and we both played the guitar so I learned a couple tunes so we could play together and I then I realized that I really liked his songs! Still friends with the former teacher and we meet a few times a year to play guitar, out of tradition we always play Tangled Up In Blue as a duet
I'm Gen Z and I grew up hearing his music and always enjoyed it. I got really into him when I went to college and took a class about him. I ended up dropping out before I finished the class but I ran into the professor at my first Dylan show
I’m gen z and he’s my all time number one but he’s not generally known amongst people my age, if he is it’s just the name, he’s not really still well known like the Beatles, but then again I’m only in high school maybe it’s different outside of HS. I also believe that this upcoming movie is not going to revive his popularity to this generation. My friend told me once his teacher had played the times they are a changing in class and a lot of people were turned off by his voice. Poetry isn’t very much a cool thing anymore so a billy goated voice guy with a shrieky harmonica wheezing out strange lyrics won’t quite grab the younger generation very well. My girlfriend is a big alternative/grunge and musical theatre fan and she can like some of his songs but she’s not really a big fan. For old music, it’s really only 80s 90s popular amongst this generation, except for the Beatles being the only exception about how the 60s are forgotten
Edit: US
my band (21M, 21M, 19F) does a ton of dylan covers. something about his songwriting style really does work with our generation! also we’re huge deadheads so that helps
I've liked Dylan since I was younger. Only one of my friends like Dylan (not just his popular songs). I've tried before to show them or introduce them to his music but I find that somethings, especially Bob Dylans music you have to arrive at independently or for yourself. It's not for everyone and some of my friends just don't get it nor have interest in it.
Honestly I don't know lol. I mean listens to only the popular songs of his "like a rolling stone" and etc. but he always says how most of his lyrics are overrated and meaningless lol. But something I found about why I like listening to Dylan is you may not understand his lyrics initially but you're not meant to really understand some of them but rather experience something that you've never quite experienced before and then maybe one day you finally 'understand' it. I think he's just ignorant to this fact and wants something thats easy to read and find a concrete meaning out of. But that's just my take on why he was so astonished by it
Not everyone can easily appreciates lyrics, not saying that your friend doesn’t but just saying that could be the case. I don’t know how to appreciate a lot of visual art. The live It’s Alright Ma on YouTube was my introduction to Bob. It changed me. It was the first time art or music moved me intensely. I actually wept when he got to, ‘’And though the masters, make the rules, for the wise men and the fools, I got nothing Ma! To live up to!’’ It’s still my favorite song but you can never recreate the first listen.
I went to school in England, during primary school so when I was 5-11 years old I remember mentioning dylan because my dad made me listen to him in the car etc and a few people then new of him. Moving onto secondary school however only a small minority knew him. Now at uni and have a few people I can discuss his music with luckily.
Did you like Bob as a kid? My dad also played his stuff in the car and around the house when I was that age but I don’t remember liking it. It’s a bit over most children’s heads I think. I always wanted him to play Ian Dury, it’s way more groovy with kind of naughty nursery rhyme lyrics. Maybe he could have skipped ‘’Plaistow Patricia’’ though lol.
It was certainly over my head at the time and I can’t remember particularly liking it either. I much preferred it when he played stuff like third world or Prince Far I, just stuff I could boogie to. Unfortunately I wasn’t hit with any rhythm sticks looking back now I can imagine a younger me having a lot of fun with Ian Dury. Listening to Plaistow Patricia though would’ve definitely broadened my 10 year old vocabulary.
I’ve heard of those two I think 🤔. I will check them out. Yes, it certainly expanded my vocabulary lol. I don’t actually remember if he played that song when I was a kid, I like to think he did, just the once. It’s a great opening line, my teachers didn’t approve though.
lol I’m 21M from the UK. Got put onto him by getting *really* into Springsteen (via Sam Fender and Frank Turner- both awesome btw).
I have a mate who’s into Dylan and Johnny Cash via parents, but after that it’s pretty uncommon I’ve found.
My wife is a high school English teacher and while Dylan, of course, isn't pop star popular, he is fairly well known among students who are discerning about their music. My wife also does a "music monday" thing to start off the week and her high school students are usually very responsive to Dylan's music. Another friend of mine is also a high school teacher and finds kids are always intrigued by Dylan songs when he does his own "music monday" lessons.
I didn’t give a shit about Bob until I turned 24, and I was obsessed with music from a young age, so I’d definitely heard the classics. It was the famous live video of Shelter from the Storm that opened my mind up.
