RE: Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus

I will come out and say it:  I completely support Miley Cyrus’s place in the music business. 

Yesterday at the music store I heard a few kids making fun of her and how bad the music is and whatnot, and I about joined in the conversation.  However, after a few moments I realized that most of her fans are around fourteen and under, I realized what she is doing is absolutely fantastic.  Here’s why:

• Kids are excited about pop music.  Guaranteed it’s not the Beatles, but I teach drum lessons in a music store and three years ago I couldn’t get any ten-year-old kid pumped about music.  Hitting drums, maybe, but not music.  Now every single kid under fourteen that’s enrolled in my studio has her albums and listens to them religiously.
• Kids are excited about musical instruments.  At the music store we have kids coming in all the time wanting to learn how to play guitar and sing like Miley Cyrus.  And as a result of that, I have a twelve year old student that’s starting a band with a few of his friends that are trying to play her songs.  Twelve year olds playing in a rock band!  Again, they’re not playing Zeppelin, but hey, you have to start somewhere.  Guaranteed when I was that age I was listening to STP, the Smashing Pumpkins and Soundgarden, but I was a weirdo.  Most kids were listening to Puff Daddy and Britney Spears, and a musical diet like that is akin to growing up eating nothing but Ho Hos and Slim Jims for every meal.
• Kids are excited about concerts!  Miley Cyrus sold out a 12,000 seat auditorium in eight minutes flat.  12,000 seats.  In eight minutes.  Guess who most of the concert goers were?  Kids.  Young kids.  I wasn’t excited about going to concerts until I was at least a 7th grader, let alone seven years old.  Geez.

Just some thoughts:)