What’s Ahead In 2010
New releases by Dr. Dre, My Chemical Romance and Drake should deliver
It’s hard to believe you could outdo a year like the one the music industry went through in 2009. Deaths, controversies, prison sentences and embarrassing stage rushes have clouded the outlook for a bright future in the upcoming year. However, 2010 looks to launch new stars, new albums and possibly even new masterpieces into the realm of the music nation.
Several albums slated for a 2010 release have the potential for albums of the year. From highly anticipated sophomore releases from Vampire Weekend, MGMT and 3Oh3 to music scene veterans such as Motion City Soundtrack, Coheed and Cambria and the always delayed, finally released rock album by Lil’ Wayne “Rebirth,” 2010 is looking to be a busy year for music fanatics.
However, only a couple albums, as of this moment, have the potential to be albums of the year right as the year begins. Dr. Dre has been in hiding for what seems like the entire latter part of the decade (save for those ridiculous Dr Pepper commercials he inexplicably signed on to do). But for what seems like forever, 2010 has been slated as the release of the much-anticipated follow up to his last monster release The Chronic 2001.
Dre’s new album, “Detox,” promises to have plenty of rhymes, guest MCs (from Eminem to 50 Cent to The Game) and insight into the evolution of the rap game over the past 10 years.
“Detox” is sure to highlight all of the upcoming hip-hop releases in the next year and begin this next decade in music with a bang, as Dre did in the beginning of this past decade. Whether or not this album will feature the same “up in smoke” references and themes as his last few albums is yet to be seen, but it is already expected that Dre will use this album to solidify his place on rap’s Mount Rushmore, much the same as Jay-Z did this year with “The Blueprint 3.”
But even though Dre looks to retake the rap and hip-hop scene this year, another band on a completely different planet of genres looks to cement their place in rock history and take their step toward rock ‘n’ roll history. The emo/screamo genre might have died off a couple years ago, but My Chemical Romance never let the labeling or genre-typing place them in a category that would leave them out of the discussion to be one of modern rock’s royalty.
But from recent discussions from interviews with the band, it seems as though they will not take their regular route of theatrics and concept albums on the upcoming (and as of yet untitled) spring release. Instead, My Chemical Romance will focus on one thing: making a great rock album — something a ton of bands over the past few years have let slip them by.
If the upcoming release can catapult the band into a category with Kings of Leon, Coldplay and Green Day, then we will be looking at the next generation of rock ‘n’ roll Hall of Fame inductees.
For My Chem to be in this discussion though, their next album is going to have to blow not only their cult following away, but those who did not expect a former emo band to release the rock album of the year.
As everybody can see from the past year, the music industry can be extremely unpredictable and, in not so many words, out of control. This next year will see breakout hits from artists like Drake (who will have the monster debut album of the year) and a few other artists who will hit out of nowhere. But while we can all wonder and speculate as to what we can listen to now that everyone else will be listening to in six months, it is only a guessing game as to who will be taking over the music industry in 2010.
