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I saw a funny Instagram reel the other day, the text set in the clip read:

Noone:

Millenials hearing new music in public:

the reel shows a caricature of a millenial woman in a coffee shop frantically pausing the conversation to make sure her Shazzam session records the song playing on the cafe speakers before it ends. And then she looks like a combination of surprised, affirmed, and instantly more knowledgeable when she finds out it's a Grimes song.

Some of the comments reflect a community that may be embarrassed by their obsessiveness.

"We used to be cool man."

"Me being too embarrassed to walk closer to the speaker to get a better read from Shazam but also being very disappointed that the song wasn’t Shazam-able"

"Has anyone ever opened Shazam NOT in a state of panic or am I the only frantically grabbing my phone so the song doesn’t end before I can successfully have it identified???"

"I once tried to do so discreetly in a store. My friend thought I was trying to sneak out a fart. Honestly, it was the same level of shame."

I remember one time driving around Fayetteville with a friend for whatever reason, and I could tell out of the corner of my eye that he was discretely Shazaming a song I was playing--wish I could remember which it was. The second his Shazam session logged the song, he straightened up and said "oh, this is 'so and so'"--this anecdote kind of sucks because I forget the band.

It's wild to think that some of us, millenials maybe, music enthusiasts generally, may be embarrassed to spotlight our sudden ignorance in a new artist or a song, or reveal to another music fan they may have a deeper mental catalog of bands, or albums, or songs.

I notice myself preferring to conceal my musical ignorance from anyone but the oldest of heads, record store employees, or a friend whose knowledge of a specific genre is nearly academic.

I read a passage in Oliver Sacks's Musicophila this morning:

So for all the embarrassment we may feel Shazhaming songs in coffee shops or hiding our ignorance of an artist from friends, we're just limiting our opportunity to engage with other musical comrades. Take the leap and ask "who's this playing right now?"