Hyperpop

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hyperpop is a loosely defined music movement[1][2] and microgenre[3] that predominantly originated in

the United Kingdom during the early-to-mid 2010s. It is characterized by a maximalist or exaggerated
take on popular music,[2] and artists within the genre typically integrate pop and avant-garde sensibilities
while drawing on themes commonly found in electronic, hip hop, and dance music.[4]

Deriving influence from a varied range of sources, the origins of the hyperpop scene are commonly
traced to the output of English musician A. G. Cook's record label and collective PC Music and its
associated artists such as Sophie and Charli XCX.[4] Music associated with this scene received wider
attention in August 2019 when Spotify used the term "hyperpop" as the name of a playlist featuring
artists such as Cook and 100 gecs.[3] The genre spread within younger audiences through social
media platforms, especially TikTok.[5]

The movement is often linked to LGBTQ+ online communities,[4] and many key figures identify
as transgender, non-binary, or gay.[6][7] "Digicore" and “Glitchcore” are contemporaneous movements
that are sometimes conflated with "hyperpop" due to its overlapping artists. [8]
Characteristics[edit]

Hyperpop reflects an exaggerated, eclectic, and self-referential approach to pop music and typically

employs elements such as brash synth melodies, Auto-Tuned "earworm" vocals, and
excessive compression and distortion, as well as surrealist or nostalgic references to 2000s Internet
culture and the Web 2.0 era.[4] Common features include vocals that are heavily processed; metallic,
melodic percussion sounds; pitch-shifted synths; catchy choruses; short song lengths; and "shiny, cutesy
aesthetics" juxtaposed with angst-ridden lyrics. [4] The Wall Street Journal's Mark Richardson described
the genre as intensifying the "artificial" tropes of popular music, resulting in "a cartoonish wall of noise
that embraces catchy tunes and memorable hooks. The music zooms between beauty and ugliness, as
shimmery melodies collide with mangled instrumentation." [9] Writing for American Songwriter, Joe
Vitagliano described it as "an exciting, bombastic and iconoclastic genre — if it can even be called a
'genre'—[...] featuring "saw synths, auto-tuned vocals, glitch-inspired percussion and a distinctive late-
capitalism-dystopia vibe."[2] Artists often "straddle the avant-garde and the pop charts simultaneously."[4]

According to Vice journalist Eli Enis, hyperpop is less rooted in musical technicalities than "a
shared ethos of transcending genre altogether, while still operating within the context of pop." [1] Artists
in the style reflect a "tendency to rehabilitate styles of music that have long since gone out of fashion,
constantly poking at what is or isn’t 'cool' or artful." [4] The style may blend elements from a range of
styles, including bubblegum pop, trance, Eurohouse, emo rap, nu metal, cloud rap, J-pop and K-pop.
[4]
 The influence of cloud rap, emo and lo-fi trap, trance music, dubstep, and chiptune are evident in
hyperpop, as well as more surreal and haphazard qualities that are pulled heavily from hip hop since the
mid-2010s.[1] The Atlantic noted the way the genre "swirls together and speeds up Top 40 tricks of
present and past: a Janet Jackson drum slam here, a Depeche Mode synth squeal there, the overblown
pep of novelty jingles throughout," but also noted "the genre's zest for punk's brattiness, hip-hop's
boastfulness, and metal's noise."[6] Some of the style's more surreal and off kilter qualities drew from
2010s hip-hop.[1]

Hyperpop is often linked to the LGBTQ+ community and queer aesthetics.[4] Several of its key

practitioners identify as non-binary, gay, or transgender,[6] and the genre's emphasis on vocal modulation
has allowed artists to experiment with the gender presentation of their voices.[4]

Origins[edit]

Scottish musician Sophie (left) and English musician A.G. Cook (right) are considered progenitors of

hyperpop
The term "hyperpop" was coined on October 1988 by writer Don Shewey in an article about Scottish
band Cocteau Twins, stating that England "in the ’80s it has nurtured the simultaneous phenomena of
hyperpop and antipop". Shewey also noted that "fashion-conscious hype-meisters like Malcolm
McLaren, Paul Morley (the rock journalist who invented Frankie Goes to Hollywood), and the Pet Shop
Boys’ Neil Tennant—prime exponents of instantly obsolescent, escapist disco-pop—have turned pop’s
star-making machinery back on itself, expending as much creative energy on manipulating the media as
on making music.".[10] The term "hyperpop" was sometimes used within SoundCloud's nightcore music
scene as a genre descriptor .[1][8][11] Spotify analyst Glenn McDonald stated that he first saw the term used
in reference to the UK-based label PC Music in 2014, but believed that the name did not qualify as
a microgenre until 2018.[3] Despite many other artists and labels influencing the scene such as Meishi
Smile and Maltine Records,[11] the origins of the style are usually located to the mid-2010s output of PC
Music, with hyperpop artists either being affiliated with or directly inspired by the label. [3][12] The
Independent's Will Pritchard stated that "It's possible to see [hyperpop] as an expression not just of the
genres it borrows from, but of the scene that evolved around A. G. Cook’s PC Music label (an early home
to Sophie and Charli XCX, among others) in the UK in the early 2010s." [4]

