The Songs of the Summer over the Past Ten Years

Unquestionably the Song of the Summer circa 1995

A song is not “The Song of the Summer” unless it indubitably defines that summer. The “Song of the Summer” should evidence the state of the music industry during that year and the trends that were popular. The “Song of the Summer” should be inescapable. A song so popular and overplayed, that even music snobs who refuse to listen to Top 40 radio are still forced to listen to the song hundreds of times. Your four year old nephew at the time knew this song as well as your eighty year old grandmother. Further, a “Song of the Summer” is a time machine (Don Draper). Hearing a past “Song of the Summer” should transport you back to the time of its popularity and allow you to recall distant memories of your younger life. Who were you dating? Where were you working? Did you go on a road trip? The “Song of the Summer” tells you this and more. The “Song of the Summer” allows us to reflect on both the National Affairs of that summer as well as the state of our personal lives. With the 2013 summer winding down, I decided to recount the “Song of the Summer” for each year of the past ten years.

Some Ground Rules:

1.       The “Song of the Summer” must have been a Nationally popular song, I don’t care how good the indie band you were jamming out to in 2006 was, the “Song of the Summer” must have affected more than a few people.

2.       The “Song of the Summer” must have still been immensely popular during the height of Summer. I don’t care how popular Soulja Boy was in September 2007, since I know you weren’t jamming out that on the Fourth of July.

3.       The “Song of the Summer” must have told us a little bit about the current music trends of that year.

 

4. The "Song of the Summer" must be catchy. It doesn't necessarily have to be good, but I'm only picking songs that got stuck into your head whether you liked it or not.

2013:

Song of the Summer: Robin Thicke featuring Pharrell and T.I. “Blurred Lines”

Honorable Mentions: Daft Punk featuring Pharrell “Get Lucky”; Imagine Dragons “Radioactive”; Miley Cyrus “We Can’t Stop”; Anna Kendrick “Cups”; Bruno Mars “Treasure

Reasoning: Who a year ago would have thought Robin Thicke would have a “Song of the Summer.” Seriously, in the not too distant past this guy was singing at Kim Kardashian’s wedding. However, thanks in part to an edgy video, Pharrell’s production, and inspiration from Marvin Gaye’s “Got to give it up”, Robin Thicke has emerged as one of the most popular artists of 2013. The song is unbelievably catchy and features one of the best beats in recent memory. In addition, the song verifies the current popularity of refined 70’s style jams in the vain of “Get Lucky” and “Treasure.” Further, as overplayed as this song is, I’m still not necessarily bored of it. The fact that the song doesn’t take itself too seriously gives it staying power that exceeds most other hits. This song may become a true classic that will be played at Weddings and High School dances for years to come. It will also potentially lead to mega-comebacks from Pharrell (Is he a vampire?) and T.I..  Nevertheless, whatever the true legacy of “Blurred Lines” is, Robin Thicke and company were able to captivate the hearts of Americans for an entire season. That’s a pretty cool thing.
 

2012:

 

Song of the Summer: Carly Rae Jepsen “Call me Maybe”
 

Honorable Mentions: Gotye featuring Kimbra “Somebody that I used to Know”; Flo Rida “Whistle”; Fun “Some Nights”; One Direction “What makes you Beautiful”; Little Big Town “Pontoon” (Best country summer song ever)
 

Reasoning: This was a “No Brainer.” Thanks to YouTube and various other social media outlets, in 2012 Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call me Maybe” came from out of nowhere to dethrone "Someboday that I used to Know" on the charts and become the unquestionable “Song of the Summer.” This song had everything: quotable lyrics; a hilariously cheesy music video; and one of the best choruses I’ve ever heard. I have no idea if thirteen year old me would have pretended to dislike this song, but I shamelessly promoted this song during all of May in 2012. By mid-June, everyone knew this song. It was so poppy and infectious that it became America’s favorite guilty pleasure that year. However, I’m still not sure what the legacy of “Call me Maybe” will be. For all we know, Carly Rae Jepsen could be a one-hit wonder? But what a hit it was. In 2012 pop music was in your face corny. Pop music in 2012 was also both self-deprecating and whole-heartedly sincere at the same time. This song sums up the pop music scene of 2012 better than anything. 

 

 

2011:

Song of the Summer: Pitbull featuring Ne-Yo, Afrojack and Nayer “Give me Everything”

Honorable Mentions: Adele “Rolling in the Deep”; LMFAO featuring Lauren Bennett and GoonRock “Party Rock Anthem”; Katy Perry “"Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)"; Lady Gaga “The Edge of Glory”; Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera “Moves like Jagger”

Reasoning: Adele dominated the charts during May and June with “Rolling in the Deep.” LMFAO did likewise with “Party Rock Anthem” during the second half of the Summer. However, the heart of the 2011 Summer was unfortunately dominated by Pitbull. “Mr Worldwide” was and still is a legitimate superstar. The song evidences the true height of the fist-pumping house music craze of the period and features a pretty funny dig at Lindsay Lohan. The song was played non-stop by every Top-40 radio station and was a staple at clubs and bars nationwide. You couldn’t escape this song, no matter how hard you tried. Despite how much I dislike this song, it’s undeniably Pittbull’s finest work. I may never be a fan of Pitbull’s music, but many Americans do and I recognize the skill that went into creating this dance-hip hop hit.

