Oops, I'm a little late, but I'm arranging a list of songs and I do intend to do my usual EOY countdown! My goal is just to start this before everyone else has finished theirs

Will last year's winner Teddy Swims make a return appearance? Who will perform better between him, Morgan Wallen, Alex Warren, Ed Sheeran and Lewis Capaldi? I can't wait to find out!

Actually, I haven't even decided my #1 yet, or even how many songs are going to feature.

[insert hype here]

Previous EOY #1s:
2013 - Lorde 'Royals'
2014 - Paramore 'Ain't It Fun'
2015 - Walk The Moon 'Shut Up And Dance'
2016 - Ariana Grande 'Into You'
2017 - Lorde 'Green Light'
2018 - Taylor Swift 'Delicate'
2019 - Sam Smith 'How Do You Sleep?'
2020 - The Weeknd 'Heartless'
2021 - Olivia Rodrigo 'Deja Vu'
2022 - Jackson Dean 'Don't Come Lookin''

2023 - Olivia Rodrigo 'Bad Idea Right?'

2024 - Teddy Swims 'The Door'

2025 - To be revealed!

Can't wait to see your list.
Although I will probably take a while to finish mine

67. Zach Top "I Never Lie"

No relation to ZZ Top, Zach Top was one of country's breakthrough artists in 2025, although you'd be forgiven for thinking this song came from the 90s country/Alan Jackson era. Despite a deliberately old-fashioned sound, 'I Never Lie' went viral and even streamed relatively well for its genre, becoming Zach's biggest airplay and overall hit to date. This style of country is usually not my cup of tea, but the song got stuck in my head early on and never left. It may be last on this EOY countdown, but it would've felt wrong to leave it out!

66. Lola Young "One Thing"

So far I've been appreciating Lola Young's overall success as an artist more than any particular song of hers. 'Conceited' is still my fave and should've been the follow-up hit after 'Messy'! But eventually I gave 'One Thing' a chance, and throughout its weeks of chart show plays, it grew on me quite a lot, to the point where I like it allllmost as much!

65. Lil Tecca "Dark Thoughts"

As a fan of 'Ransom' back in the day, I was pretty sure Lil Tecca had potential for more of that caliber, or perhaps even better. It just took six years for that to come to fruition. Other songs have tried to emulate Justin Timberlake's 'Rock Your Body' (and other Neptunes productions), some better than others, but 'Dark Thoughts' is truly one of the freshest takes on that style, a real surprise turn for him artistically. Deserved a bit more longevity but still a solid result for his first hit since 2019. Should we pencil him in to go viral again in 2031?

64. Tate McRae "Revolving Door"

I remember writing EOY commentary a year ago and thinking the rest of Tate's era would be early-2000s-pop inspired just like 'It's Ok I'm Ok'. That didn't pan out but the end result was an era that was more sonically diverse than I hoped and every bit as brilliant. On paper 'Revolving Door' is perfectly up my street, but for some reason I was stuck on 'Sports Car' and never gave this one my full attention. But, I've got all four of her singles on this EOY and one of them had to be at the bottom. Will any of the others be high enough to make up for it?

Previous EOY history: "You Broke Me First" (#42, 2020), "She's All I Wanna Be" (#24, 2022), "Greedy" (#40, 2023), "Exes" (#26, 2024), "It's Ok I'm Ok" (#53, 2024)

63. Lewis Capaldi "Survive"

I must not pay close attention, because I thought Lewis had retired completely from music, and didn't realize he was coming back until it happened. 'Survive' is just what he needed, a big statement song that encapsulates the before, during, and after of his hiatus and grand return. Well-played on his part, and I hope the hiatus got him what he needed in terms of his health.

Previous EOY history: "Bruises" (#58, 2019), "Forget Me" (#54, 2022)

62. Sonny Fodera & Clementine Douglas "Tell Me"

I've still liked everything I've heard from Sonny and Clementine, whether they're collaborating with each other or with others. It seems 'Tell Me' didn't stand out as much as the others, a bit samey but that's almost not even a criticism in this case. Either way it's another beautiful vocal from Clementine, and Sonny's track fits perfectly.

