The past 12 months in music have seen recluses return and pop giants pump out some of the most liberating tracks of their careers. Like clockwork, Taylor dropped a new Taylor’s Version (thanks girlie), the world stopped in its tracks for Olivia Rodrigo and K-pop found new stars in NewJeans. We almost published this, and then Beyoncé, surprisingly, rocked up with a new one for us too.
That is to say, no matter how many puff pieces and tweets signal the death of music, it continues to live and breathe and give us so much to talk about. Silly, sort of shallow, spin-class pop music is magnificent, and we’re glad that it has a new leader in Addison Rae. Sampha’s genius remains unmatched and we’re glad he’s back. And say what you like about Drake, some of those tracks were good — one of them even made this: our rundown of the 100 best songs of 2023.
For context: numbers 100-21 are unranked; just some of the songs we consider to have been among the strongest of the year. But the top 20 are out ultimates, our all timers. The songs we’re still fondly spinning as 2023 draws to a close.
100. Fred Roberts, Say
99. Rose Gray, Happiness
98. Samia, Amelia
97. Never Ending Song, Conan Gray
96. Beyoncé, MY HOUSE
95. Omar Apollo, Ice Slippin
94. Bel Cobain, Unlikely
93. Laura Groves and Sampha, D 4 N
92. Aries, CABIN FEVER
91. Kenya Grace, Strangers
90. ANOHNI, Scapegoat
89. Klein, big dreams inc.
88. Lil Yachty, WE SAW THE SUN!
87. Peach PRC, Like a Girl Does
86. BERWYN, Bulletproof
85. Dreamer Isioma, Gimme a Chance
84. Snow Strippers, It’s a Dream (ft. Lil Uzi Vert)
83. Club Eat, Clothes
82. Harmony, Shoplifting from Nike
81. Paris Texas, Everybody’s Safe Until…
80. K-Trap and Headie One, PARK CHINOIS
79. Cosha, Want You Back
78. Doja Cat, Paint the Town Red
77. Toro y Moi, Back Then
76. MUNA, One That Got Away
75. Taylor Swift, Is It Over Now? (Taylor’s Version)
74. 1017 ALYX 9SM and Ethel Cain, Famous Last Words (An Ode to Eaters)
73. Christine and the Queens, A day in the water
72. NATION and Ecco2k, Ça Va
71. Eartheater, Pure Smile Snake Venom
70. serpentwithfeet (ft. Ty Dolla $ign and Yanga YaYa), Damn Gloves
69. Doechii, What It Is
68. Jungle, Back on 74
67. Tems, Me & U
66. Dave and Central Cee, Sprinter
65. Tyla, Water
64. Megan Thee Stallion, Cobra
63. quinnie, touch tank
62. Katie Gregson-MacLeod, complex
61. Erin LeCount, Killing Time
60. 100 gecs, Hollywood Baby
59. Q, LUV (I KNOW I WANT THIS FOR REAL)
58. The Beaches, Blame Brett
57. Shygirl, Heaven (ft. Tinashe)
56. DJ Seinfeld and Confidence Man, Now U Do
55. Overmono, Good Lies
54. Tsunaina, Tenderer
53. Swank Mami, Poison
52. The Idol, World Class Sinner/I’m A Freak
51. Holly Humberstone, Antichrist
50. Llainwire, Trust Fund
49. My Love Mine All Mine, Mitski
48. LSDXOXO, Devil’s Chariot
47. Chappell Roan, HOT TO GO!
46. CLIP, can u feel meh
45. Flyana Boss, You Wish
44. Ceechynaa, Last Laugh
43. Rema, DND
42. Jean Dawson, NO SZNS ft. SZA
41. Teezo Touchdown, You Thought ft. Janelle Monae
40. SZA, Snooze (Acoustic) ft. Justin Bieber
39. Billie Eilish, What Was I Made for?
38. Bia and Timbaland, I’M THAT BITCH
37. KAYTRAMINÉ, 4EVA
36. Bad Bunny, WHERE SHE GOES
35. Kelela, Enough for Love
34. King Krule, Seaforth
33. ROSALÍA, LLYLM
32. Addison Rae, 2 die 4 ft. Charli XCX
31. James Blake, Tell Me
30. George Riley & Hudson Mohawke, S e x
29. Chloë, Body Do
28. Paramore, Running Out of Time
27. Tinashe, Talk to Me Nice
26. Bloody Civilian, Escapism (ft. Fave, Tay Iwar)
25. Jorja Smith, GO GO GO
24. Romy, She’s on My Mind
23. Ice Spice, Princess Diana
22. Travis Scott, MY EYES
21. Sampha, Only
20. PinkPantheress, Angel
Her debut album might have dropped a few months later, bringing with it a new selection of skewed 00s bangers, but PinkPantheress’ contribution to the Barbie soundtrack remains so delightfully on-brand – a wistful song about being ghosted cut with statement weirdness – that it instantly joined the upper ranks of her discography. “Everyone tells me life was hard but it’s a piece of cake,” she sings, each beat behind it approaching a dog bark, followed by a hip-hop cry of “Let’s go!” before an Irish fiddle breakdown. Why? Who knows, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find a song that managed to make so much sense while skirting convention in 2023.