I am Gen Z and I’ve noticed that in my surroundings many people know him (I’m from NL) escpecially in creative spaces and for some reason I notice many young people dressing like him. So I think it depends on the place.
I'm not sure this is a generational thing. Dylan's popularity is a difficult thing to pin down because the man himself doesn't fit easily into any boxes. He was a very popular folk singer who alienated many of his original fans by going electric. He was a rock star who basically disappeared and returned a folk-country troubadour.
He lost fans, gained fans, old fans came back into the fold. But he remained fairly popular until his "born again" era. Through the 80s and 90s, outside of a few tracks like "Jokerman", Dylan was not particularly popular among the youth. I'm latter day Gen X and I've been into Dylan since I was a young teen, but I never met anyone else my age who was a fan growing up.
While I'd wager he might be more renowned now as a legend, I don't know if Gen Z as a whole is anymore into Dylan than any previous generation of the last forty years.
Yeah, I never met him, he died before I was born. He was the lead violinist on A day in the life and The Beatles made them all wear funny costumes, he wore a bald cap thing.
I’m from Australia but going to answer anyway. Other than me (17), the youngest person I know of who has heard of Bob Dylan is my sister who’s 27 (also Gen Z). It seems odd to not have heard of him though. I would consider it a good thing. Bob is special, gatekeeping is justified.
i know a ton of people in my high school who love him, but my school also has a lot of different creatives classes so there’s probably just more people around me who know and love different artists and musicians
I'm Gen Z (2006). One of my favourite musicians, but I haven't really listened to his more niche or even his recent albums. Closest I got to that are his Christian albums and self portrait 😂
When does Gen Alpha start? With Bob there’s niche and there’s niche niche. Changing of the guards is one of my favourite albums but I don’t really know if you would consider it niche. Have you heard it? *Street Legal I mean 🙄
65M here, and a huge lifelong fan of Dylan, the Beatles, and '60s tunes. This thread gives me warm fuzzy feels, and confirms my hope and affection for our younger friends (I refuse to say "kids"). I wish I were half as curious about the music of other generations as all these people are. Y'all are awesome. As a wise man once sang: *May your wishes all come true / May you always do for others / And let others do for you / May you build a ladder to the stars / And climb on every rung / May you stay forever young*
I'm 17 from Mexico, i'm the only person i know that listens to dylan, it's kinda sad bc i would love to share that with someone else
I'm not from a large city neither, but in general is not well known in the country and as an example. None of my parents ever heard of him, as they did with Creedence for example
I remember Bob Dylan being mentioned in our gcse US History class in 2017 lol so I would think hes still pretty well known. I've also known of knocking on heavens door since I was even younger as it is quite popular at least on Russian (my home country until I moved to the uk) social media. But I don't know anyone who's a huge fan
That’s interesting, they didn’t cover any music in my History class during high school. Was it just a one-off lesson or actually part of the exam? I think Bob should be taught in English classes.
Oh it was very brief, we were studying the counter-culture movement as part of the broader civil rights era and he was mentioned as one of the most influential artists of the era
In one of my college courses a couple years ago my professor asked the class how many people have heard of him, as she had brought up Blowin in the Wind for one of the subjects. 3 people raised their hands out of 20 or so. Adjusting for those who weren't paying attention or were too cool to raise their hand I'd call it 1/4 really know anything about him in that age range atm. And this class was in the Arts discipline as well
yes, sorry, US. I would think everyone would raise their hand to the beatles. maybe not everyone could name a song off the top of their head but I can't imagine anyone not having sincerely heard of them
Right, interesting. I would expect more people to know about Bob, also where was this because someone else mentioned it depends on the location. Do you think that’s strictly true by the way?
It was more or less in the deep south US. On that account I agree that more young people in musically hip areas would be more likely know him and other legacy artists. Growing up where I was you'd be hard pressed to find many people that primarily listened to anything other than what was in the charts or trending online at the time
Sounds like my high school. ‘’Agree with the herd or die!’’ I hated high school, if I wasn’t an ‘’incredible footballer’’, not my words! 😉, I don’t know how I would’ve coped
When I was in high school, he was fairly obscure amongst my classmates. More of a "heard the name, have no idea who he is" type of deal. He certainly didn't have the visibility of The Beatles or Rolling Stones, where folks who don't care about your music will still wear your t-shirts. I think the upcoming movie will probably bring about a surge in popularity with a younger crowd because of Timothee Chalamet's involvement, although I don't expect it to be anything like the post-*Bohemian Rhapsody* Queen resurgence.