Previous EOY history for Sonny: "Asking" (#47, 2023), "Somedays" (#12, 2024)

Previous EOY history for Clementine: "Asking" (#47, 2023), "Happier" (#58, 2024)

61. Ella Langley "Weren't For The Wind"

If you haven't heard 'You Look Like You Love Me', that was the song that first went viral for Ella and got her name out there to the masses. 'Weren't For The Wind' simply kept the momentum going, but personally I like it even more. To put it simply, Ella portrays herself as a drifter who doesn't stick around for long, as if the wind keeps carrying her from place to place. This theme is pretty common in country music but it's typically done by male artists, so it was brilliant to hear it from a woman's perspective instead. Plus, as someone who craves good melodies, the chorus is especially wonderful!

60. Almost Monday "Can't Slow Down"

At the very beginning of 2025 I got back into listening to my local alternative station, and 'Can't Slow Down' was one of its most-played songs at the time. It definitely sounds like Empire Of The Sun, which I'm sure is what got my attention in the first place. It's an earworm, and I'm just now reading that Alisa from The Naked & Famous has background vocals on it! That passed me by but suddenly I like it even more, haha.

59. Ed Sheeran "Old Phone"

I almost never watch late-night talk shows but just happened to catch Ed teasing this song on Jimmy Fallon before it was ever released. It also had some sort of radio deal on premiere (in the US at least) so it seemed like his team expected it to be an immediate hit (which Ed has had many of, to be fair). While that didn't pan out, the hype did get to me and I quickly became a fan. This was a few weeks after 'Azizam' so it was a quick one-two punch of singles I really liked. I'll save the rest of my thoughts for Ed's next appearance in this EOY…

Previous EOY history: "Don't" (#5, 2014), "Sing" (#30, 2014), "Thinking Out Loud" (#47, 2015), "Shape Of You" (#49, 2017), "Cross Me" (#20, 2019), "I Don't Care" (#37, 2019), "Overpass Graffiti" (#18, 2022 & #32, 2021), "Shivers" (#55, 2021), "Afterglow" (#62, 2021), "Celestial" (#14, 2022), "2step" (#22, 2022), "For My Hand" (#53, 2022), "Eyes Closed" (#38, 2023)

58. Doja Cat "Jealous Type"

This is Doja Cat's first EOY appearance in a while; her last album didn't do much for me and I was under the impression she was leaving the pop genre for good. She has a habit of changing her mind so I should've known she wouldn't stick to that for long. Anyway, 'Jealous Type' is a brilliant return to form, and her VMA performance was stunning! There's been no shortage of 80s soundalikes lately, I know they can't all be smash hits but surely this one was deserving?

Previous EOY history: "Boss Bitch" (#2, 2020), "Say So" (#17, 2020), "You Right" (#47, 2021), "Need To Know" (#53, 2021), "Get Into It (Yuh)" (#8, 2022)

57. Sissal "Hallucination"

'Hallucination' was my personal 12-pointer from Eurovision, honestly it sounded so similar to 'Euphoria' that no other entry had a chance. I'm glad it broke Denmark's DNQ streak but it should've finished closer to top four than bottom four, certainly not helped by its running order spot. Easily my favorite of Denmark's entries, I'd argue it's even better than their winner in 2013. Honestly I haven't decided what I'm doing for Eurovision this year but it's weird to think this could be the last Eurovision song in my EOY for a long while, if not ever.

56. Raye "Where Is My Husband!"

With as huge as 'Escapism' was, I was worried that the expectations and pressure would be too high for Raye to repeat that success with another song. When 'Genesis' had a frontloaded first week and swiftly exited the chart, I expected anything else she released would have the same fate. Long story short, she proved me wrong. Oh Raye, why do I ever doubt thee? As for my personal opinion, I wasn't too wowed at first, but watching its chart success, on both sides of the pond, over the past few months has really endeared me to it. It helps that it sounds nothing like 'Escapism' (no reheating of nachos here) and I'm obsessed with how quickly she sings, after four months I'm just now starting to understand what some of the lyrics are

Previous EOY history: "Secrets" (#51, 2020), "Escapism." (#33, 2023), "Prada" (#23, 2023)

55. Olivia Dean "So Easy (To Fall In Love)"

Someone jokingly compared 'So Easy (To Fall In Love)' to telephone hold music, and I don't necessarily disagree (I would've said elevator music). But that didn't stop the song from getting stuck in my head, by which time I realized I actually like it. Definitely stands out in the charts and on the radio, and that chorus is particularly good. It only speaks to Olivia's talent as I can't imagine any other artist recording this and making it anywhere near as much of a hit.

