Behind the data: the secret to songwriting

With 25 Billboard Hot 100 number one hits to his name, Max Martin is effectively the king of pop music. We wanted to find the key to his success—with a little help from a lot of data.

00:00 - Behind the data
00:39 - Our dataset
01:53 - Was Max Martin right?
03:32 - Why intros are shorter now

To read our daily chart on hit-maker Max Martin: https://econ.st/40EN0TH

For more of The Economist’s data journalism: https://econ.st/3KsCaud

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How blurred lines changed pop music: https://econ.st/3KcdxAA

Why streaming changed pop songs: https://econ.st/411UC26

Did pop music peak in 1971?: https://econ.st/3ZH1f9h

What makes good music?: https://econ.st/3nEM0QJ