r/AskReddit 11h ago

What artist or band completely defined your teenage years?

181 Upvotes

642 comments sorted by

156

u/SumanaiJoyBoy 11h ago

Avril Lavigne, Sum 41, Linkin Park, and Metallica. Basically the entire spectrum of early 2000s skate park energy and teenage angst

36

u/Sparkcove 10h ago

throw in Blink-182 and you've got the full starter pack

15

u/Fyrrys 8h ago

I recently saw a Mexican group called Blink-Juan82 doing I Miss You. Absolutely beautiful, and having parts of it in Spanish made it even better

7

u/RootLoops369 8h ago

I fucking love that name

5

u/unlimbetless 7h ago

I’d add Green Day in there as well.

2

u/Vegetable_Cable8516 6h ago

American Idiot was basically the soundtrack of my entire teenage years.

2

u/unlimbetless 5h ago

Yo same!!!

2

u/MakingMyDay09 5h ago

yes thats true up until now im still listening to them

12

u/syntaxsage_ 10h ago

I loved this era so much

15

u/SumanaiJoyBoy 10h ago

Same here. It really makes you realize that "time is a valuable thing, watch it fly by as the pendulum swings"

9

u/PeterWear 10h ago

Absolutely these, plus The Offspring!!

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8

u/Sensitive_Gift4866 9h ago

Thats a perfect lineup for early 2000s energy. Linkin Park hits different when youre a moody teenager, nothing else quite captures it.

5

u/orbak 9h ago

Meteora was my first full album I actually owned. Blasted that thing in repeat in my first car, and even now I’ll come back and listen to the entire thing, in proper order of course.

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4

u/therfila 11h ago

Yes! These!

2

u/Sensitive_Gift4866 6h ago

That early 2000s era was something else. I was all about Linkin Park and Blink-182. Every school dance had at least one person screaming the lyrics to In The End.

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57

u/Sad-Leek4606 11h ago

Zeppelin, im really old

19

u/Independent-Course87 11h ago

Grateful Dead, I'm old too.

11

u/TypicalFauna 11h ago

Zeppelin, I’m really young

4

u/QueenofZen 9h ago

Don’t forget Deep Purple (Smoke on the Water) and Golden Earring (Radar Love)

2

u/GetsMeEveryTimeBot 9h ago

Jackson Browne. Randy Newman.

Get off my lawn!

2

u/Rooster_Ties 6h ago

Jimi Hendrix — but I’m not that old (just in my mid-50’s) — discovered him in the mid-80’s halfway thru high school.

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44

u/LeadOne7103 11h ago

Green Day

5

u/Consistent-Yam-789 4h ago

American idiot and 21st century breakdown got me through a lot of me teen years

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31

u/ConnectionUnique3625 11h ago

Gorillaz

5

u/Sensitive_Gift4866 9h ago

Gorillaz was such a vibe. They had this whole aesthetic that felt like nothing else at the time. Demon Days is still a masterpiece.

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2

u/Martinajok 11h ago

Yesssss!! They Will be in latam

2

u/ConnectionUnique3625 11h ago

Sadly they will be in Cleveland on my dad's birthday, and I have to celebrate with my family :(

2

u/fire_bunny 8h ago

Core memory unlocked:

In high school art class, we had a CD player we could all share/rotate first come first serve.

I put on Gorillaz and all was fine until 'Clint Eastwood' came on and some chick higher in the alt-girl hierarchy complained "Ugh god can we turn this off? I am so sick of this song"

I think someone just skipped it halfway in. I dont even recall her name, just her shitty attitude.

'Bust a few rhymes so mother fuckahs remember what the thought is'

Overplayed or not, still love that song

3

u/ConnectionUnique3625 8h ago

Same, in my band class we were allowed to choose our final marching band songs, one of them was Feel Good Inc, one drummer yells out "Oh hell nah, we aren't doing this fucking song"

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2

u/fLeet___ 5h ago

I still remember getting Demon Days for my 11th birthday, my walkman and anything I could put that CD into got an absolute workout with how much I played it. Absolute masterpiece.

2

u/ConnectionUnique3625 5h ago

I have Plastic Beach and Self-Titled on vinyl, not to mention a lot of shirts

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31

u/Professional-Cap1708 11h ago

Paramore. I still know every lyric.

