Like thousands of other people surfing the Internet, in the summer of 2020, I saw a viral video of two young men listening to “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins. Their reaction was priceless, especially when the famous drum solo hit a couple of minutes into the song. As Marie Kondo would say, “It sparked joy.”
First of all, it came as a surprise to me (though maybe it shouldn’t have) that there are tons of people out there (especially young people) who have never heard of the musicians and songs that so many of us have taken for granted our whole lives. It just never occurred to me that there are some people who have never even heard of Led Zeppelin, U2, or Nirvana. You got to applaud them for expanding their horizons, moving outside their comfort zone, and listening to new stuff. Hey, in going on this journey, I’ve expanded my horizons too, and learned about some music that I probably would never have listened to otherwise.
Second, I had no idea that what I was seeing in that video clip was “a thing”—known as a music video reaction. But yes, it’s apparently a thing and has been going on for a few years now. How was I supposed to know? I’m old, and I always seem to be about 10 years behind everyone else. Also, I’ve been incredibly busy with doing really important stuff, like binge-watching Breaking Bad and every other TV show during the pandemic.
Well, I was intrigued when I saw the clip, so I went on YouTube to check these guys out. The next thing I know, I’m stuck in the deepest rabbit hole ever. I am now officially addicted to watching music reaction videos from people all over the world.
Why I Like These Reaction Videos So Much
Well, have you ever loved a song so much that you couldn’t wait to get your friend to listen to it? And then if your friend liked it as much as you, somehow you got to share in their joy by watching their reaction. With these reaction videos, it’s like I get to do that over and over again with complete strangers. Most of these songs I’ve heard hundreds or thousands of times, but by seeing someone else experience them for the very first time, well, it’s like me hearing them for the very first time too.
Oldest Posts First
When I started cruising through music reaction videos from different people on YouTube, I found that my favorite way to watch them is to go to that person’s channel, click on the Videos page, and sort showing the oldest videos first. Then I scroll until I find a musician, band, or song that I really like, and click. I do this because most of the fun is in watching someone discover a song, musician, or genre that is brand new to them. I love that they sometimes don’t even know how to pronounce a band’s name initially, but before you know it, they’re the biggest fan in the world and they’re learning everything they can about the band.
Starting with the Twins
The two guys I mentioned above are brothers in their early 20s. Really cool, nice kids. They call their channel “TwinsthenewTrend,” and as of the date of this post, they have 748,000 subscribers. They’re the first music video reactors that I heard about, so that’s where I started. Over time, I’ll do posts on some of the other reactors I’ve come across, and some of their best reactions to music videos. So if you like music, all kinds of music—especially stuff that came out in the 1960s – 1990s—chances are you’re gonna like these reaction videos.
Aerosmith—Dream On
In most of the early videos on the Twins channel, the music reaction comes from just one of the brothers. The very first time the first brother listened to a rock song in his life, it was Aerosmith doing “Dream On.” Not a bad introduction to rock. Check it out. I just love the genuine emotions…
Phil Collins—In the Air Tonight
This is the one that went viral. Now you got both brothers involved. Double the fun. I love these guys…
Dolly Parton—Jolene
The great thing about these guys—and most music reactors—is that they’re open to pretty much any kind of music. Dolly Parton singing “Jolene” is about as old school as it gets. But hey, if a song is good, it stands the test of time and crosses barriers…
Barack Obama Visits and Bob Dylan—The Times They are a Changin’
Yeah, so, if you want more proof that these kids got something going on, just consider the fact that President Obama has even heard of them and did a special guest spot on their channel. Now that’s cool…
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