ParticipativeMusic

Quora Answer : I've noticed that certain genres of music are more often self-referential (think funk, with its thousand variations on the theme of "Let's Get Funky") than other genres. What determines this?

May 13, 2018

A genre of music talks about itself in this way as a kind of "audience participation", in a live setting.

So "let's get funky", "are you ready to rock?", "let there be house!" etc. are exhortations to people to join in the spirit of the musical event (usually by dancing)

These genres see themselves as a communal, social experience. The genre is something that brings the fans / audience together.

Genres that don't do it, don't see themselves as a shared participative rite. Or at least not in a live setting.