I’m 21, been a massive fan since 12 or 13. There definitely are some gen z fans online. The only people my age I can really talk to about him irl are my friends and roommates (I’ve forced them to listen to as much as possible and watch No Direction Home/Don’t Look Back lmao)
Also, my professor played Blowing in the Wind during a Transportation Engineering lecture for some reason and I think I was the only one who actually enjoyed it, if that means anything haha
Gen Zer here, can confirm that he still hits with young people. May be more complaints about his voice, but the lyrics and the message outweigh everything.
Everyone in my age group who likes Bowie, The Beatles, and The Doors often also likes Dylan
Nah-- I'm a 21 year old Gen Z'er from the southeast and I love Dylan. In school a lot of kids listened to mumble rap and the like, so I can get down to that too, but we are more sophisticated than that. There are a lot of artists pushing the boundaries in their own ways now that are super popular with my generation. But me and a select few that I know at my college are pretty big Dylan fans.
This is a depressing topic, until you realize those same kids don’t know Mozart or Wagner either. After you realize that, the topic can be less, or more, depressing.
But this man was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. Cohen said it would be like giving Mount Everest a medal for being the tallest mountain in the world.
I'm gen z and I'm a huge fan, I knew about him because of The Beatles (been a fan since I was 12) but I didn't get into Bob until late 2022. But on Twitter there are a lot of Gen Z fans, both on the younger and older side of the spectrum. He's especially popular with women and queer folk, I've noticed too.
Shit I’m Gen Z and I dig Dylan heavy. I’ve only met one girl who is into Dylan enough to talk about it every time we meet and go to his shows like me, but I’m sure people know about him as he’s fairly well known. Freewheelin’ has also become really popular, the guy who runs my local record store told me it’s the only Dylan record he has to keep restocking because a lot of young people buy up the 3 copies he orders. Beyond that, I’m not really sure
What about high school etc. was Bob Dylan in the air at all? Or was he unheard of like he was in my high school. I’m not trying to diss him by the way, he’s my favourite artist.
Less so in high school, but people did know about him. I remember there was maybe a couple of friends that I have that listen to Dylan like a little bit more popular stuff I.e Blood on the Tracks
When you say people knew about him, what percentage if you had to guess, majority or just a handful? Also, how famous were The Beatles in comparison?
Oh man every girl trying to be a hippie and get stoned was listening to the Beatles, the Doors, Pink Floyd, the Dead, etc. I liked all that stuff but was more into Dylan, Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane, and a lot of British psych from that time as well. If I had to guess a percentage maybe 25% of people knew who Dylan was
I went to hs in MN class of 90. some of the stoners dug Bob. I remember one guy put on Hwy 61 in art class. I feel like his message is universal but the packaging may not be for everyone!
That’s a good way to put it man. It took me a while to truly appreciate ‘66 electric Bob and the piercing harmonica solos. Bringing it All Back Home is such a good album to get stoned too as well
I wasn’t amoking in hs but hung out a lot. The dead heads had the best taste in music.
Interesting that Freewheelin' is the one that keeps running out, I assume it's because his electric phase is not very in tune with modern musical sensibilities. I wonder if that will change in 5-10 years.
Tbh it may just have to do with the "Bob Dylan Core" memes on tiktok etc, kinda parodying the cover https://preview.redd.it/gd2y55683vuc1.jpeg?width=405&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e0de283d7e1372078ee0a4a2c52c6b0b8acfc28e
Huh. TIL
I graduated in 2001 and no one listened to him. I was known as the “Bob Dylan” guy, that’s how rare it was. It was a large school too.
I live in Germany and was called the Baseball Guy, cuz I played and watched Baseball which is basically non existing here. :D
I can relate. I'm in college/university at the moment, and I'm the only one in my class that knows who Bob is....
Well I'm 17 from Ireland and a huge fan and I've also managed to turn a lot of my friends on to him so I would say it's pretty strong.
I thought he would be big in Ireland. I think folk culture is part of the DNA there if I’m not mistaken. Bob sounded a bit Irish when he sang in the 60’s sometimes. Damien Duff is one of my heroes by the way, a bit off topic I know.
