The end of the year marks growth for the jovial celebration of another solar cycle. It also marks the time of year people have to make up excuses as to why their Spotify wrapped doesn’t align with their alleged music taste.  

Though the word “poser” has lost its meaning due to incorrect and frequent use, it is the right word to describe people who claim to be alternative but are not. Spotify wrapped is indeed a double edged sword: it presents a year of listening with fun animations and statistics, but is also brutally honest about music.

For starters, there’s nothing wrong with having a mainstream music taste. Artists like Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, and Drake have gained popularity for appealing to a large audience and delivering hits on the radio. Though basic music taste could be seen as insulting, that’s not the problem. The issue lies in people lying about being alternative for attention. Due to societal pressure to find your niche or underground scene, many have deemed their “basic” music taste to be shameful.

The fear of being seen as a simpleton has thus created the need for many to forcefully craft a unique front. Though lying for the purpose of impressing others is not an original occurrence, people who are insincere about the music they enjoy floods the underground scene with posers.

The Alt scene -which is usually defined by unconventional music- is meant to be a comfortable space for those who stray from the mainstream media. The increase in posers has begun to threaten the sincerity of the Alt scene and have led to incorrect assumptions about actual Alternative people.

Granted, Spotify wrapped is not the most accurate demonstration of someone’s music taste. Other ways of listening to music such as concerts, YouTube and even different music apps cannot not be accounted for by Spotify. However, Spotify is still the most common source for music and does give a narrow enough range for people to gauge what their most loved tracks were.

Though exposing a poser may very well seem laughable, it is more important to let people embrace their interests and not shame them for their Wrapped. The people who make fun of Sabrina Carpenter listeners are the same ones who create the posers they complain about. With that said, it is valid to have an opinion- just accept that other people have them too.