19. Genesis Owusu, Leaving the Light
This high-energy lead single from the young Ghanaian-Australian post-punk rocker kicks off his angsty, nihilistic (but plenty fun) second album. It’s all about wanting to break free and running from a menacing God hot on his tail. Play loud whilst on a treadmill for maximum effect.
18. Charli XCX, Speed Drive
Charli XCX writing a hyperpop bop about driving a car really, really fast? Likely place for her to be. With an interpolation of Toni Basil’s iconic 80s track “Hey Mickey” and name-checking Voltaire, Van Gogh, Devon Lee Carlson and Barbie in less than two minutes, Charli revved up the soundtrack to the Mattel doll movie and, in turn, created one of the most exhilarating, adrenaline-pumping songs of the summer.
17. Olivia Rodrigo, all-american bitch
Inspired by Joan Didion’s essay Slouching Towards Bethlehem, the opening track of Olivia’s sophomore album GUTS considers the multifaceted feelings of young womanhood. If the sudden vibe switches and aggressively sweet tone weren’t relatable enough, the Cassie from Euphoria energy of the lyric “I’m pretty when I cry” speaks deeply to the delulu girl main character syndrome within us all.
16. The Japanese House, Touching Yourself
Never before has a song about sexting sounded this classy. At once horny, playful and full of heartache, Amber soundtracks the universal experience of being in a long-distance relationship perfectly with lyrics like, “I had to go into the other room / she sent me something and I can’t think about anything else” and “It makes me wanna die every time I have to picture your face”. Taken from her second record, In The End It Always Does, “Touching Yourself” is stripped back, perfectly formed pop produced with future Mr XCX himself, The 1975’s George Daniel.
15. Ryan Beatty, White Teeth
Ryan Beatty disappeared for three years after his last album and emerged with a new collection of music that brought producers and performers like Ethan Gruska (Phoebe Bridgers) and Justin Vernon into the fold. Calico was a crystalline, primal reawakening, its bittersweet centrepiece “White Teeth” one of those love songs that sticks. The images he conjures are often so simple – hand prints, chewing liquorice, old summer rain – but within them lies an expansive universe so evocative and almighty they ruin you.
14. Dua Lipa, Houdini
If Rihanna, and now Dua, taught us anything, it’s that when a popstar dyes their hair red, their next era is destined to be their biggest one yet. Dua had set herself a high standard following the record-breaking, world-dominating success of Future Nostalgia. Rather than try and replicate it, though, she ditched the early 70s sound for the dark, psychedelic leanings of the latter half of the decade. Here, the usual hot girl lyrics we expect from Dua – “prove you’ve got the right to please me” – sit over Michael Jackson-esque electric guitars and a seriously addictive dance beat, all produced by PC Music’s Danny L Harle and Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker.
13. Nation of Language, Weak in Your Light
This Brooklyn three-piece makes music reminiscent of British 80s synth pop. Their latest album, Strange Disciple, opens with the beautiful, haunting “Weak in Your Light”. The lyrics, “Just a reminder… I’m in love”, can be read in two different ways, one of great joy or great pain, depending on how you currently feel. “And I can’t seem to wash it off”.”
12. Drake, Rich Baby Daddy ft. Sexyy Red & SZA
If you won’t stay for Sexyy Red’s emphatic command – “Hands on your knees, Hands on your knees, Shake that ass for Drake, now shake that ass for me” – why not hang around for a beat switch about four minutes in, after which Drake interpolates Florence & the Machine’s “Dog Days are Over”?
11. Troye Sivan, Rush
Troye followed up his acting turn in The Idol with an ultra-horny anthem about the rush of a steamy, sweaty hook-up. Putting his breathy vocals over a homoerotic Village People-esque chant and a heady, thumping house beat, and with a music video that features glory holes, spit, jockstraps, chaps and a whole lot of ass, “Rush” cemented Troye as the next nasty, nasty, bad pop girl.
10. Tsatsamis, Everybody Wants a Piece of You
After collaborating with pop’s off-kilter innovators like TAAHLIAH and Spent, and releasing his EP VERSIONS in 2022, it felt like something clicked for Tsatsamis when this track dropped. “Everybody Wants a Piece of You” leans into the oldest sonic storytelling technique: unrequited love. Like an early 00s club banger, its sounds swirling and blinking, Tsatsamis’ words land like a gut punch. About being with a closeted man who scythes you from his everyday, heteronormative life, that final line on the chorus is striking in its plainness: “Now everybody wants a piece of you darling / And I’m just someone”.
9. Lana Del Rey, A&W
As pop music pivoted to brevity, trust Lana Del Rey – her generation’s greatest songwriter – to craft the most talked-about song on her latest record as a seven-minute two-parter that rewards your patience. Swooning and straight-laced, all breaths and acoustic strings and keys, the first part is an LDR standard: a tautly crafted narrative of misunderstood women and sexual emancipation over strings and keys. Then, for its final two-and-a-half minutes, it’s a dark cocaine trap track, like a car veering sharply off course. In a career of rarely rewarded masterpieces, it’s only right that “A&W” and the album it was lifted from have earned Lana five Grammy nominations in one year.
