Popular Song
by Mika

Album: The Origin of Love (2012)
Charted: 87
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song features and was co-written by American singer-songwriter Priscilla Renea, who has also penned tunes for Selena Gomez ("Who Says") and Rihanna ("Watch n' Learn"). Renea later changed her stage name to Muni Long and had a hit in 2022 with "Hrs And Hrs."
  • Regarding the inspirations for this song, Mika told the streaming site, Spotify: "When you mix influences like Beck and the musical Annie together you can't go wrong, or you can only go wrong I don't know, same difference."
  • The album version is based on the song "Popular" from the musical Wicked. It was written by the composer Stephen Schwartz for the first act and is sung by the character Galinda in an attempt to help her unpopular roommate Elphaba become more likable.
  • For the track's single release Mika changed the arrangement and rewrote some of the lyrics to remove the expletives. He also removed Renea's vocal contribution and replaced her with American actress and performer Ariana Grande.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Elton John

Elton JohnFact or Fiction

Does he have beef with Gaga? Is he Sean Lennon's godfather? See if you can tell fact from fiction in the Elton John edition.

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions Answered

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions AnsweredSong Writing

10 Questions for the author of Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces

Rick Astley

Rick AstleySongwriter Interviews

Rick Astley on "Never Gonna Give You Up," "Cry For Help," and his remarkable resurgence that gave him another #1 UK album.

Band Names

Band NamesFact or Fiction

Was "Pearl" Eddie Vedder's grandmother, and did she really make a hallucinogenic jam? Did Journey have a contest to name the group? And what does KISS stand for anyway?

90s Music Quiz 1

90s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

First question: Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson appeared in videos for what artist?

Mick Jones of Foreigner

Mick Jones of ForeignerSongwriter Interviews

Foreigner's songwriter/guitarist tells the stories behind the songs "Juke Box Hero," "I Want To Know What Love Is," and many more.