American pop 995554 202347522 2008-03-31T18:17:35Z Addshore 642191 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/68.167.221.83|68.167.221.83]] ([[User talk:68.167.221.83|talk]]) to last version by NawlinWiki {{for|the film by Ralph Bakshi|American Pop}} '''American pop''' is a vague and nebulous term, applied generally to whatever form of music is most popular among mainstream [[United States|American]] [[adolescent|teenage]] audiences. Adolescents are an especially important [[audience]], both because of their relatively large amount of discretionary spending, and their fervent devotion to pop stars. Though the modern era of [[teen pop]] music is not usually said to have begun until the [[1960s|'60s]], there were important antecedents. [[Image:Vallee, Rudy.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Rudy Vallee]] Perhaps the first genre of teen pop was the [[swing (genre)|swing]] craze, which was an important dance style among teens across the nation in the early part of the 20th century. Later, a number of vocalists like [[Ella Fitzgerald]] and the [[Ink Spots]] became very popular, especially among the young. Though these performers are not generally considered teen pop singers, their success indicated that music that appealed to teens could be highly profitable. A number of Italian-American crooners soon found a major youth audience, including [[Dean Martin]], [[Rudy Vallee]], [[Tony Bennett]], [[Perry Como]], [[Frankie Laine]] and, most famously, the "first pop vocalist to engender hysteria among his fans" [[Frank Sinatra]]{{ref|Sinatra}}. The era of the modern teen pop star, however, began in the 1960s. [[Bubblegum pop]] groups like [[The Monkees]] were chosen entirely for their appearance and ability to sell records, with no regard to musical ability. Pop groups like these remained popular into the [[1970s|'70s]], producing family acts like the [[Partridge Family]] and [[The Osmonds]]. By the late [[1990s|'90s]], there were numerous varieties of [[Teen pop]] including [[Pop icon|Pop princesses]] like [[Britney Spears]], [[Christina Aguilera]], [[Mandy Moore]], [[Jessica Simpson]] and [[boy bands|Clean-cut boy bands]] like [[The Backstreet Boys]] and [[*NSYNC]] == References == * {{note|Garofalo}} {{cite book|author=Garofalo, Reebee|title=Rockin' Out: Popular Music in the USA|publisher=Allyn & Bacon|year=1997|id=ISBN 0-205-13703-2}} {{popmusic}} [[Category:American styles of music]] [[Category:Pop music]]