Category: Megastars

Posted on

 The perfect song

From now on, every blog post will be accompanied by a video podcast. The podcast provides an introduction, whilst the blogpost explores the topic in greater detail. The podcast is in Dutch, but YouTube takes care for a translation on demand.  If you like, you can also watch the podcast on your TV. Simply select YouTube and search for ‘kanaal expeditie muziek’.

Every singer dreams of one day writing the song that will bring eternal fame. That rarely happens, and even ‘perfect songs’ remain on the shelf due to a lack of recognition. That won’t happen to establish artists. Their record labels surrounded with professional teams who know exactly how to write and sell a smash hit. How? That was the subject of some older post, which you can read here.

Meanwhile, the search for the perfect song continues, and in this post I’ll venture a description of what such a song looks like. Of course, there is no such thing as ‘the one and only’ perfect song. The listener’s taste, mood and cultural background play a significant role in how songs are appreciated. The song’s intention (telling a story, making a statement) and the genre, which is intended to be either upbeat, reflective or sad, also has an influence. Yet, some songs are better constructed than others.

How the song ultimately sounds is the result of the way in which you, as a lyricist, composer or producer, turn a series of ‘virtual controls’ and fine-tune them in relation to one another. I’ll mention a few of these knobs:

– rhythm 

– metre 

– tempo 

– volume 

– timbre

– key 

– chord progression 

You’ll also need to consider:

– the structure of the song 

– the arrangement

– and, of course, the theme

– the lyrics

– and finally the purpose of the song

The happiest song

Annaliese Micallef Grimaud has conducted research into the link between the settings of these ‘controls’ and the resulting listening experience. Suppose you want to make your listeners happy.  She found that this works best if you opt for a medium-fast tempo, a mix of short and longer notes, high volume, a major key, a high-pitched vocal with staccato articulation and clear tones. The conclusion was that Pharrell’s song ‘Happy’ is a serious contender for the title of ‘happiest song ever’. Listen to it here:

To write the ‘perfect song’, you need to have gained a great deal of experience. Much has been written on this subject, and I’ll give you a point-by-point summary of it. Whether a song is perfect usually only becomes apparent once it has maintained its popularity for years.

The key considerations when writing a (‘perfect’) song are: melody, harmony, rhythm & form, and lyrics. I’ll go through them and give an example of each.

Melody

Guidelines

– Predominantly small steps within the scale enhance the sense of familiarity

– One or two melodic ‘hooks’ (characteristic combinations of notes for the song).

– A recognisable build-up towards the chorus.

– Easy to hum along to, partly due to the repetition of combinations of notes. 

– Absence of trendy stylistic devices. Here, recognisability comes at the expense of originality.

– Powerful lyrics with an emotional ‘charge’.

By way of illustration

The melody of the song ‘God Only Knows’ by the Beach Boys (written by Brian Wilson) is certainly not simple. The chords at the beginning introduce the ‘hook’ (‘God Only Knows’) and make the song recognisable after just a few bars.

The almost Bach-like composition is accompanied by classical instrumentation featuring strings, harpsichord, horns and woodwinds, which perfectly complement the lyrics.  Paul McCartney called the song the best love song ever written.

Harmony

Guidelines

– Familiar chords with no more than two surprising dissonances.

– A pleasant timbre.

– Captivating combinations of sounds achieved through restrained instrumentation.

– Occasional changes in key and time signature.

– Modulation (shifting up or down the scale).

To illustrate 

‘Let it be’ by the Beatles is carried by a unique and instantly recognisable combination of chords. After a short introduction, the melody gradually swells, but by then everyone can already sing along to the chorus. The simple lyrics constantly feature the mantra-like phrase ‘Let it be’, with the emphasis on ‘Let’ and ‘be’. Lyrics and melody complement each other.

Rhythm and form

Points to note

– Surprising, appropriate, yet sparingly used changes in rhythm, tempo and style.

– Contrast between sections (verse and chorus).

– Melodic and lyrical ‘hook’ within 30 seconds.

– Dynamics: build-up to a climax.

– No longer than necessary.

