Hit Songs Deconstructed Deconstructing Today's Hits for Songwriting Success http://reports.hitsongsdeconstructed.com We Found Love Deconstructed Skip to: Audio/Video General Information At a Glance Structural Analysis Sectional Analysis Waveform Primary Instrumentation, Tone & Mix Benchmark Analysis Overall Assessment Hit Factor Assessment Conclusion Why it’s a Hit Take Aways Audio/Video Back to Top General Information Back to Top Artist: Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris Song/Album: We Found Love / Talk That Talk Songwriter(s): Calvin Harris Producer(s): Calvin Harris Personnel: M. Tovar (Vocal recording), A Barajs (Asst. recording engineer), P.Tan (Mixing), D. Lewis (Asst. mixing) Chart Position: #1 Billboard Hot 100 Genre: Pop Sub Genre: Electro Pop/Dance At a Glance Back to Top 1 / 25 Hit Songs Deconstructed Deconstructing Today's Hits for Songwriting Success http://reports.hitsongsdeconstructed.com Length: 3:36 Structure: A-B-IB-A-B-IB-A-B-IB-B Tempo: 120 bpm First Chorus: 0:37 (17% into the song) Intro Length: 0:07 Outro Length: n/a Electric vs. Acoustic: Electric Primary Instrumentation: Synth Lyrical Theme: Love/Relationships Title Occurances: 16 times within the song, appears as the first phrase in each line of the chorus Primary Lyrical P.O.V: 1st and 2nd Structural Analysis Back to Top At-a-Glance Section Length (Length of each individual section within the song) Aside from the intro, second instrumental break and reverb trail-off at the end of the song, every single section within We Found Love lands at 0:15 in length. Considering the ultra-repetitive nature of the song, incorporating frequent change-ups in sections was imperative to aid in keeping the listener engaged throughout the song. Structure Timeline (Shows when each section hits within the timeline of the song) 2 / 25 Hit Songs Deconstructed Deconstructing Today's Hits for Songwriting Success http://reports.hitsongsdeconstructed.com Total Section Analysis (Total time consumed by each section and its percentage of the total song) What’s most interesting about the total time dedicated to each section within We Found Love is the fact that the chorus only accounts for 28% of the song’s total composition. Typically, as we’ve seen in some of our other hit Pop song deconstructions (i.e. Perry, Spears, etc…), the chorus typically accounts for anywhere between 45% and 55% of a songs total composition. So – what was the primary contributing factor that makes the compositional breakdown of this song so different from other Pop hits? It’s the 14% of the song that accounts for the instrumental transition sections and the 18% that accounts for the instrumental breaks. Combined, they account for 32% of the song’s total composition – outweighing the chorus by 4%. Looks like Calvin’s instrumental influence outweighed all else in the song! Momentum/Intensity Factor (Evaluation of the intensity of each section within the song timeline 3 / 25 Hit Songs Deconstructed Deconstructing Today's Hits for Songwriting Success http://reports.hitsongsdeconstructed.com on a scale of 1 – 10, 10 being the most intense) Considering the vast repetitive nature of We Found Love, the engagement factor is aided via effective shifts in momentum, intensity and tension levels throughout the song. The intro to We Found Love kicks off in a moderate fashion, defined by the repetitive solo synth line that reoccurs throughout the song in various manifestations. The first verse hits at 0:07, where we see the intensity levels increased just a tad due to the onset of Rihanna’s vocals. The momentum levels remain pretty much constant throughout the section, eventually being kicked up via the vocal carry-over into the pre-chorus. As soon as we hit the pre-chorus at 0:22, the intensity level is kicked up a couple of notches via the introduction of the synth bass and snare/clap hybrid beat into the mix coupled with the overall increase in level. The change-up in Rihanna’s vocal delivery from the preceding verse also adds a subtly increased tension to the section as well. The momentum and intensity levels that defined the pre-chorus carry over into and throughout the entire first chorus section, which hits at 0:37. At 0:52 we enter into the instrumental transition that delivers the song to its sonic peak, brought about the electronic drums and synths that increase in pitch throughout the section, ultimately bringing the tension to the boiling point before releasing into the full-on “club” driven instrumental break section that occurs at 1:07. The momentum continues throughout the balance of the section until arriving at the second verse. At 1:22 we enter the second verse where we see the momentum