In a year of exuberance and dread, songs came from everywhere to console, amuse, torment and tempt. Here, in descending order of greatness, are the 30 best of the year.
1. Chappell Roan“Good luck, baby!”
The achievement of Roan’s breakout success, an indie single so upbeat that it propelled his 2023 debut to the highest levels of the charts, is its emotional specificity: somehow elegant and jagged at the same time, “Good luck, baby! ” is a song in which a woman gets her lover to consider what she's giving up in a breakup, asking him to imagine waking up years from now and realizing that he could have had all of this, and now, instead, it's just someone… wife. “You know I hate saying 'I told you so,'” Roan sings, his voice rippling with the unwanted shame of his own pain, “You know I hate saying it, but I told you so.” What a scene. —Mikael Madera
2. Kendrick Lamar, “Not Like Us”
Will the Recording Academy really give the Grammy for record or song of the year to a single that accuses Drake of being a pedophile? How could it not be so? No song hit harder or dominated the culture more completely in 2024. It's a ballet of hate: a four-and-a-half-minute neutron bomb of revenge that emptied Toronto and, instead of tarnishing his Pulitzer, paved K's path. Dot to the Super Bowl and prepared us. for the extraordinary surprise album “GNX”. Wop-wop-wop-wop-wop. —August Brown
3. Sabrina Carpenter“Please, please, please”
A new discovery at every turn, each one more fun and heartbreaking than the last. — megawatts
4. Charli XCX with Lorde, “Girl, So Confusing”
Imagine the real Jolene jumping on a remix with Dolly Parton. – A.B.
5. Tommy Richman, “The Million Dollar Baby”
[Makes stank face] — megawatts
6. Shaboozey“A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
An empowering text about America's cultural and racial realignments and a guarantee that Shaboozey will never pay for a shot again. – A.B.
7. Kali Uchis and Peso Pluma, “Just Like An Angel”
The most luxurious disco-funk song of the year. — megawatts
8. Koe Wetzel and Jessie Murph, “High Road”
The most tender rock ballad of the year. — megawatts
9. Billie Eilish“Birds of a feather”
In which Eilish uses her imagined death to find life in high notes she never hits. — megawatts
10. Taylor Swift, “But dad, I love him”
Best pregnancy announcement troll in a pop song since “Papa Don't Preach.” -AB
11. Gracie Abrams, “That's So True”
“I could go and read your mind / Think about your dumb face all the time.” — megawatts
12. Megan Moroney“Third time t“he charmed”
Another gorgeous, brave, brilliantly written late summer hit from Moroney. -AB
13. tinashe“Disgusting”
Does Feeld even allow you to post a bio if it doesn't quote this song? -AB
14. Zach Bryan, “Pink Skies”
Quick: Savor this raw, poignant, deadly ballad before Bryan fully enters his villainous arc. -AB
15. Tyla, “Truth or Dare”
It's hard to top “Water,” but Tyla's cup runs over. -AB
16. SZA, “Saturn”
Stock up on protective crystals at House of Intuition because the vibrations are going to be awful next year. -AB
17. Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars, “Die with a smile”
I think Bruno sometimes wakes up and tries it. No write a hit? — megawatts
18. Sade, “Young Lion”
If you are a parent, you will cry. — megawatts
19. Mk.gee, “Rockman”
A stained glass tribute to Ric Ocasek, divided into a thousand shiny pieces. -AB
20. Post Malone with Morgan Wallen, “I Had Some Help”
Making a mess never sounded so clean. — megawatts
21. Kim Gordon, “Goodbye”
Sonic Youth's noise doyenne doing Patti Smith-style spoken word over trap beats too mangled for Playboi-Carti? What a world! – A.B.
22. Themes, “Amame JeJe”
An invitation for R&B and Afrobeats fans to dive deep into Nigeria's radiant music history. – A.B.
23. Beyonce“16 wagons”
A road song as lonely as it gets. — megawatts
24. SML, “Industry”
Like P-Funk falling down a flight of stairs. – A.B.
25. Ryuichi Sakamoto, “For Jóhann”
A haunting piano ballad about the devotion and friendship of one deceased composer to another. -AB
26. Dua Lipa“These walls”
Stunning bass line, gorgeous slide guitar and a glamorous pop star determined not to let you in. – MW
27. Burial, “Fear of sleep”
“I am the lord of ecstasy” – hell yeah. -AB
28. Ethel Cain, “Punish”
“American Teenager” was a classic, but is it bad to say it's good to have Cain back and sound absolutely miserable? -AB
29. Cheers with Lauren Mayberry, “Ashamed”
The Chvrches frontwoman deftly turns this gothic breakup lament on its head (and roasts Health's own singer in the process). – A.B.
30. Ella Langley, “Nicotine”
Never doubt the ability of a national law to sell an addiction metaphor. — megawatts
