Interesting discussion. Something I’ve waffled over myself. I generally say lyrics are not that important, in the sense that I don’t select my music based on the lyrics, and I don’t not listen to music based on the lyrics. But over time I have come to realize I will respond to different lyrics differently, whereas the music used to solely guide my musical tastes.
I think the biggest thing for me is that when I listen to something new, I process the lyrics last. The first couple of listens I am focused more on the music, structure, and melodies. If those don’t hold my interest, I move on. If they do, lyrics I enjoy will either enhance my enjoyment of the music, lyrics I don’t will bring the song down a notch, but never to the point that I’ll stop listening to the music.
But I am also more concerned with how lyrics work within the context of a song more than how they are read. People have brought up TCoT, and yes if I read those lyrics I would think a 5th grader wrote them for a class assignment. But within the context of the song, which is the only way I judge them, they work fine for me.