54. Role Model "Sally, When The Wine Runs Out"

Here's another old-fashioned-but-surprisingly-good song in an entirely different genre. 'Sally, When The Wine Runs Out' was another highlight from alternative radio last year, a fun performance on SNL in October, and just simply a fun song to hear in the car. Sally is such an old person name but I think that gives the song part of its charm, as if it could've been written decades ago. I actually have an aunt Sally who loves wine, so I reckon that's helped me appreciate it even more :lol:

53. Teddy Swims "Northern Lights"

Teddy is the reigning champion from my 2024 EOY, and while his highest placing this year is #53 it's still his fourth consecutive year appearing in my EOY! I loved 'Bad Dreams' so much that I decided to give its parent album a listen, my first time listening to a Teddy Swims album. It's about what you'd expect, you'll either like it or hate it depending on how you feel about Teddy Swims. But one song really grabbed my attention and that was track #7, 'Northern Lights'. It's a proper ballad that's reminiscent of the late-90s ballads I grew up with. Teddy doesn't over-sing on the song the way he does on others, it's more restrained, so even the pineapple-haters might like this one.

Previous EOY history: "Love For A Minute" (#31, 2022), "Face Myself" (#14, 2023), "The Door" (#1, 2024), "Bad Dreams" (#3, 2024)

52. Calvin Harris feat. Clementine Douglas "Blessings"

 'Blessings' may not be Calvin's most memorable song ever but it was still a perfectly enjoyable song to soundtrack last summer. He's not quite as consistent these days so I appreciate his good tunes even more now. Like I said, I've also really liked everything I've heard from Clementine so I knew I'd enjoy this one too. This 90s trance style is one of the things Calvin does best, but I'm aware he's been accused of ripping off Chicane, and I don't feel qualified to say whether he did or didn't!

Previous EOY history for Calvin: "Thinking About You" (#50, 2014), "Pray To God" (#39, 2015), "My Way" (#41, 2016), "One Kiss", (#45, 2018), "Giant", (#47, 2019), "Desire", (#44, 2023), "Lovers In A Past Life" (#19, 2024)

Previous EOY history for Clementine: "Asking" (#47, 2023), "Happier" (#58, 2024)

51. Drake "Nokia"
Not to say "I told you so", but…did people really think Drake's career would be over after the Kendrick thing? At best, I would predict he has to earn his hits now, not just send any garbage to the top 10 like he did before. And so far that's what we’re seeing. 'Nokia' broke the Drake embargo, so to speak, and it earned that right by being the best song Drake's released in years. I suppose the lyrics are still questionable, but "I'ma at you, like bless me" might unironically be my favorite Drake lyric of all time. (As an aside, his EOY history really shows how the quality plummeted after 2016!)

Previous EOY history: "One Dance" (#4, 2016), "Work" (#19, 2016), "Too Good" (#23, 2016), "For Free" (#28, 2016), "Wait For U" (#33, 2022)

Hallucination was one of the better Eurovision entries this year, certainly one of the best of the pure-pop ones and made my weekly Top 40 as well. Giving Can't Slow Down a quick listen as I've enjoyed other songs by almost monday but not heard this one, this is very funky as well much like the other I've head from them!

A top 67

My favourite to appear so far is 'Jealous Type' I wish that had been bigger too. I just read your comment in my countdown comparing 'Headphones On' to Janet Jackson and this song gives me a bit of Janet too, specifically 'The Pleasure Principle'! I thought I was getting a bit fatigued with heavily '80s influenced songs but this proved otherwise, what a tune.

Really like "I Never Lie", "One Thing", "Revolving Door", "Survive", "Tell Me", "Weren't For The Wind" (my favourite of the selection so far), "Old Phone", "Jealous Type", "Hallucination", "Where Is My Husband!", "So Easy (To Fall In Love)", "Sally, When The Wine Runs Out" and "Blessings".

baby gurl

I'm glad you're another fan of Sally, When the Wine Runs Out! I was a bit late to it (surprising given I've been a fan of his for a while lol) but it's definitely becoming one of my favourite tracks from him.

Hi Riser

'Revolving door' and 'WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!' are my two favourites so far.

Tate had such an amazing 2025 so I'm excited to see where all the singles land!

I'm not a massive RAYE fan overall but WIMH is undeniable! So glad it became a belated UK #1.

