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Pop Culture

Comedy rock band use 38 songs to prove how 'every pop song' uses the same four chords

The Beatles, U2, and Maroon 5 are all guilty of the same crime.

Axis of Awesome on stage

Australian comedy group Axis Of Awesome.

Singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran was found not liable on April 4, 2023 in a lawsuit where he was accused of stealing elements of the Marvin Gaye classic "Let's Get It On" for his 2014 hit, “Thinking Out Loud."

The case called attention to the fact that there are motifs and musical structures common in pop music that no one owns, and all are free to use. When it comes to chord progressions, the 12-bar blues and basic I, IV, V, I progressions you hear in country and folk have been used and reused since people first picked up the guitar.

In the wrong hands, the progressions can result in music that is boring and formulaic, but in the right hands, they can be a springboard for fresh ideas.

In 2009, Australian comedy group Axis Of Awesome did a funny sketch showing how one four-chord progression, famous for being the basis of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing,” has been used countless times by musicians to great effect.

They played a medley of 38 major hits using the same progression to prove their point. For musicians, it’s known as the I–V–vi–IV progression, and when played in the key of C it would be C, G, Am, F.

Warning: Video contains strong language.

Here’s a list of all of the songs in the medley.

Journey - “Don't Stop Believing”

James Blunt - “You're Beautiful”

Alphaville - “Forever Young”

Jason Mraz - “I'm Yours”

Mika - “Happy Ending”

Alex Lloyd - “Amazing”

The Calling - “Wherever You Will Go”

Elton John - “Can You Feel The Love Tonight”

Maroon 5 - “She Will Be Loved”

The Last Goodnight - “Pictures Of You”

U2 - “With Or Without You”

Crowded House - “Fall At Your Feet”

Kasey Chambers - “Not Pretty Enough”

The Beatles - “Let It Be”

Red Hot Chili Peppers - “Under the Bridge”

Daryl Braithwaite - “The Horses”

Bob Marley - “No Woman No Cry”

Marcy Playground - “Sex and Candy”

Men at Work - “Land Down Under”

Banjo Patterson - “Waltzing Matilda”

A-ha - “Take On Me”

Green Day - “When I Come Around”

Eagle Eye Cherry - “Save Tonight”

Toto - “Africa”

Beyonce - “If I Were A Boy”

The Offspring - “Self Esteem”

The Offspring - “You're Gonna Go Far Kid”

Pink - “U + Ur Hand”

Lady Gaga - “Poker Face”

Aqua - “Barbie Girl”

The Fray - “You Found Me”

30h!3 - “Don't Trust Me”

MGMT - “Kids”

Tim Minchin - “Canvas Bags”

Natalie Imbruglia - “Torn”

Five For Fighting - “Superman”

Axis Of Awesome - “Birdplane”

Missy Higgins - “Scar”


While all these songs may use the same four chords, you've got to admit they're all bangers, so we're not mad at it.


This article originally appeared two years ago.

Justice

Walking Alongside Martu: A journey with one of the world’s oldest living cultures

Pura’s inaugural impact collection honors both sacred traditions and sustainable futures.

James Roh
True

In a world driven by speed, efficiency, and immediate results, it’s easy to forget that lasting change is built on trust. Real impact doesn’t come from rushing toward an end goal or measuring success through lofty metrics. It comes from falling in love with the problem, building a community around it, and sharing a vision for lasting transformation.

Pura, the smart home fragrance company that marries premium fragrance with innovative technology, recently launched its inaugural impact collection with K Farmer Dutjahn Foundation (KFDF) and Dutjahn Sandalwood Oils (DSO). The Pura x Dutjahn partnership began with a clear purpose: to source a sacred ingredient directly from its origin while honoring the land and the people who’ve cared for it. Our goal wasn’t simply to find sandalwood — it was to find a community and an ingredient that embody exceptional land stewardship, ethical harvesting, and transformative, community-led impact. After careful research and over three years of development, we saw an opportunity to secure a premium, luxurious ingredient while supporting a regenerative supply chain that invests in Indigenous-led education, economic opportunity, and land stewardship.

