Today music indstry has become more and more reliant on data for sales, streams, downloads, engagement and other like metrics. Prepositional analytics are equally important. Led by Hit Songs Deconstructed Co-Founders Yael and David Penn, this presentation will focus on how prepositional data points extracted from hit songs can be strategically used to make songwriting and business decisions. Topics include quantifying gut feelings with factual data, creative approaches to benchmarking, spotting evolving trends, improving communication between executives and creatives, and more.

1. Hit SongMoneyball:
Using Compositional Data to Make
Strategic Decisions
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved.

2. Agenda
• Hot 100Top 10Trends&Characteristics (2013-2017+ Q1 2018)
• Overall Top10
• Seasonal Trends
• Identifyingand Capitalizing on Memes
• Creative Benchmarking: CryingInTheClub &Havana

3. About Hit Songs Deconstructed
Hit Songs Deconstructed is a tool to understand today's mainstream music scene
at the compositional level

4. 4
• Songwriters
• Producers
• Engineers
• Labels
• Publishers
• Universities, educators & students
throughout the world
Who uses Hit Songs Deconstructed?

5. Compositional analytics provide insight into the
current state of mainstream music at the compositional level.
• Leverage seasonal trends
• Select a single
• Choose the right featured artist
• Keep artists, writers and producers ahead of the curve, as the sounds shaping
today’s hits continuously evolve
• Weave emerging trends into the final mix just prior to a song’s release
• Improve communication by referencing factual compositional data
• Increase a song’s cross-over potential
• Evaluate new artists
© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 5

10. They complement craft, talent and tools being used by
songwriters, producers, A&Rs and other music industry professionals to
make strategic songwriting, production and business decisions.
Compositional analytics provide insight into the
current state of mainstream music at the compositional level.

11. Billboard Hot 100 Top 10

12. Primary Genres

13. Primary Genres
13© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Top 10: 2013 - 2017
46%
Hip Hop in Q1 2018
23%
Pop in Q1 2018

14. Primary Genres
14© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Top 10: 2013 - 2017
Q1 2018
R&B/Soul: 19%
Dance/Club/Electronic: 8%
Country: 4%
Rock: 0%
Latin: 0%

15. Influences

16. Influences: Hip Hop & Trap
16© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Top 10: 2013 - 2017
85%
Hip Hop in Q1 2018
69%
Trap in Q1 2018

17. Influences: R&B/Soul
17© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Top 10: 2013 - 2017
65%
Q1 2018

18. Influences: Electropop
18© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Top 10: 2013 - 2017
38%
Electropop Q1 2018

19. Influences: Retro
19© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(Top 10: 2013 - 2017)
19%
Q1 2018

20. Influences: Retro
20© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(Top 10: 2013 - 2017)

21. Influences: Tropical
21© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Top 10: 2013 - 2017
12%
Q1 2018

22. Influences: Top 10 Q1 2018
22© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
85% Hip Hop/Rap, 69% Trap, 65% R&B/Soul , 38% Electropop,
31% Dance/Club, 23% Rock, 19% Retro
Influence Types
13 Genres
4 Time Periods
3 Geographic Influences
21
Influences
Q1 2018

23. Seasonal Trends: Top 10
23© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Influences: Dance/Club Vs. Ballads

24. Lyrical Themes

25. Lyrical Themes: Top 10
25© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)

26. Lyrical Themes: Hip Hop
26© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)

27. Lyrical Themes: Hip Hop
27© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)

28. Lyrical Themes
28© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(Q1 2018)
11
Lyrical Themes
50%
Lifestyle

29. Seasonal Trends
29© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Lyrical Theme: Inspiration/Empowerment

30. Seasonal Trends: Top 10
30© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Lyrical Theme: Lifestyle

31. Lyrical Themes: Hooking Up
31© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Non Hip Hop Genres:
Peak in Q2
Hip Hop Genre:
Peak in Q4

32. Instruments

33. Top 5 Instruments
33© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)

34. Instruments
34© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Non Hip Hop Genres

35. Instruments
35© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Hip Hop

36. Instruments: Top 10
36© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Acoustic Piano

37. Tempo

38. Tempo
38© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)
87 BPM
Average Tempo in Q1
-80: 42%
80-109: 50%
110+: 8%

39. Tempo: Q1 2018
39© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Non Hip Hop Genre
Q1 Average: 97 BPM
Hip Hop Genre
Q1 Average: 77 BPM

