Parents who grew up in the 1980s challenge their teenage kids to put a cassette tape into a tape recorder, in hilarious TikTok videos.
But it’s no surprise that the struggle is real — after all, new generations were born used to accessing music with just a tap on a smartphone screen, or simply by asking a virtual assistant to play their favorite song.
Some videos shared on TikTok have entertained the internet by showing how old stereo systems (well, not that old) can seem like strange machines that make no sense to young people used to self-explanatory icons on phones and tablets.
In one of the posts, a father asks his son to insert a cassette into a tape recorder. Sitting on the bed, the boy flips the device around, trying to figure out how it works — and it’s clear he has no idea where to even start.
He eventually finds the button to open the cassette door but still needs a few tries to insert the tape properly.
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Another clip on the social network shows a mother trying to convince her 15-year-old daughter to put a cassette into a portable stereo. The girl looks at the recorder as if it were a dinosaur bone.
Everything is hard for her — from opening the cassette case to finally managing to insert the tape into the device. “So, would you like to live in the 80s?” the mother asks.
“No,” replies the daughter, adding that she prefers Spotify.
The clips amused internet users, and many parents were shocked at their kids’ lack of skills — but the truth is, time brings changes that both young and old must adapt to.
And we can all find our own way to enjoy what we love. Listening to good music is a universal activity — and luckily, we can do it with a cassette, a vinyl record, or even by streaming on Spotify.
Photo: TikTok @dakydd07. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
