Can You Name These Styles of Pop Music?

Can you name these styles of pop music? Take our quiz and see how well you do!

Introduction

In order to truly appreciate all the different types of popular music out there, it helps to know a little bit about the various genres and sub-genres that exist. This quiz will test your knowledge of some of the more common styles of pop music, from classic rock to modern day hits. See how many you can get right!

Defining Pop Music

Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the United States and United Kingdom during the mid-1950s. The terms “popular music” and “pop music” are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular and includes many different styles.

Pop music is eclectic, and often borrows elements from other styles such as urban, dance, rock, Latin, and country. Analogous to most popular styles of music, pop music is written by songwriters and composed by producers. It is normally sung in English.

Styles of Pop Music

There are many different styles of pop music, but do you know them all? Take this quiz to find out how well you know your pop music styles!

Bubblegum pop

Bubblegum pop is a subgenre of pop music that was popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Its name comes from the fact that it was often made by chewing gum companies as a way to sell their product. The musical style is characterized by simple, catchy melodies and lyrics that are often about love and relationships. Some well-known bubblegum pop artists include The Archies, The Bubble Gum Machine, and The Osmonds.

Christian pop

Christian pop music is a genre of popular music that is influenced by Christian music. The genre developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Christian pop music aims to appeal to a wider audience than traditional Christian music, while maintaining its strong ties to the faith.

The style is sometimes called positive pop or inspirational pop because of its positive message. Christian pop music has been around for centuries, but it only became a mainstream genre in the late 20th century. Early pioneers of the style include Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith.

Today, Christian pop music has become one of the most popular genres in the world, with artists like Hillsong UNITED, for KING & COUNTRY, Ellie Holcomb, and Passion dominating the charts.

Dance-pop

Dance-pop is a genre of pop music that was heavily influenced by disco, electronic and hip hop. The genre first emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and reached its peak popularity in the late 1990s.

Dance-pop songs are often characterized by catchy hooks,Up-tempo rhythms, synthesizers and (in the case of older songs) heavy use of drum machines. They are often performed by artists who specialize in dance music, such as Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Madonna, Justin Timberlake, Usher and Justin Bieber.

Electropop

In the 2010s, electropop achieved mainstream popularity. Electropop is a subgenre of synth-pop that draws inspiration from 1980s electro music and urban contemporary music. This genre often features robotic or robotic-sounding vocals, as well as catchy hooks and synthesizers. It first gained popularity in the rave and club scenes of the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Indie pop

Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indietronica) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with electronic music, DIY ethic, and hipster aesthetics. Heavily influenced by independent rock of the 1980s and 1990s, indie pop favours quirkiness and catchesiness over pretension.

History
The lead singer of The Bibs, Christopher Johnson, has been credited with coining the term “indie pop” in an interview in NME in April 1981. From 2006 onwards, “indie pop” became closely associated with the growing popularity of indie rock music. Lily Allen’s 2006 debut album Alright, Still was seen as a blueprint for a new wave of commercialised indie or “new- rave” music. After Allen’s success, other female singers such as Duffy, La Roux, Kate Nash and Florence and the Machine all achieved mainstream success with a similar sound. Male artists such as The Kooks, The Enemy and The Cribs followed suit; becoming mainstream acts while still retaining popular support from the ever-growing fanzine culture associated with independent music from which they originated . The late 2000s saw a preoccupation within the industry with surface-level revivalism; critics have said that much so-called “indie” music fails to challenge listeners or expand upon existing conventions . This was most notable within the US where artists such as Vampire Weekend , Passion Pit , MGMT , Beach House , Best Coast Washed Out Neon Indian And Twin Shadow achieved widespread commercial success not only in their home country but also internationally whilst retaining underground/DIY credibility .

