For a while, I’ve been working on a list to show examples of different music genres, partially based on those lists telling you what Pokemon or My Little Pony you are based on music genres. I’m basically listing each known genre, with three unique examples of each (I know some of the more famous ones fall under multiple genres). It is a WIP, feel free to give me suggestions, complain, or what not.
Sources: Wikipedia, AllMusic, and Rate Your Music
- 2-Step: Sunship, Horsepower Productions, Flava D
- Acid House: A Guy Called Gerald, Psychic TV, 808 State
- Acid Jazz: Jamiroquai, James Taylor Quartet, The Brand New Heavies
- Adult Contemporary: Celine Dion, Lionel Richie, Mariah Carey
- Afrobeat: Fela Kuti, Wizkid, Tony Allen
- Alternative Country: Ryan Adams, Uncle Tupelo, Drive-by Truckers
- Alternative Dance: The Prodigy, Primal Scream, Saint Etienne
- Alternative Metal: System of A Down, Pantera, Deftones
- Alternative Rock: Radiohead, Nirvana, Wilco
- Ambient: Brian Eno, Phillip Glass, Boards of Canada
- Americana: Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, Junior Brown
- AOR: Foreigner, Journey, REO Speedwagon
- Art Pop: Bjork, Kate Bush, Brian Wilson
- Art Rock: Velvet Underground, David Bowie, Roxy Music
- Avant-garde Jazz: Ornette Coleman, Sun Ra, Cecil Taylor
- Balearic: Roger Shah, Phil Mason, Maajo
- Bass: Bassnectar, RL Grime, Excision
- Big Band: Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, Artie Shaw
- Black Metal: Emperor, Darkthrone, Mayhem
- Blue Eyed Soul: Dusty Springfield, James Hunter, Van morrison
- Bluegrass: Bill Monroe, Bela Fleck, Flatt and Scruggs
- Blues: Robert Johnson, BB King, Bessie Smith
- Boogie: D-Train, Rockers Revenge, France Joli
- Boogie Rock: Canned Heat, Status Quo, Foghat
- Breakbeat: Stanton Warriors, Chemical Brothers, Crystal Method
- Britpop: Blur, Oasis, Pulp
- Broken Beat: 4hero, Bugz in the Attic, DEGO
- Bubblegum: The Monkees, The Osmonds, The Partridge Family
- Chamber: Joseph Hayden, Felix Mendelssohn, Antonin Dvorak
- Chamber Pop: Antony and the Johnsons, Tindersticks, The Divine Comedy
- Chanson: Jacques Brel, Francoise Hardy, Serge Strasbourg
- Children’s Music: Raffi, Laurie Berkner, The Wiggles
- Chill-out: Zero 7, Nightmares on Wax
- Classic Rock: Eagles, Aerosmith, The Who
- Cloudrap: Bones, Yung Lean, A$AP Rocky
- Comedy: Monty Python, Firesign Theatre, Cheech and Chong
- Conscious Hip Hop: Kendrick Lamarr, Public Enemy, Common
- Contemporary R&B: Beyonce, Usher, Whitney Houston
- Cool Jazz: Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Chet Baker
- Country: Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Taylor Swift
- CowPunk: Meat Puppets, Hank Williams III, Jason and Scorchers
- Cumbia: Ondatrópica, Chicha Libre, BaianaSystem
- Dance Pop: Janet Jackson, George Michael, Backstreet Boys
- Dancehall: Ini Kamoze, Barrington Levy, Yellowman
- Dark Ambient: Burzum, Lustmord, Death Prod
- Dark Cabaret: The Dresden Dolls, The Tiger Lillies, Klaus Nomi
- Darkwave: Chelsea Wolfe, Lycia, Clan of Xymox
- Death Metal: Morbid Angel, Death, Amon Amarth
- Deep Soul: Aretha Franklin, James Carr, Millie Jackson
- Digital Cumbia: Bomba Estéreo, Chancha Via Circuito,Mañaneros
- Disco: ABBA, Donna Summer, Village People
- Doom Metal: Electric Mass, Candlemass, Sleep
- Down-tempo: Moby, Thievery Corporation, Bonobo
- Dream Pop: My Bloody Valentine, Beach House, Slowdive
- Drill n’ Bass: Squarepusher, Bogdan Raczynski, Mike Paradinas
- Drone Metal: Boris, The Angelic Process, Earth
