2019’s musical landscape was more entertaining than anyone could have imagined. While plenty of 21st century superstars wrote the next chapter in their respectively evolving sagas, streaming culture’s bubble of popularity turned some artists into a household name with nothing more than one formidably meme-worthy track. Resilience, angst, passion and intimacy all remained consistent themes as a tireless news cycle served as boundless fodder for fresh content. As we close out one decade and look ahead towards another, let’s look back on some of the viral stories that cemented their place within music’s history this past year:

Following the success of Bohemian Rhapsody in 2018, musically themed historical fictions and biopics exploded as a relevant category in theater. Movies like Rocket Man, Blinded By The Light, and Yesterday reminded the world of timeless songs and artists that had faded from the spotlight, rekindling a curiosity in the form of views and streams those artists hadn’t experienced for a long time.

Lil Nas X shattered the limits of any preconceived streaming ceiling with his instant classic “Old Town Road”, garnering well over a billion streams in less than 6 months. The song set an unprecedented record of 19 straight weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart by popularizing a new genre of country-rap, redefining how Billboard categorized music in the process.

As if ABBA wasn’t popular enough, their greatest hits album Gold reached an unprecedented and record-setting 900 weeks in the UK’s Top 100 albums chart. At the same time, The Beatles classic Abbey Road broke a record as the album with the longest time between reaching and returning to Number 1 on the Official Chart, at 49 years and 252 days.

In the wake of the #MeToo movement, streaming services and their users made conscious efforts to avoid or outright remove artists like R. Kelly, Michael Jackson, Ryan Adams, and more from their playlists and promotions. Ripples surged across public soundtracks worldwide and sent a message that fame wouldn’t proceed integrity, simultaneously raising the question of where the line should be drawn when policing public content created by artists accused/convicted of deplorable acts and heinous crimes.

The world lost impactful legends like Ric Ocasek, Dr. John, and Doris Day, while young social icons like Nipsey Hussle and Juice WRLD passed away long before the world was ready to lose them.

The resurgence of vinyl music tugged cassettes along for the ride, raising cassette sales by 28% to 217,000 units; the highest that metric’s been since 2004.

Idyllic bands and individuals like Slayer, Kiss, and Elton John all gave their fans one last encore, gracing the live stage with the (supposedly) final performance of their careers. Meanwhile, Ed Sheeran’s 2019 Divide Tour ensured promise for the future of live music by breaking U2’s record for highest grossing tour of all time, amassing an unbelievable $736.7 million over the course of two years.

As interesting 2019 was, the year had so much more to offer than a handful of fun facts and new records. That being said, the following playlist contains all of my favorite songs released over the past year in order from 1 to 100. Play each song in order if you can, shuffle if you must, but most importantly, keep your mind open to the distinct value proposition that each song has to offer. The spectrum of genres, moods, and energy levels can occasionally be vastly different from song to song – just realize that, no matter how fast or slow, each song has something special to offer.

 

Top 100 Songs of of 2019:

