I think any pop fan would agree, 2024 has been a great year for our favourite kind of music. After a few years of feeling nothing quite deserved the top spot in my ranking of poptasticness, it’s been brilliant to have the opposite problem, with too many singles deserving the accolade.
I found myself in step with popular opinion far more than normal this year. When people say it’s been the year of Charli, Sabrina and Chappell, I have to agree… though of course, like any self-respecting pop geek, I had Chappell’s 2023 singles in my 2023 chart and I can’t justify including Good Luck Babe over better songs, so she doesn’t feature here.
While she didn’t quite reach the top, Charli makes the most appearances in my top 25, with Girl So Confusing, 360 and Apple all making the cut. While 360 and Apple were growers for me, that earned their place as much for the fun memories they’re associated with as musical reasons, I was instantly obsessed with Girl So Confusing as soon as I heard the version with Lorde. Has any song ever captured the feeling of negotiating female friendship more perfectly and viscerally? Not only is it a sentiment you never hear expressed in music, but the fact Charli got the person she was writing about to feature, and that Lorde’s verse was so personal and exposing, turned up the emotional impact by 100%. Anyone who actually listened to Brat already knew it was more than just a party album, but that release made it absolutely clear.
One of the narratives of the year has been how the albums from major artists underperformed while new stars rose, but it wouldn’t be fair to say the established pop girls didn’t serve up any gems. Ariana gave us two unoriginal but totally poptastic singles with the help of Max Martin, and unpopular opinion alert: I enjoyed Taylor’s Tortured Poets Society more than anything she’s done since Lover. As someone whose fave eras were Fearless to 1989, this album felt like a return to the sound and songwriting style that originally made me a fan.
Another artist who makes multiple appearances in my top 25, and one of my best gigs of the year, is Zara Larsson. While I always felt her music in the 2010s didn’t quite deliver on her potential, she’s still plugging away making some of the best pure pop music around. And on a similarly Swedish note, this year’s Melodifestivalen produced some brilliant dance-pop songs from Maria Sur, Chelsea Muco and Jacqline. However, the Koreans are giving the Swedes a run for their money these days, with two K-pop artists (girlband ILLIT and Blackpink member Rosé) in the top 10. Both songs were late entries into the chart, released in late Nov and Dec, but proof that you should never declare your songs of the year too early!
My final honourable mention before we get to no.1 goes to Canadian indie-pop girlband The Beaches, whose album I unfortunately didn’t listen to until this year (or they might have had more songs in my 2023 chart), but was one of my faves. They’ve released a couple of singles this year, including the brilliantly fun and funny Takes One To Know One, which has to be a good indicator for their next album.
And now, to my no.1. As much as there were many great contenders, ultimately the prize goes to the song that I knew at heart was going to take it as soon as I heard it… Espresso. A song that sounds original yet instantly classic. A brilliantly nonsensical hook that follows Max Martin’s book of songwriting (it’s about how the words sound and feel, not what they actually mean). An anthem for girls who know their worth, but without a female empowerment cliché in sight. I know it’s cooler to say Taste is the best song from this album, but that’s just cos you’ve heard it less. We all know Espresso is the one that’ll be on every ‘songs of the 2020s’ playlist in 20 years’ time (if playlists still exist… probably unlikely!).
So while playlists are still a thing, here’s my top 25 for your enjoyment: