Pop music

Pop music
Stylistic origins	Traditional pop rock and roll folk
Cultural origins	1950s–60s, United Kingdom and United States
Subgenres
Art pop Brill Building bubblegum pop Cantopop Christian pop dance-pop electropop Europop J-pop K-pop Latin pop operatic pop progressive pop sophisti-pop synthpop space age pop sunshine pop teen pop
Fusion genres
Baroque pop country pop disco experimental pop indie pop jangle pop new wave pop punk pop-rap pop rock power pop psychedelic pop smooth jazz R&B wonky pop
Regional scenes
China India Indonesia Italy Japan Korea Malaysia Pakistan Philippines Russia Scandinavia Sweden Taiwan Thailand Turkey United Kingdom United States Vietnam
Other topics
Pop music automation poptimism rock music
2017 in pop music

Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form in the Western world as a softer alternative to rock and roll. The terms "popular music" and "pop music" are often used interchangeably, although the former describes all music that is popular and includes many styles. "Pop" and "rock" were synonymous terms until the late 1960s, when they were increasingly used in opposition from each other.

Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it is not the sum of all chart music. Pop music is eclectic, and often borrows elements from other styles such as urban, dance, rock, Latin, and country; nonetheless, there are core elements that define pop music. Identifying factors include generally short to medium-length songs written in a basic format (often the verse-chorus structure), as well as the common use of repeated choruses, melodic tunes, and hooks.

David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop music as "a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz, and folk musics". According to Pete Seeger, pop music is "professional music which draws upon both folk music and fine arts music". Although pop music is seen as just the singles charts, it is not the sum of all chart music. The music charts contain songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs. Pop music, as a genre, is seen as existing and developing separately. Thus "pop music" may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll. Musicologist Allan Moore surmises that the term "pop music" itself may have originated from Pop art. Additionally, it's important to note that pop music is always evolving, which means that the definition of pop music can change, too. It's also important to be cognizant of the distinction between pop music and popular music. According to The New Grove Dictionary Of Music and Musicians, popular music is defined as "the music since industrialization in the 1800's that is most in line with the tastes and interests of the urban middle class."

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