Best List:

So, this was quite a shitty year for music. Not only was there not a lot of music, most of it was really, REALLY bad. I’m starting to wonder if 2018 was worse than 2016.
Every year, I ask myself “Did I mostly enjoy the music this year?” and this year the answer is definitely “no”. Maybe because this year was so chock-full of awful songs, the good stuff stuck out way more. And the songs I liked this year, I really liked, just like 2016-17.

#10:
	Remember Bastille? That band that had a brief moment in the spotlight, but had to continue underground? I don’t know why people got so bored quickly, but clearly Marshmello can fix that.
Happier - Marshmello & Bastille

	Ah, Marshmello. The last hope, next to Ariana Grande, for pop music. 2016 was the year pop music became depressed, 2017 was the year it stopped mattering, and 2018 was the last year. Of course, some huge pop stars, like the aforementioned Ariana Grande, Camila Cabello, Taylor Swift, and Zedd are still hanging in there, but Bastille made an unexpected comeback thanks to Marshmello.
	This song itself is about… I don’t really know, being happy? Fitting with this miserable year, it actually did make people happy, as it was hugely successful, peaking at #2, and staying high up ever since.
	But yeah, this was just such a breath of fresh air, and God, did we need fresh air. So, thank you, Bastille, and thank you, Marshmello.
#9:
	Soo… Migos had a shit year, didn’t they?
	2017 was their banner year after they released their massively successful and influential album Culture. This year, they released another album called Culture II, which was so shit half of North Atlanta likely hung themselves after hearing it.
	Because of how hated Culture II was, two of the members decided to go solo. Quavo’s solo album was… I’ll be honest, it was pretty bad. And Takeoff’s was pretty good.
Last Memory – Takeoff

	Now, this was my favourite song off the album. That beat, Takeoff’s flow, actual lyrics, and not just nonsensical mumbling. Obviously, Takeoff isn’t doing so hot on the charts without the other two, but he’s proven that he’s more than capable of making a successful solo career. Take that, Quavo!
	The only problem with this song is that it’s fairly short, so you don’t get to enjoy too much. This is still Takeoff’s best work so far.
#8:
	Early on in the year, pop music still held on to relevance thanks to sweetener by Ariana Grande. This album was hugely successful even at its debut, and for good reason. With huge songs like No tears left to cry and get well soon, it was big enough to last even to the summer, and even gave us a hit to last for all the summer.
God is a woman – Ariana Grande

	This song is an absolute powerbomb of a single, to the point where it lasted a whole 2 months. It’ll be very long before Ariana dips if she keeps this up. Although, this song is kind of weird. Between that music video which features Ariana fingering Earth and causing hurricanes, screaming gophers, and…Ariana naked in paint… (seriously was that needed?)
	Despite all this, this song still is godly. That heavy-bass beat, even the lyrics are great. And those background singers at the end, and those high notes… God, she’s good!
#7:
	So, the new shit genre of the year is “sad rap” or “emo rap”. XXTENTACION, Juice WRLD, and Trippie Redd are great examples of “artists” who make this kind of music. Most songs of this genre are absolute trash, but like everything else, this year had a banger in this genre.
Better Now – Post Malone

	Better Now is a song about Post Malone breaking up with his girl.
	“You prolly think that you are better now, better now
	You only say that cause I’m not around”
That’s a good hook, and again, I appreciate a hip-hop song about something besides fucking bitches and popping Percocet. And of course, there’s that line
“Used to keep my picture posted by your bedside
Now it’s in your dresser with the socks you don’t like”
Just taking time to acknowledge the post-breakup habit of storing mementos of your exes in random spots. They just get tossed somewhere because throwing them out is too strong a move, and a year later you’re like “Goddamnit where’d I put my markers” and then “oh hey, it’s my ex.”
	So, point to Post Malone for another great song.
#6:
Taste – Tyga

	Okay, I’ll admit that I was pissed to see Tyga back on the charts. I tried to avoid listening to this song for as long as possible, and when I did, GODDAMN was I blown away. The beat is the musical equivalent of drugs, Offset absolutely kills it, and even Tyga’s parts are great. This is just a song you can kick ass to. Speaking of ass, the music video is mostly the reason it got so high on the chart. But this song is still amazing.
#5:
Youngblood – 5 Seconds of Summer

	This song defines the summer of 2018. It was just a truly spirit-lifting song, plus a rock song that actually got popular. I don’t have a whole lot more to say about this song, I just love everything about it.