By way of illustration

Aretha Franklin’s ‘Say A Little Prayer’, much like ‘God Only Knows’, elevates love to an almost religious sentiment. The lyrics draw on the daily life of a working woman and illustrate how thoughts of a loved one arise at every moment of the day. The gospel-inspired character of the song is carried by a clear melody. The ‘call-and-response’ vocals of the backing singers reinforce the contrast between verse and chorus. A few subtle changes in metre are also noticeable here.

Lyrics

Notes

– Simple lyrics with a deeper meaning (suggestive, not banal).

– A widely recognisable theme (love, fear, joy) with a personal touch.

– Singable: vowels on long notes, no tongue-twisters, stress patterns as in spoken language,

– Short phrases, no subordinate clauses or superfluous words.

– Strong ‘hook phrase’ (a phrase that recurs and sticks in the mind (‘Let it be…’).

– The style of singing emphasises the lyrics and the singer’s personal connection to the content.

– The lyrics and melody give the impression of having been created simultaneously and of naturally complementing one another.

By way of illustration

In ‘Ne me quitte pas’, Jacques Brel imbues simple lyrics with emotional depth. As a French-language chanson, the song is primarily literary; it feels more like theatre than song. But it is precisely then that it becomes clear how the melody perfectly supports the lyrics. Not a single word is superfluous, and the constant repetition of the ‘hook phrase’ (Ne me quitte pas) intensifies the emotion. The chorus is a climax; everyone knows it, but no one will sing along. 

Setting existing lyrics to music rarely results in a perfect song, unless the musical accompaniment is subordinate to the lyrics. Ideally, the lyrics and music should give the impression of having been created together, although in practice both will have been carefully crafted over time. This also applies to the song’s structure and its instrumentation (sound palette).

The ambition of many songwriters, however, goes beyond writing a perfect song. They seek recognition as artists, following the example set in the 1960s by the Beatles, the Beach Boys and Bob Dylan, amongst others. In the next post, I will explore what the pursuit of ‘art’ adds to that of perfection.

Posted on

Beyoncé: Megastars of pop music in the early 21st century

In a previous episode, I described how skillful producers are betting that new songs will achieve high sales. At the time, I used songs by Beyoncé and Rihanna as examples. In separate posts, starting with this one, I will pay attention to both mega-stars. The story about the development of prog rock will continue in the next post.

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter is born in Houston, Texas, in 1981. Her name is an homage to her mother’s birth name (Tina Beyincé Carter). She owned a hair salon, and her father was a sales manager at Xerox. As a child, Beyoncé was a steady participant in singing and dancing competitions. At her 7the, she won a talent contest with John Lennon’s song Imagine. She pursued a musical education. Due to the requirements of her fast-developing career, she did not finish it. 

From the age of eight, she attempts to become known on the girl groups circuit. Her father quit his job to become a full-time manager, bringing the family to the brink of poverty. At her 15th, success glimmered when the group signed a contract with Columbia Records, resulting in the first album ‘No, no, no’, The group was called Destiny’s Child from then on, inspired by the Bible book Isaiah. Large success came in 1999 with the group’s second album ‘Writings on the wall’, and with the third album ‘Survivor’ that followed a year later.  

Listen to the song ‘Say my name’ from the second album

In the meantime, Beyoncé struggled with severe depression. In varying line-ups, the group would go on to become the best-selling girl group ever. Beyoncé was the brains behind the music and choreography.  The group went on a lengthy successful world tour. After slowing down and producing another album, the group broke up amicably. 

Before Destiny’s Child ceased to exist, Beyoncé released a solo album “Dangerously in love”.  It sold 11 million copies, and she received 5 Grammy Awards for it, the highest accolade in music.

From her debut album, you can see the best-selling single here. The recording also captures the large-scale set-up of her shows, which would continue to grow with each subsequent tour. Today, she is considered one of the best entertainers, surrounded by extremely costly and sophisticated choreography, for which the world’s best dancers are hired. So far, only Taylor Swift has caught up with her on this.

The second solo album followed in 2006. The third ‘I am… Sacha Fierce’ (2008) consists of two parts.  In the first part, she is herself; in the second part, she ‘plays’ ‘Sacha Fierce’, her ‘alter ego’.  The first part contains more quiet songs, while the second reveals more dance influences.  This album added eight Grammys to her collection.

