Where words fail, music speaks.
Hans Christian Andersen
This Danish author of fairy tales nailed it with that soundbite. Did you know that there are more than 690 musical styles around the world? From all that diversity, one musical style emerges as the most popular music genre in the world.
and description
Statistics reveal that pop has more listeners than rock'n'roll (57%) and electro (32%). But there's so much more to music than those three types. This article surveys the most listened music genres, and explores their top artists.
Most Popular Music Genres
- Pop music
- The poetry of hip-hop
- Techno - electro vibes
- Rock music, with its variations
- Classical music
- Jazz - in all its stylings
- Folklore music (folk music) and all its offshoots
📊Most Listened Music Genres - By the Numbers
As our topic is ranking music genres, we must approach the premise from a statistical perspective. It's not just us saying these beats rock - or jive.
Entire organisations exist for the sole purpose of measuring these things. You likely know some of their names: Billboard, Statista and others.
| 📶Streaming Service | 🥇Top Genre | 🥈Second favourite | 🥉Third choice |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spotify | Pop | Rap/Hip-hop | Rock |
| Amazon | Pop | Country | Rock |
| YouTube | Pop | Rap/Hip-hop | Latin |
| Apple Music | Rap/Hip-hop | Pop | Rock |
We rely on PrimeSound for our data. This group focuses exclusively on music statistics, and they present their findings from many perspectives.
| 🧬Gender | 🥇Top choice | 🥈Second favourite | 🥉Third best |
|---|---|---|---|
| Males | Rock | Rap/Hip-hop | Pop |
| Females | Pop | RnB/Soul | Rock |
Their variables include age, gender, region, and access points, such as streaming services. With this data in front of us, we can properly study the most popular music genres.
| 📆Age Group | 🥇First choice | 🥈Second choice | 🥉Third listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13-17 | Pop | Rap/Hip-hop | Electro-dance |
| 18-24 | Rap/Hip-hop | Pop | Electro-dance |
| 25-34 | Pop | Rock | Rap/Hip-hop |
| 35-44 | Rock | Pop | Country |
| 45-54 | Rock | Country | Pop |
| 55-64 | Rock | Country | Jazz |
| 65+ | Classical | Jazz | Rock |
👑Pop Music
Born in the 1960s in the Anglo-Saxon countries, pop music is short for popular music. Its objective is to make us dance. Madonna, who emerged in the 80s pop scene, remains one of the icons of pop music.
Recognising it is simple. Pop music is a mixture of rock and folk music. It draws its influences from different styles of music such as RnB, jazz, soul, techno and Latin music.
We crown Michael Jackson as The King of Pop for many reasons. His 1982 album, Thriller, remains the best-selling album of all time. His videos for songs Beat It and Thriller revolutionised the music video industry.
Pop's rhythms are moderate; they're meant for dancing. Lyrics revolve around love and relationships, but having fun is the overall theme. This style of music appeals because its themes are universal - Thriller aside, that is. These artists are the tops of this most popular music genre.
- Olivia Rodrigo
- Britney Spears
- Madonna
- Taylor Swift
- Peaches
- Prince
- Bruno Mars
- Ed Sheeran
- Ariana Grande
- Lady Gaga
- Dua Lipa
- Heat Waves
- Billie Eilish
- Kali Uchis
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Folk Music
This is genuine traditional music, which features in every culture. Folk offers an inspiring playground for acoustic instrument artists, and if forms the springboard to more complex music styles.
🏆Rock Music: The Most Popular Music Genre in the World
Across musical styles, rock unites all generations. Born in the 1940s in the United States, this genre is a symbol of cultural revolution.
Rock music takes its inspiration from blues, jazz and country music. Rock music reached its peak in the 1960s with artists like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and more.
And then, as inevitably happens, the genre fractured. Musicians' innovations gave rise to punk, hard rock, and metal - heavy, black, thrash and others. Today, we have indie rock, alternative rock, progressive rock and even country rock.
Though many artists laid the groundwork for this genre to go mainstream, Elvis Presley received the King of Rock crown. Elvis himself said that wasn't fair, as his contributions were minimal, and that Fats Domino should hold the crown.
list of artists
Country Music
We couldn't miss country music in our ranking. Very popular in the United States, it is, like rock music, a way of life.
This folk music takes us straight to a Werstern and reminds us of a modern cowboy's song! From beautiful, melodious walks to lively dances, country music has a lot of fans!
🥇Hip-Hop
Disenfranchised youths in New York's poorest sections found an outlet for their social outrage in this music genre. In part, their frustration was born from decades of other coloured artists trying to fit into the mainstream music scene.
The Rhythm-and-Blues genre of music - RnB, is a testament to those early efforts.
Born at the end of the 1970s in the Bronx in New York, hip-hop - or rap music, has roots in Jamaican, Latin, and African music styles.