Great chart so far 🙂

On 20/01/2026 at 09:17, Jade said:

A top 67

!!! That was completely unintended but accidentally perfect for 2025

On 20/01/2026 at 09:17, Jade said:

My favourite to appear so far is 'Jealous Type' I wish that had been bigger too. I just read your comment in my countdown comparing 'Headphones On' to Janet Jackson and this song gives me a bit of Janet too, specifically 'The Pleasure Principle'! I thought I was getting a bit fatigued with heavily '80s influenced songs but this proved otherwise, what a tune.

On 20/01/2026 at 14:46, Sergej said:

Really like "I Never Lie", "One Thing", "Revolving Door", "Survive", "Tell Me", "Weren't For The Wind" (my favourite of the selection so far), "Old Phone", "Jealous Type", "Hallucination", "Where Is My Husband!", "So Easy (To Fall In Love)", "Sally, When The Wine Runs Out" and "Blessings".

On 20/01/2026 at 14:50, JosephStyles said:

baby gurl

I'm glad you're another fan of Sally, When the Wine Runs Out! I was a bit late to it (surprising given I've been a fan of his for a while lol) but it's definitely becoming one of my favourite tracks from him.

On 22/01/2026 at 14:53, LewisGT said:

Hi Riser

'Revolving door' and 'WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!' are my two favourites so far.

Tate had such an amazing 2025 so I'm excited to see where all the singles land!

I'm not a massive RAYE fan overall but WIMH is undeniable! So glad it became a belated UK #1.

Great chart so far 🙂

Thanks everyone!!

50. Tate McRae "Sports Car"

Third time was a charm for this era; Tate's first two singles were front-loaded and probably made less impact than expected, but she didn't give up and neither did we. But why exactly did 'Sports Car' break through in a bigger way than the other singles? Was it random luck, or was it such an obvious hit that it was intentionally being saved for that purpose? Sounds pretty obvious to me, especially if it reminds you of 'Buttons' by The Pussycat Dolls. And it's not every day you hear an entirely whispered chorus!

Previous EOY history: "You Broke Me First" (#42, 2020), "She's All I Wanna Be" (#24, 2022), "Greedy" (#40, 2023), "Exes" (#26, 2024), "It's Ok I'm Ok" (#53, 2024)

49. Kehlani "Folded"

Lately there has been a bit of an R&B void in the chart world, especially female R&B. As if the door was open for anyone to fill the gap, and who knew Kehlani would be the one to step up? She's been underrated for years and not overly successful as a lead artist. 'Folded' wasn't an instant hit except in New Zealand where it debuted top 10, which was enough to grab my attention. It was brilliant to watch its momentum start to build elsewhere, and now it's a proper hit, something that was long overdue for her! And the song itself couldn't be more deserving either, the production sounds like it came straight outta the mid-2000s – Usher's 'Confessions Part II' comes to mind. Kehlani's vocals are as divine as ever, and I could just listen to that guitar/piano/strings backing track on a loop for hours

Previous EOY history: "Nights Like This" (#22, 2019)

48. Tame Impala "Dracula"

Speaking of artists getting their long-overdue chart flowers! Tame Impala may have been reduced to a Kevin Parker solo project, but the music quality has not been compromised. As a band they were the kings of slow-burners, with plenty of gold and platinum songs to their name but with actual chart stats nearly non-existent. In 2025 the stars aligned, and enough people streamed a Tame Impala song in the same week for it to make the top 40. (To be fair, I'm a guilty fan, pretty sure this is my first time charting Tame Impala even though I like all their previous output!) Also, with the song being called 'Dracula' and charting on Halloween, I'm not sure if the timing actually helped but it certainly didn't hurt! Maybe we can credit The Wiggles for belated goodwill from their cover of 'Elephant'? I wouldn't rule it out!

47. Lola Young "Messy"

'Messy' followed the trajectory of 'Stick Season' and 'Escapism' in the years before it, building momentum in December, primed to be the first new #1 of the year once the Christmas songs clear out. It was a joy to rally behind this song, and this case even better to have some rare guitar music at #1. Its US success was impressive too, not a song you'd typically expect to chart as high as #14 across the pond…let alone #1 on pop airplay! That said, if you know me at all, the lyrics are way too explicit for my poor innocent ears, so it's the clean version every time for me

46. Alex Warren "Eternity"

I reckon I'm not the only one with 'Eternity' in their EOY, but one of a select few for sure. For some reason I find Alex's voice a lot more pleasant than others with deep voices; for example if this was David Kushner's song I doubt I'd like it as much. It's unfortunate to read that Alex lost both of his parents at a young age and that this song is about that experience. It has been skipped as a radio single in the US, in favor of 'Bloodline', but at least that means I won't get sick of hearing it.

