Music / Styles A–Z / Africa, Europe and Asia · 29 of 35
City pop
City pop is a loosely defined Japanese pop style from the mid-1970s, peaking in the 1980s and drawn from American soft rock: a clean, polished band sound for the car and the headphones.
- Where and when
- Japan, mid-1970s, peaking in the 1980s
- Tempo
- Not stated in our sources
- Played on
- Band, synthesizers such as the Yamaha CS-80 and Casio CZ-101, TR-808
What it is
City pop is a loosely defined Japanese pop style that emerged in the mid-1970s and peaked in the 1980s, drawing on American soft rock of the era. Writers trace it to Haruomi Hosono and Tatsuro Yamashita, or to the band Happy End.
For the producer. City pop is tied to the technology of its boom: the Walkman, car cassette decks and FM stereo, and instruments such as the Yamaha CS-80 and Casio CZ-101 synthesizers and the Roland TR-808. A clean, polished band sound for the car and the headphones.
The records that made it
From the lesson Africa, Europe and Asia, where the sources are listed · links open a search
- 1984Plastic LoveMariya Takeuchi · Found by millions abroad through YouTube.
- 1977City Lights by the MoonlightTomoko Soryo · Marketed as "city pops".
City pop in this month’s records
New releases the press we read wrote about, tagged city pop on MusicBrainz · updated with every build
No new record in the press we read is tagged city pop this month. The list fills as records come out.