"This is like my toilet after Taco Bell night": school kids react hilariously to their teacher playing them Blink-182, Smashing Pumpkins and Gorillaz

Teacher Cierra Johnson and a music review by one of her young students
(Image credit: Cierra Johnson / TikTok)

Although we might assume kids are easily pleased when it comes to music, and might take to whatever artist their elders are forcing upon them, it turns out that they take their listening palettes rather seriously.

Now, thanks to US teacher Cierra Johnson, who challenges her class of young school students to share their thoughts on her favourite bands, we've been able to learn what the music listeners of tomorrow really think about rock and indie artists.

As Johnson plays her classes various songs, such as I Miss You by Blink-182, she asks the kids to write down their opinions on each track on coloured sticky notes. Then, after collecting the results, she shares their messages over on her TikTok account.

When it came to their thoughts on the aforementioned pop-punk ballad, the group of whippersnappers had mixed reviews, such as "This song is like weird and good and bad ass, cringy." One even compared it to an Ed Sheeran track, or as they know him, "Ned Sheeran". Another compared it to "an annoying little kid", while someone else had a more abstract takeaway: "This song is like a blob fish - weird!". To be fair, "blob fishes" do sound strange.

Our favourite comment from the listening session however was: "This song is like having to eat green beans. I don't like them". It's sharply witty and oh-so-dry, and we're totally banking on this youngster becoming a future music journalist.

As Johnson played Gorillaz's 2001 alt-rock song Clint Eastwood, the kids were more cut-throat with their scrutiny, with one student declaring: "I feel like you punished us with this song". There's also the head-scratching comparison of "It sounds like a duck choking on green beans and a guy rapping".

The ultimate comment from the teacher's review challenge however came after the children listened to The Smashing Pumpkins' track 1979, as one rather cheeky tot rudely offers: "Mrs Johnson's playlist is like my toilet after Taco Bell night".

Clearly, they're not a fan of alt-rock - or American fast-food takes on Mexican cuisine, for that matter. Fortunately, the Pumpkins' reviews weren't all negative, as one young listener colourfully states that it "sounds like unicorns", which we're going to assume is a good takeaway.

Check out the videos below:

@j.money.baby

♬ I Miss You - blink-182
@j.money.baby

♬ Clint Eastwood - Gorillaz
@j.money.baby

♬ 1979 - The Smashing Pumpkins
Liz Scarlett

Liz works on keeping the Louder sites up to date with the latest news from the world of rock and metal. Prior to joining Louder as a full time staff writer, she completed a Diploma with the National Council for the Training of Journalists and received a First Class Honours Degree in Popular Music Journalism. She enjoys writing about anything from neo-glam rock to stoner, doom and progressive metal, and loves celebrating women in music.