There were many other predecessors to the genre, as explained by Pritchard, "to some, the ground
covered by hyperpop won’t seem all that new". He cited "outliers" of 2000s nu rave (such as Test Icicles)
and PC Music contemporaries Rustie and Hudson Mohawke as pursuing similar approaches; of the latter
two artists, he noted that their "fluoro, trance-edged smooshes of dance and hip-hop are reminiscent of
a lot of hyperpop today." Another artist who has heavily influenced the hyperpop scene is Yasutaka
Nakata. A. G. Cook has personally cited Max Tundra, J Dilla and Kate Bush as major influences on the PC
Music aesthetic.[13][4] Heather Phares of AllMusic stated that the work of Sleigh Bells foreshadowed
hyperpop and other artists who "brazenly ignored genre boundaries and united the extremes of sweet
and heavy;"[14] Ian Cohen of Pitchfork similarly stated that the term described Sleigh Bells before it
became a dominant genre.[15] Eilish Gilligan of Junkee credited Kesha for impacting the genre, stating that
her "grating, half-spoken vocal featured in ['Blow'] and all of her early work, in fact, feel reminiscent of a
lot of the intense vocals in hyperpop today", as well as Britney Spears, whose "2011 dancefloor fillers 'Till
The World Ends', 'Hold It Against Me' and 'I Wanna Go' all share the same pounding beats that populate
modern hyperpop."[16]

Spotify editor Lizzy Szabo referred to A. G. Cook as the "godfather" of hyperpop. [1] According to Enis, PC
Music "laid the groundwork for [the genre's] melodic exuberance and cartoonish production", with some
of hyperpop's surrealist qualities also derived from 2010s hip hop. [1] She states that hyperpop built on
the influence of PC Music, but also incorporated the sounds of emo rap, cloud rap, trap, trance, dubstep
and chiptune.[1] Among Cook's frequent collaborators, Variety and The New York Times described the
work of Sophie as pioneering the style,[17][18] while Charli XCX was described as "queen" of the style
by Vice, and her 2017 mixtape Pop 2 set a template for its sound, featuring "outré" production by Cook,
Sophie, Umru, and Easyfun as well as "a titular mission to give pop – sonically, spiritually, aesthetically –
a facelift for the modern age."[1]

Other artists associated with the term included 100 gecs, whose debut album 1000 Gecs (2019) amassed
millions of listens on streaming services and helped to consolidate the style. In Pritchard's description,
100 Gecs took hyperpop "to its most extreme, and extremely catchy, conclusions: stadium-
sized trap beats processed and distorted to near-destruction, overwrought emo vocals and cascades of
ravey arpeggios."[4]
Popularity[edit]

In August 2019, Spotify launched the "Hyperpop" playlist which further cemented the genre, and
featured guest curation from 100 Gecs and others. [3] Other artists featured on the playlist included
Cook, Slayyyter, Gupi, Caroline Polachek, Hannah Diamond, and Kim Petras.[19] Spotify editor Lizzy Szabo
and her colleagues landed on the name for their August 2019 playlist after McDonald noted the term in
the website's metadata and classified it as a microgenre. [3] In November, Cook added artists such as J
Dilla and Kate Bush to the playlist, which added confusion to the genre's scope. [3]

According to Vice, a second wave of the genre emerged in 2019 post-100 Gecs. [20] The influence of cloud
rap, emo and Dylan Brady's production style distinguishes the second wave of hyperpop. [citation needed]

The genre began to see rise in popularity in 2020, with the prominence of the Spotify playlist and its
spread within younger audiences on social media, such as on TikTok.[5][21] Hyperpop albums like Charli
XCX's How I'm Feeling Now (2020) and A. G. Cook's Apple (2020) appeared on critic's 2020 end-of-year
lists.[4] Internationally, hyperpop gained notoriety in Australia,[22] China[23] and Hispanic countries, such
as Argentina, Chile, Mexico and Spain, with Spanish-speaking artists and producers delving into the
microgenre. Nylon's Ben Jolley cited Putochinomaricón as one of the "biggest names in the scene." [24]

