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Styles of pop music#Dark pop

{{Short description|none}}

Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms popular music and pop music are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular and includes many disparate styles. During the 1950s and 1960s, pop music encompassed rock and roll and the youth-oriented styles it influenced. Rock and pop music remained roughly synonymous until the late 1960s, after which pop became associated with music that was more commercial, ephemeral, and accessible.

Although much of the music that appears on record charts is seen as pop music, the genre is distinguished from chart music. Identifying factors usually include repeated choruses and hooks, short to medium-length songs written in a basic format (often the verse-chorus structure), and rhythms or tempos that can be easily danced to. Much pop music also borrows elements from other styles such as rock, urban, dance, Latin, and country.

Below is a list of styles of pop music.

Stylistic origins

= Traditional pop =

{{main|Traditional pop}}

Traditional pop (also known as classic pop and pre-rock and roll pop) is Western popular music that generally pre-dates the advent of rock and roll in the mid-1950s. The most popular and enduring songs from this era of music are known as pop standards or American standards. The works of these songwriters and composers are usually considered part of the canon known as the "Great American Songbook". More generally, the term "standard" can be applied to any popular song that has become very widely known within mainstream culture.

AllMusic defines traditional pop as "post-big band and pre-rock & roll pop music".{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/traditional-pop-ma0000002961/artists |title=Traditional Pop | Music Highlights |website=AllMusic |access-date=2016-04-10 |archive-date=2017-10-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019011103/https://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/traditional-pop-ma0000002961/artists |url-status=live }}

= Rock and roll =

{{main|Rock and roll}}

Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s.{{cite magazine|author=Farley, Christopher John|url=http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,661084,00.html|title=Elvis Rocks But He's Not the First|date=July 6, 2004|magazine=Time|access-date=July 3, 2009|archive-date=August 17, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130817051714/http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,661084,00.html|url-status=dead}} It originated from black American music such as gospel, jump blues, jazz, boogie woogie, rhythm and blues,Christ-Janer, Albert, Charles W. Hughes, and Carleton Sprague Smith, American Hymns Old and New (New York: Columbia University Press, 1980), p. 364, {{ISBN|0-231-03458-X}}. as well as country music.Peterson, Richard A. Creating Country Music: Fabricating Authenticity (1999), p. 9, {{ISBN|0-226-66285-3}}. While rock and roll's formative elements can be heard in blues records from the 1920sDavis, Francis. The History of the Blues (New York: Hyperion, 1995), {{ISBN|0-7868-8124-0}}. and in country records of the 1930s, the genre did not acquire its name until 1954."The Roots of Rock 'n' Roll 1946–1954". 2004. Universal Music Enterprises.

Earliest form

{{main|Pop music#Stylistic evolution}}

Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form, gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and spoken passages from rap.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, The Cambridge Companion to Pop and Rock (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press), {{ISBN|0-521-55660-0}}, pp. 95–105.{{verification needed|date=February 2017}}

Subgenres

Below are genres that exclusively considered as subgenres of pop.

Note that music styles like dance, electronic, opera, and orchestra are not considered as standalone genres.

