The researchers analyzed Spotify streaming patterns for almost four million songs to determine whether listeners prefer different types of songs at different times of the day.
Heggli then offered up examples of the types of songs that perform well in each of these blocks. “Supreme” by Robbie Williams finds success in the morning due to its “slow” but “energetic” sound, Heggli shared with NPR. “Louder, faster songs ruled in the afternoon. Think ‘Only Girl (In The World)’ by Rihanna,” NPR shared as Americansongwriter reports.
There is, however, one type of song that transverses all five of these categories. That song is embodied by the track, “Every Breath You Take,” by The Police.
“It’s a very in-the-middle type of song,” Heggli said of the 1983 song. “It’s a medium tempo. It’s a bit groovy, but not too much groovy. It doesn’t have any loud surprises. And it’s all over just a very pleasant, perhaps even a bit bland song.”
Thus, in its splendid and wonderful mediocrity, “Every Breath You Take” is the type of song that entertains billions of listeners throughout the day. It might even be one of today’s most popular songs to stream.
Heggli concluded with some advice for musicians based on his team’s scientific findings. “You should really aim for something that’s more or less in the middle of the pack. Something that’s not too high in tempo but also not too low, and something that’s danceable but maybe not too danceable, either,” he said.
You can read The Royal Society’s full report here .
Sting: AI’s songwriting: “It’s soul work, and machines don’t have souls”
Asked if he thinks computers are capable of making good songs in a new interview with Music Week, Sting replied, “The analogy for me is watching a movie with CGI."
"I tend to be bored very quickly, because I know the actors can’t see the monster. So I really feel the same way about AI being able to compose songs.”
“Basically, it’s an algorithm and it has a massive amount of information, but it would lack just that human spark, that imperfection, if you like, that makes it unique to any artist, so I don’t really fear it. A lot of music could be created by AI quite efficiently,” he added. “I think electronic dance music can still be very effective without involving humans at all. But songwriting is very personal. It’s soul work, and machines don’t have souls. Not yet anyway…”
Elsewhere in the chat, the musician also offered his thoughts on Ed Sheeran’s recent Thinking Out Loud copyright case, saying “No one can claim a set of chords. No one can say, ‘Oh that’s my set of chords.
“So that was the truth, musicians steal from each other – we always have. I don’t know who can claim to own a rhythm or a set of chords at all, it’s virtually impossible.”
