Punkademic Music Theory of Hit Songs 10 Tracks Explained Vol.1

Ever wonder why some songs just work? Why "Espresso" never feels finished, why "Creep" sounds so sad, or why the "Golden" chorus lifts off when it barely changes?

It's not magic. It's theory, and it's way more fun than it sounds.

In this course I break down ten hit songs, from Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish to Radiohead, The Beatles, Stevie Wonder and Hans Zimmer, and find the one theory trick that makes each of them tick. Every song gets two short videos: first the story (who wrote it, how it happened, why it blew up), then the theory (the chords, the moves, the thing you can steal for your own music).

I play everything myself on piano and show you the chords on screen, so you can follow along even if you're rusty. No recordings of the songs are used; pull up the track yourself and play along.

The ten songs and the trick behind each:

Taylor Swift, "The Fate of Ophelia": same chords, but home moves
Billie Eilish, "Birds of a Feather": the hidden leading tone
Sabrina Carpenter, "Espresso": when the melody and chords disagree
HUNTR/X, "Golden": same chords, new bass line
Radiohead, "Creep": one note that sags
The Beatles, "Something": line clichés
Stevie Wonder, "Superstition": tritone subs in a funk song
Chappell Roan, "Good Luck, Babe!": the varispeed ending
Tame Impala & JENNIE, "Dracula": hovering on a minor five
Hans Zimmer, "Time": one loop, endless layers

I'm Dr. Jason Allen. I've taught music theory and music production for years, at the university level and to more than 700,000 students on Udemy. This is the first volume of a monthly series: ten new songs every month. If there's a song you want broken down, tell me and it might be in the next one.

Let's dig in.

This course is an independent educational analysis. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by any of the artists, songwriters or labels discussed.