40. Seasonal Trends
40© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Average Tempo (non-Hip Hop Genres)

41. Seasonal Trends: Top 10
41© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Average Song Length

42. Key

43. Major / Minor
43© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)
35%
Major in Q1 2018
65%
Minor in Q1 2018

44. Major / Minor
44© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Non Hip Hop Genre
57% Minor in Q1
Hip Hop Genre
75% Minor in Q1

45. Seasonal Trends: Non-Hip Hop
45© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Major vs. Minor

46. Key: Q1 2018
46© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Non Hip Hop Genre
Q1: C Major, C Minor, G Major:
14% of songs, each
Hip Hop Genre
A Minor: 33% of songs

47. Key
47© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
A Minor (No Hip Hop)
0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
14%
33%
0%
17%
32%
20%
7% 7% 7%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
Q3 2016 Q4 2016 Q1 2017 Q2 2017 Q3 2017 Q4 2017 Q1 2018
A Minor
Non-Hip Hop Genres Hip Hop

48. First Chorus Occurrence
48©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved.

49. First Chorus Occurrence
49© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)
-0:19 & 1:00+
On the rise
0:40 - 0:59
Most Popular in Q1

50. First Chorus Occurrence
50© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(Q1 2018)
31%
0:01-0:19
23%
0:20-0:39
23%
0:40-0:59
15%
1:00+
Three songs do not contain a chorus:
All I Want For Christmas Is You, Diplomatic Immunity, and DNA.

51. First Chorus Occurrence
51© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(Q2 2017 – Q1 2018)
0:39
0:24
0:17
0:23
0:57
0:45 0:45 0:45
Q2 2017 Q3 2017 Q4 2017 Q1 2018
Hip Hop vs. Non-Hip Hop Genres
Hip Hop/Rap Non-Hip Hop Genres

52. Lead Vocals

53. Lead Vocal Gender
53© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)
54%
Male Vocals
Q1 2018
27%
Male/Female Vocals
Q1 2018
19%
Female Vocals
Q1 2018

54. Seasonal Trends: Top 10
54© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Lead Vocal Gender

55. Single vs. Multiple Lead Vocalists
55© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)
54%
Q1 2018: Multiple
In Q1 2018 multiple lead
vocalists surpassed single
lead vocalists.

56. Single vs. Multiple Lead Vocalists
56© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Non Hip Hop Genre
Q1 2018 50% featured Multiple
Lead Vocalists
Hip Hop Genre
Q1 2018 58% featured Multiple
Lead Vocalists

57. Lead Vocal Delivery
57© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(2013 - 2017)
46%
Q1 2018:
Sung & Rapped
42%
Q1 2018
Only Sung
12%
Q1 2018
Only Rapped

58. Performing Artists

59. Single vs. Multiple Credited Artists
59© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(Q1 2018)
54%
Q1 2018
54% of the Top 10 had
multiple credited artists.
(Includes primary and featured artists.)
Q1

60. Featured Artists
60© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
(Q1 2018)
35%
Q1 2018

61. Featured Artist
61© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Non Hip Hop Genre
Q1 2018 50% had
a featured artist
Hip Hop Genre
Q1 2018 58% had
a featured artist

62. The Evolution of a Meme

63. Tropical Influence: Top 10
Reggae, Dancehall, TropHouse, Reggaeton andLatin
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 63

64. 64© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Entered the Top 10
Rude
Cheerleader
WhatDoUMean
WhereAreUNow,LockedAway
Sorry
Work
OneDance
TreatYouBetter,WeDon’tTalk
Anymore,Ride,Coldwater,
CheapThrills
Don’tWannaKnow,
LetMeLoveYou,SideToSide
ChainedtotheRhythm,Rockabye,
ShapeOfYou
Despacito,I'mtheOne
iSpy,Passionfruit
There'sNothingHoldingMeBack,
ReadyforIt,WildThoughts,Unforgettable
Havana
MiGente
SaySomething,NewRules
ILikeIt
#1 Hits
Top 10 Hits

65. Tropical Influences
65© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Rude
Cheerleader
WhereAreUNow
Sorry
Despacito
WildThoughts
MiGente
NewRules
Reggae
Trop House
Dancehall
Reggeaton
Latin
LockedAway
WhatDoUMean
Havana
#1 Hits
Top 10 Hits

