POP MUSIC TIMELINE

WHAT IS POP MUSIC?

Pop is a genre of music which originated in the 1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom, though the genre has been through a journey and is heavily influenced by other music genres which were established before the 1950s. The musicality of pop music is evident of altercations to prior music genres such as rock, jazz and ragtime, which are all considered parent genres. As pop music evolves, newer music styles such as disco, dance, electronic music, rap and R&B. Pop music is ever evolving and is proven to be popular and appealing to a wide audience, hence the name “pop”, which is an abbreviation of the word “popular”. A reason why pop music has such a popular appeal is the fact that it is more conservative compared to other genres. Many pop songs avoid themes of resistance and opposition and controversial topics, and they focus more on themes like love and feelings. This avoids challenging the audience socially and triggering conflicts. To sum everything up, pop music is an inclusive, ever evolving genre, which has encompassed older styles of music to create the appealing style that it is today.

ORIGINS AND HISTORY

See the timeline on the left for a more brief overview of Pop Music History :)

As aforementioned, pop music originated mainly in the United States and the United Kingdom during the late 1940s — early 1950s. Pop music has made drastic changes throughout the years, as it adapts and is influenced by other music genres. The first notable era in the history of pop music was the characterisation of jazz and blues in the 1920s. During this era, the western population enjoyed classical music, church hymns and ballads, so the introduction of jazz and blues was shocking and fresh. The influence of jazz and blues also had implications for other styles like R&B and hip hop. Blues emerged from the Jazz genre, creating a foundation for rock’n’roll. In the 1950s, pop artist then began to take influence from jazz and blues, creating a unique mix of genres which was awesome to listen to. As the 1960s approached, jazz and blues began to die out and the features of rock’n’roll music came to rise. During the mid 1960s, funk music came into the picture and was popularised throughout the 1970s. Music technology also advanced during this era, making it another revolutionary part of pop history, as digital equipment was heavily used in pop songs. Meanwhile, rock’n’roll slowly adapted into stadium rock. Hip hop was another revolutionary era of pop music history. Grunge and punk bands also began to rise, overshadowing stadium rock. As the 2000s approached, more commercial, pop sounding music began to be popularised.

HAVE A LISTEN!

Disclaimer: Songs found on the playlists within this website may contain explicit lyrics! Please listen with viewers discretion!

Have a listen to some pop hits from 2000 to 2024!