EDM Pop

tagStarted 2009Peak 2011-2016Last big hit 2019

Located in 2 routes

Pop fused with mainstage electronic dance music: a verse-build-drop structure where the chorus often hands off to a synth or saw-lead drop. Sidechained supersaws, festival snare rolls, gated vocal chops and a thunderous kick-and-clap. Producer and vocalist share the marquee; the drop is the hook.

History

Emerged as American radio embraced European big-room house and electro around 2009-2011, with David Guetta's pop collaborations and Calvin Harris bridging the club and the charts. The Avicii/Zedd wave folded songwriting into the drop, dominating Top 40 through the mid-2010s before tropical house and trap softened the formula.

Defining artists

Essential listening

← Explore Pop

Sources

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_dance_music
  • https://www.allmusic.com/style/edm-ma0000025312
  • https://www.billboard.com/music/david-guetta/