I do like 'Boom Boom Pow' and it's a cool switch up for BEP but it's by quite some way behind the other two for me.. so glad 'Meet Me Halfway' edged it out despite not making your top 10 still. Was definitely "happy" it got there over that dull Leona track too.

I do enjoy Meet Me Halfway, I think more than I Gotta Feeling.

I was happy this got to #1 at the time, but disappointed it blocked Leona as well. In retrospect Happy isn't one of Leona's better singles though.

Meet Me Halfway is more like it and would definitely have been top 10 for me.

10 Lily Allen - The Fear

4 weeks in February 2009: {1}-1-1-1-5-7-12-17-17-19-19-19-28-29-31-35-43-45-58-65->20

Kept off #1: none

#14 in EOY 2009

Following up debut album Alright, Still which was launched with UK #1 single 'Smile', this became an instant second #1 for Lily Allen on the way to It's Not Me, It's You becoming her first #1 album. Evolving sound palette to a mostly electropop backing and setting more of a socio-political tone, the demo was released on her Myspace account the previous year as 'I Don't Know' before a name change. The verses address consumerism and celebrity as well as her own experiences of the effects of fame and expectation, with the chorus bringing this into focus. The song remained at the top for 4 weeks with sales of 83k, 69k, 59k and 45k, making it the longest running #1 of 2009. And like Kelly Clarkson, Lily made it to the final of Buzzjack's second season of The Pop Factor, where she finished just ahead in second place! This song was sent by her mentor, Joseph, in "The Scoop" stage where it finished joint top out of 23 songs, securing her place in the next round.

At the time this came out, I liked the understated feel of it and the way the shimmering banks of synth illustrate Lily's feelings in the chorus, however the gravity of "the fear" she sings about is something I appreciate more now than I did then. While she mentioned her "mental health" in her first #1, here she describes it quite vividly, and now I realise there are capital letters in "I look at The Sun and I look in The Mirror", that is a neat line on being a female celebrity in the public eye. Perhaps the lyrical play on weapons of mass destruction is a little more of its time, but makes its point too. I've long thought it's her best song, and it showcases her honest lyricism and turns of phrase with some brilliant production.

Agree this is her best song, love it.

Great start to the top 10. Fab song and the first of Lily's tracks I cared for particularly, as wasn't keen on her first era much. I liked the video for The Fear' also. Was always a big fan of the follow up too.

The Fear is Lily’s best song. Those gorgeous synths!

My big favourites from this year are still to come in the top 10 so great stuff, The Fear is a great start to the top 10, brilliantly incisive lyrics that have held up excellently and the production and desolate feel still sounds great.

I do quite enjoy Fight For This Love, I got a bit annoyed with her at the time with the whole 'Nation's Sweetheart' thing, but that one does have a very catchy chorus and quite nice production. Her success was impressive, but not a lot of her songs have aged that well.

When Love Takes Over was one of Guetta's best from around the time, I quite like both of his number 1s and the other one has held up pretty well, but this one does have a great euphoric chorus as well and I'm always up for a Coldplay rip-off x

I didn't rate Run This Town much at the time, but it's held up very well, has a great menacing riff and powerful delivery throughout.

Ooooo… now I’m not sure what is still to come but I really liked the Fear and I’d imagine I’d put it top 5

I remember when 'The Fear' music video came out it was the highest visual quality music video I'd ever seen. Especially on YouTube it was amazing to watch a video that was this crisp and clear back in 2009....and now in 2026 it's hard to imagine this being so advanced at the time The song of course is brilliant too, the "look at the Sun" / "look at the Mirror" lyric was of course later used by Taylor in 'Anti-Hero' although not quite the same effect as it has here.

By far and away her best, incredible song.

The Fear still sounds great, sure it would be top 5 for me without remembering absolutely everything that's to come. The two BEPs ones are fine for what they are, probably like them (and the other one) a bit more now than I ended up doing, all of them got a bit tired at the time - they just felt so huge. I suspect if I did this years rank that all three would be in a similar position, top half but not top quarter, probably alongside the other act with three in here.

