To investigate this question, we downloaded a dataset of all the Billboard Hot 100 songs from 2000 to 2018. The Billboard Hot 100 is the industry standard record chart for the US, measuring the pulse of popular music. This dataset includes a host of Spotify metrics for each song, ranging from “liveness” to “valence” to “danceability.” We began by plotting the development of each metric's average value over time, as you can see in the graph on the right. We noticed a surprising trend: the valence of popular music has steadily decreased in the past two decades. Its average has dropped from .58 in 2000 to .44 in 2018—a 14% decrease! Valence is Spotify’s estimate for the happiness of the track, which means that popular music is getting sadder. With data and d3.js in hand, we set out on a mission to find out why.
Spotify Metric:
Value:
Year:
Average Valence:
Year:
Title:
Artist:
Valence:
Year:
Weeks at the Top:
Artist:
Valence:
Year:
Top Songs per Year:
Total Top Songs: