Author Hunter Holland - The Millennial Whoop. You may have never heard of it, but you’ve definitely HEARD it. But what is it exactly?
Arguably the most fun part of a song to belt out are the “OoOoOoO”’s. Yeah, you know the ones. You sing it and either sound like musical god/goddess or a dying whale – no in-between. But have you noticed those “OoOoOoO”’s are now more common than ever? That’s because a recent discovery by musician Patrick Metzger points out that these alternating notes are part of a recipe for chart-topping hits.
The Millennial Whoop in Metzger’s technical terms:
It’s a sequence of notes that alternates between the fifth and third notes of a major scale, typically starting on the fifth. The rhythm is usually straight 8th-notes, but it may start on the downbeat or on the upbeat in different songs. A singer usually belts these notes with an “Oh” phoneme, often in a “Wa-oh-wa-oh” pattern. And it is in so many pop songs it’s criminal.
Basically, these repetitive (and essentially identical) notes you hear in different songs evoke a familiarity that just makes you want to sing along.
Quartz made a nice video to show how common The Millennial Whoop actually is. Watch it below!
WARNING: this may ruin the musical magic for you, but if you’re a nerd for patterns and music, you will seriously be in awe of this discovery.
What are your thoughts? Annoyed? Amazed? Let us know in the comments!
Hunter HollandPop culture, crafting, and live concerts are my jam. Let's talk about any and all of the above! Marketing graduate from the University of Montevallo. Fierce Walker Countian. Also known as @hhollaa & @hunnyholla.
