Dance-pop
Notable artists include Cher, Madonna, Britney Spears, Rick Astley, Kylie Minogue, Christina Aguilera, Spice Girls, Paula Abdul, Backstreet Boys, Michael Jackson, Mylène Farmer, NSYNC, Jennifer Lopez, Janet Jackson, Rihanna, Kim Wilde, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Dua Lipa, Years & Years, Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Ava Max, among others.
[6] As the primary songwriter on her self-titled debut album and a co-producer by her third record, Madonna's insistence on being involved in all creative aspects of her work was highly unusual for a female dance-pop vocalist at the time.
Other prominent dance-pop artists and groups of the 1980s included the Pet Shop Boys, Mel and Kim, Samantha Fox, Debbie Gibson, and Tiffany.
Dance-pop stars from the 1980s and 1990s such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Madonna, Janet Jackson and Kylie Minogue continued to achieve success at the beginning of the decade.
[8] Nevertheless, it was not until the mid-to-latter part of the decade when dance-pop music returned greatly to its disco roots; this can be seen with Madonna's album Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005), which borrowed strong influences from the genre, especially from 1970s artists and bands such as ABBA, Giorgio Moroder, the Bee Gees and Donna Summer.
Lady Gaga is frequently considered one of the pioneers of this evolution, notably with her singles "Just Dance" and "Poker Face" which were heavily influenced by synthpop and electropop.
Katy Perry's "Hot N Cold" (2008), "California Gurls" (2010), and "Firework" (2010), which were major commercial hits, also showcased influences of electropop and house music.
[12][13][14] American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift's albums Red (2012), 1989 (2014) and Reputation (2017) contain more of a pop-influenced sound, which features production by dance-pop record producers Max Martin and Shellback.
Ariana Grande's single "Problem" featuring Iggy Azalea was a big hit in 2014 and reached combined sales and track-equivalent streams of 9 million units worldwide the following year.
Hits like "Don't Start Now" and "Physical" channeled retro vibes while offering contemporary production, helping revive interest in the dance-pop genre.
[16][17] Lady Gaga also made a notable return to her dance-pop roots with the album Chromatica, which included collaborations with Ariana Grande ("Rain on Me") and BLACKPINK ("Sour Candy").
For instance, BTS's single "Dynamite" (2020) became a global hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100, showcasing how K-pop artists were successfully merging dance-pop elements into their music.
[20][21] Dua Lipa's follow-up album Radical Optimism (2024), featuring singles like "Training Season", "Houdini", and "Illusion", continued to push dance-pop boundaries by incorporating elements of house and disco while exploring themes of empowerment and growth.