James Roh

Over the past several years, we’ve walked alongside Martu, an Indigenous tribe from the vast Western Australian desert. Martu are one of the oldest living cultures in the world, with a history spanning 60,000 years. As nomadic hunter-gatherers, they have unparalleled ecological knowledge, passed down through generations, making them the traditional custodians of the land. Their approach to sandalwood harvesting isn’t driven by market demand but by a deep respect for seasonal rhythms, land health, and cultural law. Their work adapts to the environment—whether it’s “sorry time,” when mourning pauses activities, or the harsh desert conditions that make travel and communication difficult. Martu operate on Martu time, a deliberate rhythm shaped by millennia of experience, far removed from the rapid-swipe, hyper-productive pace of Western systems.

Martu’s ecological knowledge isn’t documented in baseline reports. It’s lived, carried in stories, and practiced with rigor and respect for the changing needs of the ecosystems. True partnership means unlearning the typical approach. It means standing beside—not in front—and recognizing that the wisdom and leadership we need already exist within these communities. Our role isn’t to define the work, but to support it, protect it, and learn from it.

James Roh

Tonight, as I spoke with Chairman Clinton Farmer and the KFDF team about our focus for this piece, I learned that Clinton’s truck had broken down (again), leaving him to “limp” back to town from the desert at low speeds for hours and hours. He had been awake since 3:00 a.m. This is a common and costly setback, one that disrupts the harvest, demands days of driving, and brings real financial and emotional strain. These barriers are relentless and persistent, part of the harsh reality Clinton and his community face daily. It's easy for outsiders, detached from the reality on the ground, to impose rules, regulations, and demands from afar. Rather than continuing to impose, we need to truly partner with communities — equipping them with the resources to operate sustainably, avoid burnout, and protect the very land they love and care for. All while they endeavor to share these incredible, sacred ingredients with the world and build an economic engine for their people.

There is much to learn, but we are here to listen, adapt, and stay the course. The future we need will not be built in quarterly cycles. It will be built in trust, over time, together.

To learn more about the partnership and fragrances, visit Pura x Dutjahn.

Upworthy has covered a few stories about people who decided to live permanently on cruise ships because it's cheaper than living on land or in a nursing home. These stories have connected with millions because they say a lot about the modern cost of living but are also aspirational.

Christine Kesteloo has become popular on TikTok with over 680,000 followers because she shares what living on a cruise ship is really like. Kesteloo is the wife of the ship’s Staff Chief Engineer, so she gets to live on the boat for free. She only has to pay for alcohol and soda, which she gets for half off according to Business Insider.

“I live on a cruise ship for half the year with my husband, and it's often as glamorous as it sounds,” she told Insider. “After all, I don't cook, clean, make my bed, do laundry or pay for food.“

Kesteloo’s life seems pretty stress-free. After all, she's basically on a permanent vacation. However, even though she lives on a cruise ship as a “wife on board,” there are a few things she either can’t or shouldn’t do.

She shared these four things in a TikTok video with nearly 10 million views.


1. Gambling

living on a cruise ship, cruise ship living, residential cruise ship, best cruise, married to a cruise workermedia0.giphy.com

Kesteloo says she cannot sit at a slot machine and “play my heart out until I win.” She believes it would “look a little weird if I, as the wife of the staff chief engineer, won a big jackpot.”

2. Leaving the ship with the guests

living on a cruise ship, cruise ship living, residential cruise ship, best cruise, married to a cruise workermedia0.giphy.com

When the ship arrives at a destination, she can't get off with the guests. She must wait about an hour and exit the vessel with the crew. When returning to the ship, she also has to be on time. “No, they will not wait for us,” she says. And the same goes for her husband, if they “miss the ship, someone else will take over the role.”

3. Sitting in a crowded pool

living on a cruise ship, cruise ship living, residential cruise ship, best cruise, married to a cruise workermedia1.giphy.com

Although Kesteloo has access to the pool, gym, and all the ship’s amenities, she’s cautious not to interfere with the guests' good time. She’ll exit the pool if it’s busy because “it’s just the right thing to do.”

4. Traveling without international traveler insurance

living on a cruise ship, cruise ship living, residential cruise ship, best cruise, married to a cruise workermedia1.giphy.com

She must have insurance in case of a misfortune on the ship. But as a citizen of the Netherlands, they already have coverage and just have to pay a few extra dollars a month.

Though folks generally welcomed Kesteloo's advice, some of the most popular commenters on the video were from women regretting that they married men who aren’t chief engineers on cruise ships or those who want to know where to find a single one.

"OK, can you explain how to marry a cruise ship engineer?" one female commentator wrote.

"How. in. the. H E double hockey sticks do I become the wife of a cruise ship engineer???? I don’t have to work AND cruise for free!" another added.

"Does he have any single friends with same job??? Asking for me," one more asked.

For even more tips on living this charmed life, follow Kesteloo on TikTok. Who knows, by now she might evne have some advice for landing your own cruise ship engineer spouse.

This article originally appeared last year.

Canva

A delivery driver in England helped save a woman's life

Kindness is infectious. Once it chooses a host, it can spread easily to others, creating a world where the same germ of consideration one could have for another might come back tenfold.

Such was the case in England with Leandro Pinto Dantas, a 36-year-old Asda delivery driver working in Poole, Dorset. One evening, he was making a grocery delivery to a woman and became concerned when she didn't answer her door. His instinct told him something was off, and sure enough - it was.

In Sophie Cridland's piece for BBC.com, she shares his explanation: "The light was on, and the TV was on. I knocked on the door but didn't get an answer, so I called the contact phone number we had for the delivery but got no reply." He then looked through the window, only to see that the woman was on the floor, seemingly unconscious. He called emergency services (999 in the United Kingdom), and luckily, they were able to come in time.

The woman, reportedly in her 60s, was diabetic, and her blood sugar had dropped. The paramedics treated her with a glucose injection.

Some might say concern for others is just the right thing to do — and that perhaps anyone in their right mind would have done the same. But Leandro went an extra mile by not only putting the customer's groceries away once the paramedics arrived, but also coming back a few days later with a check-in and some flowers.

In turn, the woman penned a letter to Leandro for the Bournemouth Echo (a local newspaper), letting him know how much it meant to her.

Printed in bold was: "Thanks for all your help." The letter continued: "I don't know if he will see this, but just in case he does, I wonder if you can print my letter to say thank you to the Asda delivery chap who found me unconscious on the floor and organised a neighbour to get my back gate open so he could come in and phone for an ambulance. That is certainly going above and beyond what I would expect from supermarket delivery drivers to do. I am fine now, but I think that will be the last time I do my insulin injection in that part of me again." It's signed Mrs. A. Thorne, Coles Avenue, Poole.

Delivery driver, Asda, Poole, heroA woman pens a note to the Bournemouth Echo to thank delivery driverBBC.Com, Bournemouth Echo Newspaper

She also relayed that the incident might have saved her from another silent issue. "I came round with a paramedic giving me glucose to get my blood sugars up. My blood pressure wasn't quite right either, so I was taken to hospital to be checked over and was allowed home the next day."

Leandro's employers took note too. They nominated him for the Asda Service Superstar Award. From their website: "We’re extremely proud of our incredible colleagues who go the extra mile every day to make a difference to our customers, communities and each other. Our Proud to be Asda Awards are about recognising, celebrating and most importantly saying thank you to these extra special colleagues."

Call it fate, call it circumstance. Either way, one simple act of doing the right thing led to more kindness, which led to the workplace taking note ---which will hopefully only continue paving the path for better things.

@steph_murphy/TikTok

Stephanie Murphy shares her "average" home in viral TikTok video.

Sure, it’s lovely to see pristine, perfectly curated homes that look like they belong in Architectural Digest. A little inspo never hurt anyone. But as we all know, the spotless life is simply not an achievable reality, especially for those with busy lives and limited budgets (read: most of us).

But you know what? Maybe even the messy homes deserve some love. The ones with constant junk piles, unfinished projects, dirty dishes, and misplaced toys. The homes that will never grace the cover of a magazine but still do a wonderful job of containing all the moments life has to offer—the big, small, extraordinary, mundane, and everywhere in between. 'Cause at the end of the day, isn’t that a home’s true purpose anyway?


@stephsharesitall

Lets normalize “average” because there is nothing wrong with it. Everywhere you look on social media you see big gorgeous houses in perfect condition and its hard not to compare yours to them. But its not the norm and half the time its staged. Our house is lived in, and its filled with love and tons of memories and at the end of the day thats all that matters.

