What kind of music do YOU like?

Being a person who worked at a record store for a long time, I've had a fair amount of time to think about the question, "What kind of music do you like?" It's just about the dumbest question you can ask a person. How are you supposed to answer without sounding like an idiot or a snob?

I never know what to say. I can't say "Rock," because that's too broad, but it's the most accurate. I can't say "Indie Rock," because that's too specific, and half the time people don't even KNOW what indie rock is! Plus, it doesn't nearly explain the wide range of my collection. It's also not appropriate to say "Everything." When people say that they like "everything," they mean everything on the radio. But it's awkward to explain, "Well, I like Indie Rock, Soul, some Rap, Top 40, Jazz, but only in the morning, Showtunes, and the occasional Punk Rock."

This happened to my friend Heather the other day, while she was working at the coffeeshop. Her coworker, who usually listens to upbeat Soul, Dance and Hip Hop while working. He asked her, what kind of music she liked. I saw her face go blank and the wheels in her head turning, not knowing what to say. She is the kind of person who likes bands no one has ever heard of, and things that are only available on vinyl. But you can't really say that, even though it's true. So I piped in and SAVED her, with a joke. In a matter-of-fact voice: "Heather really likes hits of the 90's... especially TLC and 'No Diggity.' " Which isn't necessarily false, but we had a good laugh.