One, Four, Five

"Pop music" refers to the commercialized sound that is meant to appeal to the masses, from the teeny boppers to the trying to be hip middle-agers. Many would argue that today's music lacks the originality and creativity found in earlier generations. This is witnessed in the lack of unique melodies and chord progressions.

Just look at Kate Perry's "California Gurls" and Ke$ha's "Tic Toc". They are essentially the same song.



We can also argue that over the years, our ears have selected the music they prefer. Anything unique and outside the box will thus be undesirable. What kind of music have we gravitated to? If one were to look at the relative chord progressions in all soft rock, pop songs and ballads, he/she would observe the I, IV, V chord progression in different keys. I will not engage in a theory lesson right now, so, simply put, the numbers refer to the position of the root of the chords in the context of a scale.

The group "Axis of Awesome" has found a way of demonstrating the similarity in progressions of different songs. It includes the I, V, VI, IV. Let's listen. Name the songs.



It seems as if the days of the singer-songwriter are numbered. Chord progressions like the one "Axis of Awesome" have clued in on are rampantly growing. Furthermore, ghosts writers are starting to write more and more songs for so-called music artists.

It seems that music creation is more of a production than it has ever been. Get some lyrics from a writer, try it out on a pre-made progression, and find a suitable, good looking singer.



This trend will inevitably change. As the weeds begin to overgrow the garden, someone will break through from underneath and begin a musical revolution. We have seen it in generations past and will see it again. Music has always hit a soft spot in the brain, and will continue to shape our culture.