K-pop

K-pop (an abbreviation of Korean pop; Hangul: 케이팝) is a genre of popular music originating in South Korea. It is influenced by styles and genres from around the world, such as experimental, rock, jazz, hip hop, R&B, reggae, electronic dance, folk, country, and classical on top of its traditional Korean music roots. The more modern form of the genre emerged with one of the earliest K-pop groups, Seo Taiji and Boys, forming in 1992. Their experimentation with different styles and genres of music and integration of foreign musical elements helped reshape and modernize South Korea’s contemporary music scene.[1]

During the 1990s and early 2000s,[2] K-pop continued to evolve with the incorporation of American popular music styles like rap and R&B,[3][4][5] while still maintaining distinctions from other Asian pop music scenes like J-pop and Cantopop.[6][7] By the mid-2000s, however, K-pop was achieving significant global popularity,[8][9] partially helped by online social networking services such as Cyworld,[10] Myspace,[11][12] and YouTube.[13][14] Music videos posted on these platforms often went viral leading to widespread fandom both in and outside of Asia; particularly for groups such as Super Junior[15][16], Big Bang[17], 2NE1[18], Girls’ Generation[19], EXO[20], BTS[21], Blackpink,[22] Twice,[23] Red Velvet.[24] Since the early 2000s,[25][26] Kim Jung-hoon,[27] PSY,[28][29][30] BoA[31][32], Rain,[33][34], TVXQ!,,[35], Super Junior,,[36], SS501,, Big Bang,, 2NE1,, Girls’ Generation,, EXO:, BTS:, Blackpink=: Twice: Red Velvet: has been credited as spearheading the globalization effort for K-Pop artists due to their success in East Asia (particularly in China), Southeast Asia (especially in The Philippines), South America (notably in Brazil), Oceania (notably in Australia) & North America (particularly in Canada & The United States).

Latin pop

Latin pop is a genre of popular music that originated in Latin America, mainly in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries, during the 1950s. It emphasizes the use of electric guitars, drums, and rhythmic percussion instruments, as well as synthesizers and other electronic keyboard instruments.

Some of the earliest examples of Latin pop music can be traced back to Cuban songs such as “Guantanamera” and “El Manisero”, which became popularized by artists such as Celia Cruz and Perez Prado in the 1940s and 1950s. In the 1960s, Brazilian artists such as Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, and Maria Bethânia began to experiment with incorporating elements of rock music into their traditional Brazilian sounds. This new style of music, which became known as Tropicalia, would go on to influence Latin pop artists throughout the region.

In the 1970s and 1980s, a new wave of Latin American artists began to gain international attention, including Gloria Estefan, Ricky Martin, Shakira, and Gloria Trevi. These artists blended traditional Latin sounds with elements of pop, rock, dance music, and even hip hop. By the end of the 20th century, Latin pop had become one of the most popular genres in the world.

New wave

New wave is a genre of popular music that emerged in the late 1970s and dominated the 1980s. It was originally used as a catch-all for the music that emerged after punk rock, including punk itself, but may be viewed retrospectively as a more accessible counterpart of post-punk. Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it can be identified as holding both commercial and artistic merits.

Pop punk

Originating in the late 1970s and early 1980s, pop punk is a subgenre of punk rock that combines elements of power pop and pop music. Pop punk typically features catchy hooks, distorted guitars, and fast tempos. Early innovators of the style include the Ramones, Buzzcocks, and the Sex Pistols. Punk rockers who embrace a more melodic approach, such as Green Day and Blink-182, are also considered pop punk.

Power pop

Power pop is a subgenre of pop music that was initially created in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Power pop developed from a combination of British Invasion, garage rock, and

Soft rock

Soft rock is a genre of pop music that uses acoustic instruments and sometimesanthems. It has its roots in 1960s and 1970s folk rock and singer-songwriter traditions. The term “soft rock” was used to describe the softer sound of rock artists of the time such as Carole King, Jim Croce, Cat Stevens, James Taylor, Dan Fogelberg, Bread,America, early Eagles. Soft rock developed during the 1970s with artists such as Carole King, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and Dan Fogelberg becoming prominent. In the 1980s soft rock reached it’s commercial peak with power ballads becoming popular. Ballads are lyrical love songs often sung by a male and female vocalist accompanied by guitars and keyboards.

Examples of popular soft rock songs are “Come Sail Away” by Styx, “I Want to Know What Love Is” by Foreigner, “Every Breath You Take” by The Police, “I’ll Be There For You” by Bon Jovi, “Wind Beneath My Wings” by Bette Midler.

Conclusion

We hope you enjoyed our little quiz on pop music styles. As you can see, there is a lot of variety within the genre, and new styles are always emerging. Whether you prefer the classic sounds of rock or the latest hip-hop tracks, there is something for everyone to enjoy. Thanks for playing!