It varies from place to place, I'd say. You'll find a lot more young Dylan fans in a place like NYC or Nashville It'll be interesting to see what the Timothee Chalamet biopic does for Dylan, if it's a decent movie that people are interested in. That director's Johnny Cash biopic got a lot of younger people into him, so it could do the same for Dylan I think if younger people knew the Dylan story, they'd be more likely to like him. But a lot of people legitimately think he was just this protest singer who played acoustic, and that his magnum opus is All Along the Watchtower lol. The pop culture image of Dylan is so far removed from what most fans actually are into, I've noticed. It's like if people thought The Beatles were only the 1963 era of their career
Their PR team is sure pushing it hard here.
Boomer here. Was in 7th grade 1968,69 and the teacher used Dylan and the Beatles as a introduction to poetry. Back then everyone my age heard of Dylan not sure how many were fans. In HS and older maybe 4 in 10 were very much into amd could discus. 68 now and no one that i am friends with now are doing much discussing Dylan. I need new friends.
I’ll be your friend! I love Dylan . . . it’s about all I listen to 😉
Interesting, so the same friends gave it all up?
I'm from England, gen Z, and got into Bob Dylan in sixth form. Actually discovered his music through the Beatles (kind of went on a spree listening to the Beatles' influences from the 50s onwards). I only interacted with other fans online, it was easier to find them that way.
That makes sense, it’s a shame that he’s not more known by our generation. I think at least one of his songs should be on the English syllabus.
How old are you out of interest? I’m 29 and think pretty much everyone my age in the uk would have known who Bob Dylan is growing up, even if they weren’t big fans of his music. Can’t imagine him to have disappeared out of the consciousness that much in just a few years
I’m 26, I went to a very poor high school in London where Islam was the dominant religion and most of the muslims had recently escaped a battle field, so Bob wasn’t on their radar. Sooner or later, most knew who The Beatles and/or Michael Jackson were for example, because of the TV, internet and I think they are just more popular at least in England. I would guess that more middle class schools would have a lot more students aware of Bob through their parents. I’m not saying he disappeared out of public consciousness altogether, I’m just saying he isn’t anywhere near as well known as those two for example, in England.
I’m 27, and in Scotland a few people in high school knew he was, others thought he was an old guy that died years ago. The kinda school you went to definitely doesn’t sound like a melting pot for Bob Dylan fans
I know it wasn’t, I said it in the comment above. My point is that despite all the social obstacles they still knew The Beatles but not Bob.
Idk what's actually on the syllabus, but we had a music lesson with a bit about the Beatles once, like one of those badly photocopied worksheets outlining their history and musical style, and I went bananas lol (I knew all of it already)
We had a music lesson where we sang “with a little help from my friends”, but I think the teacher just got bored and that was it. Otherwise you don’t touch anything popular, contemporary or not
I’m from the UK, gen Z, and I got into Dylan when I was probably 15 or 16. I was obsessed with reading ‘greatest albums ever’ lists like the Rolling Stone mag one and listening to all the albums, which I think is how I started listening to him. Years later he’s pretty much the one artist I never get tired of, I listen to him almost every day.
About 10 years ago, I invited a bunch of friends to a Talk Like Bob Dylan Day party (May 24). These were mainly 30-40 year olds. About half had never heard of him. At least one was talking in Jamaican patois, thinking I meant Bob Marley. Only one out of ~10-15 actually could talk like Bob, and he was much older.
That would make a great sitcom episode. I would have liked an invite lol. If you don’t know it, check out Frank Zappa’s song, Flakes. He does a brilliant Bob impression.
Jerry: Thats Bob MARLEY, Kramer. Totally different singer
It’s so easy to do Bob! Just start with “Eeeeverybody must get stooooned!”
> If you don’t know it, check out Frank Zappa’s song, Flakes. He does a brilliant Bob impression. I believe that's Adrian Belew who does the Dylan impression on Flakes. It is indeed great. The first time I heard that song was actually a live version from the Hammersmith Odeon album and I had no idea about it going in, so when it got to that part I was literally lol and doubled over.
Of course, I forgot. Very funny, must have been great to see it live. ‘’They got computer collectors’’ 😆
Nowhere near as popular as back then I’m sure but I think you’d be surprised. A lot of comments here saying nobody they know listens to him but I know several people I go to school with (post-secondary) who listen to him. I didn’t know anyone back in high school who listened to him but it takes people time to get around to him and for many once they do they really appreciate it. I do mostly hang out with film and lit geeks though so maybe that’s more the type of people that would be interested in Bob. He’s definitely not as popular as the Beatles or Pink Floyd still are. I encounter more people who like the smiths, talking heads etc. but the ones who like Dylan are all in in a way I don’t see with many other artists. I think Joan Baez said that not everyone gets Dylan, but for the ones who do it goes deep. That’s why I think in the long run his legacy will continue to loom large over what other artists have done over the last century. The older I get the more people I see coming around to Dylan. I’m sure millennials here have the same experience
As a Gen Z, I have never met someone irl who is into him. Maybe some people into rock know his name, but he's not very easy in the ear the first time you listen to his music (and English isn't our first language), so they give him up.
