- lyrical hooks that say what haven't been said already, and if they do, they say it in a new way.
- the unexpected. this is the best of what Gwen Stefani does. sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. the screechy strings in Britney's "Toxic" are another example of this.
- in a similar vein, the reinvention/interpretation of old songs via sampling.
I think a lot of pop relies on music, production and presentation for its charm, unlike some rock (and a lot of folk) in which the poetry of the lyrics is more of a presence. Like, the lyrics of Destiny's Child "Lose My Breath" are pretty shallow, but in my opinion the melody hooks and the delivery makes the song fricken' amazing. I think pop music is an art form in its own right, and deserves to be appreciated and criticized on the same scale as other musical genres.

hows about local indie pop? i <3 that stuff.
i think some phat beats produced by timbaland and a catchy hook will sell records in half a second. ie, cant dance nelly.

yes but is it good?

yes.

it's weird but almost all the good pop songs that i enjoy these days have synthesizers, like cassie's long way 2 go and nelly's maneater. it's got such a weird, overpowering sound that just makes me do a little dance, even in my seat. mostly, a great melody makes a great pop song, something catchy. and also, a personal feel to the song. if it reeks of factory and marketing and all that crap, then i just get turned off.