45. Sam Fender "People Watching"

'Seventeen Going Under' was a #1 in my chart but I otherwise wouldn't have considered myself a Sam Fender fan, having not cared much for the rest of his output. That has started to change over the course of his current album. Lead single and title track 'People Watching' is quite similar sonically to SGU, which made it an easy hit for me – I made up my mind as soon as I heard the sax! I'm just now reading on Wikipedia that one of the producers is from The War On Drugs, which totally makes sense now. Since then I've enjoyed some of the follow-up singles even more than this, so maybe it's time to revisit Sam's back catalog?

Previous EOY history: "Seventeen Going Under" (#35, 2021)

44. Addison Rae "Fame Is A Gun"

I'll quickly shout out 'Headphones On' as an honorable mention; the 90s trip-hop is totally up my street, but for some reason it lacked replay value for me. There's nothing throwback about 'Fame Is A Gun', it's much faster-paced, you could say it's as frantic as fame itself. The production is particularly unique with elements I don't think I've heard before. It's almost absurd that someone so early into their career can have such an authentically introspective and self-aware song about life under the spotlight, but it's a sign of Addison's talent, her craving of fame, and her drive to be an artist, not just a singer or throwaway pop star. It's clear now that 'Diet Pepsi' was no fluke, now can she keep the quality going?

Previous EOY history: "Diet Pepsi" (#48, 2024)

43. Tate McRae "Tit For Tat"

Like her or not, give Tate some credit for working hard last year with the amount of music released in a 12-month span. Oddly I ended up liking 'Tit For Tat' more than the singles from the original album. It has an unconventional structure and almost feels like a freestyle, stream-of-consciousness sort of song, and after reading how quickly it was written and recorded, maybe it really was to an extent. I only very recently found out the song had anything to do with The Kid Laroi, and honestly I can't say knowing the context has made me like it any more or less!

Previous EOY history: "You Broke Me First" (#42, 2020), "She's All I Wanna Be" (#24, 2022), "Greedy" (#40, 2023), "Exes" (#26, 2024), "It's Ok I'm Ok" (#53, 2024)

42. Post Malone feat. Luke Combs "Guy For That"

'Guy For That' appeared in my 2024 EOY several places lower, slightly hindered by me getting into the song at the very end of the year. It really peaked in my affections in January and I certainly listened to it more in 2025 than 2024, so it seemed justified to include it again. Naturally it would be quite a bit higher if it wasn't split between two years. Either way, it's my favorite from Post Malone since he went country, and honestly one of my faves from him overall!

Previous EOY history for Post Malone: "Rockstar" (#59, 2017), "Psycho" (#7, 2018), "Better Now" (#23, 2018), "Jackie Chan" (#24, 2018), "Circles" (#17, 2019), "Goodbyes" (#18, 2019), "One Right Now" (#13, 2022), "I Had Some Help" (#30, 2024), "Guy For That" (#59, 2024)

Previous EOY history for Luke: "Even Though I'm Leaving" (#8, 2020), "The Kind Of Love We Make" (#2, 2022), "Fast Car" (#2, 2023), "Going, Going, Gone" (#42, 2023), "Guy For That" (#59, 2024)

41. Ed Sheeran "Sapphire"

'Sapphire' was a brilliant summer highlight, and the Asian influence on it was a pleasant surprise. At the very end of summer, I got to ride a jet ski for the first time, and this song happened to be playing on the speaker of the jet ski. Just like some songs are perfect for driving, this one apparently sounds even better when jumping waves across the lake. I'd liked the song all along but having a memory to attach to it makes it much more special to me now

Previous EOY history: "Don't" (#5, 2014), "Sing" (#30, 2014), "Thinking Out Loud" (#47, 2015), "Shape Of You" (#49, 2017), "Cross Me" (#20, 2019), "I Don't Care" (#37, 2019), "Overpass Graffiti" (#18, 2022 & #32, 2021), "Shivers" (#55, 2021), "Afterglow" (#62, 2021), "Celestial" (#14, 2022), "2step" (#22, 2022), "For My Hand" (#53, 2022), "Eyes Closed" (#38, 2023)

Like most of the songs on here, outside of "Guy For That", which I have not listened to much.