2010:

Song of the Summer: B.o.B. featuring Hayley Williams and Eminem “Airplanes”

Honorable Mentions: Ke$ha “Your Love is My Drug”; Katy Perry “California Gurls”; Eminem featuring Rihanna “Love the Way You Lie”; Enrique Iglesias featuring Pitbull “I Like It”; Travie McCoy featuring Bruno Marks “Billionaire”
 

Reasoning: This was a tough year. Ke$ha was certainly the "Artist of the Year", but “Tik Tok” and “We are Who We are” represent her most memorable hits from 2010. Katy Perry’s “California Gurls” was probably the most popular “Song of the Summer”, but to me that song was quickly overshadowed by the far-superior “Teenage Dream”, which reached its peak popularity that Fall. “Airplanes” wins simply because it was both extremely popular and a just plain awesome jam. The song doesn’t necessarily say anything profound about the music industry, other than the fact that it was part of Eminem’s major comeback in 2010. Still, Hayley William’s chorus was extremely memorable and Shady’s verse still leaves me with chills. I guess it was just a random collection of artists that came together to make a great summer song, that’s good enough for me.

 

2009:

Song of the Summer: Kings of Leon “Use Somebody”

Honorable Mentions: The Black Eyed Peas “I Gotta Feeling”; The Black Eyed Peas “Boom, Boom, Pow”;  Cobra Starship featuring Leighton Meester “Good Girls Go Bad”; Taylor Swift “You Belong with Me”

Reasoning: Good rock music happened over the past ten years. Don’t believe me? Try Vampire Weekend or Arcade Fire or The Naked and the Famous, or several other bands? Of course, I can’t blame anyone for thinking the past ten years have been mostly devoid of great rock music, because unless you actively searched for it, you didn’t hear it. The great bands of the alt-rock scene during the recent past have tried their hardest not to become popular. They basically only do shows in major metropolitan areas (New York, L.A., Austin) and make no effort to promote their bands. However, in 2009, one alt-rock band had the balls to become popular. With “Use Somebody”, Kings of Leon created a modern arena rock anthem. A song that was legitimately good and a lot of fun to sing along to. The song was popular throughout the country, so popular it was on regular rotation at my neighborhood Applebee’s. Of course, this caused Kings of Leon to immediately lose their indie rock credibility. In today’s alt-rock culture, being a sell-out apparently means being popular in Iowa (For some reason, licensing your song out to advertisers is okay though). Nevertheless, with “Use Somebody” Kings of Leon made their mark on the American zeitgeist. They narrowly beat out “Boom, Boom, Pow” and “You Belong with Me” for “Song of the Summer”, because they let mainstream America know that great rock music was still being created. Quality music should be a shared experience. Kings of Leon allowed that to happen by giving everyone the opportunity to experience it.
 

2008:

Song of the Summer: Chris Brown “Forever”

Honorable Mentions: Natasha Bedingfield “Pocketful of Sunshine”; Rihanna “Disturbia”; Jonas Brothers featuring Big Rob “Burning Up”; Coldplay “Vida la Vida”; Lil Wayne “A Milli”

Reasoning: No one had a better 2008 than Chris Brown. NO ONE!!! Not even Obama! He came out with hit-song after hit-song that year and also made appearances on several other artists’ chart-topping singles (Most notably: Jordin Sparks “No Air.”) He was named Billboard Artist of 2008 and was dating pop-superstar Rihanna. He was on track to be next Michael Jackson. Of course, due to a very public domestic violence scandal between him and Rihanna, Brown’s popularity took a significant hit in early 2009 and he is yet to fully recover. “Forever” is Brown’s most popular song to date. It stayed at the top of the charts throughout the summer months of 2008 and received endless top 40 replay. The song is a refined jam that evidenced the emerging popularity of electronica-hip hop fusions that dominate the musical landscape today. “Forever” also showcases an artist at the top of his game and the wasted potential of a would-be generational icon. Brown deserves the current stigma attached to himself and his music, but that only makes “Forever” more poignant.
 