= Art pop =

{{main|Art pop}}

= Brill Building =

{{main|Brill Building (genre)}}

= Bubblegum pop =

{{main|Bubblegum music}}

= City pop =

{{main|City pop}}

= Cringe pop =

{{main|Cringe pop}}

= Dance-pop =

{{main|Dance-pop}}

= Electropop =

{{main|Electropop}}

= Indie pop =

{{main|Indie pop}}

== Bedroom pop ==

{{main|Bedroom pop}}

== Sapphic pop ==

{{main|Sapphic pop}}

== Twee pop ==

{{main|Twee pop}}

= Operatic pop =

{{main|Operatic pop}}

= Orchestral pop =

{{main|Orchestral pop}}

= Schlager =

{{main|Schlager music}}

= Sophisti-pop =

{{main|Sophisti-pop}}

= Sunshine pop =

{{main|Sunshine pop}}

= Teen pop =

{{main|Teen pop}}

= Wonky pop =

{{main|Wonky pop}}

=Dark pop=

{{Infobox music genre

| name = Dark pop

| image =

| caption =

| stylistic_origins = {{hlist|Alternative|pop|indie|grunge}}

| cultural_origins = 1980s and 1990s

}}

Dark pop (often typeset with a hyphen) is a subgenre of pop music that combines elements of alternative and indie with pop music. It is characterized by its deep melancholic sound and minimalistic electronic production. Often dark pop features heavy synths, distorted guitars, and electronic drums.{{Cite web |title=Dark Pop artists, songs, albums, playlists and listeners – volt.fm |url=https://volt.fm/genre/6720/dark-pop#:~:text=Dark%20Pop%20is%20a%20genre,,%20indie,%20and%20pop%20music. |access-date=2024-12-15 |website=volt.fm |language=en|url-status=live|archive-date=13 December 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241213144226/https://volt.fm/genre/6720/dark-pop}}

The trend began in the 1980s with grunge, a genre that also dealt with depressing topics about heartbreak, loss and loneliness, similar to topics expressed in dark pop. By the 1990s, dark pop drew from trip-hop, gothic rock, and avant-garde traditions, evolving and disengaging into a distinct style that emphasized atmospheric texture and introspective storytelling. However dark pop isn't avant-garde, often having a more mainstream sound. Many artists also started to incorporate dark pop with punk, rap and electronic sounds. During the 2010s, these infusions became prominent as it gained mainstream traction by well known artists such as Rina Sawayama who infused it with electronic club music. A notable dark pop song, that also incorporated electronic sounds is singer and social media personality Bella Poarch's debut single "Build a Bitch".{{cite web|title=Bella Poarch's 'Build A Bitch' Is A Phenomenon|url=https://www.clashmusic.com/news/bella-poarchs-build-a-btch-is-a-phenomenon|website=Clash|author=Murray, Robin|date=May 15, 2021|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210514110610/https://www.clashmusic.com/news/bella-poarchs-build-a-btch-is-a-phenomenon |archive-date=May 14, 2021 }}{{Cite web |last=Darus |first=Alex |title=10 dark-pop artists who are proving that genres are best when blended |url=https://www.altpress.com/rising-dark-pop-artists/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230505030657/https://www.altpress.com/rising-dark-pop-artists/ |archive-date=May 5, 2023 |access-date=2024-12-15 |website=Alternative Press Magazine |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Administrator |date=2011-06-06 |title=Dark pop • Inside Story |url=https://insidestory.org.au/dark-pop/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150331172351/http://insidestory.org.au/dark-pop/ |archive-date=March 31, 2015 |access-date=2024-12-15 |website=Inside Story |language=en}}{{Cite AV media |url=https://recentmusic.com/genre/dark-pop/ |title=RecentMusic - Latest Dark Pop Releases |last=RecentMusic.com |language=en |access-date=2024-12-15 |via=recentmusic.com|url-status=live|archive-date= 15 December 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241215230534/https://recentmusic.com/genre/dark-pop/}}

Fusion genres

Below are styles of pop music that mixed with other standalone genres.

= Country pop =

{{main|Country pop}}

= Dancehall pop =

{{main|Dancehall pop}}

= Disco-pop =

{{not to be confused|Dance-pop}}{{fact|date=September 2024}}

{{Infobox music genre

| name = Disco-pop

| stylistic_origins = {{hlist|Disco|pop}}

| cultural_origins = Late 1970s

}}

Rolling Stone and The New York Times have used the term disco-pop as early as 1976 and 1978 respectively. The publications referring to songs such as "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" by Elton John and Kiki Dee and "Heart of Gold" by Boney M. while stating the music of the Salsoul Orchestra was "material and arrangements are unalloyed disco pop."{{Cite magazine |last=Jahr |first=Cliff |date=1976-10-07 |title=Elton John Comes Out as Bisexual in Rolling Stone's 1976 Cover Story |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/elton-john-lonely-at-the-top-rolling-stones-1976-cover-story-238734/ |access-date=2024-09-09 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |last=Rockwell |first=John |date=1978-12-01 |title=The Pop Life |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/01/archives/the-pop-life-disco-queen-forges-links-to-other-music.html |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date= |work=The New York Times |language=en-US}}

