Name: Anthony Fantano on the Purpose of Music Criticism
Uploaded: 2025-06-19T22:00:03.000Z
Description: Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Anthony Fantano on the Purpose of Music Criticism' from TAFS Clips on Comedy Buff. Published 2025-06-19. Transcript available.

Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Anthony Fantano on the Purpose of Music Criticism' from TAFS Clips on Comedy Buff. Published 2025-06-19. Transcript available.

When you shit on something, right, if you don't like something, the artist is
obviously
going to get pissed off because they worked hard on it and they're like, fuck
this guy.
But their fans, I think, also, have you seen a rise in the people that like the
artist
getting pissed off at you?
Over the course of time that I've been doing what I do, I wouldn't say there
was a rise.
Like, I still see, and I, you know, really, really in the first few years of
doing what
I do full time, like, you know, one of my earliest reviews was a review that
like blew up and
I just got widespread hate for it.
For what?
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.
But.
Come on, dude.
What?
No.
It's bad?
No, it's not bad.
It's just okay.
What do you mean just, it's, I think he has, I think he has better albums.
Nicky verse on Monster.
Yeah, there's highlights on it.
It's got the best Jay-Z verse I've ever heard.
Goblins.
Spookies.
Spooky.
That is not the best Jay-Z verse.
Halloween.
Frankenstein.
Things that go bump in the night.
Monsters.
It's great.
It's okay.
It's not, it's not, it's, come on.
College dropout's better.
You gave Yeezus a three?
I gave it a five.
But it's, that was a music that I, when people heard it, they were like, this
is a new type
of a thing.
I mean, again, that depends on what you've heard.
Kanye was copying Death Grips.
I have it on good.
One hundred percent.
What?
I have it on good authority that a friend of mine who was connected to his team,
you know,
helped burn him a bunch of CDs and stuff that like...
Who, Nick Fuentes?
No.
It was the early 2010s.
Uh-huh.
Though that freak was still around around that time.
Nick Fuentes?
Yeah, he was in kindergarten.
Yeah, probably.
No, he was like, um, I can't remember...
What is he?
He's like an old man that looks like a little kid?
Gary Coleman?
No, no, no.
He's, he's, he's younger anyway.
Anyway.
I don't even want to talk about that freakazoid.
I know, I know, I know, I know a friend of mine who, who had knowledge that
like a bunch
of sort of like, you know, prevailing industrial hip hop artists, you know,
including, including,
including, including, including Death Grips, like they had their music burned
on a CD.
He was exposed to it.
But the thing is like, I think, but with that being said, I think Travis Scott
had more of
an impact on the sound of that record than Death Grips did.
So what?
I'm not saying that is a bad thing.
You're talking...
That's just what art is.
I posited a few minutes ago that there was absolutely no Death Grips influence.
You're saying he's biting, right?
I think, I think it's not that interesting if you've heard other stuff, is what
I'm saying.
You're such a dickhead, dude.
I mean, that's kind of my job.
It's so brave though.
I really like, because it is infuriating, right?
When I, I love, you know, I like music a lot, right?
Sure.
And if you disagree with me, it does upset me.
And I do think you're doing some sort of thing for attention.
For, to girls or something.
To girls, if it's for girls, it's not.
Yeah, girls are like, oh my God, he doesn't like Yeezus.
If it's for girls, it's not working.
He's crazy.
He's different.
You're doing it.
No.
My audience has like almost...
What upsets me is this.
My audience is like 80% men.
Really?
Yeah.
Lucky?
80%.
I think us too.
It's a terrible feeling, isn't it?
I'm neutral on it.
You're neutral on it?
No, it doesn't feel good.
No, I'm neutral on it.
No, you want to...
It has...
It has...
You want a 50-50.
Why?
You don't want to just like...
What?
Like male online internet population?
It's not like...
I mean, I feel like it has its upsides.
Maybe if they're watching me, they're not watching Andrew Tate.
You think that that's a thing?
Sure.
Maybe they like music and like the coolest guy of all time.
No, Andrew Tate hates music.
He does like music?
He hates music.
Ah, he has...
He's got so...
See, that's what he's doing.
Well, the thing is, like, people of that mindset hate art generally.
Okay, so you have a community, right?
Sure, to an extent.
You have millions of people that are part of your community.
I wouldn't call it a community.
Well, no.
You're constantly interacting with them.
You say you're asking them questions.
Yeah, but that doesn't make it a community.
You're asking them questions.
You say, what's the best album of the 2000s?
And then someone says Kid A and you go...
Across several million people.
You couldn't say that, but you'd be wrong.
Across several million people, there's little cohesion.
When I watched that one, you said...
You could say that, but you'd be wrong.
In Rainbows is better.
But does it matter?
In Rainbows is better than Kid A, yeah.
But does it matter?
No, no.
None of it matters.
But that doesn't mean I'm not going to put out my opinion.
But what is the...
Like, I guess, what's the cultural merit of assigning a new...
Is it you, like...
Like, what does it matter?
Like, who cares?
I guess if you want me to explain the context that all of that is coming out of.
It's great content.
I mean, it's...
Yeah, sure.
It's really engaging.
And I wanted to keep clicking and keep, you know, saying...
Getting angry?
Fuck.
Alone.
Fuck.
Alone.
But what...
But, like, why can't you just be like, they're really good.
Uh-huh.
Yeah.
Why can't I just say they're all great?
But why does Kid A have to be worse than...
Okay.
Well, those...
Yeah, that's a really good one.
Well, okay.
Here's the thing.
Those three are really good.
If you're actually going to be critical, like, for a living, you have to sort
of, like,
break some eggs.
But don't you think that it's kind of like a...
I don't know.
It doesn't...
See, here's the thing.
It's like, you're asking sort of, like, what is the merit and what is the point?
Is it criticism or is it...
You're asking what is the merit and what is the point of what I'm doing?
Wouldn't there be even less...
What's the project?
What's the objective?
Wouldn't there be even less of a point to a critic that just says everything is
good?
No, not everything's good, but, like...
Well, yeah, not everything is good.
So, the thing is, if you just said everything was good all the time, why would
anybody watch?
I'm saying that if two albums are both really good, does it matter if...
And also, does it matter if OK Computer is...
They're all really good albums.
It's a really good band.
Yeah.
Have you...
I mean, I can't get enough of this crap.
Like, to say that, like, I enjoy In Rainbows more than Amnesiac isn't to say
that I don't
enjoy Amnesiac or that it isn't a good album.
Right.
I'm just stating a preference.
No, but you're...
Yeah, you're...
But it is for your community.
They want to see what Melon's going to say about this crap.
Sure.
It's a game, kind of, more.
Yeah.
It doesn't...
I mean, it's supposed to be fun on some level.
It's not fun for me, but...
Because the thing is, like, with a band like Radiohead that has as versatile
discography
as they do, and even Kanye, like, to make such a list, everybody's going to
have a wildly
different opinion.
I mean...
No, I think there's the right answer.
No.
Well, what's the right answer?
It's whatever...
I mean, what's the right answer?
Yeah.
Yeah, it's the thing I think.