Usher, Ke$ha And More Help Dance Music Go Pop In 2010

But is it here to stay? Our music-industry experts weigh in.
By Akshay Bhansali


Ke$ha
Photo: Andreas Rentz/ Getty Images

In 2010, pop princesses, R&B icons and chart-dominating newcomers all danced to the same beat. Not only did dance music go pop, but pop music caught the club-music bug.

Between Katy Perry's "Firework," Ke$ha's "We R Who We R," Rihanna's "Only Girl (In the World)," Enrique Iglesias' "I Like It," Usher's "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" and "OMG" and countless other singles, established artists definitely looked to dance beats for surefire hits. And two of this year's biggest success stories in music were Jason Derülo and Taio Cruz; could there be a soul left in this country who hasn't heard "Dynamite" or "In My Head"?

The love went both ways, with dance music's biggest stars finding mainstream success this year. Dance-music maestro deadmau5 took up house-artist duties at this year's VMAs, and Swedish House Mafia and Usher teamed up for a medley of their gems at the American Music Awards.

So how did this happen? We caught up with some music-industry experts to get their takes.

"You definitely saw tempos go up this year," Jon Caramanica of The New York Times told MTV News. "And I think what you had are a lot of producers who are really familiar with nightclub stuff. They are familiar with Europe. Things are happening on a more global scale now."

"I think everything from Europe, and sometimes even Asia, it comes to America, and we just adopt things a little bit slower," said Jared Eng of JustJared.com. "I think it was just a change. People like different types of music at different times. And dance was of this moment."

Noah Callahan of Complex magazine added: "I think 2010 saw the merging of the pop and dance genres. Pop artists realized that there were best practices that could be borrowed from dance music. And, ultimately, [all] pop music that has been made in the past 20 years had ended up being remixed for the club by dance artists. I think they basically just cut out the middleman and went straight there."

Dance music being introduced into the hip-hop and R&B realms was particularly notable this year.

"I think David Guetta kind of at the end of last year and the beginning of this year spearheaded it," said freelance writer Julianne Escobedo Shepherd. "He produced a lot of tracks. I think as trends go, people revile 'unst-unst.' But it's just coming back around. Big-room techno was a way for people to get decadent in a year that no one could get decadent."

"You have someone like will.i.am, who's like, 'Well, I spent all this time in Ibiza, and this is what they are doing,' and he wants to find a way to bring that into his music," Caramanica said of the Black Eyed Peas mastermind. "R&B especially became dance music. And especially with your Jason Derülos, Taio Cruzes. Guys like that would have literally been blocked at the border two years ago. That would not have made it through customs. And now all of a sudden they have #1 songs. I think will.i.am had a lot to do with that last year."

Elliott Wilson of RapRadar.com added: "It's actually even affected hip-hop. I was talking to Q-Tip, and his next record, I feel like that's gonna kind of go in that vein. I know that was also Jay-Z's thought process with Blueprint 3 at first, that he wanted to make a little bit more of a world music [vibe], a little more dancey. I think the kids today want to go to the clubs. They wanna have a good time. They wanna dance. So I think the artists of today are trying to kind of feed that audience."

"I think it's caught on this year because the people who've done it have been successful," offered Clover Hope of Vibe magazine. "Like 'OMG,' with usher, he didn't have success until he made a dance record. He had 'There Goes My Baby' and these really, like, adult-contemporary records that didn't really catch on. And then once you see that everybody is doing it and that people are liking it, they are like, 'OK, let me just try this out.' It's like Auto-Tune. Like, 'Let me see what I sound like on a record by David Guetta.' They end up liking it and doing more of it."

So does the club-music trend have staying power. According to our tastemakers, not so much.

"I do think it's a blip," Caramanica said. "I don't think that's gonna be something that lasts in America. I think this is gonna be a moment we'll all look back on and go, 'Wasn't that weird when Jason Derülo and Taio Cruz had #1 records?"

"At some point, these R&B artists will get kind of sick of it and be like, 'Let me go back to my soul background,' " Hope said. "When you actually have to say something, dance doesn't really lend itself to substance. And I think that R&B artists, they really want to talk about love and in a deep way, and to do that, you need to do, like, a soul or a traditional R&B record. I want to say that it's kind of a fad."

"I think music is very cyclical," Eng offered. "So I think dance music might be here for a little bit, but I'm sure it will phase out at some point."

Wilson called dance music "the sound of today. I think that people want more aggressive, faster beats, and I think that that probably has legs until at least next summer."

What do you think? Is dance music here to stay? Let us know in the comments!

Related Videos Related Artists

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1655031/usher-keha-more-help-dance-music-go-pop-2010.jhtml

Emma Watson Emmanuelle Chriqui Emmanuelle Vaugier Emmy Rossum Erica Leerhsen Erika Christensen Estella Warren Esther Cañadas Eva Green Eva Longoria Eva Mendes Evangeline Lilly Eve Fergie Foxy Brown

Jennifer Aniston & Jason Theroux: Secretly Dating?

