There were a lot of really great songs released in 2018. Actually, there are a lot of great songs released in any given year, and definitely more than a list of 50 can fully contain. But I’ve got to try anyway. The 50 songs in the list below feel like a relatively comprehensive chronicle of what it was like living through 2018, though I suppose if it were truly accurate there’d be a lot more depressing shit that’d turn most people off. Overall I’d say this is a strong balance of mood, tempo, style, and genre I sincerely hope will leave you feeling satisfied. The most fascinating thing to me about this year’s list is that the top two songs are not currently part of any full-length album. As for the unofficial “rules” behind the selections for the Top 50 Songs, there are only two: the song must have been officially released by an artist or band in 2018, and no artist is allowed to be featured more than once (for diversity’s sake). While there are audio streams and in some cases videos to accompany each song (apologies for the couple of live videos, as album versions were unavailable), you can also stream the entire list (minus one song) via the Spotify embed at the bottom of this post, or by going to this link. Please enjoy these Top 50 Songs of 2018, and feel free to share your favorites in the comments or let me know on social media (@faronheit).
50. Lightfoils – Summer Nights
49. Jenny Hval – Spells
48. SOPHIE – Is It Cold in the Water?
47. Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper – Shallow
46. Gorillaz – Humility
45. Iceage – Pain Killer (ft. Sky Ferreira)
44. G Flip – About You
43. Let’s Eat Grandma – Donnie Darko
42. Blood Orange – Charcoal Baby
41. Arctic Monkeys – Four Out of Five
40. Zizi Raimondi – Folly Dolly
39. Ravyn Lenae – Sticky
38. Anderson .Paak – Bubblin
37. Westerman – Confirmation
36. Lonnie Holley – I Woke Up in a Fucked-Up America
35. Yaeji – One More
34. Hatchie – Sleep
33. Travis Scott – Sicko Mode (SKRILLEX Remix ft. Drake)
32. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – An Air Conditioned Man
31. U.S. Girls – Rosebud
30. serpentwithfeet – bless yr heart
29. Nilufer Yanya – Thanks 4 Nothing
28. Amen Dunes – Blue Rose
27. Julia Holter – I Shall Love 2
26. Noname – Self
25. Beach House – Lemon Glow
24. Natalie Prass – Short Court Style
23. Moses Sumney – Rank & File
22. Tirzah – Gladly
21. Cardi B – I Like It (ft. Bad Bunny & J Balvin)
20. Lana Del Rey – Mariner’s Apartment Complex
19. Ella Mai – Boo’d Up
18. DJ Koze – Pick Up
17. Caroline Rose – Jeannie Becomes A Mom
16. Soccer Mommy – Scorpio Rising
15. Troye Sivan – My My My!
14. Kacey Musgraves – Slow Burn
13. Cupcakke – Duck Duck Goose
12. Rosalia – Malamente (Cap.1: Augurio)
11. Barrie – Canyons
10. Snail Mail – Pristine
9. boygenius – Me & My Dog
8. The 1975 – Love It If We Made It
7. Robyn – Honey
6. Lucy Dacus – Pillar of Truth
5. Valee – Womp Womp (ft. Jeremih)
4. Mitski – Nobody
3. Janelle Monae – Make Me Feel
2. Ariana Grande – thank u, next
1. Childish Gambino – This Is America
