The Tendencies of Commercial Pop
Aiming to match any genre of music when we write is often a great way to kill a song. While genre can describe what is working within a group of sounds, chords, production, melody and lyric, it doesn’t tell us what makes an individual song, or artist, unique.
As writers, the goal should be to explore our natural leanings and see how it intersects with different styles of music. By combining these tendencies, we can form a unique creative identity that resonates with listeners. Understanding where we naturally fit helps us refine our artistry without simply imitating a style.
Commercial songwriting often carries a stigma, like it’s the “rom-com” of music. However, I’d like to use the word “commercial” here to mean ‘accessible,’ rather than shallow. This accessibility uses tools of the craft that make songs easy to digest, memorable, and appealing to a wide audience. While the same tools show themselves across many genres, the way we apply them can vary. Commercial Pop has some distinct ways of applying tools that result in the sound so many know and love.
If you’re a songwriter and want to try applying the tools of pop, I encourage you to first use the tools to identify your personal “fingerprint.” The balance between familiarity and individuality is what makes music truly distinct and memorable.
1. Melody is King
In commercial pop, the melody is the driving force. A pop song often loses much of its value if the melody is removed. Strong pop melodies are:
Simple and memorable
Supported by their chord progressions
Vehicles for lyrics, but not overloaded with imagery or complexity
Lyrics in pop songs are often lightweight and secondary to the melody. Sometimes, the words are even bent unnaturally to maintain the melody, as in Katy Perry’s “Unconditionally”.
2. Repetition and Recycling
Commercial pop thrives on repetition. Melodic ideas are repeated with little variation, especially early in a song, making them catchy and easy to remember. Later in the song, these motifs may be recycled and reintroduced in slightly altered ways.
Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” is a perfect example, with its chorus built around exact melodic repetition for maximum memorability.
3. Balance Between Sections
Pop songs often use extreme contrast between sections, like verses and choruses, so that each section produces a thrust of energy when they arrive. Max Martin describes this as maintaining balance in the song. He explains that if a verse is tight and rhythmic, the chorus might be wide and soaring. This dynamic shift keeps the song engaging and prevents monotony.
4. Early Chorus Entry
Pop songs usually arrive at the chorus quickly, often within the first 50 seconds. With so much repetition in each section, ideas are quickly exhausted, and reaching the chorus early ensures listener engagement. While some artists like Sara Bareilles stretch out verses and pre-choruses, this approach often aligns more with lyrical pop or singer-songwriter traditions.
5. Themes and Characters
Commercial pop songs typically use first-person perspective or a direct “you” to create intimacy with the listener. This makes the audience feel like the artist is speaking directly to them. Katy Perry’s “Firework” demonstrates this powerfully with lines like “Do you ever feel like a plastic bag?”
Themes are usually simple and singular in emotion, such as love, heartbreak, anger, or joy. We need only a few lines of lyric to assume what the concept of the song is about. By contrast, singer-songwriters or lyrical pop artists often weave more nuanced emotional perspectives into their work.
Commercial pop succeeds by ticking these boxes, but authenticity matters more than formula. Trying to force yourself into the “commercial pop pants,” as it were, can feel inauthentic. Instead, use these tendencies as tools: keep what aligns with your voice, and discard what doesn’t.
Songwriting isn’t about fitting into a marketplace - it’s about expressing yourself authentically. Pop’s characteristics can guide and inspire you, but your artistry is defined by your unique voice and creative truth.
Stay creative,