- Dub: The Upsetters, Sly and Robbie, King Tubby
- Dub-step: Skillrex, Burial, Skream
- EDM: deadmaus5, David Guetta, Major Lazer
- Electric Texas Blues: Freddie King, Steve Ray Vaughn, T-Bone Walker
- Electropop: Depeche Mode, Lady Gaga, Daft Punk
- Electroclash: Ladytron, Peaches, Fischerspooner
- Electro-Swing: Doop, Parov Stelar, Caravan Palace
- Ethereal Wave:Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance, The Mortal Coil
- Eurobeat: Dave Rodgers, Go Go Girls, Groove Twins
- Experimental: Death Grips, Frank Zappa, Laurie Anderson
- Field Recordings: nature and real life sounds
- Folk Rock: Neil Young, The Byrds, Bob Dylan
- Folk: Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Leadbelly
- Footwork: DJ Rashad, Machinedrum, Traxman
- Free Jazz: Ornette Coleman, Albert Ayler, Pharaoh Sanders
- Funk: James Brown, George Clinton, Prince
- Funk Rock: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Living Colour, Fishbone
- Fusion: Mahavishnu Orchestra, Chick Corea, Tony Williams
- Future Funk: MACROSS 82-99, Skylar Spence, Moe Shop
- Gangsta Rap: Snoop Dogg, Tupac, NWA
- Girl Group: The Ronettes, The Supremes, Lesley Gore
- Glam Rock: T-Rex, New York Dolls, Mott The Hoople
- Glitch: Alva Noto, Kim Cascone, Richard Chartier
- Gospel: Kirk Franklin, Mary Mary, Mahalia Jackson
- Gothic Rock: Bauhaus, Sisters of Mercy, Siouxsie and the Banshees
- Grime: Skepta, Stormzy, Wiley
- Grindcore: Napalm Death, Carcass, Pig Destroyer
- Grunge: Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains
- Hard Rock: Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC
- Hardcore: DJ Paul Elstak, Angerfist, Evil Activities
- Heartland Rock: Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, John Mellencamp
- Heavy Metal: Metallica, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest
- Hip-Hop: Nas, Wu Tang Clan, The Notorious B.I.G
- Hi-NRG: Sylvester, Divine, The Flirts
- House: Fatboy Slim, Basement Jaxx, Frankie Knuckles
- IDM: Jon Hopkins, Apex Twin, Autechtre
- Illbient: DJ Spooky, Spectre, Byzar
- Indeterminacy: John Cage, Harry Cowell
- Indie Pop: The Smiths, Sufjan Stevens, Of Montreal
- Indie Rock: Arcade Fire, Sonic Youth, Pixies
- Industrial: Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, Ministry
- Jazz: Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, Louis Armstrong
- Jungle: Goldie, Rebel MC, Dillnja
- J-Pop: Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Perfume, Puffy AmiYumi
- K-Pop: BTS, Exp, PSY
- Krautrock: Can, Neu, Guru Guru
- Latin Jazz: Tito Puente, Eddie Palmieri, Cal Tjader
- Mash-Up: Girl Talk, Danger Mouse, DJ Earworm
- Modal Jazz: John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock
- Modern Classical: Ennio Moriconne, Igor Stravinsky, Leonard Bernstein
- Musque concrète: Karlheinz Stockhausen, Pierre Schaeffer, Edgard Varèse
- Neo-Folk: Sol Invictus, Death in June, Current 93
- Neo-Psychedelia: Echo and The Bunnymen, The Flaming Lips, Animal Collective
- New Age: Enya, Yanni, Mike Oldfield
- New Wave: Blondie, Elvis Costello, Devo
- Noise Rock: Butthole Surfers, Swans, Jesus Lizard
- Novelty: Ray Stevens, The Chipmunks, Weird Al Yankovic
- Nu Jazz: Nujabes, St. Germain, Jaga Jazzist
- Nu Metal: Korn, Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park
- Orchestral: John Williams, Symphony and Philharmonic Orchestras
- Pop Punk: Blink 182, Fall Out Boy, Green Day
- Pop Rap: Kanye West, Nicki Minaj, Will Smith
- Pop Rock: The Beatles, Madonna, Michael Jackson
- Porn Groove: guess?