I was wondering when the BEPs would start to drop out! I admire how unusual 'Boom Boom Pow' is for such a big hit both here and across the pond. I started following the Billboard Hot 100 around this time and was astonished by how dominant this era was there. I think will.i.am ended up running the whole 'futuristic' shtick into the ground but for now this shift grabbed my attention, some naff lyrics and all. I particularly enjoy the instrumental switch-up during the bridge.

'Meet Me Halfway' is a lot less experimental in sound so I can see why it has double the streams of 'Boom Boom Pow' nowadays, plus is more likely the one you'll hear on the radio out of the two, but I'm not complaining about its enduring popularity - as I do think time has been kind to it for me too. A classy moment for them and a great vocal from Fergie.

I'm a little surprised that 'The Fear' isn't higher, would be at least top 5 for me, but good to see Lily in the top 10 nevertheless. I think the aforementioned 'Smile' was the first time I'd ever heard of the term "mental health" as a young girl and her raw, sharp lyricism continued to draw me into this sophomore era. Those synths are glorious too - would agree it's her best song.

This Town didnt make a lasting impression on me, this is like hearing a new track. It's OK but I wouldnt call it a classic of any of them. When Love Takes Over, though, a proper dance club hit that sticks and my impression is it would be top 10 for me. Kelly Clarkson's is better than most of her hits, but that's not a particularly high bar for me, she'd be a bit lower down sadly. Boom Boom Pow was a club monster, remember jiggling to the video 2 for 1 beers in each hand as it was on the giant dance screen in Mykonos club Play Del Ingles - it sounded unique, which was why I rated it, and likely would be top 10 for me. Meet Me Halfway, though, was the weakest of the trio of chart-toppers for Black Eyed Peas for me and I'd knock it down a few spots. The Fear, ah that's classic pop, it would be hereabouts or a bit higher for me. It might even be top 5 depending on what's left to come....

The Fear is sublime and was such a welcome return for Lily. It kicked off the new era brilliantly and helped make her a more global star.

9 La Roux - Bulletproof

1 week in June 2009: {1}-3-2-4-5-7-8-12-16-19-22-28-33-36-43-52-50-54-54-69R(4)->20

Kept off #1: none

#24 in EOY 2009

Synth pop act La Roux started out as the duo of singer Elly Jackson and producer Ben Langmaid, and took their name from the singer's red hair and a play on the female/male French words. Coincidentally, prior to their hits, they supported Lily Allen on her 2009 UK tour. Their first single for a major label, 'In For The Kill' was, as already mentioned here, a UK #2 for 4 weeks earlier in 2009, however they didn't have to wait long for this their next hit to go one place higher, debuting as it did with 80k sales. Despite then dropping 1-3, on that second week it was the song which 'Man In The Mirror' had outsold by one sale to reach #2 - and in the same week, their eponymous debut entered the UK album chart at #2. After just one further Top 40 hit, the pair went their separate ways in advance of the 2014 sophomore album, with Elly alone continuing under the group's name.

As mentioned, I was a big fan of 'In For The Kill', and when this bettered its peak by going straight to the top, it felt like a halo effect initially. However I was soon won over by the colourful synths and fizz of the beats, a sound that's pretty much catnip to me these days, although it would be another year or two before I really started to explore the early 1980s music that defined the genre, so this reached me early, and the video is equally colourful and aesthetically 80s. Elly's voice is at a lower pitch than their previous hit and blends around the trebly synths, while the chorus is the focal point to the resilient theme of the lyrics. It's now comfortably their more streamed song on Spotify, even after totting up all the versions, and is likewise sonically unique for hits of its era, especially in the context of #1s only - which of course this countdown is.

'Bulletproof' very quickly became my favorite song of all time, the most I've ever been obsessed with a song on first release. I must rave about the video for this one too, it was amazing at the time. Also an unlikely hit across the pond, managed to reach the top 10 on Billboard.

Not listened to Bulletproof in years. Great number 1.

Absolutely love Bulletproof and it got me more into them as well. I liked In For The Kill a little at the time but after I heard this I was a big fan of both.

It was great to also see this reach #5 in Australia as well.

Bulletproof is fantastic, always has been my favourite La Roux single. Love the debut album too.