Hipsters and their wannabe counterparts have started a new trend to stir the anxieties of the insecure, needy, and paranoid--iPod playlist parties. A giant salad bowl is passed around as participants put in their iPods. The host or hostess then mixes up the iPods and guests randomly pick an iPod and listen to the others' playlists. If the listener is impressed, the playlist-creator is rewarded with being deemed cool and is considered hot dating material.
This matter of being judged and having one's identity defined on how cool or not one's playlist may or not be has spawned a new industry--playlist consultants who help wannabe hipsters stay up to date on music trends and insure that their clients always appear to be "in-the-know." These iPod posers don't listen to music they truly like; rather, they create playlists that might impress others at these giant salad bowl extravaganzas.
I heard one report of a man who was ridiculed and mocked at work because it was discovered he had the Eagles Greatest Hits on his iPod, a selection that rendered him hopelessly square. Now he can't walk past the water cooler without hearing someone sing, "The New Kid in Town." He tried to make amends by erasing the Eagles from his iPod and only featuring music that he has deemed would increase his social standing but to no avail. His co-workers still call him the "Desperado."
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