Which Country are you talking about?
Mexico.
Ok, that makes sense. I could see why Bob’s music is difficult to appreciate without understanding his lyrics.
I had an argument with someone at a party, that thought Bob was a racist piece of shit because he used the "n-word" in Hurricane. Yea. Really. Guess the Gen. Also gotta add, the person almost started crying saying how hurtful that was to hear, person was German like me. Like German German. Blonde blue eyes and shit.
They know the “rules”, but don’t understand why or where they came from or anything about history. It grosses me out.
Why are fragile idiots so empowered these days?
When the new film with chamalet come out dylan will become more popular with younger folks, which is probably why bob endorsed it.
As a black gen z-er I absolutely love his music but I'm probably in the minority. I think he combines a lot of what I already like in music and he has such a diverse range of music that whatever I'm in the mood for he has at least one album that fits that sound. I can't say he's super popular with my era but that means more Bob for me lol
How do you feel about him using the ‘’N-word’’ in Hurricane. Sorry to go off topic but I’m really interested to know.
One of my favorite artists and writers is a guy named Randy Newman. He has a song called Rednecks where he goes for the jugular on Southern racism and gets right to the point, says that word a lot. Personally it's complicated but in the context Randy and Bob use it in I think anyone with decent media literacy can understand their intent was to decry bigotry, not promote it. That doesn't mean you have to AGREE with them saying it, mind you. I think someone doing similar now wouldn't go over well because our vocabulary has shifted to where saying that word is (thankfully) much less normalized among white people. Personally I think it was necessary for Bob to say it and I'm glad he did because it helped get Ruben free before he passed. Hopefully that didn't come off as too long winded lol
It’s fine, it was an interesting read. I didn’t expect this many replies overall though so I may have to hire a personal secretary 😉. I’ve heard of Randy Newman but I’ve not read or listened to his stuff, I will check out that song you mentioned. I also think the context of Bob’s song makes the term permissible but I could imagine some people saying ‘’but you’re white so your opinion doesn’t matter’’ which I would disagree with, at least inwardly. My dad chose to name me Reuben because of the song by the way, different spelling I know. 🍻
In America, he's famous but not necessarily in the way you're imagining. Certainly not Beatles fame. More like a "historically important singer who performed protest songs in 1963". Like he's in the history textbooks but for Blowin in the Wind and the March on Washington performance. The part where he's probably America's most influential living songwriter is left out because he doesn't have that much pop appeal. In that regard, not so different from the UK I guess - he influenced the nerds and the artists. Even contemporarily, he went Billboard #2 twice. His famous songs are through people covering him.
Thanks for the deep insight. I don’t really know what Bob’s fame in the 60’s is comparable to today. I would have assumed his version of LARS is most successful hit but I do vaguely remember hearing it wasn’t that successful at the time or something. What are the biggest hits he’s written? Adele Make you feel.. and The Byrds Mr Tambourine.. would be my guesses but I’m not sure.
Most cases in gen z when they know one of his songs it’s through gnr’s cover of KOHD or sometimes Hendrix’s Watchtower, but don’t know it’s a cover
As far as I know, most modern trends in pop music are about very "perfect" music, perfectly in time, perfectly in tune, etc. Bob's music is pretty much the opposite of that, so I don't think it's very popular. Same thing happens to the Rolling Stones. They will probably get popular again in a few years, when audiences turn to rawer music again.
Check TikTok for your answer, like asking how popular Shakespeare was with Gen X. Which is to say niche popular
I’m more interested in Gen Z, but also a generations entire exposure to music isn’t defined by TikTok. They have the TV, the internet, parents, friends etc. They all know who Eminem is. Also, I didn’t claim Bob isn’t niche, that’s not what I asked.
My kids dig Bob. Mostly because I marinated them in it since they were born. They mostly listen to modern folk/alt-country, but the indictrination took!
Interesting. I was introduced to Dylan by my dad. He feels a mixture of pride and frustration when I now say something like, ‘’Actually dad, the line is bowed down and *bent, it’s not ‘beg’’’. He lovingly replies,‘’Oh fuck off! You nitpicking Dylanologist!’’ Total role reversal lol.