8. METTE, MAMA’S EYES
For a hefty burst of endorphins, don’t just play METTE’s stadium-sized pop joint “MAMA’S EYES”; watch its music video too. The visual, directed by Camille Summers-Valli, splices the dancer-turned-pop star’s naturally impressive choreography with various found footage of moments of humanity big and small. “Don’t it feel good? Don’t it feel right?” METTE asks. In this case, the answer couldn’t be a more emphatic yes.
7. Young Fathers, Rice
2023 has been a bleak year politically in Britain, but luckily for us, Young Fathers continue to create music that feels like resistance and hope. The Scottish band’s fourth album, Heavy Heavy, released back in February, pushes further afield with their signature genre-blending sound and “Rice”, its ecstatic opener, sweeps up the listener on the undeniably fun journey that ensues.
6. Yves Tumor, Ebony Eye
Yves Tumor’s fourth album opens with heavy breathing and guttural scream, setting the mood for 37 minutes of liberated, decadent rock. “Ebony Eye”, the album’s closing track, feels like a better place than any to appreciate the craft involved in making such a record and the production that sets Yves apart from their far less genre-bending contemporaries. As the guitars, the drums, the strings and the choir vocals fade, one can imagine Yves, the album’s conductor, bringing each perfectly-synchronised element to a close before turning and bowing to rapturous applause.
5. boygenius, Not Strong Enough
Emotional icons, SNL comics and everyone’s Men of the Year, 2023 was truly massive for boygenius. Julien, Lucy and Phoebe released both The Record and The Rest into the world and not only did the world eat them up, but it begged for more. It’s hard for us to select just one song from the supergroup’s recent discography, but we’re gonna go with “Not Strong Enough”. Mental illness and self-hatred with a side of God complex? Yes, please. Plus, as the fans at “Gay Christmas” told us, its lyrics are practically screaming out to be tattooed on your body for eternity.
4. Jim Legxacy, mileys riddim
Rapper-producer Jim Legxacy’s first mixtape is full of moments of brilliant, unexpected synergy, but track four, “mileys riddim”, contains perhaps its most eclectic spread of sounds. The sampling of Hannah Montana’s “Ordinary Girl” with a drop from iROKING, a Nigerian music streamer for African artists, perfectly encapsulates the unique gift Jim seems to possess for fusing different genres, moods and ideas at once.
3. Tiberius B, Jetski
Tiberius B is our fave new purveyor of sexy, twisted pop. In the brilliant video for grungy “Jetski” — directed by Aidan Zamiri, a regular collaborator of Caroline Polachek, FKA Twigs and PinkPantheress — the Canadian artist writhes around in ecstasy in a room full of pigeons. “I had been waiting my whole life to feel the way I felt in that moment,” they told us of the song’s origin. “And it was explosive.” Come for the dance moves, stay for the energy-shift.
2. New Jeans, Super Shy
It seems that every year, one major K-pop group crosses over into the Western mainstream. In 2023, ADOR’s New Jeans were the chosen ones. Exploding into public consciousness in the wake of their debut, the past 12 months has seen them secure major brand deals, ambassadorships with the likes of Gucci and Burberry, and a coveted spot on Time magazine’s list of Next Generation Leaders. It was the teen five-piece’s second EP, Get Up, that really did it. Released in July, its lead single “Super Shy” raced to the top of charts around the world. With production that sits miles away from their K-pop contemporaries — NewJeans member Danielle collaborated with young NY producer Frankie Scoca and Copenhagen-based songwriter Erika de Casier on the track — “Super Shy” is breaksy, Jersey club through a thrilling, bilingual Gen Z pop lens.
1. Caroline Polachek, I Believe
When SOPHIE passed, the tributes poured in from all corners of music and culture. “What a gift to be in your orbit, and to stay here in it,” Caroline Polachek wrote on Instagram. “For raising the bar so high I could only dream of catching up.” In the time since, Caroline has shifted through the culture, her songs bearing the same sort of sonic strangeness that defined SOPHIE’s work. On her second solo album, Desire I Want to Turn Into You, she took the space to pay homage to her friend on “I Believe”, a song about immortality, faith and refusing to accept loss. The song apparently came to her during an acid trip on the Amalfi Coast. Co-produced by Danny L Harle and Ariel Rechtshaid, the song is stuffed with what Caroline calls “lightning bolts” of what came to her then: the vocal performances of 80s European diva pop (a genre she and SOPHIE shared a love of), Miami Freestyle dance music, the tinges of drum-and-bass in the percussion. It simultaneously sounds like something Lizzie McGuire’s popstar ego would sing in her titular movie and the saddest song you’ve ever heard. Caroline’s voice continues to be a bending, beautiful vessel for her lyricism. “I Believe” is a song about missing someone, but it serves as a reminder of how Caroline is a pivotal pop outlier. The culmination of her 18 years in music is an unrivalled ability to reach the genre’s most surprising corners.