Musical Theorist Breaks Down Why Taylor Swift's 'Shake It Off' Is Catchy

Chilly Gonzales not only has the best name ever. He is also a musician and musical theorist who can break down why Taylor Swift's 'Shake If Off' is one of the catchiest hits of the year. (Video Below)

As Gonzales so aptly demonstrates by playing on a grand piano, basically, Swift steals your brain by "repeating the same thing with a very distinct shape." He explains: "The shape in this case is a very large descending phrase."

Gonzales goes on to dissect Swift's power (along with Iggy Azalea's "Fancy"), and shows how the chords are unimportant. The melody is dominate, and can be played with any chord. "If we add chords, it's just the frame," he says.

The repetition of "Shake It Off" at the end of the key melody is called "rhythmic displacement," and acts like the bow on top.

By emphasizing "shake" in the first phrasing, and "off" in the second, gives the illusion of the song speeding up, and is the best way to finish off a chorus.

"Say the title of the song, say it twice, and make it snappy."

To finish the video, he performs a beautiful, melodic rendition of Swift's "Shake It Off" that like... will bring you to tears.