levels being brought down a notch from the instrumental break via the change-up in synth and electronic drums (specifically the “driving” hats being pulled from the mix – it’s more of a straight-up “club” beat now. The overall levels are decreased slightly as well). This momentum pattern continues until seeing the intensity and tension kicked up a notch in the second pre-chorus via the re-introduction of the “driving” hats into the mix coupled with the change-up in Rihanna’s vocal delivery (same vocal style as in the first pre-chorus). The second chorus hits at 1:22 where we see the momentum and intensity levels increased to that which was defining the instrumental break section earlier in the song (the backing music in the second chorus utilizes the same backing music that’s present in the instrumental break). 4 / 25 Hit Songs Deconstructed Deconstructing Today's Hits for Songwriting Success http://reports.hitsongsdeconstructed.com The momentum remains constant throughout the section until we hit the next instrumental break at 2:07, where we see the momentum dropping way down due specifically to the drums being pulled from the mix. The overall tension remains high, however, due to the “darker” nature of the synth and bass in relation to what was going on in the rest of the song up until this point. You can almost call this instrumental break and the 3rd verse that follows a “verse/bridge” section –specifically due to the change-up in overall vibe (NOT due to the lyrical content or melody, which is the same as the first verse). The overall intensity is increased a notch as we move into the third verse at 2:15, brought about by the onset of Rihanna’s vocals into the mix. The overall level remains constant until increasing in intensity via the addition of the “airy” synth swell that enters into the mix toward the end of the section, leading into the third chorus at 2:30. The momentum level of the third chorus is on par with that of the first chorus, and remains constant until we hit the instrumental transition section once again at 2:45 which takes the tension to a sonic peak before releasing once again into the instrumental break section at 3:00 (same progression as was defined earlier in the song). The momentum levels present in the instrumental break section carry right through the fourth and final chorus, before ending abruptly at 3:30, followed by a reverb trail-off that finally ends the song at 3:36. Sectional Analysis Back to Top Intro: 8.5/10 Like so many other of today’s top charting Pop hits, the intro section to We Found Love is just the backing music of the first verse. In this case, it’s just two solo synths defining the section. That being said, it is quite effective on a few levels: The nature of the synths coupled with the pattern in G-flat acts as a unique “identifier” for the song, enabling it to stand out amongst all others in the genre. The second you hear it, you immediately know what song it is. The intro transitions seamlessly into the first verse (specifically due to the fact that it’s the backing music of the first verse). The overall simplicity coupled with the repetitive nature of the pattern does a great job of fostering memorability. Verses: 9/10 THE MUSIC Verse 1: Utilizes the same bright solo synth pattern that was established during the intro of the song. Notice that there are two synths in the section – one for the main pattern and one that’s fast paced/delay oriented that provides texture and color to the mix. 5 / 25 Hit Songs Deconstructed Deconstructing Today's Hits for Songwriting Success http://reports.hitsongsdeconstructed.com Verse 2: Here we enter into full “club” territory. The backing music is characterized by the “club” oriented eighth-note electronic drum beat, mid to upper-mid level bass synth, and E-flat minor / C-flat 5 / G-flat 5 / A-flat 5 synth progression. Notice how the tone of the synth has changed from the instrumental break section that preceded it – providing the verse with sonic and color diversity. Verse 3: The third verse is interesting in the fact that it functions both as a verse (lyrically) and as a bridge (musically). From a musical perspective, here we see the nature of the synths encompassing a “darker” vibe, characterized by the low, “gritty” E-flat / F-flat synth bass progression coupled with the brighter “ping delay” oriented synth that’s bouncing through the mix. Together they create an engaging sonic landscape for Rihanna’s reversion back to the lyrical content that was present in the first verse of the song. Also notice that the electronic drums have been pulled from the mix in the third verse, further accentuating the “tension” that’s defining the section.