Retrospectively, albums such as Michael Jackson's Off the Wall have been referred to as the genre.{{Cite magazine |title=100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/interactive/lists-100-greatest-songwriters/#michael-jackson |access-date=2024-09-09 |magazine=Rolling Stone}} With the release of Saturday Night Fever{{'}}s film and album leading disco music to explode in popularity in 1978. This led to thousands of discotheque moguls and their patrons to mimic what hcontorted versions of dance culture. Tim Lawrence wrote on this phenomnen as interesting, but that "while the initial experience was thrilling, the effect soon began to fade or, worse still, jar. By 1979 the combination of the shrill white disco pop that had come to dominate the charts".{{Citation |last=Lawrence |first=Tim |title=In Defence Of Disco (Again) |date=2006 |journal=New Formations: A Journal of Culture, Theory, Politics |issue=58 |pages=128–146 |url=https://repository.uel.ac.uk/item/8677z |via=UEL Research Repository|authorlink=Tim Lawrence (author)}}

Around the 2000s, some new songs were described as disco-pop, including "Sing It Back" by Moloko, "Murder on the Dancefloor" by Sophie Ellis-Bextor.{{Cite web |last=Dalton |first=Stephen |date=2005-09-12 |title=Moloko : Sing it back |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-nme-4300-340386 |access-date=2024-06-25 |website=NME |language=en-GB |archive-date=2024-06-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625213535/https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-nme-4300-340386 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Campbell |first=Tina |date=2024-04-20 |title=Sophie Ellis-Bextor working on 'happy disco music' amid Saltburn success |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/sophie-ellis-bextor-twickenham-murder-on-the-dance-floor-saltburn-new-music-album-red-roses-rugby-b1152716.html |access-date=2024-06-25 |website=Evening Standard |language=en |archive-date=2024-06-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625213535/https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/sophie-ellis-bextor-twickenham-murder-on-the-dance-floor-saltburn-new-music-album-red-roses-rugby-b1152716.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite magazine |last=Zellner |first=Xander |date=2024-01-09 |title=Hot 100 First-Timers: Sophie Ellis-Bextor Debuts With 'Murder on the Dancefloor' Thanks to 'Saltburn' |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/sophie-ellis-bextor-hot-100-debut-murder-on-the-dancefloor-saltburn-1235578361/ |access-date=2024-06-25 |magazine=Billboard |language=en-US |archive-date=2024-06-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625213535/https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/sophie-ellis-bextor-hot-100-debut-murder-on-the-dancefloor-saltburn-1235578361/ |url-status=live }}

Allure stated in 2020 that there was a disco-pop revival in music, such as Dua Lipa's Future Nostalgia and Lady Gaga's Chromatica.{{Cite web |last=S |first=Anjana |date=2021-02-16 |title=The 'Disco Pop' Revival And Its Top Contributors |url=https://indigomusic.com/pop-cultures/the-disco-pop-revival-and-its-top-contributors |url-status= |access-date=2024-09-23}} Other artists who contributed to the revival included Doja Cat, Victoria Monet, and Jessie Ware.{{Cite web |title=Love To Love Them, Baby: From Donna Summer To Dua Lipa, Meet The Women Singers Who Shaped (And Continue to Shape) Dance Music {{!}} GRAMMY.com |url=https://www.grammy.com/news/donna-summer-gloria-gaynor-dua-lipa-aluna-women-singers-who-shaped-dance-music |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=grammy.com}}

= Folk-pop =

{{main|Folk-pop}}

= Hip pop =

{{main|Pop-rap}}

= House-pop =

{{Infobox music genre

| name = House-pop

| image =

| caption =

| stylistic_origins = {{hlist|Disco|diva house|synth-pop}}

| cultural_origins = 1990s, United States

| derivatives =

| other_topics =

}}

House-pop (sometimes also called "pop-house"){{cite web | url=https://celebmix.com/r3hab-releases-my-pony-a-dancefloor-and-radio-friendly-soulful-house-pop-gem/ | title=R3HAB Releases "My Pony," A Dancefloor and Radio Friendly Soulful House-Pop Gem | date=12 April 2022 }} is a crossover of house and dance-pop music that emerged in early '90s.{{cite web | url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/a-brief-history-of-house-pop-inspired-by-robyns-honey/ | title=A Brief History of House Pop, Inspired by Robyn's Honey | website=Pitchfork | date=5 November 2018 | access-date=5 May 2022 | archive-date=4 July 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190704110841/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/a-brief-history-of-house-pop-inspired-by-robyns-honey/ | url-status=live }} The genre was created to make house music more radio friendly.{{cite web | url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/100-greatest-dance-songs/?amp | title=The 100 Best Dance Songs of All Time | website=Slant Magazine | date=15 June 2020 | access-date=5 May 2022 | archive-date=22 April 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230422182039/https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/100-greatest-dance-songs/?amp | url-status=live }} The characteristic of house-pop is similar to diva house music, like over-the-top vocal acrobatics, bubbly synth riffs, and four-on-the-floor rhythm. House-pop also has hip-hop influence.

= Jazz pop =

{{main article|Jazz pop}}

= Pop-R&B =

{{main|Contemporary R&B}}

= Pop rock =

{{main|Pop rock}}

== Baroque pop ==

{{main|Baroque pop}}

== Cowboy pop ==

{{main|Cowboy pop}}

== Emo pop ==

{{main|Emo pop}}

== Goth pop ==

{{main|Gothic rock{{!}}Goth}}

== Jangle pop ==

{{main|Jangle pop}}

== Pop metal ==

{{main|Pop metal}}

== Pop punk ==

{{main|Pop punk}}

== Power pop ==

{{main|Power pop}}

=Pop soul / Motown=

{{main|Motown sound}}

==Beach pop==

{{Main|Beach music}}

= Psychedelic pop =

{{main|Psychedelic pop}}

== Hypnagogic pop ==

{{main|Hypnagogic pop}}

= Reggae-pop =

{{main|Reggae fusion}}

= Space age pop =

{{main|Space age pop}}

= Street pop =

{{main|Street pop}}

= Synth-pop =

{{main|Synth-pop}}

= Worldbeat =

{{main|Worldbeat}}

Avant-garde related genres

Below are pop music that related to avant-garde culture.

= Experimental pop =

{{main|Experimental pop}}

= Hyperpop =

{{main|Hyperpop}}

= Industrial pop =

{{main|Industrial pop}}

= Noise pop =

{{Main|Noise pop}}

= Progressive pop =

{{main|Progressive pop}}

Regional scenes and subgenres

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= Popular music scenes =

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Other related genres

= Contemporary Christian music =

{{main|Contemporary Christian music}}

= Motown =

{{Main|Motown (music style)}}

= New wave =

{{main|New wave music}}

= Rock music =

{{main|Rock music}}

= Smooth jazz =

{{main|Smooth jazz}}

= Smooth soul =

{{main|Smooth soul}}

Other genres

Below are 'pop' genres that are not considered as pop musics.

= Ambient pop =

{{main|Ambient pop}}

= Avant-pop =

{{main|Avant-pop}}

= Bitpop =

{{main|Bitpop}}

= Britpop =

{{main|Britpop}}

= Chamber pop =

{{main|Chamber pop}}

= Dream pop =

{{Main|Dream pop}}

= Futurepop =

{{Main article|Futurepop}}

= Swamp pop =

{{main|Swamp pop}}

References

{{reflist}}

{{Pop music}}

Category:Pop music

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