Compressed audio works better in environments with a lot of ambient noise such as cars. Since this is where most people listen to (and discover) the majority of their music artists are adjusting to their audience.

The effect of loudness on perception is well-documented in several studies and used to much advantage by audiophile snake-oil peddlers.

Loudness yes, but increased loudness that necessitates compression, where the compression is the negative is what is being talked about here.