When discussing the current decade’s best albums, I kept coming back to one thought: “What are the best songs of the 2020s?” With so much music having been released over the course of the last six years, the task felt impossible. How could I narrow it down? Starting with a list of nearly 70 songs, I have now whittled it down and can confidently say that these 10 songs are some of the best of the decade. From Playboi Carti to Geese to Clairo, the 2020s have given us some excellent music. Combining commercial and critical success, as well as the reception of the mainstream crowds, and also a tiny bit of my own bias, here are the best songs of the 2020s.
- “SWEET/I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE” – Tyler, the Creator (2021)
Has Tyler, the Creator missed on a double track yet in his career? Probably not… and definitely not with “SWEET/I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE” off of his 2021 project, “CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST”. The first part, labelled “SWEET”, sees Tyler venture through melodic rap and dive into old-school West Coast sounds, using repetition to emphasize his love for the person the track is dedicated to. He uses Brent Faiyaz to flutter the track into R&B, before it is split and turns into the second half, “I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE”. The second half is arguably the highlight of Tyler’s musical career, with parts of the track interpolating the sounds of bossa. Featuring Fana Hues, she and Tyler bounce off of each other throughout the chorus, curating the perfect summer track, one of Tyler’s best tracks, and one of the best of the current decade.
- “HAZARD DUTY PAY!” – JPEGMAFIA
“I’m not paying someone $2000 a song to make my shit sound like ass. I’ll make it sound like ass myself, for free.”
Whenever I listen to anything by JPEGMAFIA, I think about this quote because, funnily enough, nobody is making beats and producing like he can. “HAZARD DUTY PAY!” is his most popular song and arguably his best one, combining elements of every type of rap music imaginable, on top of an insane sample of “Ain’t No Need To Worry” by The Winans and Anita Baker. Sampling has become the crux of his music, and this is easily one of the best samples he has used within his music, pairing perfectly with the aggressive, somewhat industrial sounds of JPEGMAFIA. On top of this, he is one of the most clever lyricists in the rap game, dropping wit within the track with lines like “these veggie grill… don’t really want beef”. “HAZARD DUTY PAY!” is a combination of fun and creativity, stamping itself as a combination of everything JPEGMAFIA: one of the best rappers in the game, and the creator of one of the 2020s best songs.
- “Juna” – Clairo” (2024)
It feels like every season is “Charm” season, but especially Fall of 2024, when “Juna” held indie pop nerds, social media users, and music lovers captive. There is something so simple, but complex within the track that makes it so easy to gravitate to. Whether that be Clairo’s quieter-than-usual vocal performance, the beautiful jazz undertones, or even the trumpet noises Clairo makes with her mouth – it feels like “Juna” has become the track for Gen Z. Being the hit song off of such a pivotal album like “Charm” has allowed it to continuously grow, and the Charm tour made it even more of a fan favorite. “Juna” very well might be Clairo’s legacy song in the future, and I’m here for it.
- “anything” – Adrianne Lenker (2020)
Adrianne Lenker was a hidden gem within indie music for quite some time, but her hit song “anything” transformed her into one of the biggest names in singer-songwriter music. Released in her 2020 project, “songs and instrumentals”, “anything” became popular through TikTok, but prior to its increase in popularity, it had already been a standout for Lenker’s fanbase. Composed of just an acoustic guitar and Lenker’s beautiful vocals, she reminisces on old love in a tone of both affection and pain. It’s her trademark sound that has stamped her as one of the best artists of the generation, but more importantly, one of the best writers. “anything” is everything that makes her artistry special and a reminder of what Lenker is capable of at her best.
- “party 4 u” – Charli xcx (2020)
In the decade of “BRAT”, it feels like people forget about “how i’m feeling now”, but the latter is arguably better in my opinion. Amongst its tight 36-minute run time, one of its standouts is the hit track, “party 4 u”, which is a “Great Gatsby”-esque story. Charli loves someone so much that she throws them an entire party, just for them to not show up, resulting in one of my personal favorite hyperpop songs ever. “party 4 u” is one of the catchiest songs of the decade, too, since it boasts some of Charli’s fastest pacing in her entire discography, where she beings the track with a slower chorus before hitting that very stride. Its pacing is somewhat resemblant of the glitch that covers the entirety of the project. Including its blowup on social media in 2025, “party 4 u” has become a landmark within Charli’s discography, which is one of the biggest parts of 2020s music, making it one of the best songs of the year.