Today, UK rap is the most listened to contemporary music in the UK. Still, American rap/hip-hop artists dominate the scene. This short list includes early pioneers, as well as today's popular artists.
- Public Enemy
- the Beastie Boys
- The Notorious B.I.G.
- Lil Nas X
- Doja Cat
- Polo G
- Cardi B
- Lil Tjay
- Saweetie
- Nicki Minaj
- Eminem
- Kanye West
- Rakim
- Snoop Dogg
- Tupac
- Drake
Soul Music
Soul music combines the vocal power of gospel with rhythmic blues and jazz. This music genre is the voice of the Black experience. We characterise it by its catchy beats, often punctuated with handclaps, and soaring vocals. Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, engaged in vocal duelling with her backup singers, in the 'call and response' style of soul.
- Smokey Robinson
- Wilson Pickett
- Ben E King
- Nina Simone
- Al Green
- Ray Charles
- Aretha Franklin
- Marvin Gaye
- Otis Redding
- Stevie Wonder
🎹Electronic Music
Even music lovers get confused about electronic music versus techno music. Both feature electric/electronic music, and enhanced instruments.
However, electro focuses on melodic accents, while techno is more beat driven. Those pounding rhythms make techno ideal for clubbing. Electro is more for the mind.
Electro first appeared in France, in the early 1970s. Jean-Michel Jarre helped pioneer the genre. His 1969 Pop Corn was an international hit.
Since then, technological innovation has taken electro music to new heights. This popular music genre draws on many influences. You won't need any singing lessons Glasgow to 'sing' electro, as any vocals are computerised. You can hear that variety in these top electro musicians' styles.
- Jean Michel Jarre
- Daft Punk
- Halsey
- Moby
- Marshmello
- Deadmau5
- Depeche Mode
- Skrillex
- Autechre
- Martin Garrix
🎻Classical Music
Arguably the greatest classical music composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, was a precocious and mischievous child. He did not grow out of those qualities.
Records show that he particularly enjoyed playing pranks and telling dirty jokes, particularly scatological ones. That just goes to show that being 'highbrow' doesn't equal maturity.
This timeless music genre is an integral part of the history of music. The love of classical music is universal, with devotees of all ages revelling in its complexity and humour. Why, you can fairly hear Mozart's delight while he plays this little piece.
Great composers such as Antonio Vivaldi and Johann Sebastian Bach marked the Baroque period, while Mozart and Beethoven are direct representatives of Classicism. Frédéric Chopin and Johannes Brahms are associated with the Romantic style.
🎷Jazz
Among the timeless music styles, jazz is a classic. It dates to the late 19th and early 20th centuries in African-American communities from different parts of the US.
Jazz has since diversified, and has established itself as one of the most popular musical genres. Today, jazz describes many styles.
Legend has it that traders, coming off the Mississippi River boats, would stop in New Orleans for a night on the town. The most amorous would hire a quartet to play lively music to mask the sound of their carnal pleasures. Thus, Dixieland-style music became known as 'music to jazz by'.
Edward Kennedy Ellington - "Duke" Ellington, is a jazz music legend. His musical style formed a bridge to other lively genres, such as swing and Big Band music. This expansion made room for Latin and Afro-Cuban influences. Today, musicians of all types play all variations of jazz.
- Jean-Luc Ponty - violin
- Louis Armstrong - trumpet
- John Coltrane - saxophone
- Miles Davis - trumpet
- Artie Shaw - clarinet
- Max Roach - drums
- Michel Petrucciani - piano
- Herbie Hancock - piano
- Buddy Rich - drums
- Stéphane Grappelli - violin
- Billie Holliday - vocals
- Benny Goodman - clarinet
- Gene Krupa - drums
- Charles Mingus - bass
- Thelonious Monk - piano
- Wayne Shorter - saxophone
Many emerging jazz artists benefit from local training; for example, taking singing lessons bristol can provide valuable insight into vocal performance.
World Music
Admittedly, this article focuses on western musical influences. That rather sells short the other parts of the world, each of which has its own musical styles. We don't discount Reggae, Salsa, Haitian music, or Flamenco as legitimate music styles. Unfortunately, they're not among the most popular music genres.
All these styles derive from ancestral cultures. To wit: Raï, which came from North Africa, and reggae, which came from Jamaica. Latin America and Africa have also seen the emergence of popular musical styles such as Afrobeat, ragga, Cuban music, Brazilian music and dancehall.
Finally, we mustn't forget music from Asian cultures. J-Pop (from Japan), C-Pop (China) and K-Pop (South Korea) are making the splash in Western music scenes. K-Pop, in particular, commands legions of fans - in BTS's case, literally The Army. These artists lead the 'letter-pop' music scene.
Which is your favourite music genre?
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