Teen pop

Teen pop is a subgenre of pop music that is created, marketed and oriented towards preteens and teenagers (ages 10 to 19). Teen pop copies genres and styles such as pop, dance, electronic, R&B, hip-hop, country, and rock. Typical characteristics of teen pop music include lyrics that focus on teenage issues (such as sexual or emotional love or relationships, finding yourself, friendships, coming of age, fitting in, and growing up) choreographed dancing, emphasis on visual appeal (photogenic faces, slender body physiques, immaculately attended hair and designer clothes), and repeated chorus lines along with a generally happy tune in the background. Since the late-1990s, Auto-Tuned vocals have been a highly prevalent element of the genre.

History

20th century

Teen-oriented popular music had become common by the end of the Swing Era, in the late 1940s, with Frank Sinatra being an early teen idol. However, it was the early 1960s that became known as the "Golden Age" for pop teen idols, who included Paul Anka, Fabian Forte, Ricky Nelson and Frankie Avalon. During the 1970s, one of the most popular preteen and teen-oriented acts was The Osmonds, where family members Donny and Marie both enjoyed individual success as well as success as a duo apart from the main family (Donny also recorded with his brothers as The Osmonds). Other successful singers and bands appealing to tweens and teens were Bobby Sherman, The DeFranco Family, David Cassidy (both solo and as lead singer of The Partridge Family), Shaun Cassidy, The Brady Bunch Kids, the Jackson 5 (along with lead singer Michael Jackson) and a pre-disco the Bee Gees.