What Your Audience REALLY Wants to Hear

Music is written for a variety of purposes. Some songs are written to relax the listener, others are made to raise the energy in a room, while some songs serve the purpose of evoking emotion and telling a story. While there is a moment for each song, the question stands: what do people like to listen to in general? What kind of songs top the charts? Throughout history, the subject of music has shifted dramatically as the general market grows and changes. We decided to examine the history of chart topping songs and its compelling aspects, to determine the kind of topics the general market wants to hear about.

Throughout history, storytelling songs were very popular and constantly achieved success at the top of music charts. Throughout the 50’s and 60’s, many chart topping songs were written to depict a series of events, for example Bob Dylan’s “The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll” which told the events of the murder of a black woman, whose killer was a white man that only received six months in jail for his crime. These storytelling songs often served as a commentary on society, which at the time struggled with race relations, sexism, and political dysfunction domestically and internationally. This trend continued throughout the 80’s and 90’s as well, with many artists using their platform to speak out on different social issues. Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” which held the number one spot on Billboard’s Weekly Hot 100 chart, was written about the Cold War that was coming to an end at the time of its release. Thus, people preferred to listen to music with stories and depictions of events because they spoke out on issues that mattered to them. However, as society changes, people’s taste in music also shift.

The 80’s and 90’s also yielded many of the upbeat music that is made for the sole purpose of getting people to dance. Songs such as “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun”by Cyndi Lauper, the “Macarena”, or “U Can’t Touch This” by M.C. Hammer did not tell a real story through the lyrics, but rather featured a catchy melody or beat that lifted their audience’s moods. This type of music is more common today, as people like hearing these electronic dance beats and so called “hype” music at parties, clubs, and other social events. With music such as “Old Town Roads,” “Senorita” by Shawn Mendes, and “Truth Hurts” by Lizzo topping the charts, it seems that today, more people have shifted away from these “storytelling” songs and lean more towards music that is not specific with the lyrics. Thus, the artist leaves room for the listener’s imagination to fill in the gaps, and customize the music to relate to their own experiences. In addition, these songs have very upbeat and catchy melodies that are easy to learn and dance to, thus making the music more memorable to the audience.

So what does the general market enjoy listening to these days? Based on recent trends, more people want to listen to music that they can learn themselves. With simple lyrics, vague concepts, and catchy melodies, the most popular songs of today top the charts because people can easily remember them, thus they are more inclined to hear the song more than once. However, the music does not have to be meaningless to be a hit. There are many “storytelling” songs that have a specific and powerful message, yet people find them memorable. For example, “Freedom” by Beyonce has a very empowering message against oppression and black representation and charted on Billboard’s Top 100. “Youth” by Shawn Mendes and Khalid received Gold certification by the US’ RIAA and a Platinum certification in Canada while criticizing society’s tendency to undermine the power of younger generations.

Overall, your audience wants to hear songs that they will remember and will constantly replay in their head. This can be accomplished with a catchy melody, an upbeat tempo, and an overall simple concept. However music should be used to express a message and evoke emotions, rather than to raise the energy at a club. Thus, the art of “storytelling” songs should not be lost, and with these types of songs reentering the top of the charts, music can be used to improve our culture and society through spreading awareness of social issues.