Please don't tell anyone (Pop music secrets)

So here's the thing. I don't really listen to the radio besides NPR in the morning. Did I just become "that person?" Clearly, I have been living in Seattle too long. When I was younger I would complain to my mother constantly in the car because I wanted to listen to the radio stations that had music and not just talking. Now, it's pretty much all I listen to, when I'm actually listening to the radio. This often leaves me out of the loop as to what is currently on the radio, and it leads to really weird dreams in the morning about unicorn whales. Instead of the radio, I rely on the following means of discovering pop music:

1) My sisters, who listen to the radio more than I do

2) iTunes top downloaded lists

3) YouTube parodies of current pop songs

4) Rare occasions when the pop star gives an NPR interview (it's why I know who Key$ha is, although I may be spelling her name wrong)

5) Anything covered on Glee

I do tend to catch up to the extremely popular songs once they have been out for a while. But don't let my "I only listen to NPR" Seattle snobbery fool you, I like pop music. I find it to be incredibly entertaining, even when it's terrible. And in particular right now, I like Katy Perry and Lady Gaga, and I don't even think they are terrible.

Glee helped quite a bit with the Lady Gaga approval. I mean, I had certainly heard some of her songs (Just Dance and Poker Face many times) before the Glee goes Gaga episode, but I don't think I truly appreciated all the crazy costumes and statements and general wackiness. While I might judge some misbehaving at most major league stadiums, misbehaving at Yankee Stadium is a thing of beauty. Is she a lot like Madonna, well yeah, but this generation of pop music could use a little more Madonna.

And then there's Katy Perry. I must admit that her engagement to the hilarious Russell Brand is definitely a plus, there are few couples in show business that I think I would find more entertaining to hang out with for a day. Then her songs are just the right blend of poppy and sassy that makes you want to sing and dance and maybe even jump around. But she sealed my appreciation when she tweeted about Skyway Flyer's California Dorks, a brilliantly done and hilarious parody of her California Gurls (which one cannot turn the radio on without hearing). As someone who relates more to the song about Disneyland, flux capacitors, and Star Wars than the one that mentions Daisy Dukes and bikinis, I was impressed with her support of the dorks of the world, or at least of California.

I hope I don't lose my "I heard this fascinating story on NPR about..." cred for this.