Now, you can listen to the ‘quiet’ Halo, not a live performance, but a music video. A halo is an attribute, with which statues of saints were generously provided. 

From the album ‘4’ (2011) Beyoncé’s lucky number, you can listen here to ‘(Girls) run the world’, performed on the 25th anniversary of the Opray Winfrey show, also her last one. 

Each new album received more rave reviews from public, press and music critics.  This was especially true of album six, ‘Lemonade’, the best album of the entire decade because of the music, but also the cocktail of styles. The album is a modern form of R&B primarily, but it has also components of reggae, blues, rock, hip-hop, soul, funk, americana, country, gospel, electronics and rap. It also contained frank lyrics, for example about her husband’s infidelity. Beyoncé calls herself a “modern-day feminist” and many of her songs are about love, relationships, female sexuality and independence.

With music mainly from this album, she toured all major stadiums around the world from 2016, the ‘Formation tour’, named after one of the songs from the album ‘Lemonade’. Here the song ‘Formation’. On 16 July 2016, she performed at the Amsterdam Arena.

Her seventh album, ‘Renaissance’ (2022) was also particularly well received, and it is the basis for the world tour Beyoncé just finished. The song that you can listen to now is ‘Break my Soul’ and was filmed at the London performance of the show in June 2023. Electronic dance music dominates. More than 80 performances of this mega-show were scheduled. The cheapest tickets in London cost around €250; in Toronto, you could go for €100 less.

Even before the tour is over, Beyoncé has achieved just about everything imaginable musically before Taylor Swift took over.  Never has an artist has earned 28 ‘Grammys’.  She has now sold 200 million albums (physical and digital), which can be added to the 60 million together with Destiny’s Child. Leading magazines like Billboard and Time name her as the best female artist of the 21stecentury. She is on the list of the 100 most influential people in the world. Beyoncé’s nickname is ‘bee queen’ and her fans are called the bee-hive.

Finally, some details about the context of her life. Beyoncé married (also) world-famous rapper Jay-Z on 4 April 2008. Here, the couple is pictured together. They have a daughter aged 11 (Blue Ivy) and twins born in 2017 (Rumy and Sir).

Beyoncé was the face of her own fashion line, House of Deréon, which she set up with her mother in 2006: ‘Where sidewalk and catwalk meet’.  Their clothes were wildly popular among fans, but sales declined eventually due to a lack of innovative momentum.  The line was discontinued in 2012, partly after a fuss about overly sexy clothes for young girls. It has been revived in 2020 in connection with the then upcoming world tour. Later Beyoncé launched a swimwear line with Adidas. Now she is working in partnership with Balmain. Several perfumes have been named after her. Beyoncé has further appeared in numerous films, such as Pink Panther. Her voice is also heard in Lion King (Nala).

According to US business magazine Forbes, Beyoncé’s wealth is about $540 million. She has earned most of it from her singing, but the clothing line and her long-term association with Pepsi, for which she received $50 million, also contribute. From the ongoing world tour, whose gross proceeds are estimated at $2 billion, she is also sure to make several hundred millions.

It wasn’t just making money that rang the bell. Beyoncé also collaborates on campaigns to encourage schoolchildren to exercise. A nice clip to illustrate.

Beyoncé’s fortune stands in the shadow of that of her husband, rapper Jay-Z, whose name is derived from the two underground lines (J and Z) that run through Brooklyn. He grew up in one of Brooklyn’s most dangerous neighbourhoods, repeatedly got into trouble with the police but managed to break away from the criminal milieu and became a successful musician and businessman. Unlike Beyoncé, he owes his fortune mainly to successful business activities; besides his own record label (Roc-A-Fella), he invests in beauty products and in expensive champagne and cognac brands. He owns his own film company and finally, he owns a large collection of works by Jean-Michel Basquiat. Forbes estimates his wealth at over $2.5 billion. This makes him the richest hip-hop artist in the world, falling just short of the 1,000 richest people in the world (place 1208). In June 2023 Jay-Z and Beyoncé bought the most expensive house ever sold ($200 million) in the state of California.