What made "Closer" by the Chainsmokers so popular?

Reaching over a billion views on YouTube, over a billion streams on Spotify, and charting at number 1 for over 11 consecutive weeks, it’s clear that “Closer” was a mega smash hit in 2016. But what is it about this song that made it so successful? That is the question folks, and I hope to somewhat answer it today.

The first thing to note in this song is the BPM. It’s slow by pop music standards. In a world where pop music is heavily influenced by EDM, the 95 BPM of “Closer” should sound out of place and even wrong to a certain extent. However, it doesn’t. Although it’s not the first more mellow dance tune to be released, it is certainly the most successful. The slower tempo sounds fresh and innovative, a welcome change from the usual 128 BPM we are so accustomed to hearing. This most definitely is a factor to its’ success.

Moving on to the introduction of this tune folks, we hear what will become the main melody of the chorus before any singer even opens their mouths. Musical foreshadowing at its finest. This melody continues softly in the accompaniment of the verses too. It’s incredibly effective- when that infamous “so baby pull me closer in the backseat of your Rover” comes on we like it as we have already heard it. The melody appeals to us as it was subliminally already in our heads.

The melody of this chorus itself is incredibly simple. Written in the key of Ab major, the chorus consists of precisely 3 notes, Ab, Bb and C- which happen to be the first, second and third note of the scale of Ab major, a.k.a. Do, Re, and Mi. These are incredibly basic notes, but simple is effective in this case. Do, Re and Mi are used solely as the main melody in various famous earworms, such as “Mary had a little lamb”. Anyone can sing this chorus, there are no challenging intervals or leaps between the notes. Its’ simplicity makes it accessible for the general population and therefore successful.

However, it isn’t just the melody of the vocals in this chorus that is simple. Take the rhythm for example, it consists exclusively of quavers. No variations and no complexities needed.  The accompaniment is also straightforward. The chords Db, Eb, and Fm accompany the melody of Ab, Bb and C. Notice anything?  The top note (i.e. the fifth, or the dominant) in each of these chords matches the note being used in the melody. Aside from the root (also called the tonic) of a chord, the next strongest note, the next best fit, is the 5^th, known as the dominant. The Chainsmokers apply this religiously to their chorus, and it works.

Here, have a gander at this chord bank:  

Also worth noting, these 3 chords are the only 3 chords used for the entire song. The accompaniment makes the same steps up and down through these 3 chords for the 4 minutes and 4 seconds that this song lasts. Step movement in a bassline is desirable for a composer. It gives the music a good, solid and continuous feel. This repetitive 2 bar loop puts us in a trance-like state. The climb up and down gives the impression of tension and resolution. The song  pauses on Db and Fm, and use Eb as a “stepping stone” chord (more officially called a “passing chord”). To be precise in 2 bars (in common time) we spend 2 and a half beats on Db, 1 and a half on Eb, 2 and a half on Fm, followed by the same 1 and a half on Eb.

Here it’s transcribed all fancy and proper:

Screenshot taken from here

This is an unusual move by the Chainsmokers as Eb is the dominant chord in the key of Ab major. Theoretically this makes it the strongest of the three chords used, and therefore the chord one would tend to spend the most time on, but here it isn’t used as a resolution but as a chord of tension. It comes in on beat 2 and a half (an extremely weak beat) and is simply used as a lead up to our chord of resolution, which in this case is Fm, the sixth chord in Ab major. Although resolutions have been used in musical pieces all around the world since the beginning of time, it is usually the tonic chord (which would have been Ab major in this case) that is used. The use of the 6^th chord, which is minor, as the chord of resolution is unusual and quirky and gives “Closer” the kick it needs to hit the charts.

Aside from all the technicalities of the music in this song, it has a chart-topping sonority to it. “Closer” stands in a fresh, unconventional middle-ground between various genres and blurs the lines between them. It has a good solid piano accompaniment throughout, yet it isn’t a ballad. It has a drop using all the usual suspected sounds when the chorus comes, yet it isn’t considered to be EDM. It’s a duet, but that isn’t its defining feature or its selling point. It has a chill sound combining all of these elements into one very listenable track that people can easily vibe to. 

It is the fact that “Closer” manages to be so simple upon listening to it, while also containing so many details and technicalities, that turned it into the smash hit we all can’t help but to know and sing along to today. It's fresh and innovative, yet familiar at the same time. 

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-Marion :)