The Music Industry Is Literally Brainwashing You to Like Bad Pop Songs 
Music is just one piece of the puzzle. Who performs the song matters as much as the song itself. If "Can't Stop" was performed by Kiesza it probably wouldn't be a top10 hit. Because all the other bullshit would be missing.
Which is why analyzing songs from purely musical standpoint is pointless, "Blurred Lines" and "Can't Stop" and "Problem" and "Fancy" have barely anything in common, yet they all "work".
Yet...I still hate "Fancy" and never liked "Blurred Lines" much. But perfect time for me to give an example of 'why things worked.
Fancy
1. White Rapper Chick who's slowly revealed herself to the world to be Australian with an accent(you see, if you're white and too authentic in urban music, you get overlooked, but once you can relate to the burbs you go from poor white trash/wigger status to girl/guy next door, same reason Em wouldn't work without bleached hair and the sarcastic "hi My Name Is" when he made his debut).
2. Catchy hook with a Gwen Stefaniesque vibe to it(because people love a sound they can relate to).
3. Memorable lyrics and bridge so that you instantly remember the song. After 3 listens you knew most of the rap parts or at least could fill in what was going to be said next because of the tone that was used and everything having space to be overpronounced, this makes her "demographic" instantly able to "rap" along with her. And the bridge? "Crash the hotel!!!" Everyone in a party setting is putting up a drink when that comes on.
4. Clueless references in the vid...nostalgic like the Gwen Stefaniesque hook. People love stuff they can relate to.
So...to cover this idea of who performs mattering, absolutely. That's why as a producer, or anyone else in this business, you have to be able to create stars. Iggy didn't matter before this song beyond a small demographic, this was her breakthrough hit because of the way they developed and presented her. Could it have worked with any of her other songs even if played to death on radio? All hypothetical at this point, but I don't believe so. I think this is the catchiest and most commercially constructed song she's done.
Now....think of how much you can take from that and make "common' with a song like "Blurred Lines"...now you're starting to get it. If you're good enough to have a career in music.
Blurred lines
1. White RnB guy who's been around for years but finally toned down to gentrify his demographic
2. Catchy party song with a Marvin Gayesque Vibe(because people love a sound they can relate to)......
I bet not 1 scientist doing all that research knows MUSIC as well as I do. Numbers and statistics, sure....but last time those worked, execs weren't pulling out their hair trying to figure out a way to sell music.
Again, it's human nature to fear what you can't relate to. So something's gotta be wrong for everyone else to like a song if you don't. Yet, even in the article you see tweets from people saying "if I hear that song one more time, I'm gonna set the world on fire". Does that alone not debunk the idea. People who initially don't care for these songs get to the point where they despise them more often than not. Why? Because they're on repeat to expose them to people who will grow to love them and in the process, we're tortured. All that aside, a hit is still a hit.