  1. Norman Fucking Rockwell by Lana Del Rey
  2. Juice by Lizzo
  3. Hey, Ma by Bon Iver
  4. Harmony Hall by Vampire Weekend
  5. Baldwin by Jamila Woods (feat. Nico Segal)
  6. Oh My God by Kevin Morby
  7. Summer Girl by HAIM
  8. Everybody Here Hates You by Courtney Barnett
  9. Manifest – arranged for a string quintet and piano by Andrew Bird
  10. Crowded Table by The Highwomen
  11. Lover by Taylor Swift
  12. Hard to Believe – Radio Edit by Kindness (feat. Jazmine Sullivan)
  13. Hallelujah by HAIM
  14. Southern Sky by (Sandy) Alex G
  15. Gone by Charli XCX (feat. Christine and the Queens)
  16. Rides Through The Morning by Michael Nau
  17. All Your’n by Tyler Childers
  18. Cattails by Big Thief
  19. Marion by Bon Iver
  20. Giving Up by Whitney
  21. Blame It On Your Love by Charli XCX (feat. Lizzo)
  22. Doom In Full Bloom by American Football
  23. Bloodless by Andrew Bird
  24. Geology by Barrie
  25. Ocean Arms by Florist
  26. Pink Youth by Yuna (feat. Little Simz)
  27. Jet Black Heart by Young & Sick
  28. Old Man by Stella Donnelly
  29. This Life by Vampire Weekend
  30. Sucker Punch by PicaPica
  31. Softly by Clairo
  32. Confessions by Sudan Archives
  33. Red Bull & Hennessy by Jenny Lewis
  34. Emotional Bachelor by Future Teens
  35. The greatest by Lana Del Rey
  36. Valleys (My Love) by Whitney
  37. Phaedrus by Leif Vollebekk
  38. Naeem by Bon Iver
  39. Something Real by Summer Walker (with London On Da Track & Chris Brown)
  40. 2021 by Vampire Weekend
  41. Light Years by The National
  42. Cruel Summer by Taylor Swift
  43. Waterboy by tobi lou
  44. Old Soul by The Highwomen
  45. You’re Not Always On My Mind by Quivers
  46. To Who Knows Where by Vetiver
  47. Home by Fortuno
  48. Body Heat by Savoir Adore
  49. Bad Idea by YBN Cordae (feat. Chance the Rapper
  50. Water Me Down by Vagabon
  51. Frequent Crier by Future Teens
  52. Now I’m In It by HAIM
  53. My Old Friend by L.A. Salami
  54. My Only Child by The Highwomen
  55. Feet Off The Ground by Brent Cobb (feat. Jade Bird)
  56. Too Much by Carly Rae Jepsen
  57. Stay High by Brittany Howard
  58. White Mercedes – EDX Miami Sunset Remix by Charli XCX
  59. So Blue by Frankie Cosmos
  60. Superstar by Majid Jordan
  61. The Worst In Me by KAYTRANADA (feat. Tinashe)
  62. Old Bone by Wet
  63. I Must Be In A Good Place Now – Live at Spacebomb Studios by Fruit Bats (feat. Vetiver)
  64. Proxy War by Andrew Bird
  65. Gecko by Covey
  66. Finally // beautiful stranger by Halsey
  67. Make It Better by Anderson .Paak (feat. Smokey Robinson)
  68. Clovers by Barrie
  69. Water by Kanye West (feat. Ant Clemons)
  70. Hungry Child by Hot Chip
  71. Between by Ames
  72. Black Diamond by Half Moon Run
  73. Television Land by Konradsen
  74. U (Man Like) by Bon Iver
  75. Old Fitzroy – Acoustic by Dan Sultan
  76. Weekend Friend by Goth Babe
  77. No Halo by Kevin Morby
  78. Slow Dance – Blue Boy Remix by Winnetka Bowling League
  79. basking in the glow by Oso Oso
  80. Jerusalem, New York, Berlin by Vampire Weekend
  81. Bags by Clairo
  82. Blinding Lights by The Weeknd
  83. Rhododendron by Whitney
  84. Coming Down For You by Joan Shelley
  85. Goin Baby by DaBaby
  86. Violent Measures by Nakhane
  87. Alligator by Of Monsters and Men
  88. EARFQUAKE by Tyler, The Creator
  89. Nunya by Kehlani (feat. Dom Kennedy
  90. iMi by Bon Iver
  91. Adore You by Harry Styles
  92. Old Town Road – Remix by Lil Nase X (feat. Billy Ray Cyrus)
  93. Lucky For You by Novo Amor (feat. Gia Margaret)
  94. I’m A Stranger Now by The Tallest Man On Earth
  95. Waves by Luna Shadows
  96. Full Moon In Gemini by Vagabon
  97. I’ve Been Dazed by Michael Kiwanuka
  98. Circles by Post Malone
  99. Running by Helado Negro
  100. Cherry by Harry Styles

I know what you’re thinking – there’s got to be more, right? Whether your favorite song didn’t make this list, this 6 hour playlist wasn’t long enough for you, or you’re just hungry to discover more new songs, there’s much more to explore. Check out the songs that just missed out on the top 100 list in the post: FeenyFaves – Top Songs of 2019 Part 2: 101-200

If you’re prefer to hear some albums from front to back all the while getting a light read on, check out the albums that dominated 2019 in the post: FeenyFaves – Top 10 Albums of 2019

Don’t let the 2019 decade-closing hype make you forget about all the great music 2018 had to offer. Take a trip down memory lane with last year’s playlist: FeenyFaves – Top 100 Songs of 2018