Whoop

This Researcher Accidentally Discovered the New ‘Millennial Whoop’ of Pop Music: The Gen Alpha Melody

· By Endurance Wire

Get unlimited access to everything VICE has to offer. Musicologist Carl E. Martin may have just identified the next generational music trend. In t he 2010s, it was the Millennial Whoop , the “wa-oh-wa-oh” sequence in songs like Carly Rae Jepsen and Owl City’s “Good Time” or Katy Perry’s “California Gurls”. But the latest iteration is a little more involved, and even more widespread. The whole thing started when Martin was doing research for his thesis on the music of Nordic films. Somehow, he stumbled upon this repeated melody in modern pop music. It shows up across genres, styles, and languages as well, with lyrics or strictly instrumental.

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