The Prime: Pop through the Ages

March 29th, 2023 by Liz Kosik

by Liz Kosik ’25

Genre: Pop

Subgenre: House Pop

RIYL: Calvin Harris, David Guetta, Swedish House Mafia

WLOY is happy to introduce the new series: The Prime! Our station DJs have done an excellent job of bringing their fans all the hottest hits and coolest throwbacks, so… why not provide some background on the music we all know and love? The series will span a spectrum of genres such as alternative, pop, and rock. We’re super excited to dive deeper into the subgenres, affiliated bands, and even some song suggestions!

On that note… we welcome The Prime: Pop through the Ages! The term “pop” stems from the ever-so-changing popular music of the time. Pop typically borrows from an array of other genres including urban, dance, and rock. The structural style includes generally short songs with patterns of melodic and lyrical repetition (what makes our favorite pop hits so catchy!). As music continues to revolutionize, pop becomes more eclectic each time a new branch of the genre is created.

Taking the stage on our weekly spotlight, we explore the subgenre House Pop in its rise in modern pop-culture hits. House pop is a mixup of dance-pop and house music but with its individual style of beats and vocal dominance. The unique pop style brings a fun, euphoric feeling that encourages a calm bop. House Pop resonates with the 2000’s babies’ favorite throwbacks. I think we all love a good Calvin Harris and David Guetta on a Saturday night, right? While not all of their discography completely aligns, we get a good taste of this in Harris’ 2011 “Feel So Close.” The smooth melody that steadily increases with those clean beats? A catchy lyrical structure that matches the pulse of EDM music? The best.

Tags: Prime