2009’s Best Pop Music
2009 was an amazing year for pop music! Here’s a look at some of the best songs that topped the charts.
Introduction
It’s hard to believe that another year has come and gone, but as we say goodbye to 2009, we can’t help but look back on all the great music that was released over the past 12 months. From huge blockbuster hits to sleeper indie gems, there was something for everyone this year in pop music.
As always, it was tough to narrow it down to just 10 albums, but after much deliberation, we’ve compiled a list of what we feel are 2009’s best pop albums. So without further ado, here are our picks for 2009’s best pop music.
The Best Pop Songs of 2009
2009 was a great year for pop music. We saw the rise of new stars like Lady Gaga and the return of veteran superstars like Madonna. There were also some great songs that came out this year. Here are my picks for the best pop songs of 2009.
“Poker Face” by Lady Gaga
“Poker Face” is a song by American singer Lady Gaga from her debut studio album, The Fame (2008). It was released on September 26, 2008 as the album’s second single. “Poker Face” is a synth-pop song in the key of G♯ minor, following in the footsteps of her previous single “Just Dance”, but with a darker musical tone. The main idea behind the song is bisexuality and was a tribute by Gaga to her rock and roll boyfriends. Lyrically, it revolves around gender neutrality, sexual promiscuity, alcohol consumption, and gambling.
The song received positive reviews from music critics who praised it for its catchy chorus and overall appeal. Commercially, it was an instant success globally, topping the charts in twenty countries including Australia, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Poland and the United Kingdom while peaking within the top-ten in several more regions. In the United States, “Poker Face” entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number thirty-six before reaching number one. It achieved similar chart success elsewhere in the world during 2009–2010 and became Gaga’s secondie consecutive number one hit single worldwide after she had topped both European sales chartsmakign it one of only two songs to achieve this feat along with “Just Dance”. An accompanying music video for the song portrays Gaga singing it on stage whilst interspersed with scenes of her gambling at poker tables; other visual effects throughout include optical illusions and flashbacks.
“I Gotta Feeling” by The Black Eyed Peas
“I Gotta Feeling” is a song performed by American group The Black Eyed Peas. It was released as the second single from their fifth studio album, The E.N.D. on June 9, 2009. “I Gotta Feeling” spent fourteen weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the group’s second longest-running single on that chart behind their previous single “Boom Boom Pow” as well as their first number-one in the United Kingdom. By October 2011, the song had sold 8 million copies in the US.
“Just Dance” by Lady Gaga
“Just Dance” is a song by American singer Lady Gaga. The song was written by Gaga and RedOne, and produced by RedOne. It was released in April 2008 as the lead single from Gaga’s debut album, The Fame. “Just Dance” received positive reviews from contemporary music critics, who praised its hook and tone. The song was a commercial success, topping the charts in the United States, Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
The song is an uptempo electronica track with house influences and a synth-pop chorus whileutilizing Euro disco themes throughout. “Just Dance” also hasnumerous embellishments of organic instrumentation throughout including guitars, drums and cowbells. “Just Dance” is written in time in the key of F♯minor with a moderate tempo of 119 beats per minute while drawing influence heavily from 1980s disco and synth-pop.
“Party in the U.S.A.” by Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus’ “Party in the U.S.A.” was one of the biggest pop songs of 2009. The song, which was released in August of that year, peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and went on to be certified five times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). “Party in the U.S.A.” was also a massive success internationally, reaching the top ten in several countries including the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada.
“Love Story” by Taylor Swift
Love Story by Taylor Swift was one of the biggest pop songs of 2009. The song is about a young couple in love who are forced to part ways. Despite the odds, they maintain their love for each other and eventually find their way back to each other. The song is a massive hit, spending seven weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
The Best Pop Albums of 2009
2009 was a great year for pop music. We saw the release of some great albums that have gone on to become classics. In this article, we will be counting down the best pop albums of 2009.
The Fame by Lady Gaga
The Fame is the debut album by American singer-songwriter Lady Gaga. It was released on August 19, 2008, by Interscope Records. After joining Kon Live Distribution and Cherrytree Records in 2008, Gaga began working on the album with different producers, primarily RedOne, Martin Kierszenbaum and Rob Fusari. Musically, The Fame is an electropop and dance-pop album that has influences from 1980s music. Lyrically, it deals with love, fame, sexuality and money.
The Fame was a commercial success worldwide. In the United States, it peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 albums chart and was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In Europe, it charted within the top ten in several countries, including Austria, Canada, Germany, Ireland and Italy; elsewhere around the world; however it reached number one in Australia and New Zealand. The album received generally positive reviews from critics.
I Am… Sasha Fierce by Beyoncé
I Am… Sasha Fierce is the third studio album by American singer Beyoncé. It was released on November 18, 2008, by Columbia Records and Music World Entertainment. In its initial release, the album was formatted as a double album, intending to market Beyoncé’s contrasting facets of artistry. Contains the singles “If I Were a Boy”, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)”, and “Halo”.
While this wasn’t her best-selling album, it did earn Beyoncé a whopping 10 Grammy nominations—the most for any female artist in a single year—and took home three awards, including Best Contemporary R&B Album.
