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:
- Norman Fucking Rockwell by Lana Del Rey
- Juice by Lizzo
- Hey, Ma by Bon Iver
- Harmony Hall by Vampire Weekend
- Baldwin by Jamila Woods (feat. Nico Segal)
- Oh My God by Kevin Morby
- Summer Girl by HAIM
- Everybody Here Hates You by Courtney Barnett
- Manifest – arranged for a string quintet and piano by Andrew Bird
- Crowded Table by The Highwomen
- Lover by Taylor Swift
- Hard to Believe – Radio Edit by Kindness (feat. Jazmine Sullivan)
- Hallelujah by HAIM
- Southern Sky by (Sandy) Alex G
- Gone by Charli XCX (feat. Christine and the Queens)
- Rides Through The Morning by Michael Nau
- All Your’n by Tyler Childers
- Cattails by Big Thief
- Marion by Bon Iver
- Giving Up by Whitney
- Blame It On Your Love by Charli XCX (feat. Lizzo)
- Doom In Full Bloom by American Football
- Bloodless by Andrew Bird
- Geology by Barrie
- Ocean Arms by Florist
- Pink Youth by Yuna (feat. Little Simz)
- Jet Black Heart by Young & Sick
- Old Man by Stella Donnelly
- This Life by Vampire Weekend
- Sucker Punch by PicaPica
- Softly by Clairo
- Confessions by Sudan Archives
- Red Bull & Hennessy by Jenny Lewis
- Emotional Bachelor by Future Teens
- The greatest by Lana Del Rey
- Valleys (My Love) by Whitney
- Phaedrus by Leif Vollebekk
- Naeem by Bon Iver
- Something Real by Summer Walker (with London On Da Track & Chris Brown)
- 2021 by Vampire Weekend
- Light Years by The National
- Cruel Summer by Taylor Swift
- Waterboy by tobi lou
- Old Soul by The Highwomen
- You’re Not Always On My Mind by Quivers
- To Who Knows Where by Vetiver
- Home by Fortuno
- Body Heat by Savoir Adore
- Bad Idea by YBN Cordae (feat. Chance the Rapper
- Water Me Down by Vagabon
- Frequent Crier by Future Teens
- Now I’m In It by HAIM
- My Old Friend by L.A. Salami
- My Only Child by The Highwomen
- Feet Off The Ground by Brent Cobb (feat. Jade Bird)
- Too Much by Carly Rae Jepsen
- Stay High by Brittany Howard
- White Mercedes – EDX Miami Sunset Remix by Charli XCX
- So Blue by Frankie Cosmos
- Superstar by Majid Jordan
- The Worst In Me by KAYTRANADA (feat. Tinashe)
- Old Bone by Wet
- I Must Be In A Good Place Now – Live at Spacebomb Studios by Fruit Bats (feat. Vetiver)
- Proxy War by Andrew Bird
- Gecko by Covey
- Finally // beautiful stranger by Halsey
- Make It Better by Anderson .Paak (feat. Smokey Robinson)
- Clovers by Barrie
- Water by Kanye West (feat. Ant Clemons)
- Hungry Child by Hot Chip
- Between by Ames
- Black Diamond by Half Moon Run
- Television Land by Konradsen
- U (Man Like) by Bon Iver
- Old Fitzroy – Acoustic by Dan Sultan
- Weekend Friend by Goth Babe
- No Halo by Kevin Morby
- Slow Dance – Blue Boy Remix by Winnetka Bowling League
- basking in the glow by Oso Oso
- Jerusalem, New York, Berlin by Vampire Weekend
- Bags by Clairo
- Blinding Lights by The Weeknd
- Rhododendron by Whitney
- Coming Down For You by Joan Shelley
- Goin Baby by DaBaby
- Violent Measures by Nakhane
- Alligator by Of Monsters and Men
- EARFQUAKE by Tyler, The Creator
- Nunya by Kehlani (feat. Dom Kennedy
- iMi by Bon Iver
- Adore You by Harry Styles
- Old Town Road – Remix by Lil Nase X (feat. Billy Ray Cyrus)
- Lucky For You by Novo Amor (feat. Gia Margaret)
- I’m A Stranger Now by The Tallest Man On Earth
- Waves by Luna Shadows
- Full Moon In Gemini by Vagabon
- I’ve Been Dazed by Michael Kiwanuka
- Circles by Post Malone
- Running by Helado Negro
- 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
