Cringe pop is a genre of pop music, which is written intentionally to be cringeworthy.[1][2] It is a broad category that encompasses songs and music videos that are essentially awkward in nature.[2] This awkwardness is intentionally produced for the purpose of going viral.[3] The element of how cringeworthy the music is determines the virality of the song.[2]
Cringe pop has spread due to the advancement of technology, essentially allowing anyone with a laptop to be able to produce a song and a music video.[4] The rise of social media and streaming sites, especially YouTube have provided a platform for cringe-pop writers to publish their work and these platforms are fundamental for their existence.[5]
Rebecca Black's song "Friday" is usually credited as giving birth to the genre.[6][7][8] The song, which was released in 2011, has over 149.6 million views and 3.8 million dislikes on YouTube as of January 2021.[9]
Black was soon followed by Taher Shah, a Pakistani singer. His music video "Angel" went viral.[10] His first music video, "Eye to Eye", was released in 2013, and "Angel" was released in 2016.[11]
Jacintha Morris, an Indian civil servant, released "Is Suzainn the Sinner" in 2016, which was labelled a cringe pop song.[12] Morris herself denied that the song was intended to be cringe pop.[13]
Other examples include "Aunty Ki Ghanti" by Indian rapper Omprakash Mishra released in 2015[14] and "PPAP (Pen-Pineapple-Apple-Pen)" by Japanese comedian Pikotaro, and the "Pokémon Go Song" by Czech child singer Misha/Mishovy Silenosti, both released in 2016.[15]