- Post Bop: Wayne Shorter, Sonny Rollins, McCoy Tyner
- Post Punk: Joy Division, The Cure, Talking Heads
- Post Grunge: Bush, Nickelback, Creed
- Post-Avant-Jazzcore: Kahimi Karie, Savdaliza, King Dude
- Post Metal: Agalloch, Jesu, Neurosis
- Post-Rock: Mogwai, Godspeed, You Black Emperor, Talk Talk
- Power Metal: Helloween, Dragonforce, Mastodon
- Power Pop: Cheap Trick, Big Star, Nick Lowe
- Prog Electronic: Jean-Michel Jarre, Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk
- Prog Rock: Pink Floyd, Rush, King Crimson
- Proto-Punk: The Stooges, MC5, Lou Reed
- Psychedelic Rock: The Doors, Jefferson Airplane, Blue Cheer
- Punk Rock: Ramones, The Clash, Sex Pistols
- R&B: Etta James, Tina Turner, Otis Redding
- Ragtime: Scott Joplin, Leon Redbone, Jelly Roll Morton
- Reggae: Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff, Lee “Scratch” Perry
- Reggaeton: Daddy Yankee, Yandel, J. Bevin
- Rock and Roll: Elvis Presley, Little Richard, Buddy Holly
- Shoegaze: The Verve, Ride, Lush
- Show Tunes: Andrew Lloyd Webber, Stephen Sondheim, Rogers and Hammerstein
- Singer/Songwriter: Nick Drake, Tom Waits, Van Morrison
- Ska: Desmond Dekker, The Specials, Madness
- Slowcore: Low, Red House Painters, Galaxie 500
- Sludge Metal: Melvins, Black Flag, Mastodon
- Soft Rock: Fleetwood Mac, Elton John, James Taylor
- Soul: Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Isaac Hayes
- Sound Collage: Nam June Paik, Negativland, Jean-Luc Godard
- Southern Rock: The Allman Brothers Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, ZZ Top
- Space Rock: Hawkwind, Muse, UFO
- Stoner Rock: Queens of the Stone Age, Kyuss, St. Vitus
- Sunshine Pop: The Beach Boys, The Mamas and the Papas, The Turtles
- Swing: Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Benny Goodman
- Symphonic Prog: Yes, The Moody Blues, ELP
- Synth Pop: New Order, Pet Shop Boys, Duran Duran
- Tape Music:
- Techno: Underworld, Kevin Saunderson, Carl Craig
- Thrash Metal: Slayer, Megadeath, Anthrax
- Traditional Pop: Sarah Vaughn, Sam Cooke, Helen Merrill
- Twee Pop: Belle and Sebastian, Camera Obscura, Shohen Knife
- Trip-hop: Portishead, Massive Attack, Tricky
- Tropical House: Kygo, Thomas Jack, Robin Schulz
- UK Garage: MJ Cole, Artful Dodger, Zed Blass
- Vaporwave: Macintosh Plus, Saint Pepsi, Blank Banshee
- Vaudeville: Pearl Bailey, Bob Hope, Jimmy Durante
- Video Game Music: Exactly what you think it is!
- Vocal Jazz: Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra
- Western Classical: Ludwig Van Beethoven, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Johan Sebastian Bach
- Wonky: Rustle, Flying Lotus, Kuedo
- Yacht Rock: The Doobie Brothers, Steely Dan, Little River Band
- YouTube Covers: Boyce Avenue, Megan Nichole, Sam Tsui
The Art and Other Things of HC Shannon 