(via Shutterstock)
We all feel some sense of ownership with the music we listen to.
Pop by its very definition is a shared, expansive group thing but it’s also something special and wonderful and unique that speaks to us and us alone in a way that’s all ours and no one else’s and these five artists get that and deliver up songs that capture collective attention while letting us make them our own.
That’s kind of special but just how special will become clear when you listen to these songs, soak them up and weave them into your life in a way that makes sense to you and which affects you and you along in ways that make your time on earth just that bit more enjoyable.
“Les Gens Qui Dansent (j’adore)” by Sam Sauvage
(courtesy official Sam Sauvage Facebook page)
When you listen to a pop track, there’s often a sense that it’s not just you who’s in on the listening immediacy of brilliantly infectious music and catchy lyrics; that, by the very nature of the abbreviated genre (“pop”, of course, equalling “popular”), you and tens of thousands, if not millions, of your closest music-loving peers have discovered something quite remarkable that is yours and yours alone.
That’s not true, naturally, but an artist like French artist Sam Sauvage (aka Hugo Brebion), who, according to the wonderfully named site, What the France, is “singer-songwriter who blends French chanson, pop, and rock with poetic and effortlessly cool lyrics”, make you feel, with songs like the propulsively entertaining “Les Gens Qui Dansent (j’adore)” (“People Who Dance (I love it)”), that their music is your special patch of musical escapism and thoughtful fun.
The clip, which accompanies the song off Sauvage’s May 2025 self-titled EP, bolsters that sense of sharing something with lots of people which is still very much yours, showing the artist out on the streets of what you presume is Paris dancing up a storm with members of the public who are having a ball.
Or experiencing a lot at this rather floral but accurate summation of the artist’s work enthuses:
Sam Sauvage’s ability to elicit a wide spectrum of emotions in his works demonstrates his musical talent. His music touches audiences emotionally and leaves an enduring imprint on their hearts, whether they are experiencing the deepest levels of sadness or the highest levels of ecstasy. Sam forges a deep bond between the listener and the music by leading us on a journey of self-discovery and introspection with each note he plays. (Viberate)
So, you get music, an emotional impact and a deep bond between you and his highly listenable music and really what more could you want?
“Shy Girl” by Haute & Freddy
(courtesy Wasserman, official booking agency for Haute & Freddy)
You know those tracks that impress upon you in the opening bars that here is something special about to happily invade your listening space?
They maybe have one-of-a-kind vocals or lyrics that suggest something cool or thoughtfully interesting is on the way or a sense of pop coolness that gives you goosebumps or, as in the case of Haute & Freddy, the musical creation of Michelle Buzz and Lance Shipp, they have all those things and more.
Bringing an evident love of “theatre [sic], obscure synths and underground club culture” to their very unique pop table, Haute & Freddy’s song “Shy Girl” starts with Buzz’s atmospherically ethereal vocals in an almost whispered setting before kicking things up to an brilliantly danceable groove.
There’s a sense of something otherworldly but artfully fun happening and while you’re dancing, you’ll feel like here is pop with something new and different which is a gift all its deliciously own.
“Mr. Electric Blue” by Benson Boone
(courtesy official Benson Boine Facebook page)
Talking of music that feels like an experience more than simply a song, and don’t they enliven the dead hand of a commute just by filling your ears and mind and heart with a sense that something magically is happening in the mundane, here comes American singer-songwriter Benson Boone with “Mr. Electric Blue”, a song which comes with a clip which is all hilariously enjoyable self-deprecating introspection to a very catchy piece of music.
Drawn from the artist’s 202t LP, American Heart, “Mr. Electric Blue” has a great deal of fun with apparent public criticism of Boone, so says Wikipedia, as, among other things, a “one-hit wonder and industry plant”.
Leaving aside the pointless inanity of fan culture in the digital age which seems happy to eat and destroy the source of their enjoyment than, you know, just enjoy it, Boone more than addresses these criticisms with a song full of zest, occasion and the sheer verve of music as its admittedly Electric Light Orchestra peak.
Songs this good don’t stop the critiques – oh the critics had a field day unfortunately! – but who cares? This is a wonderful slice of pop that pushes you along with whimsy, wit and some very fine, get-up-and-dance energy and you’t regret letting the titular character into your playlist.
“Sue Me” by Audrey Hobert
(courtesy official Audrey Hobert Instagram account)
So, according to her song, Audrey Hobert would like you to sue her.
I mean, not really, of course, but the track, which it will not surprise you to learn is called “Sue Me”, and the American singer-songwriter’s debut single from her album, Who’s the Clown?, is more of a challenge to anyone who questions that she wants romance on her own terms that respect her need to be wanted and valued.
That would seem like a non-negotiable default basic for any relationship, but in the case of this song (and, no doubt, sadly far too many couples out there), it’s not a given and the long-time collaborator and co-writer with pop sensation Gracie Abrams is not about to leave that without some kind of fiercely musical but playfully clever rebuttal.
Its pop with a head and a heart and it’s a ton of fun to listen to but woven into the fabric of this irresistible song is a declaration of the worth and value of who you are and it’s that emotional authenticity that really adds some emotional heft to this upbeat dance across the emotional landscape of life.
“I Get a Rush” by Planet Funk
(courtesy official Planet Funk Facebook page)
You want a rush? Of course you do, and Planet Funk is here to deliver it with bells on and a sense of edgy danceability and melodic melancholy with some sage truths about life.
It’s pretty brave inserting the lyrics “One day you’re going to die” into a pop sing, but Planet Funk, the Italian electronic band, who first captured this reviewer’s attention with their endlessly listenable 2001 debut track, “Chase the Sun”, which came with its own sense of escapistly thoughtful time and place, pull that mordant mention of mortality off by injecting it into a song that is the very empathically catchy answer to that sobering realisation about life.
After all, if you’re going to die, then surely you want to live first?
Of course you do, and “I Get a Rush” serves up a ton of life, vivacity and edgy musical enjoyment in just three perfect pop minutes that will you hitting play again a lot and, rather happily for you, and the intent of the band, living more than a little.
SONGs, SONGS AND MORE SONGS EXTRA EXTRA!
British comedy double, Mitchell and Webb, have created a deliciously fun sketch about ABBA which, even if you’re a fan, will have you laughing into your “Gimme Gimme Gimme (A Man After Midnight” and “Dancing Queen” relistens with gusto and more than a small sense of recognition. (And honestly, the sign of true fandom is that you can love something and still laugh a little at it too and as a long-time (50 years!!) fan of the group, that is as true of ABBA as it is any group or person).
