Pop Musical
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The pop musical writes its score in the language of contemporary radio pop — synth-and-drum-machine production, verse-chorus hooks, singer-songwriter balladry, and modern belt vocals — rather than traditional show-tune idiom. Numbers are built to work as standalone streaming singles as well as story songs, with pop chord loops, contemporary rhythmic feel, and confessional lyrics. Often penned by working pop songwriters, these scores court younger audiences and chart outside the theatre. The mood is emotionally direct and radio-current, Broadway meeting the pop mainstream on the mainstream's terms.
History
Pop sensibilities entered the theatre gradually, but the 2010s produced a wave of scores by pop writers: Cyndi Lauper's Kinky Boots (2013), Sara Bareilles's Waitress (2016), and Benj Pasek and Justin Paul's Dear Evan Hansen (2016) delivered chart-ready songs, while Six (2017) reframed Tudor queens as a synth-pop concert and Mean Girls brought bubblegum pop to the stage. Cast recordings behaved like pop albums on streaming, and stars like Ben Platt and Sara Bareilles crossed between charts and stage. The pop musical realigned Broadway with contemporary popular music and its youthful, streaming-native audience.
Defining artists
Essential listening
- Ex-Wives(2021) — Original Broadway Cast of SixSpotifyYouTube
- Don't Lose Ur Head(2021) — Original Broadway Cast of SixSpotifyYouTube
- Land of Lola(2013) — Billy PorterSpotifyYouTube
- Sex Is in the Heel(2013) — Billy PorterSpotifyYouTube
- What Baking Can Do(2016) — Jessie MuellerSpotifyYouTube
- Bad Idea(2015) — Sara BareillesSpotifyYouTube
Sources
- Playbill features on pop songwriters on Broadway
- Sara Bareilles, Sounds Like Me (2015)
- Six and Waitress cast-album liner notes