# Best #1 single of the year retrospective: 2002 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 21, 2014, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249 "2014-11-21T15:23:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/1 "2014-11-21T15:23:53Z")
Welcome, my friends, to the dawning of the Age of Crunk. It is now 2002, and with Nickelback and Usher both carrying over, we have the smallest poll to date; a mere nine singles reached #1 this year (so hopefully this one won’t be too hard to make a decision on.) What’s your favorite? Previous polls: [1955-56](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=731649) [1957](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=731871) [1958](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=732021) [1959](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=732199)[1960](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=732526) [1961](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=732691) [1962](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=732872) [1963](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=733112) [1964](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=733297) [1965](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=733526) [1966](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=733750) [1967](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=733958) [1968](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=734168) [1969](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=734331) [1970](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=734535) [1971](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=734741) [1972](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=735107) [1973](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=735304) [1974](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=735502) [1975](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=735659) [1976](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=735871) [1977](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=736076) [1978](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=736316) [1979](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=736501) [1980](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=736705) [1981](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=736957) [1982](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=737099) [1983](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=737315) [1984](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=737488) [1985](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=737732) [1986](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=737957) [1987](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=738178) [1988](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=738403) [1989](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=738639) [1990](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=738829) [1991](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=739067) [1992](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=739360) [1993](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=739525) [1994](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=739880) [1995](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=740122) [1996](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=740302) [1997](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=740497) [1998](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=740709) [1999](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=740859) [2000](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=741047) [2001](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=741267) [2012](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=675664) [2013](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=710843) ---
**Author:** ![SaharaTea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SaharaTea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SaharaTea)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/2 "2014-11-21T15:37:19Z")
No contest here. “Lose Yourself” is a hell of a song, and one of the best of the decade. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/3 "2014-11-21T16:01:48Z")
> [@SaharaTea](#): > > No contest here. “Lose Yourself” is a hell of a song, and one of the best of the decade. Yeah, no contest for me this year. Eminem in a landslide. ---
**Author:** ![Nema98](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d2c977/32.png) [@Nema98](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nema98)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/4 "2014-11-21T16:28:33Z")
Went with Nelly since Eminem has many votes and will win the poll. Could haves voted for Nickelback, Kelly ( good debut), Usher and Ja Rile and J. Lo. But I voted for Lopez last year. So Nelly got my vote. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/5 "2014-11-21T16:50:07Z")
Yep…Lose Yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/6 "2014-11-21T17:04:57Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Welcome, my friends, to the dawning of the Age of Crunk. It is now 2002, and with Nickelback and Usher both carrying over, we have the smallest poll to date; a mere nine singles reached #1 this year (so hopefully this one won’t be too hard to make a decision on.) You say that, yet it is. I may go with Eminem, but I keep thinking of Weird Al’s “Couch Potato” so I have to listen to the original. Weird Al ruins a lot of songs for me that way. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/7 "2014-11-21T17:19:52Z")
Yeah, Eminem really does walk away with it this year. “Hot In Herre” is a distant second place. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/8 "2014-11-21T17:26:33Z")
**Nelly w/ Kelly Rowland** - \*Dilemma \*, without enthusiasm but: - I remember it. - It’s not bad. - It’s got no votes so far. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/9 "2014-11-21T17:31:56Z")
If this contest were a marathon, Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” would finish with an 8 Mile lead over the next best song, Nelly’s “Hot in Herre.” (Get the reference? Clever, huh?) This year probably has the biggest disparity between my favorite and second-favorite songs in all the years to date, perhaps rivalling even 2009 and 2014. All of the other songs are the out-of-shape runners who give up after the first half mile. “Dilemma” is dead-ass last. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/10 "2014-11-21T17:58:53Z")
We need a “none’a this crap” option. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/11 "2014-11-21T18:07:52Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > We need a “none’a this crap” option. I don’t know that song. Who’s it by? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/12 "2014-11-21T18:19:24Z")
Yep, Eminem followed by Nelly. ---
**Author:** ![Nema98](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d2c977/32.png) [@Nema98](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nema98)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/13 "2014-11-21T21:22:16Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > We need a “none’a this crap” option. Or better yet do not vote for if nothing satisfies you. Anyways anyone remember the Norah Jones song “Don’t Know Why”, got lots of airplay, not enough to hit #1. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/14 "2014-11-21T21:26:07Z")
Is this our first poll-winner that’s also an Oscar-winner? In both cases, well-deserved. ---
**Author:** ![Eddie\_F](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/22d042/32.png) [@Eddie\_F](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eddie_F)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/15 "2014-11-21T21:33:44Z")
Eminem. _Easily_. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2014, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/16 "2014-11-21T21:36:54Z")
There’s no competition in this list for Eminem. ---
**Author:** ![FordTaurusSHO94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f07891/32.png) [@FordTaurusSHO94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordTaurusSHO94)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2014, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/17 "2014-11-22T01:30:48Z")
I voted for Eminem. I think I’m that only person that didn’t like Hot in Herre. I liked Country Grammar and the St. Lunatics albums and thought whatever album Hot in Herre came out on was a step backwards. ---
**Author:** ![Stringbean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Stringbean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stringbean)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2014, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/18 "2014-11-22T01:36:07Z")
Eminem at the top and Hot in Herre as a semi-distant 2nd. ---
**Author:** ![fruitbat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/58f4c7/32.png) [@fruitbat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fruitbat)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2014, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/19 "2014-11-22T03:43:19Z")
Obviously Eminem wins this, but I think the ascendance of Kelly Clarkson is noteable. Crappy song, but she is about to crank out 1-2 surprisingly listenable hits per year for the next decade. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2014, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249/20 "2014-11-22T04:15:30Z")
Not a close call. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-2002/705249.md?page=2)