The Power of Piano and Pop

Pop music. One of the most listened to genres, influencing the masses with its vibrant and distinct tunes.

Statistics vs Pop

Pop is an abbreviation for ‘popular’. It is a genre of music that was generated during the mid 1950s in the United Kingdom and United States. It is a contemporary form of music that appeals to a very wide audience. This genre is also commonly played through radios in public spaces, ideally targeting many listeners.

In 2023, the top genres on the Billboard Streaming songs chart was hip hop/rap and pop. Both of these genres consisted out of 27% each, with country coming in at second place with 20%.

Looking back at previous years, Hip Hop single handedly used to dominate the music industry, but now the statistics are showing a gradual decrease in Hip Hop, and an increase in other genres instead.

Hip hop went down with 37% in streams from 2022 to 2023. Meanwhile country music has gone up with a whopping 150%! Although it is not even close to the amount of streams Pop has.

Spotify, a well-known music streaming app, has claimed that pop was the most listened-to genre in 2023. This is not surprising since Pop music has a wide range and variety of music for quite literally anyone and everyone.

Many other statistics show almost the same results, leaving it to the assumption that pop music is taking over and bringing about great influence on other genres, too.

As AI and technology become more advanced, music artists look toward music programs on computers – called digital audio workstations (DAW) – to create piano sounds instead of doing it ‘old school’. It makes it easier for the artist to create something this way.

The piano is an iconic instrument when it comes to this genre and many use the piano as a starting point when writing a song. Although software is more preferred than a physical piano, it is hard to even tell the difference!

What Makes Pop…Pop?

Although Pop music literally is contemporary popular music, there are some characteristics and elements that define this genre.

Simple Chord Progression

Pop is known for its easy listening tunes, where most of the songs follow a simplistic chord progression: I-V-vi-IV.

Of course there are outliers, but this progression is most commonly found in pop music. Some examples of songs using this chord progression are Despacito by Luis Fonsi, Where is the Love by Black Eyed Peas and many more…

Repetitive Rhythms

A part of why people love Pop music is the beat and rhythm. It is easy to get lost in the exuberant melodies that one wouldn’t even notice the rhythms repeating in the background.

In some cases, another instrument (like the drums) would be the main source of giving rhythm to a song, with the piano providing support as well.

Yet, a lot of pop music is written specifically for the piano to carry the beat. Next time you listen to a Pop song, pay extra attention to the rhythm, and you will find that it stays almost exactly the same throughout!

Expressive Playing

Have you ever listened to a pop song and found yourself singing your heart out?

Pop music allows individuals to express a wide variety of emotions. A lot of artists use pop to express themselves, carrying their emotions and feelings through the music to the listener.

Strong Melodies

Pop music generally has one main melody that the singer performs. The piano and other instruments create the background to the song.

Sometimes, the piano reveals the main melody at the start of the song before falling into its role of playing simple chords. Pop music emphasises focus on the melody, thus the instruments having a simpler role.

Song Structure

The structure of popular music is the verse and chorus structure. It is also known as song structure. It is defined by the verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus, or ABABCB.

The bridge provides a contrast to the song to make it more interesting, while the verses can be seen as the up building to the chorus. A lot of other genres use this formula too, such as R&B, rock and more.

Small Dynamic Differences

Dynamics have to do with how loud or how soft the sound is. Pop music is generally louder in volume as other genres, yet the range is often kept small. This might be due to the fact that with technology we can compress loud parts of the sound to keep the sound level the same.

Incredible Pop Piano Heroes

Elton John

Born in 1947, United Kingdom, Elton John has massively influenced Pop music. He is the most highly acclaimed and successful solo artist of all time, overwhelming the industry with his extraordinary piano skills and musical talent.

He has achieved two diamond, 43 platinum, and 26 gold albums, over 70 top 40 hits and sold over more than 300 million records worldwide.

John blended pop and rock styles into fun and energetic sounds. His innovations had an immeasurable impact on popular music, leaving an iconic legacy behind. Some of his top hits are Your Song, Tiny Dancer, Rocket Man and more.

Alicia Keys

Her real name is Alicia Augello Cook, but is known as her stage name Alicia Keys professionally. Alicia is an excellent pianist, having composed songs since the age of 12.

She is a highly influential figure in the pop music industry, with R&B and soul elements that she incorporates into her songs. She was one of pop music’s leading artists in 2005, having earned four Grammy awards. Now, she is the fourth most-awarded female artist at the Grammy Awards, winning many other titles and awards as well.

Alicia also co-founded a non-profit organisation dedicated to providing resources to children and their families with HIV/AIDS. Alicia Keys has not only had an impact on the pop music industry, but on many underprivileged children’s lives as well!

Pop music appeals to a wide audience, having something for everyone to listen to. Every song tells a story and every piano has the power to make music pop!