Why Recession Pop Is Hot—Even When It's Not a Recession

Recession pop, a dancey genre that emerges during periods of economic recession, is having a resurgence. There’s just one problem: We’re not actually in a recession.

According to a recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the US saw over 250,000 new jobs added in September, nearly doubling the growth projected for the month. The report prompted Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody’s Analytics, to say on X (formerly Twitter) “The economy is at full-employment, no more and no less. Wage growth is strong. . . . One couldn’t paint a prettier picture of the job market and broader economy.”

What Is Recession Pop?

The numbers don’t lie, and yet, the musical trends over the last few months indicate a desire among listeners to find escape in high-energy pop music. Enter: Recession pop. Escape is a common theme in popular music, but in the case of recession pop, music critics and cultural commenters have spotted a seeming correlation between a dour national mood and the kind of blissed-out pop that focuses on liberation via the dancefloor.

Early examples of recession pop include songs that found their commercial peak during the Great Recession of 2008—though accounts vary of how long this original period lasted, with some saying it dates from 2007–2012, and others dating it as far as 2015. Songs from this era would include “Don’t Stop the Music,” by Rihanna, “I Gotta Feeling,” by Black Eyed Peas, and “Teenage Dream,” by Katy Perry. Lady Gaga first found her meteoric rise during this era, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a better mission statement for recession pop than the chorus to her mega-hit “Just Dance,” which goes “Just dance / Gonna be ok.”

Recession Pop and the Art of Distraction

Pitbull was another artist speaking to this cultural moment (and getting massively popular because of it) with songs such as “Hotel Room Service” and “Time of Our Lives,” whose first verse just came right out and said it:

Life got you down? Just dance. Bills bearing down on you with no relief in sight? Better have you a good time before your time is up. It’s not practical advice, but in times of national and global crisis, it can sometimes feel as if distraction is the only antidote one can afford.

It’s not as if artists are consciously setting out to write recession pop, however. The term itself was applied after the 2008 recession, and started its resurgence on TikTok over the course of summer 2024. Musicologist Joe Bennett, professor of professional music and songwriting, has become a go-to expert on the trend, and recently told MarketWatch that recession pop is “essentially a label that mashes up a style with a timeline.”

So why, during an otherwise Brat Summer, were people going back to Katy Perry and Flo Rida? For one, there’s the nostalgia factor, which is something every generation eventually faces. It’s why the newly reunited '90s-era band Oasis could come back in 2024 to sold-out arenas, for example. As Bennett explains, “There’s a certain maxim in the music community: All the best pop music in the world came out in the same year, and it’s the year that you were 17.”

But that reasoning only goes so far as fans have started to apply the recession pop label to a new generation of mainstream music, which includes “HOT TO GO!” by Chappell Roan, “Nasty” by Tinashe, and “365” by the brat herself, Charli XCX.

It's Not a Recession, but Is It a Vibecession?

While there isn’t a clear answer to why recession pop is trending when it’s not a recession, one way to sum it up is to say the vibes are just off.

Economist and cultural commentator Kyla Scanlon coined the term “Vibecession” in summer 2022 in her newsletter to try and put a name to this phenomenon. “[T]here is a lot going on and no one really knows what is going on,” she wrote at the beginning of her essay, which gets to the heart of why the economy can be one way, but people can feel another. Scanlon wrote this at a time where the height of the pandemic wasn’t too far in the rearview, housing prices and interest rates soared, and inflation reached record heights. And even as inflation has started to decrease, those same issues continue to loom in the collective consciousness.

With that in mind, perhaps it’s clearer to say that the term “recession pop” is much more about the listener than the artist. There will always be party music that climbs the charts, but party music when times are tough just hits different, and perhaps listeners end up reading more into it because they’re looking for something to make sense.

Listen to a playlist of recession pop hits from its original era as well as more recent additions:

Recession Pop by the Lyrics 

As you listen to our recession pop playlist, take a look at some of the key lyrics from each song that put the "recess" in "recession."

 1. "Just Dance," Lady Gaga (2008)

Keep it cool, what's the name of this club? / I can't remember, but it's alright, alright / Just dance / Gonna be okay

2. "Time of Our Lives," Pitbull and Ne-Yo (2014)

Have me a good time, before my time is up / Hey, let's get it now / Ooh, I want the time of my life 

3. "365," Charli XCX (2024)

When I'm in the club, yeah / I'm bumpin' that / 365, party girl / I'm bumpin' that

4. "I Gotta Feeling," Black Eyed Peas (2009)

Tonight's the night / Let's live it up / I got my money / Let's spend it up

5. "We R Who We R," Kesha (2010)

Tonight we're going har har-har ha-ha-hard / Just like the world is our our-our our-our-ours

6. "Nasty," Tinashe (2024)

'Cause it feels like heaven when it hurts so bad

7. "Teenage Dream," Katy Perry (2010)

We can dance until we die / You and I will be young forever / You make me / Feel like I'm livin' a teenage dream

8. "Dynamite," Taio Cruz (2010)

I throw my hands up in the air sometimes / Sayin' "Ayo, gotta let go" / I wanna celebrate and live my life / Sayin' "Ayo, baby, let's go"

9. "Don't Stop the Music," Rihanna (2007)

I wanna take you away / Let's escape into the music / DJ, let it play

10. "Espresso," Sabrina Carpenter (2024)

Walked in and dream-came-trued it for ya

11. "Bulletproof," La Roux (2009)

Been there, done that, messed around I'm having fun, don't put me down

12. "HOT TO GO!" Chappell Roan (2024)

Snap and clap and touch your toes / Raise your hands, now body roll / Dance it out, you're hot to go

13. "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love," Usher (2010)

So dance, dance like it's the last, last / Night of your life, life, gon' get you right / 'Cause baby, tonight / The DJ got us falling in love again 

14. "Cinderella," Remi Wolf (2024)

I can be anything I wanted to, any color of the rainbow / Yeah, me and the boys in the hotel lobby

15. "Club Can't Handle Me," Flo Rida, featuring David Guetta (2010)

Came to party 'til I can't no more / Celebrate cause that's all I know

16. "Party Rock Anthem," LMFAO (2011)

Party rock is in the house tonight / Everybody just have a good time