Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Billboard Top 20 Ranked: Winter 2020

Billboard Top 20 Ranking: Winter 2020
Week of January 18th, 2020
Welcome to my second seasonal ranking of the Billboard Hot 100’s top 20 songs. We’ve begun a new decade for popular music, but as per usual, the trends of the Late 2010s are going to stick around throughout the first year of the new decade. However, that’s not entirely a bad thing, as we have yet another solid week for the Top 20 on our hands. This week got a score of 62/100, the same score that I gave to the Fall 2019 ranking, and pretty much what I expected out of the current charts. So, let’s dive right into the 2020s, starting with a song that should have been left in the previous decade…

BAD TIER

20: No Guidance by Chris Brown ft. Drake (This Week: #15)
See my Worst of 2019 list for my thoughts on this song, next.

MEDIOCRE TIER

19: Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi (This Week: #6)
I still don’t hate this song, but I am coming closer and closer to hating it the longer it sticks around. It’s got some of the most generic “woe is me” breakup lyrics ever written and it’s incredibly oversung, especially on that bridge (and IIIIIIIII), repeating the same four chords of pop for the entire song. I already put this as a Dishonorable Mention on my Worst of 2019 list, and if I made that list now, it might just make it onto the list proper.

18: Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez (This Week: #10)
It’s… just… so… lame… I pretty much agree with Sean from Diamond Axe Studios on this song, it’s right at the bottom of the Mediocre Tier. With the exception of a few songs here and there, Selena Gomez is just the most bland, powerless singer in the current pop scene. This is clearly trying to be something powerful, but Selena is just not someone who can ever pull that off.

17: BOP by DaBaby (This Week: #12)
A bop (or BOP) this is not. A typical flexing anthem about money and h0es, this is one of the most bog-standard Trap songs I’ve ever heard (aside from that exotic flute thingy in the background). Not a lot to talk about here, so let’s move on.

16: Roxanne by Arizona Zervas (This Week: #9)
The chorus is one of the catchiest I’ve heard in quite a while, and the beat is seriously catchy (those whistles in the hook especially), but the lyrical content kinda kills the vibe for me. I’ll have to think a bit more about this one.

15: Yummy by Justin Bieber (This Week: #2)
So, Justin Bieber has managed to become the most hated person in music at the start of both the 2010s and 2020s, huh? The first time was because his balls hadn’t yet dropped (which did eventually happen in 2012-13), and this time it’s because he used some… shady tactics to promote this song. However, I’m only judging Yummy as a song, and as a song, it’s not anything special, either good or bad. Basically, Justin made a Trap-R&B song about how much he enjoys making love to his wife. This seriously reminds me of a Drake song, from the Hotline Bling-esque instrumental to Justin’s vocals clearly trying to emulate Sir Aubrey Graham. Heck, here’s a mashup of Yummy and Hotline Bling.
TL/DR: It’s an OK song.

14: The Box by Roddy Ricch (This Week: #1)
So, this is the first #1 Hit of the 2020s, huh? Interesting, considering that this wasn’t released as a single and still hasn’t gotten a music video as of the time that I’m writing this (although one is certainly on it’s way). The instrumentation has an orchestral backdrop that sounds like it’s straight out of a classic Horror film, with the iconic “EEH URR” sound effect that made the song famous to boot. Lyrically, the song is about his newfound wealth and his troubled history with the law. This has a strong shot of being the biggest hit of 2020, and it would certainly be an interesting one, even if it doesn’t fit my personal tastes. 

13: Truth Hurts by Lizzo (This Week: #20)
Another massive 2019 hit that is now on it’s way out, and I’m not gonna lie, I’m a little bit sick of it. Now, I’ll probably enjoy this again once it’s been gone for a little while, but I just want some newer songs in the Top 20 as we enter the new year/decade.

12: Highest In The Room by Travis Scott (This Week: #13)
Well, he must have some degree of self-awareness, because he certainly does sound high. Awesome outro, though.

11: Memories by Maroon 5 (This Week: #4)
It may be lame, but I like it. I’m not sure why I like it, but I do. It’s still lame, though, so a strong 5/10 it is.

DECENT TIER

10: Dance Monkey by Tones And I (This Week: #7)
I don’t know how she sounds like this. I don’t know how someone gets this voice, but everything else about this is great. The instrumentation is upbeat (and that bassline on the hook is killer), which contrasts with the lyrics about being forced to do the same things over and over again (“and when you’re done, I’ll make you do it all again”). While I bet that Tones And I will be a one hit wonder (in the U.S., at least, she’ll stay huge in her native Australia), this isn’t a bad hit to have.

