"I don't know, I think the crowds are even more responsive now because the audiences are skewing younger"
About this Quote
There’s a quiet recalibration tucked into this offhand line: “responsive” isn’t just louder applause, it’s a different feedback loop. James Young frames the shift as demographic, not mystical. The crowds aren’t more “real” now; they’re younger, and youth changes the physics of a room. Younger audiences tend to treat concerts less like a recital and more like a participatory event, where shouting, filming, singing along, and broadcasting the moment are part of the ticket price. “Responsive” becomes a measure of visible, instantaneous validation.
The subtext is half relief, half negotiation. For an older touring act, the fear is irrelevance: playing to nostalgia, watching energy flatten into polite appreciation. By crediting the crowd’s age, Young positions the band as still capable of generating urgency - while also acknowledging that the audience’s cultural habits have evolved. This isn’t necessarily about the music getting better; it’s about the audience being trained by an attention economy that rewards reaction. They perform their fandom in real time, and the band feels that performance as momentum.
Context matters: legacy rock acts increasingly survive by cross-generational recruitment, whether through streaming discovery, parents bringing kids, or viral clips. “Skewing younger” hints at sustainability, but also at adaptation. The band may be playing the same catalog, yet the room behaves differently: less reverence, more communion. Young’s line captures that modern bargain - artists provide the anthem, the crowd provides the spectacle.
The subtext is half relief, half negotiation. For an older touring act, the fear is irrelevance: playing to nostalgia, watching energy flatten into polite appreciation. By crediting the crowd’s age, Young positions the band as still capable of generating urgency - while also acknowledging that the audience’s cultural habits have evolved. This isn’t necessarily about the music getting better; it’s about the audience being trained by an attention economy that rewards reaction. They perform their fandom in real time, and the band feels that performance as momentum.
Context matters: legacy rock acts increasingly survive by cross-generational recruitment, whether through streaming discovery, parents bringing kids, or viral clips. “Skewing younger” hints at sustainability, but also at adaptation. The band may be playing the same catalog, yet the room behaves differently: less reverence, more communion. Young’s line captures that modern bargain - artists provide the anthem, the crowd provides the spectacle.
Quote Details
| Topic | Youth |
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