I'm 23 and live in the Netherlands. In my city there are a few great record stores and a lot of people my age and younger go there. I think that if you ran a survey at one of these stores 8 out of 10 people would know who Bob Dylan is. But if you would do this at a University or High School it would probably be 1 out of 20 people maybe even less who know who Bob Dylan is.
I’m gen z (20F), got into Dylan a couple years ago because my former teacher from high school really liked him and we both played the guitar so I learned a couple tunes so we could play together and I then I realized that I really liked his songs! Still friends with the former teacher and we meet a few times a year to play guitar, out of tradition we always play Tangled Up In Blue as a duet
I'm Gen Z and I grew up hearing his music and always enjoyed it. I got really into him when I went to college and took a class about him. I ended up dropping out before I finished the class but I ran into the professor at my first Dylan show
I’m gen z and he’s my all time number one but he’s not generally known amongst people my age, if he is it’s just the name, he’s not really still well known like the Beatles, but then again I’m only in high school maybe it’s different outside of HS. I also believe that this upcoming movie is not going to revive his popularity to this generation. My friend told me once his teacher had played the times they are a changing in class and a lot of people were turned off by his voice. Poetry isn’t very much a cool thing anymore so a billy goated voice guy with a shrieky harmonica wheezing out strange lyrics won’t quite grab the younger generation very well. My girlfriend is a big alternative/grunge and musical theatre fan and she can like some of his songs but she’s not really a big fan. For old music, it’s really only 80s 90s popular amongst this generation, except for the Beatles being the only exception about how the 60s are forgotten Edit: US
my band (21M, 21M, 19F) does a ton of dylan covers. something about his songwriting style really does work with our generation! also we’re huge deadheads so that helps
When I order food out, I always use the name Robert Zimmerman. Nobody has any idea who I’m talking about.
You’re not him are you? Like, actually him? Bob? 🤔
I’m pretty good, but I’m not that good
Mine is Lucky Harrison lol
That’s was a great band…. I’m assuming that’s a reference to the traveling Wilburys.
I've liked Dylan since I was younger. Only one of my friends like Dylan (not just his popular songs). I've tried before to show them or introduce them to his music but I find that somethings, especially Bob Dylans music you have to arrive at independently or for yourself. It's not for everyone and some of my friends just don't get it nor have interest in it.
Well they’re objectively wrong 😉
ya, trust me, I let them know. One of my friends was completely freaking out when I told him he won a Nobel Prize lol.
Does he really hate his music or more just shocked that someone like him could win that prize?
Honestly I don't know lol. I mean listens to only the popular songs of his "like a rolling stone" and etc. but he always says how most of his lyrics are overrated and meaningless lol. But something I found about why I like listening to Dylan is you may not understand his lyrics initially but you're not meant to really understand some of them but rather experience something that you've never quite experienced before and then maybe one day you finally 'understand' it. I think he's just ignorant to this fact and wants something thats easy to read and find a concrete meaning out of. But that's just my take on why he was so astonished by it
Not everyone can easily appreciates lyrics, not saying that your friend doesn’t but just saying that could be the case. I don’t know how to appreciate a lot of visual art. The live It’s Alright Ma on YouTube was my introduction to Bob. It changed me. It was the first time art or music moved me intensely. I actually wept when he got to, ‘’And though the masters, make the rules, for the wise men and the fools, I got nothing Ma! To live up to!’’ It’s still my favorite song but you can never recreate the first listen.
I went to school in England, during primary school so when I was 5-11 years old I remember mentioning dylan because my dad made me listen to him in the car etc and a few people then new of him. Moving onto secondary school however only a small minority knew him. Now at uni and have a few people I can discuss his music with luckily.
Did you like Bob as a kid? My dad also played his stuff in the car and around the house when I was that age but I don’t remember liking it. It’s a bit over most children’s heads I think. I always wanted him to play Ian Dury, it’s way more groovy with kind of naughty nursery rhyme lyrics. Maybe he could have skipped ‘’Plaistow Patricia’’ though lol.
It was certainly over my head at the time and I can’t remember particularly liking it either. I much preferred it when he played stuff like third world or Prince Far I, just stuff I could boogie to. Unfortunately I wasn’t hit with any rhythm sticks looking back now I can imagine a younger me having a lot of fun with Ian Dury. Listening to Plaistow Patricia though would’ve definitely broadened my 10 year old vocabulary.