9: 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay and Justin Bieber (This Week: #5)
This was right on the border of making it into the Good Tier (as it did in my fall ranking), but I figured that it’s a bit too bland to be called a truly good song, no matter how much I may enjoy it. Besides, I could just listen to any number of Late 90s Boy Bands that this is clearly ripping off.

GOOD TIER

8: Trampoline by SHAED (This Week: #16)
I know, I’m supposed to hate this now that Todd In The Shadows put it on his worst list, but that pre chorus is awesome. “Wait, if I’m on fire, how am I so deep in love?” is one of the deepest philosophical questions ever asked in the history of popular music, and I say that only half ironically.

7: Heartless by The Weeknd (This Week: #17)
In the night I hear them talk the coldest st- oh wait, wrong song, sorry. Alright, this is Heartless by The Weeknd, not Heartless by Kanye West. The lyrics are just your typical Weeknd lyrics about sleeping around while still feeling completely empty about it. My real praise, however, is saved for Metro Boomin’s production (“Metro Boomin’ turn this h0e into a mosh pit”), which is the definition of killer. Also, I love that outro where Abel uses his falsetto to great results. Not as good as Blinding Lights, but still a dang good Weeknd song.

6: Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa (This Week: #14)
One of my favorite trends in pop music from the 2010s was the amount of songs that blended retro and modern sounds, and it looks like it could carry on into the Early 20s as well. Combining a Disco groove with a 2010s EDM drop (which is well on it’s way out now), the new lead single from Dua Lipa’s upcoming album Future Nostalgia is basically an updated version of I Will Survive, and while it’s not as good as that song (that’s not much of a diss, considering how great I Will Survive is), it definitely comes out pretty dang well. While I may not be as big of a Dua Lipa fan as a certain reviewer who I mentioned earlier post (you still gotta ask her out, Sean), I’ll say that she can stick around as long as she likes. In fact, I’m thinking that I underrated this song in this post, and that it actually belongs in the…

GREAT TIER

5: Senorita by Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello (This Week: #18)
Listen, I like you Senorita, like, a lot. You were an Honorable Mention on my Best of 2019 list and I’ll come to your defense if I have to. However, you’ve stuck around a bit too long, so if you could leave, that would be welcome.

4: Everything I Wanted by Billie Eilish (This Week: #19)
While I wouldn’t call myself a Billie Eilish fan, I liked all three of her 2019 hits (one of which was on my best list), and it looks like she’ll be keeping her quality streak going into 2020. The song was written after Billie had a nighmare where she commits suicide, and is recieved by a mix of apathy and scorn. The song also serves as an ode to her friendship with her brother/producer Finneas (if only she also had a brother named Ferb), as the lyrics detail him consoling her, assuring her that “as long as I am here, no one can hurt you”. 
Speaking of Finneas, the instrumentation is some nice Indie Pop with a dreamy atmosphere and a backing keyboard line that reminds me a bit of Beautiful Day by U2, which in case you didn’t already know, is one of my favorite songs of all time. While I should go back and listen to WWAFAWDWG, I’ll probably wait for her upcoming second album to which this will serve as the lead single. Keep it up, Billie, I like what I’m hearing.
3: Ballin by Mustard ft. Roddy Ricch (This Week: #11)
This might just be one of the funnest Hip-Hop songs I’ve ever heard. While this has a similar premise to The Box (my #14), this has a much more bouncy and upbeat feeling, backed up by fantastic production by Mustard (who you may recall was at #5 on my Worst of 2019 list with Pure Water). I honestly don’t have a lot to say about this one, it’s just loads of fun, and I hope we can get more stuff like this in the decade to come.

2: Good As Hell by Lizzo (This Week: #8)
You know how I just said that Ballin was one of the funnest Hip-Hop songs I’ve ever heard? Well, it’s not the only one on this list, as my #2 is, well, Good As Hell. While I tired on Truth Hurts pretty quickly, I don’t think that’ll happen with Good As Hell. It’s more upbeat than Truth Hurts, and it’s got some of the best self-empowerment lyrics I’ve ever heard (up there with the aforementioned I Will Survive). Lizzo is loads of fun here too, and I can’t help but shout “FEELIN’ GOOD AS HELL” when the chorus comes on. Unless 2020 turns out to be a fantastic year for popular music, this is almost a shoe-in for my best list.

