People's Hate for AJR Seems to Be Largely Unfounded, but It Exists in Spades

Online trends and fads can appear almost out of nowhere. For most of us, we don't even notice some of the latest styles and crazes until they're already popular. One day, people are tasting the biscuit all over TikTok. Just as quickly, people will be marinating their chicken breasts in NyQuil (which we do not recommend). Trends can basically pop up at any time and become the latest new thing before you even know it. But interestingly enough, online hate can appear just as randomly.

Hatred for a celebrity or online personality truly runs the gamut, whether it's caused by controversial opinions or even just widespread criticism. But sometimes, hate for a group can have no discernible origin and simply exists on the same plane of reality as parasite cleansing suddenly catching clout.

In this case, AJR is one such group that has been on the receiving end of sudden hate. But why do people hate them so much? Here's what we know.

In case you've never heard of them, AJR is an American indie music group comprised of the Met (Metzger) brothers of Adam, Jack, and Ryan. They've been active since 2005 and specialize in indie pop, electropop, and dubstep. They are best known for songs like "I'm Ready," "Sober Up," Burn the House Down, and "Bang!" among many others. In recent years, they've been nominated for several music awards, having won a Billboard Music Award in 2021 for Top Rock Song with "Bang!"

Yet despite their considerable success, they've earned something of a "cult hatred," with people often voicing their disdain for the band at any given moment. @bradtaste on TikTok posted a video in October 2022 stating "Please stop letting these clowns go viral. They have some of the blandest, whitest music I've ever heard." A hater on Twitter states that if AJR is on anyone's Spotify Wrapped this year, they will "permanently judge [them]."

Much of the hate lobbied against AJR can border on toxic, but it all seems to be largely unfounded. As of this writing, no one in the band has ever been at the center of controversy or made any sort of problematic statement that could get them canceled. As far as we can tell, their quirky style of music doesn't seem to be everyone's cup of tea. But when people don't like AJR, they seem to really want to tell everyone how much they don't like AJR.

AJR has even addressed the hate on social media, albeit in a positive light. In a November 2022 Instagram post, Jack Met posted the band's Spotify for Artists stats, revealing that their songs have been streamed nearly 700 million times by over 40 million listeners.

The post includes a caption that reads, "At Ryan’s high school, there was an after-school club called the “Anti-AJR Club”. They’d meet and spend an hour making jokes about our music. There were 10 or so people in that club. There are 40 million of you. Guys, I think we won."

As inexplicable as the hate might be, it would appear that fans of AJR far outweigh their critics.