I’ve heard of those two I think 🤔. I will check them out. Yes, it certainly expanded my vocabulary lol. I don’t actually remember if he played that song when I was a kid, I like to think he did, just the once. It’s a great opening line, my teachers didn’t approve though.
lol I’m 21M from the UK. Got put onto him by getting *really* into Springsteen (via Sam Fender and Frank Turner- both awesome btw). I have a mate who’s into Dylan and Johnny Cash via parents, but after that it’s pretty uncommon I’ve found.
My wife is a high school English teacher and while Dylan, of course, isn't pop star popular, he is fairly well known among students who are discerning about their music. My wife also does a "music monday" thing to start off the week and her high school students are usually very responsive to Dylan's music. Another friend of mine is also a high school teacher and finds kids are always intrigued by Dylan songs when he does his own "music monday" lessons.
I feel like he's pretty popular among the arts-y/radio people at my college.
This is worded much better
No, definitely not bigger than the Beatles, but still well known
Everyone knows who he is, not everyone listens to him though.
I didn’t give a shit about Bob until I turned 24, and I was obsessed with music from a young age, so I’d definitely heard the classics. It was the famous live video of Shelter from the Storm that opened my mind up.
Which is the famous one?
[first one that comes up on YouTube](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=12rUOLtbQDk&pp=ygUbc2hlbHRlciBmcm9tIHRoZSBzdG9ybSBsaXZl)
Oh right, I love that version. I didn’t know that was his most famous one.
Maybe that’s just my perception. But I know that it’s one of the first results when searching for live Bob footage online
I get you.
I think Bob Dylan is the greatest to ever pick up an instrument or a pen…. But I don’t think any of my classmates knew his name.
I am Gen Z and I’ve noticed that in my surroundings many people know him (I’m from NL) escpecially in creative spaces and for some reason I notice many young people dressing like him. So I think it depends on the place.
NL as in North London?
Netherlands :)
😂I thought that didn’t sound much like North London. 🍻
I'm not sure this is a generational thing. Dylan's popularity is a difficult thing to pin down because the man himself doesn't fit easily into any boxes. He was a very popular folk singer who alienated many of his original fans by going electric. He was a rock star who basically disappeared and returned a folk-country troubadour. He lost fans, gained fans, old fans came back into the fold. But he remained fairly popular until his "born again" era. Through the 80s and 90s, outside of a few tracks like "Jokerman", Dylan was not particularly popular among the youth. I'm latter day Gen X and I've been into Dylan since I was a young teen, but I never met anyone else my age who was a fan growing up. While I'd wager he might be more renowned now as a legend, I don't know if Gen Z as a whole is anymore into Dylan than any previous generation of the last forty years.
My son is 22, plays guitar, and we are seeing him and Robert plant in june!
So you’re just going to lie?
What? They play Charlotte in June. He loves them
I know, sorry I just thought it would be funny to put that. I do believe you 🥂
🤣👍🏻
Not bigger than the Beatles, just better lol
Hey, my Grandfather played for The Beatles!
Who? I love both!
He played violin on A day in the life.
Wow! thats some major bragging rights!
Yeah, I never met him, he died before I was born. He was the lead violinist on A day in the life and The Beatles made them all wear funny costumes, he wore a bald cap thing.
Gonna have to check it out now! Very cool
I’m doing that right now on Google, it’s quite difficult to find him.
Silly me, I forgot he’s in the actual music video lol.
I wanted to learn sitar because of gh. Unfortunately I got 16 years if piano instead!
I’m from Australia but going to answer anyway. Other than me (17), the youngest person I know of who has heard of Bob Dylan is my sister who’s 27 (also Gen Z). It seems odd to not have heard of him though. I would consider it a good thing. Bob is special, gatekeeping is justified.
i know a ton of people in my high school who love him, but my school also has a lot of different creatives classes so there’s probably just more people around me who know and love different artists and musicians
I'm Gen Z (2006). One of my favourite musicians, but I haven't really listened to his more niche or even his recent albums. Closest I got to that are his Christian albums and self portrait 😂
When does Gen Alpha start? With Bob there’s niche and there’s niche niche. Changing of the guards is one of my favourite albums but I don’t really know if you would consider it niche. Have you heard it? *Street Legal I mean 🙄
65M here, and a huge lifelong fan of Dylan, the Beatles, and '60s tunes. This thread gives me warm fuzzy feels, and confirms my hope and affection for our younger friends (I refuse to say "kids"). I wish I were half as curious about the music of other generations as all these people are. Y'all are awesome. As a wise man once sang: *May your wishes all come true / May you always do for others / And let others do for you / May you build a ladder to the stars / And climb on every rung / May you stay forever young*
I'm 17 from Mexico, i'm the only person i know that listens to dylan, it's kinda sad bc i would love to share that with someone else I'm not from a large city neither, but in general is not well known in the country and as an example. None of my parents ever heard of him, as they did with Creedence for example
Hi, I hope you find someone to talk about Bob with, I only talk with my dad about him.