#4:
	Speaking of great rock-like songs this year,
Jumpsuit – Twenty One Pilots

	I don’t know why this didn’t hit the Hot 100. It deserves it. Twenty One Pilots is one of those artists that have no bad songs (in my opinion). This, again, was just a deep breath of fresh air in the face of horrible songs, which was something we all needed.
#3:
	Remember how I said Post Malone made another great song when I talked about Better Now? Yeah Post Malone released lots of great songs this year.
Psycho – Post Malone
	Yeah, I wasn’t joking. This is Post Malone’s best song to date. Everything about it is just great. The production, the lyrics, even Ty Dolla $ign does well. Actually, I take back what I said about the lyrics. I don’t have a damn clue what the song is about, but I don’t give a shit.
	Let’s be clear, it’s pop rap, but it’s good pop rap. Just another great hip-hop song about something else, as far as I know.
#2:
	When I heard this song, I just thought, “Damn, I feel this song. This is so true!”. It’s made by an underground rapper, but I don’t care if it didn’t make it on the chart. It’s just too good.
CLOUT COBAIN/CLOUT CO13AIN – Denzel Curry

	This song is as underrated as Travis Scott stans say Drugs You Should Try It is. Only CLOUT COBAIN/CLOUT CO13AIN actually is totally underrated.
	Now why? I don’t know. Every aspect of this song is amazing, but the lyrics make the entire song.
	“I just wanna feel myself
	  You want me to kill myself”
I don’t know about you, but those two lines describe how I feel all day every day.
	“Dry tears with a dollar bill”
Denzel Curry is describing the common myth in which lots of rappers believe, that money solves depression.
	“They want to go to war
	  For things that they can’t afford”
This refers to people killing each other for money, an ongoing issue.
	The song also is saying that chasing success, or “clout”, can make people feel unfulfilled. That’s exactly the reason I don’t want to be very popular at SAB. And let’s not even get to the music video, because I could spend an hour there.
	Long story short, Denzel never disappoints.

Honourable Mentions:

TA13OO – Denzel Curry
	This song, while not as good as Clout Cobain, was still very slept on. It at least deserves this spot.

Breathin – Ariana Grande
	What can I say? Ariana is still great even when she’s singing about all the shit that happened to her this year.

BIGGEST ALLEY OOP – Quavo
	So Quavo decided to try his hand at a solo career, but it crashed and burned. At least we got 1 good song off this album.

SAD! – XXXTENTACION
	Many were left heartbroken this year when we lost XXXTENTACION. I figured what better way to pay tribute than by including him here? This song is great even though it’s called SAD!

10 Freaky Girls – Metro Boomin & 21 Savage
	Okay, I didn’t want to listen to this song, but Metro Boomin and 21 Savage are an amazing duo.

Drip Too Hard – Lil Baby & Gunna
	This song was overhyped, but it was still worth the listen. It was the one good song off Drip Harder. I put it here because I despise Lil Baby’s Juice Wrld-esque voice, and I’ll talk about Juice WRLD another place.

a lot – 21 Savage
	It’s shocking how much 21 Savage has grown on me. I really, REALLY hated him as soon as I heard Savage Mode and Issa Album. I avoided listening to i am>i was for as long as I could. But it turned out to be pretty decent. And this is my favourite song off it.

All the Stars – Kendrick Lamar ft. SZA
	This was the last cut I made from this list, and it was painful. I absolutely love about everything about this song. Just seems a little bit too short. If you hadn’t left off The Weeknd this would be fine. But this song is worthy for the king of Wakanda.


#1:
Sunflower – Swae Lee & Post Malone

	This song was without doubt one of the most spirit-lifting hits this year. It wasn’t the biggest hit but that doesn’t matter. What matters is Swae Lee’s high notes.
There’s a lot of them in this song and they sound great.
	I don’t know what it is about this song that I love so much. It’s just energetic, for every mood, and even gives me that Paradise by Lil Uzi vibe.