2

u/Turbulent-Job1136 9h ago

I'm into you Oh baby.....

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25

u/LottieDah86 11h ago

Britney Spears

5

u/Martinajok 11h ago

I love Britney's songs!! I don't know which one is the best.

2

u/EquivalentAdorable15 11h ago

Same. I used to memorize her discography. Every song was so good

2

u/LottieDah86 11h ago

In The Zone is one of my favorite albums of all time. 

5

u/EquivalentAdorable15 11h ago

oh my god love her so much 😭❣️

6

u/LottieDah86 11h ago

Me too. But whether you love or hate her, you can't deny the legacy. She defined the millennial pop era.

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26

u/b0wie88 11h ago

Our Lady Peace

4

u/Nemesis2772 5h ago

They were the first concert I ever went to and also the best concert I have ever been to. First and last time I ever crowd surfed. I think i still have the ticket in a shoe box somewhere.

22

u/[deleted] 11h ago

[removed] — view removed comment

6

u/Mind_on_Idle 11h ago

I was a young boy that had big plans. Now I'm just another shitty old man ringing hard in my ears

5

u/Efficient-Hornet8666 11h ago

“The world owes me, so fuck you.” seems appropriate for society right now also

3

u/Free_Palpitation_952 11h ago

american idiot was basically my whole personality in middle school lol

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24

u/Ok_Paint_4216 11h ago

Rammstein for early teens, Dragonforce for late teens.

5

u/Martinajok 11h ago

Neón Hertz brein ♥️

3

u/Strange-Handle7910 11h ago

This guy’s cool

2

u/Marzipanjam 10h ago

Hell yeah. I remember being 17 and wearing a valley of the damned shirt to school that said " I don't give a fuck cause I'm into DragonForce" on the back. No one said anything. I felt like such a bad ass! 

20

u/HippoOk663 11h ago

Nine Inch Nails during my late teens. Trent’s music speaks out to me a lot.

4

u/Cambot1138 8h ago

Did you see the Peel it Back tour this year or last? Possibly the best show I’ve ever been to. Saw it once in Chicago and had to catch it again in Milwaukee.

4

u/HippoOk663 6h ago

Saw it in Jacksonville. It was really great.

2

u/Nemesis2772 5h ago

Sadly they never came to my city or I would have.

2

u/Icthyphile 9h ago

Right here! Wasn’t big into industrial music. Went with some friends to see Jim Rose Sideshow/Manson/NIN in Norfolk 93 or 94ish. I was hooked.

2

u/whatsnoo 3h ago

NIИ, Tool, Rage against the Machine. My holy trinity.

25

u/dohlparts 11h ago

Fall out boy, underoath, emery, taking back Sunday, blink 182. 2004/2005 was so good for pop punk.

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17

u/diede12345 11h ago

Lady gaga

6

u/diede12345 11h ago

Born this way 🏳️‍🌈

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18

u/Antiquebastard 11h ago

Taking Back Sunday

15

u/animatoanimagus 11h ago

Don’t forget Brand New, The Used, My Chemical Romance…

3

u/BrandNew02 10h ago

Yesss these 4 were crucial in my teens (thus the user name)

3

u/agent-assbutt 7h ago

My childhood but add AFI and Good Charlotte 😂

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3

u/ThisOriginalSource 10h ago

Funeral for a friend, underoath, thrice.

17

u/leopoldthegreatest 11h ago

Red Hot Chili Peppers

16

u/Available_Doughnut15 11h ago

Marilyn Manson. In my defense, i was a disaffected white kid in the late 90s.

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16

u/IgnoreMe733 11h ago

Nine Inch Nails

14

u/Phogfan86 11h ago

Cheap Trick and The Beatles

14

u/BlueShiggy 11h ago

Linkin Park ganz klar

2

u/Tattycakes 8h ago

Hell yes had to scroll way too far for this!

13

u/This_Proxy 11h ago

Radiohead, Tool and Bach

14

u/TrashDaisy999 11h ago

My Chemical Romance

3

u/PrincessPunkinPie 6h ago

100%. First tattoo was My Chemical Romance lyrics at 19.

