More people listen to music at Valentine’s Day than any other time except Christmas.
▶ Watch Video: What makes a great love song?
What makes a perfect love song? Is it slow and sad, like “My Funny Valentine”?
Or upbeat and poppy, like “Uptown Girl”?
Or maybe it’s sultry and bluesy (“Let’s Get It On!”)?
It’s not an idle question; more people listen to music at Valentine’s Day than any other time except Christmas.
As the editorial director of the music service Spotify, Sulinna Ong is in a perfect position to observe the latest trends in love songs. “Over 105 million users create their own playlists every Valentine’s Day,” she said. “One of the main themes is vintage sound. So, it’s the real appetite for ’50s and ’60s music.
“And the other trend that we see is what we call anti-Valentine,” said Ong, “ranging from, ‘God, I can’t believe I went out with that person,’ to ‘I’m happy being single and living my best life.’”
Nate Sloan, who teaches musicology at USC’s Thornton School of Music, says that 70% of all hit songs are about love and relationships. Sloan’s specialty is the history of pop and jazz, and when it comes to love songs, there’s a lot of history.
USC’s Baroque Sinfonia performed, for “Sunday Morning,” a Spanish song that is 500 years old, in which the singer says he’s in love with three different girls. “Very little has changed,” said Sloan. “These are very universal and sort of timeless emotions that people tap into for a love song.
