3 Secrets to a "Hit" Song.

One of the debates that music lovers of all levels often hold is "what it is good music?"
Its easy to reference Coletrane, Mick Jagger, Tito Puente, or Michael Jackson. The impact their music
had on our culture is felt decades later and they will remain, even if only as obscure samples in the hits of the future (sans Shakira, Pitbull, and Kanye West.)

The question is what exactly makes a song "good?" While this is a somewhat abstract question likened to that of comparing a Monet to a Picasso, we all know a bad song when we hear one.
But if bad songs are so transparent why do tracks like "All Gold Everything," "Baby (Bieber) and "Laffy Taffy" hold a stage at all in our mind?

The fact is that it is very difficult to single out what makes a single stand out. But we can probably agree on these three important traits:

• Catchy

• Simplicity

• Emotion

   Most of the songs we consider memorable, even the ones mentioned above have a catchy element to them. Whether its "popped a molley Im sweatin' wooooo" or "In a gadda-da-vita" certain elements make a song catchy. 
  
  
  Repetition works well in a lot of these cases because if the hook is catchy enough our own mind will repeat it when we are dazing off not even thinking about what we are repeating.
  In a lot of the latest hip hop songs the adlibs on the vocals are mere repetitions of what the main vocal is. This is likely for the same reason. It helps memorization, and we love to recite a song when we know the lyrics. Its a rewarding experience specially when we need to let go and enjoy a song.
  
  
  Simplicity is another piece of the puzzle which is often over looked. If I say Beethoven, then say: "tah-tah-tah-taaaaa!" you can fill in the rest. That's because the simplicity of this cadence when combined with repetition (which this classic masterpiece is a great example of) makes a piece easier to follow and swallow. 
  
  
  Emotion is the reason behind music, it is art, and art is meant to touch or convey emotion. Whether its the angst and anger that results from despair, in an environment of urban crime as evident in Trap Music. The ectasy and challenges of being in a passionate relationship with whom it seems is the only person that could ever fill that void, or the collage of percussion instruments swaying in between velvety horns as they move us on the dance floor. Without emotion music fails completely. 
  
  
  So while we may argue on what is good music and what it not, we can agree that we all experience different emotions, my mother used to say "para los gustos se hicieron los colores" colors were made for different tastes. This is more true in music than in anything else. We can all be glad that everyday we have even more choices on what to listen to, how to listen to it, and what to listen on. 
  
  
  And here some of the Greatest Songs of All Time, Enjoy: