Select Highlights from the Q4 2017 Trend Report Compositional & Industry Trends for the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10
Hit Songs Deconstructed recently released its Q4 Quarterly Trend Brief, which details the compositional and industry trends for the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10. In Q4, there were 22 songs in the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10, three of which reached #1 during the quarter - Rockstar, Perfect and Bodak Yellow. After surpassing Pop for the first time in Q2 with 40% of the Top 10, Hip Hop/Rap decreased in prominence during the second-half of the year, accounting for 32% of songs in Q4. On the other hand, Pop, after dropping to its lowest level of prominence in years with 16% of songs in Q2, rebounded back up to 35% of songs in Q4, and once again surpassed Hip Hop/Rap. However, Hip Hop as an influence remained steady, shaping the sound and vibe of 77% of songs both within and outside of the Hip Hop/Rap primary genre. While men continued to dominate the Top 10 in Q4 with 41% of all songs featuring exclusively male lead vocals, this was down significantly from 70% in Q3. Male/female duet and group vocals, however, almost tripled in prominence from 13% in Q3 up to 36% in Q4. Minor keys continued to surge in prominence, and the popularity of claps/snaps held steady, being utilized in 82% of the Top 10, including hits such as Thunder, Too Good At Goodbyes and What Lovers Do, to name a few. Larger songwriting teams were still by far the most prominent, with songs featuring four or more credited writers accounting for 82% of Top 10 Hits in Q4. The following 22 songs charted in the Hot 100 Top 10 during the fourth quarter of 2017: 1-800-273-8255: Logic featuring Alessia Cara, Khalid All I Want For Christmas Is You: Mariah Carey Attention: Charlie Puth Bad At Love: Halsey Believer: Imagine Dragons Bodak Yellow: Cardi B Despacito: Daddy Yankee, Luis Fonsi featuring Justin Bieber Feel It Still: Portugal. The Man Gucci Gang: Lil Pump Havana: Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug Look What You Made Me Do: Taylor Swift Mi Gente: J Balvin, Willy William featuring Beyonce MotorSport: Cardi B, Nicki Minaj, Migos No Limit: G-Eazy featuring A$AP Rocky, Cardi B Perfect: Ed Sheeran featuring Beyonce Rake It Up: Yo Gotti featuring Nicki Minaj Rockstar: Post Malone featuring 21 Savage Sorry Not Sorry: Demi Lovato Thunder: Imagine Dragons Too Good At Goodbyes: Sam Smith Unforgettable: French Montana featuring Swae Lee What Lovers Do: Maroon 5 featuring SZA 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 2
What follows are select highlights pulled from our quarterly trend report. Compositional trends are for songs that charted in the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 during Q4-2017. Data and analytics for all findings (and more) are available in the Hit Songs Deconstructed IMMERSION Searchable Database. Most Popular Compositional Characteristics Primary Genre: Pop (36% of songs) Influence: Hip Hop/Rap (77% of songs) Lead Vocal Gender: Exclusively Male (41% of songs) Lead Vocal Delivery: Sung / Rapped (55% of songs) Lyrical Theme: Love/Relationships (50% of songs) Song Title Word Count: 1 Word (45% of songs) Song Title Appearances: 6-10 Times (27% of songs) Major vs. Minor: Minor (77% of songs) First Section: Intro (91% of songs) Intro Length Range: 0:01-0:09 (50% of songs) Last Section: Outro (73% of songs) Gone These characteristics did not appear in the Top 10 in Q42017 after appearing the preceding quarter. Primary Genres: Country, Dance/Club/Electronic Influences: Country Key: C Minor, D Major, F Major, F# Major Intro Length Range: 0:20-0:29 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 3
New These characteristics were new or returned to the Top 10 in Q4-2017 after not appearing the preceding quarter. Lyrical Theme: Holiday Influences: Holiday, Retro (1960s) Key: Ab Major, Bb Major, C Major, G Minor Tempo Range: 50-59, 110-119, 150-159 Instruments: Wind (Brass Section), Wind (Sax), Wind (Trumpet) Performing Artists 33 Credited Performing Artists Performing Artist with the most Top 10 hits: Cardi B, Imagine Dragons (2) Songwriters 97 Credited Songwriters Songwriter with the most Top 10 hits: Cardi B (2) Producers 40 Credited Producers Producer with the most Top 10 hits: Mike Will Made It (2) Record Labels 11 Record Labels Labels with the most Top 10 hits: Republic (5), Atlantic (4), and Interscope (4). Together they accounted for 59% of the Top 10. 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 4
About Hit Songs Deconstructed Hit Songs Deconstructed is your gateway to understanding today's mainstream music scene at the compositional level, providing you with of cutting-edge tools to stay in tune with current and emerging trends for today s hit songs. While there are those who perceive songwriting analytics as a threat to creativity, forward-thinking creatives and music industry professionals understand the importance of being in tune with songwriting trends and view it as a powerful tool that works hand-in-hand with the creative process. With subscribers spanning hit songwriters and producers, to major labels and publishers, to leading music schools and universities throughout the world, our proprietary data and analysis helps leading professionals hone their craft, spot trends, benchmark songs, and make strategic songwriting, production and business decisions armed with hit songwriting analytics. The Hit Songs Deconstructed platform includes: The IMMERSION searchable database: Updated weekly as songs enter the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10, this robust, fully interactive database houses proprietary data for the compositional characteristics of these songs, as well as related industry data for songwriters, artists, producers and record labels. The Quarterly Trend Report: Published quarterly, this report provides a concise, data-driven snapshot of Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 compositional and industry trends. The Hit Song Deconstructed Report: Leaving no stone unturned, this in-depth report provides unparalleled insight into the songwriting and production techniques used to craft a current chart-topping hit. To learn more about Hit Songs Deconstructed, visit www.hitsongsdeconstructed.com. To request a demo, please contact yael@hitsongsdeconstructed.com. 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 5