The Top 20 Best Songs of 2014- Billboard Hot 100 Edition

 

The end of 2014 is just about upon is. According to the folks at Billboard, it ended on December 11, when they posted their official Year-End Hot 100. While I have never liked their decision to make up their own calendar, I have no choice but to play by their rules, so let’s take a look at the best 20 hits of the year (decided, as always, by me and only me).

As a reminder, these are all songs selected from within Billboard’s year-end list. Believe me, I wish I could expand the selection pool a little this year- never have I faced a bleaker list of underwhelming choices than in 2014. Ultimately, though, these 20 aren’t so bad, they just pale in comparison to the stronger choices I’ve had in the last few years I’ve been doing this list. Never fear, though, let’s dive into the countdown!

What Happened to Pop Music in 2014?

Surprise midsummer check-in! I recently took some time to examine the pool of songs from which I’ll be choosing my Top 20 Hits of 2014 list later this year. Usually, by the end of the year, I have trouble whittling the list down to just 20 songs I liked, because there are so many great, or at least solid, hits that year.

Well, this year, through the end of July, we are way, way short on actually enjoyable songs. I’ll keep it a secret for now, but there only 6 or 7 songs that I find even remotely palatable in the pool so far.  Unless we get a landslide of great pop songs in the late summer and fall, I may have to switch up my formula or change the title to “The 20 Tolerable Pop Songs of 2014,” which would really shake the foundations of this blog, since it’s supposed to be a celebration of pop music.

So, the question is, what’s happened to pop music this year that has made it less enjoyable? Am I just getting older and finally aging out of the genre, or has the music changed somehow?

There is no easy answer to this question. Truthfully, it’s probably a little of both. We tend to enjoy pop music because it travels with us wherever we go; therefore, we like a song more if we associate it with something happy. As I’ve gone out and joined the “real world” (or tried to, anyway), I’ve had fewer happy interactions with pop songs where I could have created positive connections with them. Nonetheless, I think this goes beyond my own personal experiences.

For instance, here is a partial list of hit songs released in 2014 that can in no way be considered “music:”

Belated Personal Favorites of 2013

*This illustration doesn't really apply to me, yet...but I'm feeling old today, so just go with it.

To all my devoted readers, I apologize for the lateness of this post for the second year in a row. I've been exceptionally busy, so even though I've had the list ready to go, I haven't had time to put it into blog form until right now. But here it is- my personal favorite songs that were released in 2013. These are not ranked; rather, they are grouped roughly by genre. Also, they don't include any songs that were on my Best Hot 100 Hits of 2013. So these are more deep cuts, if you will.  I know you all value my opinion, and have been waiting patiently to find out what you should be listening to, so here you go:

Top 20 Best Songs of 2013- Billboard Hot 100 Edition

Welcome back to Consider Me Named! The year 2013 is just about over, and according to the calendar-illiterate folks over at Billboard, it ended on December 13, when their year-end Hot 100 chart came out.  I still don’t know why they can’t just follow the same rules as the rest of society when it comes to determining what constitutes a year, but hey, at least it allows me to get the list up before we turn the calendar to the new year.

As always, this is the entirely unbiased list of the Best Songs of 2013. All songs here appeared on the aforementioned Billboard Year-End Hot 100 (topped this year by Macklemore’s “Thrift Shop”). It was a big year for Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, Jay Z, and Robin Thicke (among others), but you won’t find them on this list, because it’s my list and I get to make it as I see fit. And believe me, they were not even close to being fit enough for my Top 20.  The following songs, however, were:

Top 50 Songs Of College For The Class Of 2013

Hello Class of 2013 and other assorted onlookers. What you have stumbled across is a personal list of sorts, of what were, for me, some of the most memorable songs of my college career, which has just come to a close about a week ago. I will dive briefly into the reasonings for each song’s inclusion down below for anyone actually interested, but you should almost definitely just skip to the music. These songs are organized in rough chronological order, and you will notice a great number of prominent songs and artists missing from this list. Why? Because, as I’ve said before, it’s my damn list, and if you don’t like it, go...make your own list. Without further ado, here are the top 50 songs from summer 2009 to spring 2013*:

*I decided to get with the times and embed a Spotify playlist rather than put 50 YouTube videos in this post, for which I think you should be thankful.  However, Spotify doesn't have the rights to a few of the songs on this list, like Rihanna or Jay-Z & Kanye.  So it's really only the top 47 or so.  But you get the idea.  Still better than 50 YouTube videos in one post.