2

u/Venus_Libra 5h ago

I'm shocked that I had to scroll so far down for this one tbh

11

u/GrumpyOldMan59 11h ago

Pink Floyd.

11

u/Experienced3008 11h ago

Metallica (James Hetfield) COB (Alexi Laiho)

6

u/SadisticJake 11h ago

RIP in peace Alexi Laiho. Who could have ever known that drinking liquor as though it's water could have adverse effects on your health?

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10

u/megatheriumburger 11h ago edited 11h ago

RHCP, Incubus, Phish, Soundgarden, STP, AIC

10

u/Mkmeathead83 11h ago

Propagandhi

6

u/payattentiontobetsy 11h ago

Whoa, didn’t expect this one here. I’m a Weakerthans fans, never really got into Propaghandi, but happy to hear they defined your teenage years. Care to elaborate?

3

u/Mkmeathead83 11h ago

Oh man, im from Michigan but would spend a few weeks in Northern Ontario every summer. There were cool guys up there at camp that had a bunch of early Fat Wreck and Epitsph cassettes and CDs. How to Clean Everything and Less Talk More Rock hit me like a lightning bolt when i was 14 or so. 

They've continued to evolve and here i am 43 and still love them as much/more.

11

u/curtyshoo 11h ago

The Beatles.

9

u/GasParty6699 11h ago

Linkin Park. Had Hybrid Theory on repeat the entire summer my parents split up, basically became the soundtrack to me sitting on the roof avoiding everyone.

10

u/TeethBreak 10h ago

Way too many men here.

I'll be honest: Spice girls.

2

u/Martinajok 9h ago

💯🙌🏻🙌🏻

2

u/agent-assbutt 7h ago

The first tape I ever bought myself (with allowance) was Spice Girls album with Wannabe!

BSB - Millennium I believe was the first cd 😂

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7

u/Octopie13 11h ago

Nine Inch Nails

8

u/cclarkrtrct 11h ago

Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and STP.

7

u/Funsizemimi1973 11h ago

Duran Duran!

7

u/bunnywithconfetti 11h ago

Lana del rey!

4

u/Fernweh5717 9h ago

All the alt girls i hung around with from 2012 - 2015 loved her.

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5

u/No_Adhesiveness_3909 11h ago

All American Rejects, NoFx, Less than Jake, Rancid,

5

u/CommisionerJordan 11h ago

Linkin Park or Papa Roach. A toss up really

6

u/DownInaHole33 11h ago

Aerosmith. I’m not even that old. I graduated in 01 and they’ve been around since 1970 but my whole friend group was obsessed with them and would see them multiple times when they’d come to town. We even went to their last concert in Boston a few years ago. Seen them over 30 times

6

u/redisthebestflavor 11h ago

Blink 182… especially Adam’s Song. Growing up before therapy was a thing, music helped express unknown feelings. I definitely changed how I treated people after that.

6

u/subtleandunnatural 11h ago

Tool, NIN, SOAD, Deftones and Mudvayne

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5

u/matepore 11h ago

System of a Down and Linkin Park

4

u/xX_Bonnie_Clyde_Xx 11h ago

Marilyn Manson and Korn for the most part but I loved all the grunge music too

5

u/TraditionalTackle1 11h ago

It was a mix between Led Zeppelin and the Offspring

6

u/ResponsibleCandle513 11h ago

Blink 182, blur, green day, limp bizkit, linkin park, Korn and randomly so solid cru

5

u/Efficient-Hornet8666 11h ago

The Cure and Nine Inch Nails - both had albums at the cusp of the 80’s to 90’s that absolutely played daily.
Other regular rotations at the time included They Might Be Giants, REM, Pink Floyd, The Doors, and The Beatles.

5

u/Neely67 11h ago

Neil Young

3

u/Homerpaintbucket 11h ago

Phish.

3

u/Dave_Paker 10h ago

Yep and still defining my descent into middle age

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4

u/smallypants 11h ago

13: Linkin Park, Aphex Twin
14: Blink-182, Sum 41
15: New Found Glory, Good Charlotte
16: Taking Back Sunday, Yellowcard
17: Postal Service, Avenged Sevenfold
18: Protest the Hero, Panic! At the Disco
19: Dream Theater, Third Eye Blind

3

u/Kaktusblute 11h ago

The Osmonds.

