--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In every decade rock and roll starts to…" description: "\"In every decade rock and roll starts to get very serious and navel gazing and kind of self serious and every once and a while it kind of needs a kick i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d7/rainn-wilson-4323_decade_in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to_2835113.png" --- # In every decade rock and roll starts to get very serious… ![“In every decade rock and roll starts to get very serious and navel gazing and kind of self serious and every once and a while it kind of needs a kick in the pants.” quote by Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d7/rainn-wilson-4323_decade_in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to_2835113.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d7/rainn-wilson-4323_decade_in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to_2835113.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d7/rainn-wilson-4323_decade_in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to_2835113.png) > “In every decade rock and roll starts to get very serious and navel gazing and kind of self serious and every once and a while it kind of needs a kick in the pants.” [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative fields become overly serious and need a jolt to stay fresh. **In simple terms:** Seriousness can stifle creativity; a push is needed. Key Takeaway Inject humor or challenge to revitalize focus. Themes creativity seriousness rebirth Mood reflective playful Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - music industry - film production - startup culture Key Concepts artistic cycles cultural trends motivation Questions to Reflect On - When did you last give your work a “kick in the pants”? - How can you balance seriousness with play? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on seriousness can lead to stagnation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Kicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kicks/) [Rock and roll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rock-and-roll/) [Rocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rocks/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not going to let Defense Distributed go into a pro-social NGO territory. "We should really have more women on the board." That's navel-gazing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cody-wilson/i-m-not-going-to-let-defense-distributed-go-into-a-pro-social-ngo/) [Cody Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cody-wilson/) > [I try not to be super self-referential about my work because it becomes like navel gazing at a certain point.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-ransone/i-try-not-to-be-super-self-referential-about-my-work-because-it/) [James Ransone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-ransone/) > [When I was in college I started writing prose, because a very smart professor asked me what I like to read and I said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-febos/when-i-was-in-college-i-started-writing-prose-because-a-very-smart/) [Melissa Febos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-febos/) > [Believing that navel-gazing in and of itself can transform itself into something that means something for society. I mean, we are communicative creatures. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/believing-that-navel-gazing-in-and-of-itself-can-transform-itself/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [ Most books that come out with a comedy label seem to be, Eric \[Wareheim\] and I could have written, "This is our story, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-heidecker/most-books-that-come-out-with-a-comedy-label-seem-to-be-eric-wareheim/) [Tim Heidecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-heidecker/) > ['Slacker' is so not about navel-gazing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-linklater/slacker-is-so-not-about-navel-gazing/) [Richard Linklater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-linklater/) > [“Philo Vance / Needs a kick in the pance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ogden-nash/philo-vance-needs-a-kick-in-the-pance/) [Ogden Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ogden-nash/) > [Do I want to change the world? To some extent yeah. It needs to be changed ... It needs a kick up the ass.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billie-joe-armstrong/do-i-want-to-change-the-world-to-some-extent-yeah-it-needs-to-be/) [Billie Joe Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billie-joe-armstrong/) > [“but as my years on the planet have taught me, everyone needs someone to kick. Thus,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-manilla/but-as-my-years-on-the-planet-have-taught-me-everyone-needs-someone/) [Marie Manilla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-manilla/) > [“Do I want to change the world? To a certain extent yeah. It needs to be changed... it needs a kick up the ass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/green-day/do-i-want-to-change-the-world-to-a-certain-extent-yeah-it-needs-to-be/) [Green Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/green-day/) > [Always do your best because a pat on the back is real close to a kick in the pants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-flutie/always-do-your-best-because-a-pat-on-the-back-is-real-close-to-a-kick/) [Doug Flutie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-flutie/) > [Dreams will get you nowhere, a good kick in the pants will take you a long way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baltasar-gracian/dreams-will-get-you-nowhere-a-good-kick-in-the-pants-will-take-you-a/) [Baltasar Gracian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baltasar-gracian/) > [I'd love to do 'The Expendables.' It's just a kick in the pants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-brosnan/i-d-love-to-do-the-expendables-it-s-just-a-kick-in-the-pants/) [Pierce Brosnan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-brosnan/) > [“It takes more than one kick in the pants to reverse a lifetime of unplanned apathy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-neilan/it-takes-more-than-one-kick-in-the-pants-to-reverse-a-lifetime-of/) [Paul Neilan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-neilan/) > [Every ten years a man should give himself a good kick in the pants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-steichen/every-ten-years-a-man-should-give-himself-a-good-kick-in-the-pants/) [Edward Steichen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-steichen/) ## More by Rainn Wilson > ['SoulPancake' is a website that I founded with a couple of friends, and it is for exploring life's big questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/soulpancake-is-a-website-that-i-founded-with-a-couple-of-friends-and/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [My dad was always such a frustrated artist. He always worked very hard to support his family, doing a bunch of ridiculous jobs. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/my-dad-was-always-such-a-frustrated-artist-he-always-worked-very-hard/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [My dad wanted to name me after Rainier Maria Rilke, the poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/my-dad-wanted-to-name-me-after-rainier-maria-rilke-the-poet/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [Ralph Waldo Emerson would definitely be my homeboy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/ralph-waldo-emerson-would-definitely-be-my-homeboy/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [A guy may wear a suit and have a high-paying job and appear very mature, but essentially, he's a 14-year-old boy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/a-guy-may-wear-a-suit-and-have-a-high-paying-job-and-appear-very/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [“7. SUSHI IS ABOUT THE FISH, IDIOTS Sushi is raw fish, Fresh, oily, fatty, delicate, slightly cool, thinly sliced or expertly cubed sections of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/7-sushi-is-about-the-fish-idiots-sushi-is-raw-fish-fresh-oily-fatty/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [I think that doing comedy and playing Dwight is a service. Not to get grandiose about it, but I have a talent for playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/i-think-that-doing-comedy-and-playing-dwight-is-a-service-not-to-get/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [The great challenge working on this show for me is wearing polyester all day long and having the worst haircut known to man at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/the-great-challenge-working-on-this-show-for-me-is-wearing-polyester/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [The camera adds ten pounds and ten thousand dollars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/the-camera-adds-ten-pounds-and-ten-thousand-dollars/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [Music is universal too. Even deaf people like to dance, love rhythm, and can kind of pick it up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/music-is-universal-too-even-deaf-people-like-to-dance-love-rhythm-and/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [I know what I look like - a weird, sad clown puppet. I'm fine with that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/i-know-what-i-look-like-a-weird-sad-clown-puppet-i-m-fine-with-that/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [My body has been making women laugh for the last 20 years and I'm happy to continue to oblige.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/my-body-has-been-making-women-laugh-for-the-last-20-years-and-i-m/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [We live in a really racist culture and it's got to be addressed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/we-live-in-a-really-racist-culture-and-it-s-got-to-be-addressed/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [You meet people in Hollywood that are famous, and you're not sure what they got famous for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/you-meet-people-in-hollywood-that-are-famous-and-you-re-not-sure-what/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [If we're going to sustain 22 episodes a year for the next 10 years, we need that ensemble to fill out the office.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/if-we-re-going-to-sustain-22-episodes-a-year-for-the-next-10-years-we/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) [Explore all 112 Rainn Wilson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) ## More Decade quotes > [It's funny, I used to say on 'That 70's Show', you could really put us in any decade, and it was about the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-prepon/it-s-funny-i-used-to-say-on-that-70-s-show-you-could-really-put-us-in/) [Laura Prepon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-prepon/) > [It was an odd coincidence that my career took off the same decade as having babies. I often wished it had been different, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-kaczmarek/it-was-an-odd-coincidence-that-my-career-took-off-the-same-decade-as/) [Jane Kaczmarek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-kaczmarek/) > [I saw Len Hutton in his prime, Another time, another time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-pinter/i-saw-len-hutton-in-his-prime-another-time-another-time/) [Harold Pinter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-pinter/) > [The 1970s, the decade of my teenage years, was a transitional period in American youth culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-allin-cornell/the-1970s-the-decade-of-my-teenage-years-was-a-transitional-period-in/) [Eric Allin Cornell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-allin-cornell/) > [I was eating beans by candle light for a decade.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-andre/i-was-eating-beans-by-candle-light-for-a-decade/) [Eric Andre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-andre/) > [I'm a product of the 1970s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-rushin/i-m-a-product-of-the-1970s/) [Steve Rushin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-rushin/) > [“The eighties happened. The nineties happened. Death and sickness and getting fat and going bald happened. I traded lots of dreams for a bigger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/the-eighties-happened-the-nineties-happened-death-and-sickness-and/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [When you're playing the same character for a decade it's natural that there are moments when you want to try something new.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-schwimmer/when-you-re-playing-the-same-character-for-a-decade-it-s-natural-that/) [David Schwimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-schwimmer/) > [I grew up in the '60s, which was a creative time, so it wasn't that big of a stretch to go from a baseball…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abel-ferrara/i-grew-up-in-the-60s-which-was-a-creative-time-so-it-wasn-t-that-big/) [Abel Ferrara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abel-ferrara/) > [I was a child of the '80s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/i-was-a-child-of-the-80s/) [Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/) > [I don't buy into the glory days thing. I think every time has its great things to it. The '60s were such a glorious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-gordon-levitt/i-don-t-buy-into-the-glory-days-thing-i-think-every-time-has-its/) [Joseph Gordon-Levitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-gordon-levitt/) > [You know, there's nothing in 'E.T.' that earmarks it as really '80s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-duffer/you-know-there-s-nothing-in-e-t-that-earmarks-it-as-really-80s/) [Matt Duffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-duffer/) > [When I look back on my life, it seems nearly everything of interest happened in little more than one decade - dramas, tragedies, major…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-radziwill/when-i-look-back-on-my-life-it-seems-nearly-everything-of-interest/) [Lee Radziwill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-radziwill/) > [I have this obsession with the '80s because I missed all of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/regina-spektor/i-have-this-obsession-with-the-80s-because-i-missed-all-of-it/) [Regina Spektor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/regina-spektor/) > [I sort of don't remember anything I did in the '70s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-peterson/i-sort-of-don-t-remember-anything-i-did-in-the-70s/) [Cassandra Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-peterson/) Browse all 615 Decade quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In every decade rock and roll starts to get very serious and navel gazing and kind of self serious and every once and a while it kind of needs a kick in the pants.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rainn Wilson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to-get-very-serious-and-navel/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Decade" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to-get-very-serious-and-navel/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d7/rainn-wilson-4323_decade_in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to_2835113.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d7/rainn-wilson-4323_decade_in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to_2835113.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d7/rainn-wilson-4323_decade_in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to_2835113.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In every decade rock and roll starts to get very serious and navel gazing and kind of self serious and every…” — Rainn Wilson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Rainn Wilson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In every decade rock and roll...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to-get-very-serious-and-navel/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/in-every-decade-rock-and-roll-starts-to-get-very-serious-and-navel/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```