Selena Gomez
“Same Old Love”
#43
Charli XCX is probably the best hook/chorus writer of the last five years, but it was only a matter of time before she started to repeat herself. If you’re one of her fans, you’ve heard much like “Same Old Love” before, but for Gomez’s followers this may sound remarkably fresh, and they probably won’t realize Gomez is copying the writer’s phrasing note for note. It’s enough to make you wonder how much Gomez bases her singing on the demos she recieves and how much she conceives on her own. A good record, though, whatever the case, and that chorus was worth repeating.
Drake
“Right Hand”
#66
Is anyone surprised that Drake raps more warmly about members of his entourage than he does about women, almost as warmly as he raps about himself? He almost sounds human. The music, the merest sketch of a beat, helps provide hints of an emotional core Drake himself often either lacks or dangles in front of his audience like a cat toy. A throwaway, but a decent one.
Ty Dolla $ign Featuring Future & Rae Sremmurd
“Blasé”
#85
Blasé doesn’t only mean boredom; it means they’ve seen it all, done it all, and feel above it all. In other words, it’s a brag, a mark of distinction, that also functions as a defense against the negative aspects of wealth and fame, and an excuse to numb oneself even more than usual. As such, it serves a purpose not much different from the brags of “normal” street rap. Whether it’s as morally justifiable is another question, one that I’m not sure these guys are up to asking.
Blake Shelton
“Gonna”
#86
“I’m diggin’ on hittin’ on you tonight” is one of the more tasteless lines to appear on a country song this year, and that it’s delivered with Shelton’s usual effortless, self-confident smarm only makes it worse. Where Chase Rice hopes you’re “Gonna Wanna” spend the night with him, Shelton just says he’s “Gonna” whether you wanna or not. His intentions seem honorable, sure; he even promises you a wedding ring. But he’ll have one hand on your ass and one eye on the next girl as he slips it on your finger.
Lil Wayne & Charlie Puth
“Nothing But Trouble (Instagram Models)”
#87
Buried under the earsore that is Charlie Puth’s misogynistic chorus, peaking out from the rubble of years lost to prison, depression, and dicking around, are some of the most resonant lines Lil Wayne has delivered in ages.
I had to leave that ho alone and get my mind right
I had to go talk to my friends, I had to find Christ
Lord I had to…open up my eyes and find light
With all the idiosyncratic, self-lacerating—and self-pitying—inward-directed rap in the years since 808s and Heartbreak, Lil Wayne remains the only rapper who can cut to the heart of emotional/intellectual/spiritual confusion in such a direct manner (Kanye uses too many filters; Future feels too sorry for himself; Kendrick Lamar tries too hard to be a great artist; Drake denies any confusion at all), and he’s the only one who would dare to throw away great lines like this by matching them with such a repulsive chorus. His contradictions run deeper than any artist I can think of right now. As he himself puts it: “Emotions, emotions, emotions.” Step into that light, Lil Wayne. We’ve missed you.
Jess Glynne
“Hold My Hand”
#88
It starts like an EDM hoedown, shifts into something closer to R&B, and then slides into a chorus that’s pure disco. I love the chorus, and normally I would applaud this sort of stylistic mix and match, but there’s something about Glynne’s voice that throws me off. It sounds hollow to me, chipper in all the wrong ways. She leans into the hooks with an artificial brightness that makes the song sound like a TV commercial and reminds me of the worst sort of British bubblegum pop. It’s not quite as soul-crushing as that, but it’s heading in that direction.
Kygo Featuring Conrad
“Firestone”
#92
Light, pleasant EDM, without a single misstep or offensive moment, lyrically or musically. Does that sound boring? It isn’t, quite, but it sure is easy to forget.
Daya
“Hide Away”
#97
Love the girl group sheen, especially on the bridge, hate the message. If you’re going to sound this strong and self-possessed—and she does—why do you need a “superman” to “save” you? Are you just putting up a front while waiting for the chance to cave to the normative? Since she doesn’t define being a “good girl” much beyond not putting out on a first date and spending extra time on her makeup, Daya doesn’t seem to expect much more from a “good boy” than a certain amount of rectitude and admiration. Is that really all it takes to be “fly as a mutha”?
Rae Sremmurd
“Come Get Her”
#100
Scraping the bottom of the singles barrel, where even fresh young rappers start to sound like everybody else. Still better than almost everybody else, though.