66. Non-Tropical Influences
66© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Rude
WhatDoUMean
LockedAway,WhereAreUNow
Havana
MiGente
Reggae
Trap House
Dancehall
Reggeaton
Latin
Electropop
R&BPop/Rock
Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Pop Rock
Work
OneDance
TreatYouBetter,
WeDon’tTalkAnymore,
CheapThrills
Don’tWannaKnow
ShapeOfYou
iSpy
Unforgettable
ILikeIt
R&B
Hip Hop
Hip Hop
#1 Hits
Top 10 Hits

67. Instruments
67© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Rude
Cheerleader
WhatDoUMean
WhereAreUNow,LockedAway
Sorry
OneDance
TreatYouBetter,
WeDon’tTalkAnymore
Coldwater
SideToSide
Rockabye,
ShapeOfYou
Despacito,
There'sNothingHoldingMeBack
Havana
SaySomething
ILikeIt
Electric Guitar
Acoustic Piano
Synth
Accoustic
Guitar
Snaps
Mallets/ Mallet-esque
Electric Guitar
Electric
Guitar
Acoustic Piano
Accoustic
Guitar
Accoustic
Guitar
Snaps
CheapThrills
Don’tWannaKnow
LetMeLoveYou,
I'mtheOne
WildThoughts
#1 Hits
Top 10 Hits

68. Featured Artists
68© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
WHERE ARE YOU NOW
Skrillex featuring
Justin Bieber
WORK
Rihanna featuring
Drake
LET ME LOVE YOU
DJ Snake featuring
Justin Bieber
DON’T WANNA KNOW
Marron 5 featuring
Kendrick Lamar
CHAINED TO THE RHYTHM
Katie Perry featuring
Skip Marely
ROCKABYE
Clean Bandit featuring
Anne-Marie & Sean Paul
DESPACITO
Daddy Yankee, Luis Fonsi
featuring Justin Bieber
I’M THE ONE
DJ Khaled featuring Lil Wayne,
Chance The Rapper and Quavo
MI GENTE
J Balvin & Willy Wiliam
featuring Beyonce
LOCKED AWAY
R.City featuring
Adam Levine
CHEAP THRILLS
Sia featuring
Sean Paul
COLDWATER
Major Lazer featuring
Justin Bieber
WILD THOUGHTS
DJ Khaled featuring Bryson Tiller &
Rihanna
I LIKE IT
Cardi B
featuring Bad Bunny, J Balvin

69. Lead Vocal Gender
69© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved.
Rude
Cheerleader
WhereAreUNow,LockedAway,
WhatDoUMean
Sorry
Work
OneDance
CheapThrills,Ride,
Coldwater,TreatYouBetter,
WeDon’tTalkAnymore
LetMeLoveYou,SideTo
Side,Don’tWannaKnow
ShapeOfYou
Rockabye,ChainedtotheRhythm
iSpy,Passionfruit,
Despacito,I'mtheOne
WildThoughts,Unforgettable,
There'sNothingHoldingMeBack,
ReadyforIt
MiGente,
Havana
NewRules,SaySomething
ILikeIt
Solo Male
D/G
Female / Male
D/G Male
Solo Male
D/G Female
D/G
Female / Male
D/G
Female / Male
D/G
Female / Male
D/G Male D/G Male
D/G
Male
Solo
Female
Solo
Female
#1 Hits
Top 10 Hits

70. Lead Vocal Delivery
0
1
0 0 0
1
3
1
0
1
4
1 1 1 1
0
2
0
0
0
0 0 0
0
0
0 1 0
1
2 2
3 3
2 0
1
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Only Sung Sung / Rapped
© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 70

71. Key (Major vs. Minor)
© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 71

72. Maroon 5

73. Maroon 5:
Electric Guitar,Rock, Reggae & Police Influence & Gospel
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 73
● Gospel ● World (Tropical-Reggae)
Maps

74. Maroon 5:
Retro 1980’s, Funk & Disco
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 74
● Disco ● Funk ● Retro 80’s

75. Adam Levine:
Reggae &Dancehall
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 75
● World (Tropical-Dancehall) ● World (Tropical-Reggae)
LockedAway

76. Maroon 5:
Dancehall, TropHouse, Hip Hop
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 76
● Dancehall ● Trop House ● Hip Hop
Don’tWannaKnow

77. Maroon 5:
R&B
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 77
● R&B/Soul
WhatLoversDo

78. Maroon 5:
Snaps
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 78
● Snaps
WhatLoversDo

79. Benchmarking
Crying InTheClubvs.Havana

80. CryingInThe Clubwasreleased
inMay 2017(endofQ2)
Havana was releasedin
September2017(endofQ3)
Influences
Crying in the Club
Despacito
• #1 Hit (Q2)
• Genre: Latin
• 25 Weeks in
the Top 10
Wild Thoughts
• #2 Hit
• Genre: R&B/Soul
• 13 Weeks in the Top 10
Havana Enters
• #1 Hit
• Genre: Pop
• 23 Weeks in
the Top 10
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 80
● Electropop ● Dance/Club ● Dancehall ● Trop House ● Hip Hop ● Trap ● Dancehall ● Latin
CryingIn The Club vs. Havana

81. CryingInThe Clubwasreleased
inMay 2017(endofQ2)
Havana was releasedin
September2017(endofQ3)
Instruments
● Bass (Synth) ● Guitar (Electric) ● Mallets ● Synth (Non Bass) ● Bass (Synth) ● Claps (All) ● Piano (Acoustic) ● Wind (Brass Section) ● Wind (Trumpet)
Crying In The Club
Released
Havana
Released
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 81
CryingIn The Club vs. Havana

82. First Chorus
© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 82
● Chorus precedes First Verse ● Chorus does not precede First Verse
Crying In The Club vs. Havana

83. First Chorus
© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 83
● Chorus precedes First Verse ● Chorus does not precede First Verse
Crying In The Club vs. Havana

84. Vocal Delivery
© 2010-2018 Hit Songs Deconstructed. All rights reserved. 84
Crying In The Club
Sung
● Only Sung ● Sung / Rapped
Havana
Sung and
Rapped
Crying In The Club vs. Havana

85. Threesong title vocal hooks:
• Titlehook (3x chorus)
• Nonsense/titlehook (2x postchorus)
• Titlehook variation(2x VB3)
• Interpolatednonsensevocalhook
(Genie InA Bottle)
Hook Comparison
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 85
CryingIn The Club

86. Assorted vocal &instrumentalhooks:
• 75 “na’s”featuredindifferenthookpairings,includingthe title
• “Oou”melismashowsoff Cabello’s
vocalchops
• Trumpetreinforcesthe “oou”melismamelodyinafresh
manner
Hook Comparison
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 86
Havana

87. CryingInTheClub
• Darkvibeconflictswiththe tropicalinfluenceand
inspiration/ empowermentthemed lyrics
Crying In The Club vs. Havana: Prosody
Havana
• Latin&HipHopjibewiththe protagonist&antagonist
• Vocalseffectivelyaccentuatethelonging& hurtinthe
lyrics
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 87
CryingIn The Club vs. Havana

88. BennyBlanco & Sia aretwo of the co-writers
• BennyBlancoco-wroteMaroon5’s2016TropicalHit,Don’tWannaKnow(malletcommonalitywithCryingInThe
Club)
• Siaco-wroteher2016#1Tropicalhit,CheapThrills(many commonalitieswithCryingInTheClub)
Writing Team & Other Artist Commonalities
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 88
CryingIn The Club

89. CRYING CHEAP THRILLS
Influence Dance/Club x x
Influence Electropop x x
Influence Hip Hop x x
Influence R&B x x
Influence Tropical x x
Vocals Delivery Sung Vocals x x
Vocal Gender *Female (Part of F/M duet) x x
Vocal Style Both feature a similar vocal style x x
Key Key (F# Minor) x x
Instruments Mallets x Perc. Synth
Tempo 80-109 Tempo x x
Lyrics Partying/Living It Up x x
CryingIn The Club &Cheap Thrills Commonalities
Writing Team & Other Artist Commonalities
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 89

90. CryingInTheClub (Possible Issues)
• Intunewiththesoundof2016
• Similaritiesto Sia’sCheapThrills
• Compositionaltrendsindecline
• Malletsarebynowfamiliar(helpstoblendinbutnot
standout)
• Prosody issues
• Lackof uniquesoundinghooks
Summary
Havana (Strengths)
• Compositionaltrendsonthe rise
• Effectivefeaturedartist
• Blendin/standout throughinstrumentation
• Familiar/ uniquevocal& instrumentalhooks
• EnabledCabellotostandout from
thepack
• Natural&organic
©2010-2018 HitSongs Deconstructed. Allrightsreserved. 90
CryingIn The Club vs. Havana

91. What’s Driving the Billboard
Hot 100Top 10?