In mid-late 2020, the social media platform TikTok saw a rise in the popularity of hyperpop songs, mainly
being used on the 'Alt' side of TikTok, also called 'Alt TikTok'.[25][26] As of March 2022, videos with the
hashtag "hyperpop" have accumulated nearly 400 million views on TikTok. Part of the reason the genre is
rising in popularity across the platform can be contributed to the platform's nature of favoring heavy
beats that creators can dance to and make transitions. [26] Creators have used hyperpop sounds in their
videos, furthering the genre's rise across the platform in reaching millions of users. [26]

While the first wave of hyperpop was a satire and homage to the genre of pop music, the second wave
was a replication and homage to the artists included on Spotify's hyperpop playlist, which divided the
community.[20][27]

Related genres[edit]

This section possibly contains synthesis of material which does not verifiably

mention or relate to the main topic. Relevant discussion may be found on
the talk page. (April 2022)  (Learn how and when to remove this template
message)

Digicore[edit]

Not to be confused with  Digital hardcore.

Digicore is a similar genre to hyperpop. The term (“digi” is short for “digital”) was adopted in the mid-
2010s by an online community of teenage musicians, communicating through Discord, to distinguish
themselves from the preexisting hyperpop scene. [8] It differs from hyperpop mainly through the racial
identities of its artists but there remains a degree of crossover between the scenes. [8] Artists often pull
from a variety of genres such as midwestern emo, trance, and Chicago drill, amongst others. [28] The
beginnings of digicore are rooted in internet culture and many popular producers from the genre are
between the ages of 15 and 18 who use platforms such as Discord to interact.[28] In 2018, Dalton (a
digicore artist relations figure) started a Minecraft and Discord server called "Loser's Club" that became a
haven for several of the most popular artists within the digicore scene such as Quinn, Glaive, Funeral,
Midwxst, and Angelus.[28] This sense of community and collaboration have become key tenets within the
scene, and have contributed to the rise in the popularity of the genre as a whole, with a majority of the
scene preferring the idea of rising in popularity as a collective rather than as individuals. [28] In 2021, the
digicore album Frailty by Jane Remover received praise on mainstream music sites Pitchfork and Paste.[29]
[30]

Glitchcore[edit]

Glitchcore, a related genre to hyperpop and digicore, is often characterized by high-pitched vocals,
sharp 808s, and frequent hi-hats. As one article stated, “Glitchcore is Hyperpop on steroids”, [31] referring
to the exaggerated vocals, distortions, glitch noises, and other pop elements present within Glitchcore.
[citation needed]

Stef, a producer of the popular Hyperpop and glitchcore collective ‘Helix Tears’ stated that there certainly
is a difference between the two genres, saying “Hyperpop is more melodic and poppy” while “Glitchcore
is indescribable”.[31] Similar to digicore, glitchcore is typically made up of a younger group of artists than
traditional Hyperpop.[32]

TikTok played a key role in popularizing glitchcore, through video edits to two viral glitchcore songs
“NEVER MET!” by CMTEN and Glitch Gum and “Pressure” by David Shawty and Yungster Jack.
[32]
 Glitchcore has also been associated with a specific visual aesthetic where videos are typically
accompanied by glitchy, fast-paced, cluttered, colorful edits that are even marked with flash warnings in
certain cases.[32] Some popular digicore artists like d0llywood1 even refer to glitchcore as “an aesthetic,
like the edits”, rather than an actual music genre. [33]

See also[edit]

 Avant-pop

 Post-Internet

 Maximalism

 Postmodern music

References[edit]

1. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h i Enis, Eli (27 October 2020).  "This is Hyperpop: A Genre Tag for
Genre-less Music". Vice.

2. ^ Jump up to:a b c "A. G. Cook Is Changing Popular Music As We Know It".  American

Songwriter. 18 September 2020. Retrieved  20 September  2020.

3. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g Dandridge-Lemco, Ben (10 November 2020).  "How Hyperpop, a

Small Spotify Playlist, Grew Into a Big Deal".  The New York Times.

4. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Pritchard, Will (17 December 2020).  "Hyperpop or

overhyped? The rise of 2020's most maximal sound".  The Independent. Retrieved  13
February  2021.
5. ^ Jump up to:a b Kornhaber, Spencer (14 February 2021).  "Noisy, Ugly, and
Addictive".  The Atlantic. Retrieved  19 May  2021.

6. ^ Jump up to:a b c Kornhaber, Spencer (14 February 2021).  "What is Hyperpop?".  The

Atlantic. Retrieved  22 February  2021.

7. ^ Bell, Sadie (21 January 2022).  "A Starter Kit for Getting Into Hyperpop, the Wild Gen Z
Genre of Electronic Music".

8. ^ Jump up to:a b c d Walker, Sophie (4 November 2021).  "404 Error, Genre Not Found: The
Life Cycle of Internet Scenes".  Complex Networks.