- “Crush” – Ethel Cain (2021)
Twenty minutes is all it took for Hayden Anhedönia (otherwise known as Ethel Cain) to write her hit song “Crush”. Five years later, it holds up even better than it did on release. “Crush” has a unique sound that both frightens and immerses listeners from the very first second when she begins to describe the subject of the song–her crush. From here, the song builds into one of my favorite pop songs ever – in a way, it feels addictive. The track has cemented itself as one of Anhedönia’s few ventures into the mainstream as well, having just passed over one hundred million streams. “Crush” hits a level of catchy, yet trippy pop madness that I have yet to see from other pop artists. It is arguably the biggest earworm of the current decade and will never leave my rotation as far as I am concerned.
- “Love Takes Miles” – Cameron Winter (2024)
Shocker – a Geese-adjacent song made the list. Born out of Cameron Winter’s debut solo project, “Heavy Metal”, “Love Takes Miles” has put the world on notice. It’s a reminder that no matter how much hype both he and his band have garnered over the past year, they deserve it, and Winter in particular creates some of the best sad-boy indie rock music right now. “Love Takes Miles” boasts poetry-like lyricism that, in a current climate where yearning in music often feels inauthentic, bleeds with emotion. Another aspect of the track that is noteworthy is how one-of-one Winter’s voice is – it sits in a lane with Will Toledo and Rufus Wainwright, but apart from those two, I can’t name any other artist even close to his vocals. “Love Takes Miles” is proof of that, along with giving an account of a more upbeat sound that Winter’s music is not exactly well-accustomed to.
- “Dear April” – Frank Ocean (2020)
It’s hard to conceptualize that Frank Ocean made music within the last six years, but he, in fact, did, and with that, he made one of the best songs of the decade. “Dear April” is one of the four singles released for the since scrapped “Look At Us, We’re In Love”, marking itself as possibly the last song Frank Ocean dropped. It’s a slow, nostalgic ballad reflecting on his past relationship, diving into his own personal growth through a letter-like structure. “Dear April” is arguably the only of the singles dropped that feels like his 2016 release, “Blonde”, which gives listeners even more reason to appreciate it. It’s a reminder of what Frank is capable of and just an ounce of hope that we might see something from him in the future. But for now, it is all we have from Frank Ocean in the current decade.
- “About You” – The 1975 (2022)
Listening to this track for the first time is a pivotal moment for people who love music. Regardless of your thoughts on Matty Healy (the 1975 frontman), you would be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t enjoy “About You”. Coming out of their most recent album, “Being Funny In A Foreign Language”, this song finds itself between dream pop and pop rock, shifting between the two in a way that provokes an emotion unlike most other songs. One of its trademarks is the feature from Carly Holt, where she talks about the places she thinks about her lover, in which Matty Healy responds, “I think about you”. In a lot of ways, it is the band’s quintessential song due to its crushing, yet captivating nature. “About You” is an incredible venture into love songs for The 1975, a band not typically associated with them, and it has helped to make them one of the biggest bands on the planet, making it one of the best songs of the 2020s.
- “family ties” – Baby Keem, Kendrick Lamar (2021)
Where were you when you heard the “family ties” trumpets for the first time?
“family ties” is, I would argue, one of the greatest rap songs ever. It features everything that has defined the past decade of rap music – beat switches, absolutely insane production, and Kendrick Lamar. Dropped as the lead single off of Baby Keem’s “The Melodic Blue”, I couldn’t name a time where I saw one song build up so much anticipation for an album. Launching Baby Keem into the stratosphere of rap stardom, “family ties” is arguably the most memorable beat of any rap song. The trumpets, the switchup for Keem’s first verse, and the build-up to one of Kendrick’s most well known verses – “family ties” has lent itself to a million different corners of the music world. Whether it be the sports games they play it at, the hype up to every rap concert you’ve ever been to, or even just you trying to keep up with Kendrick’s verse in the shower or car (we’ve all been there, don’t act like you haven’t at least once), “family ties” has grown to be one of the most well-known rap songs of all time and with that, it’s the best song of the 2020s.
Featured Image created by Carter Hillsdon