Rock is 'ageing out' says Jay Jay French

Twisted Sister’s Jay Jay French says the rock genre is in trouble because it’s an “ageing cultural phenomena.”

His comments come as it was revealed the 10 best-selling musical artists of 2014 had an average age of 38 – some distance from the classic perception that rock music is made for teenagers by teenagers.

And he’s concerned that, while no young rock bands are exploding into the big-time, it’s not the same case in the world of pop, country and hip-hop.

French tells The Metal Voice: “Rock is over 50 years old and it’s not regenerating with the youth.

“When I was 17 years old I would see Led Zeppelin, the Stones, the Who, the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan. They were 24 years old.

“Now there are no rock bands coming up that are that enormous and that young – but you’ve got plenty of hip-hop artists, country artists and pop artists that are.

“What’s happening is, you’re watching the ageing-out of a genre of music.”

French says he’s grateful that his band still have an audience, but adds: “We’re not in the music business – we’re in the entertainment business. It’s a very different thing.

“People ask me all the time, ‘How’s the music business?’ And I say, ‘I don’t know.’ I’m not in the music business. I don’t really need to worry about record sales, because they don’t exist. Not in the world of rock music.”

Documentary We Are Twisted Fucking Sister debuted in Amsterdam in November.

Not only is one-time online news editor Martin an established rock journalist and drummer, but he’s also penned several books on music history, including SAHB Story: The Tale of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, a band he once managed, and the best-selling Apollo Memories about the history of the legendary and infamous Glasgow Apollo. Martin has written for Classic Rock and Prog and at one time had written more articles for Louder than anyone else (we think he's second now). He’s appeared on TV and when not delving intro all things music, can be found travelling along the UK’s vast canal network.