9. ^ Richardson, Mark (29 December 2020).  "Hyperpop's Joyful Too-Muchness".  The Wall
Street Journal. Retrieved  22 February  2021.

10. ^ Mood Music for the Arty. (n.d.). Copyright © 1994 - 2022 Cocteau Twins. All Rights
Reserved. Retrieved October 18, 2022. https://cocteautwins.com/mood-music-for-the-
arty-7-days.html Mood Music for the Arty. (n.d.). Copyright © 1994 - 2022 Cocteau
Twins. All Rights Reserved. Retrieved October 18, 2022. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value
(help); Missing or empty |title= (help)

11. ^ Jump up to:a b Hyperpop Origins (Part 1): Definitions (?) & Aesthetic Influences,
retrieved  24 February  2023

12. ^ Ravens, Chai (13 August 2020).  "7G".  Pitchfork.

13. ^ @agcook404 (25 September 2020).  "My goal was really to just make something
compelling & I think that anyone interested in or trying to define Hyperp…"  (Tweet) –
via  Twitter.

14. ^ Phares, Heather.  "Sleigh Bells - Biography".  AllMusic. Retrieved  23 September  2021.

15. ^ Cohen, Ian.  "Texis - Album Review".  Pitchfork. Retrieved  23 September  2021.

16. ^ Gilligan, Eilish (18 October 2021).  "How The Music From 2011 Is Still Defining Pop
Today".  Junkee. Retrieved  19 October  2021.

17. ^ Amorosi, A.D. (30 January 2021).  "Sophie, Grammy-Nominated Avant-Pop Musician,
Dies at 34".  Variety. Retrieved  31 January  2021.

18. ^ Pareles, Jon (30 January 2021).  "Sophie, Who Pushed the Boundaries of Pop Music,
Dies at 34".  The New York Times. Retrieved  31 January  2021.

19. ^ D'Souza, Shaad.  "Charli XCX's 'Futurist' Pop Is Just Our Present Dystopia".  Paper.
Retrieved  14 February  2021.

20. ^ Jump up to:a b Fenwick, Julie (6 April 2022).  "'It's Happening, Slowly but Surely': Who
Killed Hyperpop?".  Vice. Retrieved  22 May  2022.

21. ^ Salzman, Eva.  "Will hyperpop die like disco?".  The Ithacan. Retrieved  12 March  2021.
 22. ^ "'Everything's dialled up to 11': meet Australia's rising stars of hyperpop".  The
Guardian. 12 May 2021. Retrieved  26 January  2022.

23. ^ Grogan, Bryan (5 November 2021).  "Wild, Creative, Disturbing: Inside China's
'Hyperpop' Music Scene".  Sixth Tone. Retrieved  26 January  2022.

24. ^ Jolley, Ben (8 April 2021).  "MEET THE SPANISH HYPERPOP ARTISTS BRINGING THE '00S
BACK".  NYLON.

25. ^ Leight, Elias (6 August 2020).  "Alt TikTok Is Music's Latest Scene, and Straight TikTok
Has Noticed".  Rolling Stone. Retrieved  24 January  2022.

26. ^ Jump up to:a b c Abdel-Gawad, Minna.  "Alt Kids and Algorithms: How Hyperpop Has
Ascended on TikTok".  Ringtone Mag. Retrieved  30 March  2022.

27. ^ Yalcinkaya, Günseli (28 January 2022).  "Goodbye hyperpop: the rise and fall of the
internet's most hated 'genre'".  Dazed. Retrieved  22 May  2022.

28. ^ Jump up to:a b c d Bugara, Billy (20 April 2021).  "Digicore captures the angst of coming
of age during a global pandemic".  Vice. Retrieved  29 March  2022.

29. ^ Sundaresan, Mano (23 November 2021).  "dltzk: Frailty".  Pitchfork. Retrieved  18
December  2022.

30. ^ Sharples, Grant (8 December 2021).  "No Album Left Behind: dltzk's Frailty Is an
Electrifying Work of Unpredictability".  Paste. Retrieved  18 December  2022.

31. ^ Jump up to:a b Williams, Kyann-Sian (18 December 2020).  "The rise and rise of
hyperactive subgenre glitchcore".  NME. NME. Retrieved  30 March  2022.

32. ^ Jump up to:a b c Zhang, Cat (19 November 2020).  "Is Glitchcore a TikTok Aesthetic, a
New Microgenre, or the Latest Iteration of Glitch Art?".  Pitchfork. Pitchfork. Retrieved  30
March  2022.

33. ^ Press-Reynolds, Kieran.  "Gorgeous Glitches and Nightcored Melodies: The New
Generation of SoundCloud Music is Here".  Complex. Complex. Retrieved  30 March  2022.

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