Why pop music is obsessed with this one note

Summary by Krater

Andrew Huang explores the prevalence of the supertonic note (the second scale degree) in popular music, demonstrating its use across numerous hits from artists like Justin Timberlake, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, and The Weeknd.

From the video

Answers: Why is the supertonic note used so much in pop music?

• Supertonic note in popular music
• Melodic chord relationships
• Harmonic fluidity of scale degrees

What it concludes

• The supertonic note is the second scale degree and is ubiquitous in modern pop music because it is on average the least offensive note that sounds good over any chord in the scale.
• The supertonic note works well over every diatonic chord, functioning as a 9th, root, 7th, 6th, 5th, 4th, or 3rd depending on the chord degree.