Stephanie Murphy, a mom and TikTok creator, seems to think so. Murphy recently took viewers on an “average house tour,” and it was the exact opposite of aspirational. Highlighted in Murphy’s tour are the pantry door that’s remained unpainted for three years, blinds held together with binder clips, air conditioners held in place by duct tape, a full dish rack tray that’s “a permanent fixture” on their countertops, and not one but two junk drawers (honestly, that’s a little low by my count). You’ll also notice a fridge that is covered in her kid’s artwork and school pictures. Not in any cohesive way, but merely thrown on randomly, as nature intended.

Meanwhile, in the master bedroom, Murphy and her husband’s bed have two separate blankets because neither of them like to share. A genius idea, and just another example of how we really, really don’t need to continue with marital sleeping norms that don’t actually feel comfortable.

As for why Murphy decided to showcase her “average, middle-class house,” it’s all in the caption of her video: “Let’s normalize ‘average’ because there is nothing wrong with it. Everywhere you look on social media, you see big gorgeous houses in perfect condition and it’s hard not to compare yours to them. But it’s not the norm and half the time it's staged. Our house is lived in, and it’s filled with love and tons of memories and at the end of the day that's all that matters."

She further explained her reasoning to Good Morning America. "I feel like social media is full of one perfectly curated video after another, and there is just so much pressure from social media to be perfect in all aspects -- to have perfect skin, perfect makeup, perfect outfit, perfect house. And the reality is no one's perfect," Murphy said.

"Honestly, I feel like there's a very good chance that all those videos that we see were staged and they probably like, moved a pile of toys behind the camera to film and then moved it back when they were done. But that's the part that people on social media just aren't sharing. They don't show you the behind-the-scenes and that is what I was looking to change," she continued.


Judging from the comments sections of this now-viral post, it seems like other people are ready for more average content.

“This is awesome! I’m constantly feeling inadequate when people have a perfect house that looks like nobody lives there!” one person wrote. “I feel seen,” added another.

Hear, hear. No need to feel inadequate about having a home that’s lived in. Imperfection has its own kind of beauty.

This article originally appeared two years ago.

Woman making a "time out" sign.

There’s nothing worse than getting caught off-guard by a rude comment, whether it’s someone in line at Starbucks, a coworker saying something passive-aggressive, or a family member taking a shot at you for being single. Once the insult hits, you get flooded with negative emotions, and your brain goes into overdrive. Should I say something back? What did they really mean? You think to yourself. That’s why it’s great to have a response in your back pocket, so that you don’t say the wrong thing in haste, making the interaction even worse.

How to respond to a rude comment

John Bowe, a speech trainer, award-winning journalist, and author of “I Have Something to Say: Mastering the Art of Public Speaking in an Age of Disconnection,” recently shared the perfect five-word phrase to keep handy next time someone makes a rude comment to you: “Do you really mean that?”

“Say it with outrage or dripping sarcasm, with raised eyebrows or deadpan calm. It doesn’t matter. This phrase is quietly disarming and deceptively powerful,” Bowe writes for CNBC. Bowe says the response does two great things for you. First, it gives them a chance to reconsider their words because most rude comments are said without thinking. “By responding with curiosity instead of defensiveness, you’re holding up a mirror. Often, that’s all it takes for the other person to walk back their offense,” he writes.

comebacks, rude comments, insults, woman, stop, insults, gaspA woman gasping.via Canva/Photos

Secondly, it shifts the power dynamic. “You’re not on your heels anymore — you’re in control. And instead of lashing out or escalating, you’re putting the responsibility back where it belongs: with the person who made the rude comment,” he writes.

When you respond by asking them to clarify their comments, you put them in a position where they are almost forced to backpedal or apologize. At least, you’ve neutralized the situation unless the other person rants to escalate.

How to respond to a rude comment at work

Amy Gallo, at the Harvard Business Review, offers additional comebacks with similar meanings she suggests people can use at work. Gallo is a workplace expert who writes and speaks about effective communication, interpersonal dynamics, gender, difficult conversations, and feedback.“You might even ask the person to simply repeat what they said, which may prompt them to think through what they meant and how their words might sound to others,” she writes.

insults, coworkers, work, men in business suits, reports, rudeA man criticizing another man's work.via Canva/Photos

Here are Gallo’s suggested comebacks:

“What was your intention when you said…?”

“What specifically did you mean by that? I’m not sure I understood.”