#1: Circles by Post Malone (This Week: #3)
Yep, it was #4 on my Best of 2019 list, and it’s #1 on this ranking. It’s awesome that we got an actual, legit Rock song to top the Hot 100 in 2019, and I honestly won’t mind this sticking around throughout the majority of 2020. Posty said on this song’s genius page that it was inspired by Fleetwood Mac, and yeah, I can definitely hear it. It’s just got a timeless sound, and if it ends up becoming a timeless classic itself, I certainly won’t complain. Circles by Post Malone, the best song in the Billboard Top 20 as of January 18th, 2020.
For my next project, I’m gonna take a look back at 2014, and see what the Mid 2010s had to offer in terms of pop music. I'll see you guys soon, have a wonderful day.

5 comments:

  1. Cool Ranking! Here's how I would rank this week!


    Excrement Tier: 0/5
    20. Someone You Loved-Lewis Capaldi
    (GO AWAY!)

    19. No Guidance- Chris Brown ft. Drake
    (Screw Chris Brown!)

    18. Roxanne- Arizona Zervas
    (A catchy hook can only make up for a song with so little quality)

    17. Yummy- Justin Bieber
    (Justin, what the heck are you doing?)


    Lousy Tier: 1/5
    16. Memories- Maroon 5
    (Good lyrics and message ruined by Adam Levine's inaudible caterwauling and stagnant production)

    Average Tier: 2/5
    15. Lose You To Love Me-Selena Gomez
    (Man, this Selena Gomez song sure does,exist doesn't it?)

    14. 10,000 Hours- Dan+Shay ft. Justin Bieber
    (Man, this Dan+Shay and Justin Bieber collaboration sure does exist, doesn't it?)

    13. HIGHEST IN THE ROOM- Travis Scott
    (Outside of the Phenomenal outro, the song just doesn't really do much for me. Not Crap, but not really good either)

    Acceptable Tier: 3/5
    12. BOP- DaBaby
    (Well, it does kinda live up to its title)

    11. Senorita- Shawn Mendes ft. Camila Cabello
    (It's fine, I guess, but I'm kinda getting sick of it)

    10. Heartless-The Weeknd
    (It's no I Feel It Coming, False Alarm, or Blinding Lights, (people, PLEASE stream that song so it can go into the top ten soon!) but it's decent)


    Good Tier: 4/5
    9. The Box- Roddy Ricch
    (Not the best song on Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial (which was a
    light 7/10 for me), that would go to either High Fashion or War Baby, but it's still IMMENSELY catchy and just a good song overall. I'm glad it's #1 right now and blocking garbage songs like Yummy and Life is Good from the top of the charts)

    8. Dance Monkey- Tones and I
    (Tones and I's voice is pretty terrible, but everything else about the song is so good that I decided to put it in the Good Tier, probably Even in the Impeccable Tier if, once again, it was given to another singer)

    7. everything i wanted- Billie Eilish
    (The lyrics to this are beyond phenomenal, and Billie sounds great, but something about the production just kinda keeps it out of the Impeccable Tier for me. I don't know what it is, but while it's not AWFUL per say, something about the production just feels off and Finneas is definitely capable of better. Otherwise, outside of that one nitpick, this is a good song)

    Impeccable Tier: 5/5
    6. Ballin- Mustard ft. Roddy Ricch
    (Wow, DJ Mustard started becoming a good producer out of nowhere. Never in a million years would I have expected that!)

    5. Don't Start Now- Dua Lipa
    (Can we all agree that Dua Lipa is just the queen of pop music at the moment?)

    4. Truth Hurts- Lizzo
    (Banger!)

    3. Trampoline- Shaed
    Wow, an actual INDIE song on the charts since 2012-2013? That's awesome!

    2. Circles- Post Malone
    (Post Malone has REALLY improved from his Stoney days, and this might just be the best song he's EVER recorded)

    1. Good as H*ll- Lizzo
    (Yup, this song sure is good as Heck!)

    0+1+6+6+12+30= 55/100
    Above Average week. Let's see what Spring has to offer us!

    (P.S. Stream Physical!)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Since I'm bored and have nothing to do, here are the best and worst years of the 21st Century, in my opinion, at least!

    Best:
    2002,2004,2011,2012,2013

    Worst:
    2005,2006,2009,2010,2014,2018

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I didn't actually mind 2010 or 2014 all that much. I will be covering 2012 after I'm done with 2017.

      Delete
  3. For the worst years of the 21st century, I'd actually remove 2006 from the lineup considering there was actually a fair amount of classics that were dropped!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My brother was born in August of 2006, so I'm gonna look at that year this summer to celebrate his 14th birthday. I'm expecting tons of bad ringtone rap.

      Delete