The E.N.D. by The Black Eyed Peas
The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies) is the fifth studio album by American group The Black Eyed Peas. It was released on June 9, 2009. Critics described the album as containing more anthemic and uplifting songs in the vein of their previous work with intimations of modernism. The songs “Boom Boom Pow” and “I Gotta Feeling” became worldwide hits and both topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for 12 consecutive weeks; peaking at number one for 26 consecutive weeks, making it the longest-running single to stay atop the Hot 100 in almost two decades, since Boyz II Men’s “End of the Road”.[citation needed]
The record has also sold over 31 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the best-selling albums of all time. The album was ranked number four on Rolling Stone’s list of the “30 Best Pop Albums of 2009”, and number one on MTV’s list of “The Best Albums of 2009”. NME named it as their second best album of 2009, only behind Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ It’s Blitz!. In an interview with NME upon release The E.N.D., will.i.am revealed that he had struggled with writer’s block during its recording saying “for a whole year I couldn’t make anything I liked… I was really angry because it’s like: ‘You’re a producer! You’re a songwriter! You’ve done all this before.’ So why couldn’t I just snap my fingers and make hits? And then I realized: ‘Because you’re not inspired.”
Fearless by Taylor Swift
Fearless is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. It was released on November 11, 2008, by Big Machine Records. As with her first album, Taylor Swift, Swift wrote or co-wrote all thirteen tracks on Fearless. Most of the songs were written as the singer promoted her first album as the opening act for numerous country artists. Due to the unavailability of collaborators on the road, eight songs were self-penned by Swift. Other writers included John Rich, Hillsong United’s Joel Houston and American R&B songwriter Vincent Herbert.
The album was produced by Nathan Chapman and Swift. Recorded in January 2008,Fearless was influenced by classic rock and pop music from the 1980s and 1990s. The lyrics deal with themes of love and relationships; nearly all tracks speak of a romantic interest. Swift debuted songs from Fearless at several award ceremonies and promotional events throughout 2008; “Change”, “Forever & Always”, “Love Story” were performed live at the 41st Annual Academy of Country Music Awards show in April; “White Horse” was performed at the 44th Grammy Awards show in February 2009 before its single release in December 2008; “You Belong with Me” was performed live during several radio station festivals in May 2009; In addition, two unreleased tracks from Fearless were leaked online which receive much attention: “Jump Then Fall” in August 2008 and a remix version of “Forever & Always” with rapper Kayne West’s vocals added to it immediately after West made negative comments about Swift during an award show broadcast in September 2009.
Upon its release, Fearless received positive reviews from most music critics who complimented Swift’s songwriting abilities for being able to write about personal subjects and experiences so youthful while also finding commercial success; several critics also praised Chapman’s production for giving the album an overall relaxed atmosphere throughout its duration but still creating a radio-friendly comely sound that masks its lyrical depth underneath. Moving more than 850,000 copies in its first week, Fearless topped Billboard 200—Swift became both the youngest person to have a number one album on this chart since Britney Spears achieved this feat with …Baby One More Time and only one of five female artists to have an album open with more than 850,000 copies sold since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking point-of-sale music purchases in 1991—and also topped both Top Country Albums chart and Billboard Digital Albums chart while simultaneously having all fourteen tracks enter Billboard Hot 100 within a seven-week timeframe setting multiple airplay records along the way such as becoming one of only three albums—the others being OutKast’s Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003) and Usher’s Confessions (2004)—to achieve this feat within past decade and ultimately won four Grammy Awards including Album of Year—becoming only 20th female artist to ever receive this honor—making her one of only two solo female artists—the other being Lauryn Hill who did it thirteen years earlier with The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill (1998)—to date that has won this coveted prize for best overall musical performance for an entire LP as well as making her one greatest critical success story coming out Nashville since Garth Brooks attained similar results when his debut LP No Fences (1990) swept CMAs that year winning every major award he was nominated for including coveted prize Album Year which began awards sweep that would continue until end Brooks’ dominant run atop country music scene when his last major award came when he won Grammy Award Album Year again 10 years later signifying end Brooks’ transition into pop stardom with his Chris Gaines alter ego that ultimately sold very little but nonetheless resulted commercial success thanks largely sales generated due Garth’s immense popularity among core fan base who bought into idea despite some trepidation due fact many thought project foray into unfamiliar territory resulting puzzling debacle that alienated much general public but still somehow managed provoke curiosity certain segment populace resultingsubstantial sales even if it fell well short what Brooks had previously achieved his prime years during 1990s
Breakout by Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus’ second album, Breakout, is one of the best pop albums of 2009. It is a fun, upbeat album with great songs that will make you want to dance. The album includes the hit singles “Party in the USA” and “The Climb.” If you are looking for a feel-good pop album, Breakout is a great choice.
Conclusion
In conclusion, 2009 was a great year for pop music. There were many new and talented artists that emerged and the level of competition was very high. These artists have set the bar very high for future years and we can only hope that 2010 and beyond will be just as good.