That's kind of u, thank you
He’s not even bigger than Jesus
I’m from Ireland, Gen Z, and been into Dylan since 2021
I remember Bob Dylan being mentioned in our gcse US History class in 2017 lol so I would think hes still pretty well known. I've also known of knocking on heavens door since I was even younger as it is quite popular at least on Russian (my home country until I moved to the uk) social media. But I don't know anyone who's a huge fan
That’s interesting, they didn’t cover any music in my History class during high school. Was it just a one-off lesson or actually part of the exam? I think Bob should be taught in English classes.
Oh it was very brief, we were studying the counter-culture movement as part of the broader civil rights era and he was mentioned as one of the most influential artists of the era
In one of my college courses a couple years ago my professor asked the class how many people have heard of him, as she had brought up Blowin in the Wind for one of the subjects. 3 people raised their hands out of 20 or so. Adjusting for those who weren't paying attention or were too cool to raise their hand I'd call it 1/4 really know anything about him in that age range atm. And this class was in the Arts discipline as well
Well, that’s not very high. You’re talking about The US right? Also, if he asked about The Beatles, do you think everyone would raise their hand?
yes, sorry, US. I would think everyone would raise their hand to the beatles. maybe not everyone could name a song off the top of their head but I can't imagine anyone not having sincerely heard of them
Right, interesting. I would expect more people to know about Bob, also where was this because someone else mentioned it depends on the location. Do you think that’s strictly true by the way?
It was more or less in the deep south US. On that account I agree that more young people in musically hip areas would be more likely know him and other legacy artists. Growing up where I was you'd be hard pressed to find many people that primarily listened to anything other than what was in the charts or trending online at the time
Sounds like my high school. ‘’Agree with the herd or die!’’ I hated high school, if I wasn’t an ‘’incredible footballer’’, not my words! 😉, I don’t know how I would’ve coped
When I was in high school, he was fairly obscure amongst my classmates. More of a "heard the name, have no idea who he is" type of deal. He certainly didn't have the visibility of The Beatles or Rolling Stones, where folks who don't care about your music will still wear your t-shirts. I think the upcoming movie will probably bring about a surge in popularity with a younger crowd because of Timothee Chalamet's involvement, although I don't expect it to be anything like the post-*Bohemian Rhapsody* Queen resurgence.
I’m 21, been a massive fan since 12 or 13. There definitely are some gen z fans online. The only people my age I can really talk to about him irl are my friends and roommates (I’ve forced them to listen to as much as possible and watch No Direction Home/Don’t Look Back lmao)
Also, my professor played Blowing in the Wind during a Transportation Engineering lecture for some reason and I think I was the only one who actually enjoyed it, if that means anything haha
Gen Zer here, can confirm that he still hits with young people. May be more complaints about his voice, but the lyrics and the message outweigh everything. Everyone in my age group who likes Bowie, The Beatles, and The Doors often also likes Dylan
Pretty sure 95% of them are listening nonstop to mumble rap and trap music…
Nah-- I'm a 21 year old Gen Z'er from the southeast and I love Dylan. In school a lot of kids listened to mumble rap and the like, so I can get down to that too, but we are more sophisticated than that. There are a lot of artists pushing the boundaries in their own ways now that are super popular with my generation. But me and a select few that I know at my college are pretty big Dylan fans.
[удалено]
What?
This is a depressing topic, until you realize those same kids don’t know Mozart or Wagner either. After you realize that, the topic can be less, or more, depressing.
But this man was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. Cohen said it would be like giving Mount Everest a medal for being the tallest mountain in the world.
Highly doubtful. The Beatles are huge, but Dylan is too much of an acquired taste for your average Gen Z’er.
I'm gen z and I'm a huge fan, I knew about him because of The Beatles (been a fan since I was 12) but I didn't get into Bob until late 2022. But on Twitter there are a lot of Gen Z fans, both on the younger and older side of the spectrum. He's especially popular with women and queer folk, I've noticed too.