Ready to dive back into the world of dating after a two year hiatus, Jennifer Aniston is reportedly secretly seeing Justin Theroux.

The much-talked about twosome started out as friends, first hanging out on the set of their yet-to-be released comedy "Wanderdust."

A source close to the blossoming relationship told Us magazine, "Jen is totally into him. They have been hanging out for months."

The Aniston insider furthered the point that this is the real deal, dishing, "She wants to be with him all the time. She's diving in headfirst."

Source: http://celebrity-gossip.net/jennifer-aniston/jennifer-aniston-jason-theroux-secretly-dating-509057

Danica Patrick Daniella Alonso Danneel Harris Deanna Russo Denise Richards Desiree Dymond Diane Kruger Dido Diora Baird Dita Von Teese Dominique Swain Donna Feldman Drea de Matteo Drew Barrymore Ehrinn Cummings

Video: Oprah Bids Farewell After 25 Years

Today was the end of an era, with The Oprah Winfrey Show coming to a close after 25 years on air. Oprah bid farewell to her audience in her typically classy way - check out Oprah Winfrey's graceful and understated goodbye.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/popsugar/~3/pUo43rkW7tY/Oprah-Winfreys-Last-Episode-17159694

Amber Heard Amber Valletta America Ferrera Amerie Amy Cobb Amy Smart Ana Beatriz Barros Ana Hickmann Ana Ivanovi Ana Paula Lemes Ananda Lewis Angela Marcello Angelina Jolie Anna Faris Anna Friel

Justin Bieber?s New Family Guy Chain

Teen superstar Justin Bieber has indulged in his love of hit cartoon Family Guy – he’s spent $25,000 on a custom-made diamond necklace featuring his favorite character. The singer commissioned Los Angeles jeweller-to-the-stars Jason Arasheben to help create the 14-carat gold pendant in the shape of baby Stewie, using over 12 carats of white diamonds [...]

Source: http://www.celebritymound.com/justin-biebers-new-family-guy-chain/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=justin-biebers-new-family-guy-chain

FSU Cowgirls Gabrielle Union Garcelle Beauvais Genelle Frenoy Georgianna Robertson Georgina Grenville Gina Carano Gina Gershon Gina Philips Gisele Bündchen Giuliana DePandi Giulianna Ramirez Grace Park Gretha Cavazzoni Gwen Stefani

Photos | 'Michael Jackson's This Is It' Premieres In Los Angeles

Engaged Celebs: They Put a Ring on It!

Celebrity Photos: Elsa Pataky And Ashley Judd

‘Fast Five‘ actress Elsa Pataky was in Madrid to present a check to the Sandra Ibarra Solidarity Foundation against Cancer and the Cancer Research Foundation Ferro at ABC Museum. Did you see ‘Fast Five’ yet? What’d you think of Elsa’s … Continue reading

Source: http://www.imnotobsessed.com/2011/05/25/celebrity-photos-elsa-pataky-and-ashley-judd/

Ivanka Trump Izabella Miko Izabella Scorupco Jaime King Jaime Pressly Jamie Chung Jamie Gunns Jamie Lynn Sigler Janet Jackson January Jones Jennie Finch Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Gareis Jennifer Garner Jennifer Gimenez

Eva Longoria Promotes Her New Cookbook

Eva Longoria is keeping herself busy during her break from filming “Desperate Housewives”. The actress was out promoting her new cookbook today in L.A. Eva signed copies of the book, ‘Eva’s Kitchen‘ during an appearance at the Williams Sonoma store. … Continue reading

Source: http://www.imnotobsessed.com/2011/05/06/eva-longoria-promotes-her-new-cookbook-evas-kitchen-williams-sonoma/

Anna Paquin AnnaLynne McCord Anne Marie Kortright April Scott Arielle Kebbel Ashanti Ashlee Simpson Ashley Greene Ashley Olsen Ashley Scott Ashley Tappin Ashley Tisdale Asia Argento Aubrey ODay Audrina Patridge

Links for 2007-11-23 [del.icio.us]

  • Hayden Panettiere is GQ’s Obsession of the Year
    Heroes star Hayden Panettiere has been named Obsession of the Year in a recent issue of GQ. The teen celebrity is photographed by Ellen Von Unwerth. She is adorable in the photos and actually now that she?s eighteen, it?s okay to look at her ?in tha

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/stupidcelebrities/~3/PeI3VWpFJ64/blacke30

Cheryl Burke China Chow Chloë Sevigny Christina Aguilera Christina Applegate Christina DaRe Christina Milian Christina Ricci Chyler Leigh Ciara Cindy Crawford Cindy Taylor Cinthia Moura Claudette Ortiz Coco Lee