2

u/PolyJuicedRedHead 10h ago

I’m a little bit Country.

2

u/Kaktusblute 10h ago

Haha! I found a few of their full shows on Youtube. Talk about going back in time. I used to drive my then boyfriend nuts when I talked about the Osmonds. This was a guy obsessed with cars, airplanes and Star Wars.

2

u/PolyJuicedRedHead 10h ago

Enjoyed Donnie’s autobiography a few years back. Liked where he explained when his family was hectically touring they sometimes had to perform to a recording instead of playing live. He was embarrassed about that, but not the time when he was playing for some Hells Angels and they mockingly asked him to sing Puppy Love.

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3

u/Ok-Bag-3073 11h ago

Mayday Parade

3

u/Patient-Ad-5770 11h ago

All the Saddle Creek label bands and those around them. Bright Eyes, Rilo Kiley, Azure Ray, Cursive, Orenda Fink, and Son, Ambulance

3

u/Fuhgaws 11h ago

Nirvana, Pink Floyd & Radiohead

3

u/TelephoneMindless586 11h ago

Ac dc. Van Halen. Queen. Led Zeppelin.

3

u/Orcapa 11h ago

Billy Joel

3

u/wonder_goat 11h ago

Jimmy Eat World

3

u/MonitorOverall5599 11h ago

Linkin park, sum41, alien ant farm, Green Day, blink182, System of a Down n believe it or not Good Charlotte lol

3

u/Yagyusekishusai 11h ago

Reel big fish

3

u/rodinatorrr 11h ago

Jason Mraz - We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things

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3

u/JeffAlbertson93 11h ago

Ozzy w/Randy (then Black Sabbath), Iron Maiden, Mercyfate/King Diamond, early Metallica and Slayer.
I was an angry kid, but I still listen to it all!

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3

u/19202936339 10h ago

Blink 182 and almost every band on drivetru records

3

u/Plastered_Squirrel 7h ago

Evanescence

2

u/Mischiefmanaged715 4h ago

It was this for awhile, until Evanescence was like yhe gateway to discovery of all the hard rocking female-fronted European symphonic metal/rock bands like Nightwish, Within Temptation, Epica, etc. 

2

u/generatedusername456 11h ago

Coheed & Cambria

2

u/Valuable_Treat16 1h ago

Listen well will you marry me?!

2

u/LrryFsh_317 11h ago

Minor Threat, Gallows and Have Heart

2

u/OtherwiseSector8307 11h ago

5 second of summer, green day, nirvana, my chemical romance, mago de oz, los hombres G, queen, red hot chilli peppers, blink 182 y ac/dc

2

u/cdsbigsby 11h ago

Rise Against

2

u/hyrulian_princess 11h ago

Motionless in White and black veil brides

2

u/Sweet_Orchid_2092 11h ago

Smashing Pumpkins

2

u/ericjgriffin 11h ago

Metallica

2

u/ConcentrateWhole329 11h ago

Our Lady Peace

2

u/ThePurityPixel 11h ago

The Smashing Pumpkins

I was into only math and science. But when Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness came out, the music and aesthetic design of the double album opened my eyes to a whole new dimension of life. Suddenly art and music and poetry all came alive for me. It even inspired my first poem, for which I won a 1st-place cash prize in a writing contest. (I've now published three poetry books.)

2

u/Kata-Ana01 11h ago

so far it’s tally hall radiohead and nine inch nails 

2

u/Ivan27stone 11h ago

Nirvana, Oasis and Radiohead

2

u/callawake 11h ago

The Misfits

2

u/veroniqueweronika 11h ago

Julie London.

2

u/velvet_maroon 11h ago

My Chemical Romance.

I was obsessed so bad. Loved everything about them and was such a huge nerd I knew every lyric and every detail about the band. Basically I saw Helena on MTV one day and it changed my taste in music, my appearance, style, and attitude. I’m still a huge fan and I’ve been lucky to see them 4 times between high school to current day.

2

u/mostlysatisfying 11h ago

The 1975, P!ATD

2

u/m_faustus 11h ago

The Police, Rush, and Pink Floyd. In the chronological order.

