How Mainstream Are Electronic Genres?

Many people talk about whether electronic music has become mainstream. Styles like techno, house, and melodic techno may be very popular, but how do they compare to pop, rock, or hip hop? This study looks at Spotify track popularity to find out. By comparing electronic and mainstream genres, we can see how popular electronic music really is.

Comparing the most popular electronic genres

We analyzed the most popular electronic genres on Spotify. House leads the pack with an average popularity score of 67, followed by Progressive House at 61.5. Melodic Techno, one of the most talked-about and trending electronic genres right now, only reaches 39.5, showing that online hype does not always match actual listening numbers.

At the lower end of the spectrum, Drum & Bass scores 35 and Dubstep 31, making them the least popular electronic genres in our analysis.

Popularity Comparison: Electronic vs Mainstream Genres

We compared electronic genres to mainstream genres on Spotify to see how they measure up. Pop leads by a wide margin with an average popularity score of 79.74, followed by Hip Hop at 67.72. Rock ranks just after Afrohouse, with 53.04, showing that some electronic genres are now approaching mainstream levels.

Despite the online hype surrounding electronic music, mainstream genres generally maintain higher popularity scores. However, the fact that Afrohouse surpasses Rock in average popularity highlights the growing influence of dance and electronic genres. This suggests that while electronic music is not yet fully mainstream, it is steadily gaining traction and reaching a wider audience on Spotify.

Electronic vs Mainstream: Overall Comparison

When looking at average popularity, electronic genres score 41.64, while mainstream genres Pop, Hip Hop, and Rock reach an average of 67.60. This shows that electronic music is still far below mainstream genres in terms of Spotify popularity. Most electronic genres remain well behind the most popular mainstream styles, even though some genres such as House and Progressive House are approaching higher scores.

The gap between electronic and mainstream genres highlights that while electronic music has a dedicated and passionate listener base, it does not yet reach the broad audience that Pop, Hip Hop, and Rock achieve. Genres like Drum & Bass and Dubstep remain at the lower end of the popularity spectrum, showing that some electronic styles continue to have a niche following. Overall, electronic music is growing in influence on Spotify, but it is still not fully mainstream according to the popularity data.

Summary

This study examined Spotify track popularity to understand whether electronic music genres have become mainstream. We found that while some electronic genres, such as House and Progressive House, have relatively high popularity scores, most electronic styles remain below the levels of mainstream genres like Pop, Hip Hop, and Rock. Melodic Techno, despite online hype, has a moderate score, and genres like Drum & Bass and Dubstep remain at the lower end.

Overall, electronic music shows a growing presence on Spotify and is gaining traction, but on average it is still far from reaching mainstream popularity. These results suggest that electronic genres have a dedicated audience but are not yet fully established among the most widely listened-to music on the platform.