Hyperpop

Hyperpop is an electronic music trend and microgenre that emerged in the United Kingdom in the 2010s. The maximalist or exaggerated approach to popular music distinguishes this microgenre. Artists within this genre often incorporate pop and avant-garde elements while drawing inspiration from electronic, hip-hop, and dance music.

Origin of Hyperpop

Writer Don Shewey initially introduced the word "hyperpop"  in an article published in October 1988. In the article, he discussed the Scottish dream pop band Cocteau Twins. Shewey observed that throughout the 1980s, England fostered the concurrent emergence of both "hyperpop" and "antipop" as cultural phenomena. According to Complex, the beginnings of hyperpop are intricate and ambiguous, as is frequently the case with internet-born phenomena. 21 The term "Hyperpop" occasionally referred to a genre within the nightcore music movement on SoundCloud.

Spotify analyst Glenn McDonald initially affiliated this microgenre with the UK-based label PC Music in 2014. However, McDonald posited that the designation did not meet the criteria of a microgenre until 2018. According to Pritchard, multiple precursors existed to the genre. Those lead some individuals to perceive the territory explored by hyperpop as lacking novelty. The author referenced examples of 2000s nu-rave, such as Test Icicles. He also mentioned contemporary musicians Rustie and Hudson Mohawke, who were associated with the PC Music movement. The author observed that these artists pursued similar techniques, particularly noting that Rustie and Hudson Mohawke's fusion of trance-infused elements from dance and hip-hop genres resembles the hyperpop genre prevalent in contemporary music.

Notable Releases

The hyperpop duo - 100 gecs' first album, "1000 gecs," was published in May 2019, garnering a substantial number of streams on various streaming platforms and contributing to solidifying the hyperpop genre. Spotify also launched a "Hyperpop" playlist in August 2019 to solidify the microgenre. The playlist included guest curation from prominent artists such as 100 Gecs. The playlist also encompassed a selection of additional musicians, including Slayyyter, Cook, Caroline Polachek, Gupi, Hannah Diamond, and Kim Petras. The microgenre experienced an increase in popularity in 2020, primarily due to the Spotify playlist and its popularity among younger audiences on various social media platforms, notably TikTok. This trend was particularly prominent among the 'alt TikTok' community, which represents a significant countercultural movement on the application.

Hyperpop usually has an amplified, diverse, and self-referential methodology towards popular music, often incorporating bold synthetic melodies, Auto-Tuned vocals that are catchy and memorable, and abundant compression and distortion. Additionally, it frequently contains surrealistic or nostalgic allusions to Internet culture from the 2000s and the era of Web 2.0. Prominent characteristics encompass extensively processed vocals, metallic and melodic percussive elements, memorable refrains, short durations of songs, and the juxtaposition of "shiny, cutesy aesthetics" with lyrics expressing profound emotional distress.

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