Much like 2020, 2021 has been a weird year for pop music. The chart is almost as volatile as it was last year, with 19 songs reaching the top spot, only a handful of them staying on top for more than a week or two at a time. With the shift to streaming as the main way Americans listen to music, it’s almost as if it’s the '70s again. We also see a couple of significant records this year, with Mariah Carey becoming the first artist to have a song reach #1 in three calendar years, and Taylor Swift breaking the record for the longest track to reach #1 (previously held either by the Beatles, Don McLean, or Meat Loaf depending on which metric you want to use.) Interestingly, this year is one of the rare occasions where the #1 song on the year-end Hot 100 was not a #1 on the weekly chart, an event which last occurred in 2001; that honor goes to “Levivating” by Dua Lipa, which peaked at #2.
Pick your favorite, keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars.
What was the best song to reach #1 on the US charts in 2021?
24kGoldn w/ Iann Dior - “Mood”
Olivia Rodrigo - “Drivers License”
Drake - “What’s Next”
Cardi B - “Up”
Justin Bieber w/ Daniel Caesar & Giveon - “Peaches”
Lil Nas X - “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”
Silk Sonic (Bruno Mars & Anderson .Paak) - “Leave the Door Open”
Polo G - “Rapstar”
The Weeknd and Ariana Grande - “Save Your Tears”
Olivia Rodrigo - “Good 4 U”
BTS - “Butter”
BTS - “Permission To Dance”
the Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber - “Stay”
Drake w/ Future & Young Thug - “Way 2 Sexy”
Coldplay & BTS - “My Universe”
Lil Nas X - “Industry Baby”
Adele - “Easy On Me”
Taylor Swift - “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version / 10 Minute Version)”
I am officially old as I couldn’t tell you what any of the above sound like apart from the last one, which can fry in hell as far as I’m concerned (the song - Mariah is fine in herself). But at least I know who most of those people/groups are.
I went with Taylor Swift this year. When Red first came out ten years ago, I thought All Too Well was a decent breakup song, but not the strongest track on the album. The new version, however, is a masterpiece - it uses every second of its 10:13 runtime to the fullest and doesn’t even feel like it’s half that long. This is the song she’s gonna be playing on the nostalgia circuit 40 years from now.
If it hadn’t made #1 I could also have voted for the Weeknd, Adele, or either of Lil Nas X’s songs.
Not familiar with all, but Good 4 U is my vote. Driver’s License is also good. Permission To Dance is the better of the two BTS songs, though both are good. I like Montero, but have accidentally managed to avoid Industry Baby.
I’ve heard a snippet from Montero more than I ever could have cared to thanks to it being used in Rocket League. Other than that I know (and loathe) the Mariah Carey tune but have heard none of the others.
Given Billboard’s recent rule change allowing Xmas songs to chart perennially, I don’t think Mariah’s going anywhere any time soon. This week’s top 10 also includes “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” at #2, “Jingle Bell Rock” at #4, “A Holly Jolly Christmas” at #5, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” at #7, and “Last Christmas” at #9.
Oh no, I’m old because I don’t know any of those song titles at all. I probably have heard some of them and just don’t know the artist or title though.
I do still listen to new music, but it’s just not pop radio stuff.
“Good 4 U” would have taken it otherwise, but a rerelease that sounds as fresh as the day it was first recorded, and doesn’t drag at over ten minutes? Thumbs up from me.
Well, if I could choose among all the top hits of the year, not just the ones that went to #1, I would pick “Levitating” as my favorite. It’s a song liked by my son and his friends, and by all their parents.
The only ones I could consider voting for were “Good 4 U” and “Industry Baby.” “Good 4 U” ended up with the highest rating in the world-famous Ponch8 Music Rating System. It’s too bad that “Levitating” didn’t quite make #1, or another song of Rodriguo’s, “Deja Vu.” “Deja Vu” was far superior to “Driver’s License,” IMO.
Tied for dead-ass last are Justin Bieber’s piles of shit and Mariah Carey’s pile of the same substance.