“Could you say more about what you mean by that?”

“Did I hear you correctly? I think you said…”

The great thing about these responses is that they allow you to take the high ground without having to resort to lowering yourself to their comment. The reactions are confident and will enable you to expose the other person by simply asking them to clarify their comment. It’s like a judo master using his opponent's force and weight against them to gain leverage. It’s the type of assertive response that would definitely make most people think twice about insulting you again.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Photo by Kevin Payravi via Wikimedia and Takashi Toyooka via Flickr

The way Yoda talks could be an excellent tool for parents.

Parenting is certainly an interesting gig at times, but most parents likely never thought Yoda would be modeling child-rearing behavior. The little green guy that speaks in what sometimes feels like riddles was written like that purposely according to George Lucas—and it's something parents might want to take note of. Lucas, the man behind the Star Wars franchise was recently interviewed at the TCM Classic Film Festival's screening of The Empire Strikes Back for the film's 45th anniversary.

Longtime TCM host Ben Mankiewicz was the moderator of the event and finally got to ask a question that has been on people's minds for years: Why on earth did that little green Jedi master talk backwards?

Star Wars, Muppets, Frank Oz, social issues, gender rolesYoda is/was strong with the "Force." Photo by Riku Lu on Unsplash

The short story is, because Lucas wanted him to. The longer version (that fans actually wanted to know) is that Yoda's way of speaking is almost a Jedi move in itself. His speech is a psychological trick that can benefit parents who have children who struggle with listening—especially preteens.

Lucas explained, "Because if you speak regular English, people won’t listen that much. But if he had an accent, or it’s really hard to understand what he’s saying, they focus on what he’s saying. He was basically the philosopher of the movie." He continued, “I had to figure out a way to get people to actually listen—especially 12-year-olds.”

This is a tactic that some parents have used whether knowingly or not—and there's science behind it. For example, parents change their speech to a whisper when reprimanding their children in public settings to get their attention and correct unwanted behavior. Turns out this technique may also be beneficial inside the home as well.

According to The Wichita Eaglein 2008, "Wichita State audiology professor Ray Hull would say the children heard something unusual and irresistible: an adult they can understand. Because the trick to get children to listen to really hear and comprehend, whether they're toddlers or high school students isn't speaking up, Hull says. It's slowing down. According to Hull, the average adult speaks at a rate of almost 170 words per minute. But the average 5- to 7- year-old processes speech at a rate of only 120 words per minute. The gap between what a child hears and what he or she understands can appear to parents and teachers as inattention, confusion or outright defiance."

gif, star wars, speech, talking, language, childrenthe empire strikes back GIF by Star WarsGiphy

In 2013, the International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology researched the affects of rate of speech on comprehension abilities of typically developing school-aged children in Sweden. While the sample size was small, just 102 children, researchers were able to show that when children were spoken to in normal, slow, and fast rates of speech, the children were much more likely to comprehend the information given at the slow rate of speech.

Slowing things down is exactly what Mister Rogers did. According to Hull, the late children's show host spoke at a rate of 124 words per minute, which seemed to be the key in captivating his young audience. But speaking slowly isn't always enough. Parenting experts explain that parents should get down on the child's level and make eye contact before speaking. For older kids, gaining their attention by calling their name, moving closer to them, or placing a hand on their shoulder before speaking slowly will aid in getting them to hear the words coming out of your mouth. These techniques also work for children that have auditory processing disorder according to Nemours Kids Health.

yoda, grogu, star wars, speech, talk, slow speechSipping Tea Time GIFGiphy

Of course, Yoda isn't parenting real human children, but the way he speaks captures the attention of audience members young and old. But if you don't want to slow down and speak backwards, speaking at a lower volume may also do the trick.

"If someone starts speaking really loud or yelling at you, your immediate response is usually fight or flight. You just want to get away from them. Our children are no different. So when we get louder, they listen less. On the other hand, the more softly a person speaks, the more closely everybody else listens to them. We want to hear what we might be missing out on! And unless your child has a genuine physical ailment that affects their ability to hear, they will respond in the same way," parenting expert and author Dr Justin Coulson writes for Happy Families Australia.

Lucas likely didn't set out to give some solid parenting advice when explaining why he made Yoda speak in such a strange manner, but surely there's a parent out there who just may want to give this method a try.