2007

Song of the Summer: Rihanna featuring Jay-Z “Umbrella”

Honorable Mentions: Fergie “Big Girls Don’t Cry”; Sean Kingston “Beautiful Girls”; Carrie Underwood “Before he Cheats”; Amy Winehouse “Rehab”

Reasoning: In what was arguably the most competitive Summer for pop music in the 2000s, Rihanna’s “Umbrella” stands alone as the “Song of the Summer.” Penned by The Dream and Jay-Z, and produced by Christopher Stewart, Umbrella was both catchy and critically acclaimed. The “ella ella” hook was impossibly clever and rung in your head all Summer long. Additionally, the song established Rihanna as the pop music superstar she is today. Moreover, “Umbrella” played a significant role in the comeback of Jay-Z. Jay had “retired” after the Black Album and then came back with the  terrible Kingdom Come in 2006. However, with “Umbrella”, Jay began a long line of successful collaborations that eventually lead to “Empire State of Mind” and Watch the Throne. While Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab” was more original and Carrie Underwood’s “Before he Cheats” was more influential on the music industry, no song was as sleek or as catchy as “Umbrella.” Case closed.
 

2006:

Song of the Summer: Nelly Furtado feat. Timberland “Promiscuous”

Honorable Mentions: Shakira feat. Wyclef “Hips don’t Lie”; Gnarls Barkley “Crazy”; The Fray “Cable Car (Over my Head)”; Chamillionaire featuring Krayzie Bone "Ridin'"

Reasoning: Unlike the previous two years, 2006 was a very competitive year for the “Song of the Summer”. This was the year where pop music stopped trying to be edgy or different, and just went for the heart. The songs this Summer had infectious beats, powerful hooks, and choruses that made you want to sing to the mountains while driving on a warm summer’s night. While “Promiscuous” wasn’t my favorite song of 2006, it certainly was the song of the Summer. First, no song stayed in the Billboard Top 10 longer that summer then “Promiscuous.” Secondly, the demeanor of the song harkens back to the carefree boom times of 2006. With the financial collapse two years away and amidst the rise of the 2006 dot-com comeback, Nelly Furtado’s hit single exhibits the light heartened vibe and hubristic attitude of the 2006 American public. Lastly, and most importantly, the song contains the years greatest lyrical verse. Nelly’s last line of the song reads as follows: “Hey, is that the truth or are you talking trash, is your game M.V.P. like Steve Nash.” As everyone should know, 2006 saw Steve Nash win his second NBA MVP award. So to anyone that doesn’t think “Promiscuous” defines 2006, that’s a you problem.




 

2005:

Song of the Summer: Gwen Stefani "Hollaback Girl"





Honorable Mentions: Mariah Carey “We Belong Together”; Black Eyed Peas “Don’t Phunk with my Heart”; Kelly Clarkson “Behind these Hazel Eyes”; The Killers “Mr. Brightside”

Reasoning: At the end of 2004, No Doubt lead vocalist Gwen Stefani made a solo album. Unlike the usual ska sound of No Doubt, Gwen Stefani’s Love. Angel. Music. Baby was mostly a fusion of dance and hip-hop music. As expected, the album consisted of mostly terrible, but forgettable songs. However, no one can forget “Hollaback Girl.” The line “My shit is bananas. B-A-N-A-N-A-S.” will forever be lodged in your brain. However, aside from being catchy and immensely popular, “Hollaback Girl” also a product of its time. 2005 saw the launch of several bass-driven, hip-hop/dance singles such as “Don’t Phunk with my Heart”; Pussycat Dolls’ “Don’t Cha”; Rihanna’s “Pon de Replay”; and Missy Elliot’s “Lose Control.” Basically, 2005 was a terrible summer for music and “Hollaback Girl” is our most blatant reminder of that summer’s failure. Luckily, by September, Kanye West would release Late Registration and music would get good again.

Note: I wanted to pick the far superior “We Belong Together” by Mariah Carey, but that song felt too soulful and sleepy to represent the Summer of 2005.

2004: 

Song of the Summer:  Hoobastank "The Reason"

Honorable Mentions: Usher "Burn"; Usher "Confessions Part II"; Alicia Keys "If I ain't Got You"; OutKast "Roses"


Reasoning: I really wish I didn't have to pick this song. Full disclosure, I HATE this song. I hated it when it came out in 2004 and I hate it even more now. However, it was unquestionably the "Song of the Summer" in 2004. Everytime I hear this song it reminds me of being back at my childhood home after finishing up my Freshman year at SUNY Plattsburgh. Also, the song is annoyingly catchy. That chorus got stuck in everyone's head in 2004 and you couldn't escape Douglas Robb's annoying voice even if you tried. Further, this song evidences the height of the Emo-Pop craze that reached a tipping point  in the mid-2000s. Although most despise Emo-Pop now, how many of you were jamming out to Hoobastank and Fall Out Boy not too long ago? As a result, this song barely beats out Usher's "Confessions Part II." I know Usher was the top selling artist of 2004, but I felt like "Yea" which came out in February of 2004 was his definable hit of the year.

 

 

 

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