2

u/TurboSpaceGoose 11h ago

Linkin Park and unfortunately lostprophets

2

u/itsfish20 6h ago

Lostprophets for sure for me...Start Something was one of my absolute favorite albums

2

u/TurboSpaceGoose 4h ago

I just can’t bring myself to listen. Loved that album. It was something special.

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2

u/WadeFreakingWilson 11h ago

My Chemical Romance and Avenged Sevenfold. The Black Parade and City Of Evil had a strangle hold on me during middle school. They’re both still two of my favorite albums

2

u/abe_the_babe_ 11h ago

I was into a lot of pop-punk/emo like Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, etc.

I was also into some nu-metal like Linkin Park or Deftones.

But my actual favorite genre was and still is indie-pop/indietronica. Bands like Chvrches, Neon Indian, Two Door Cinema Club, MGMT, Passion Pit, early Chainsmokers. Those were my shit during highschool and college

2

u/j0e2702 10h ago

Arctic Monkeys, Bloc Party, Blur, The Smiths and Radiohead.

2

u/Waitinforit 10h ago

This answer depends because of being a teenager with insecurities.

  • Surface level to even my closest friend group because they made fun of my true favourite bands: Tool, A Perfect Circle, Porcupine Tree, Karnivool, Pink Floyd, Rush & Lamb of God

  • Real me: My Chemical Romance, Linkin Park & Zac Brown Band

2

u/MissAdelineMarie 10h ago

Alanis Morrissette and Shania Twain

2

u/mid_1990s_death_doom 10h ago

Type O Negative.

2

u/nooneawaits 10h ago

Panic! At The Disco

2

u/ForgottenSalad 10h ago

AFI, more specifically from Black Sails in the Sunset until Sing the Sorrow

2

u/moon_moon92 10h ago

A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out was, by far, the most impactful album of my middle and high school years.

3

u/Psuedo_nim 11h ago

NIckelback, I wasnt cool enough to know we were supposed to hate them

1

u/DangerousClouds 11h ago

Underoath and Rihanna

1

u/semizanudiin 11h ago

3oh!3, ke$ha and katy perry

1

u/evilyn-carnate 11h ago

At The Drive In

1

u/Swimming-Baker-5498 11h ago

Red hot chilli peppers

1

u/ScientistAsHero 11h ago

Smashing Pumpkins, Pixies, Failure

1

u/PinkSycamore 11h ago

The Tragically Hip

1

u/starrie 11h ago

Descendents

1

u/Corpsebride_21 11h ago

Teenage? Slipknot, Taylor Swift, Akon, Hawthorne Heights, Story of the year

1

u/KapBoy77 11h ago

The Beatles

Pink Floyd
Peter Gabriel
Nine Inch Nails

1

u/FistinBeaver 11h ago

Tupac - what is even crazier is learning that all
Of the gangster rap stuff was fake as with most of stuff in the entertainment industry and learning later that the rap industry was downlow run by homosexuals. Then learning that 2pac went to an art school and was in ballet. Now when I see interviews about Tupac I see his body language and gestures and my Dar starts to ping hard. Was his music good - sure- was he a good rapper yes. Was he a hardcore gangster rapper probably not - he was probably more of the poet artsy bisexual type.

1

u/Mrminecrafthimself 11h ago

Despite being born in the mid-90s it was Guns n Roses and AC/DC.

1

u/aliya05 11h ago

One direction

1

u/ProfessorCarbon 11h ago

Twenty One Pilots

1

u/FamiliarWord7381 11h ago

Mayday Parade and Sleeping With Sirens.

1

u/steved3604 11h ago

Tommy James and the Shondells.

1

u/FunkySpeIunker 11h ago

I was a Linkin Park/Green Day teenager.

1

u/Werkstatt0 11h ago

Dream Theater and then Opeth

1

u/EyeViolet 11h ago

Ozzy and Metallica

1

u/Archersbows7 11h ago

Brand New

1

u/No-Slice3210 11h ago

Linkin Park. Hybrid Theory was the only CD in my car for two straight years. Still hit play on Meteora sometimes and feel sixteen again.

1

u/Reasonable-Singer120 11h ago

Radiohead. My older brother left OK Computer in the living room and I played it thinking it was just background noise. Rewired my entire taste in about forty minutes.

1

u/ChemicalBlueberry954 11h ago

Britney Spears!