 

Asher Roth- “I Love College”: 
Wale feat. Lady GaGa- “Chillin'”: 
Miley Cyrus- “Party In The USA”: 
Guru Josh Project- “Infinity”: 
Owl City- “Fireflies”: 
Jay-Z feat. Alicia Keys- “Empire State Of Mind”: 
LMFAO feat. Lil Jon- “Shots”: 
David Guetta feat. Akon- “Sexy Bitch”: 
Phoenix- “1901”: 
Ke$ha- “Tik Tok”: 
Rihanna- “Rude Boy”: 
Ludacris feat. Nicki Minaj- “My Chick Bad”: 
Cali Swag District- “Teach Me How to Dougie”: 
Mike Posner- “Cooler Than Me”: 
Paramore- “The Only Exception”: 
Usher feat. Pitbull- “DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love”: 
Far East Movement- “Like A G6”: 
Katy Perry- “Teenage Dream”: 
Rihanna- “Only Girl (In the World)”: 
David Guetta feat. Kid Cudi- “Memories”: 
Wiz Khalifa- “Black And Yellow”: 
Chris Brown feat. Busta Rhymes and Lil Wayne-“Look At Me Now”: 
Mann- “Buzzin'”: 
Britney Spears- “Till The World Ends”: 
Martin Solveig & Dragonette- “Hello”: 
Afrojack feat. Eva Simons- “Take Over Control”: 
Kelly Rowland feat. Lil Wayne- “Motivation”: 
Avicii- “Levels”: 
Katy Perry- “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)”: 
Maroon 5 feat. Christina Aguilera-“Moves Like Jagger”: 
Sak Noel- “Loca People”: 
M83- “Midnight City”: 
Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris- “We Found Love”: 
Lloyd feat. Andre 3000- “Dedication To My Ex”: 
Jessie J- “Domino”: 
Jay-Z & Kanye West- “Niggas In Paris”: 
Alex Clare- “Too Close”: 
Fun. feat. Janelle Monae-“We Are Young”: 
The Wanted- “Glad You Came”: 
David Guetta feat. Sia- “Titanium”: 
Ellie Goulding- “Lights”: 
Katy Perry- “Wide Awake”: 
Swedish House Mafia feat. John Martin- “Don't You Worry Child”: 
Ke$ha- “Die Young”: 
Macklemore feat. Ryan Lewis & Wanz- “Thrift Shop”: 
Imagine Dragons- “Radioactive”: 
Rihanna feat. Mikky Ekko- “Stay”: 
Zedd- “Clarity”: 
Daft Punk feat. Pharrell Williams- “Get Lucky”: 
Taylor Swift- “22”:

Belated Personal Favorites Of 2012

I've already given you my favorites of the top big hits of 2012, but what about my favorite songs from outside the top of the charts?  Presented without comment, and ordered somewhat by genre, here are 20 of my personal favorite jams of the year.  Maybe you've heard of some of them, maybe you haven't.  Either way, you can't go wrong with any of these songs, so enjoy!

Top Songs Of 2012- Billboard Hot 100 Edition*

Well, we’ve arrived at the end of 2012, which means it’s time to look back on the year that was in pop music, and attempt to count down the best of the hit music that graced our radios, iPods, and whatever strange newfangled music-listening methods the kids are using these days.  It was a big year for Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, Pink, Flo Rida, and Ke$ha, and we were introduced to sensations like One Direction, PSY, and Carly Rae, but you won’t find any of them on this year’s list, because, frankly, their music annoyed me, and it’s MY list and I get to make the rules.  So, without further ado, here’s my definitive list of the best of the year’s biggest hits:

*The following songs were all included in Billboard Magazine's Year-End Top 100 chart for 2012.  If a song wasn't included in the chart, it wasn't eligible for my list either.