Whether or not you heard them on TikTok, on the radio or on a recent slab of old school vinyl, new songs helped make sense this yr of a world that appeared to want extra interpretation with each passing month. Right here, in ascending order of greatness, are our picks for the 50 better of 2022 — be aware that we restricted artists to 1 entry apiece — adopted by 50 extra to listen to, to like, to be enlightened by. (The Spotify playlist options all 100 songs in alphabetical order.)
50. Zach Bryan, “One thing within the Orange”
One of many yr’s most compelling newcomers inexplicably didn’t land a finest new artist Grammy nomination, however don’t let that detract from the rippling sincerity of this streaming-smash spotlight from Bryan’s sprawling “American Heartbreak” album. — August Brown
49. Kenny Mason, “Zoomies”
Mason’s was far and away the best trap-metal idea album about an artist’s canine to come back out this yr. — A.B.
48. Child Stone Gorillas, “Maintain Goin”
The white-hot L.A. rap group assails a soul pattern on “Maintain Goin,” its members leaping out and in of body as they cross the baton with an uncanny chemistry. — Kenan Draughorne
47. Kali Malone, “Dwelling Torch I”
Completely nothing and every part occurs in these attractive 18 minutes of organ drones. Gentle some candles and let the edible hit. — A.B.
46. Rauw Alejandro, “Verde Menta”
Latin freestyle is again, and never a second too quickly. Look out, weekend! — Suzy Exposito
45. Truffles Da Killa, “W4TN”
Whereas all of us await Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” tour and visuals, right here’s one other landmark work of queer Black membership music that’s equally attractive and rooted in home music historical past. — A.B.
44. Buddy, “Hoochie Mama”
Compton’s Buddy seems like he’s having the time of his life on every verse he will get to rap. — Okay.D.
43. David Guetta and Bebe Rexha, “I’m Good (Blue)”
Bear in mind when the Black Eyed Peas added roughly 7% of a brand new music to “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life”? Guetta and Rexha do. — Mikael Wooden
42. Lucrecia Dalt, “El Galatzó”
An heir to Gal Costa’s imaginative and prescient of psychedelic, deeply orchestrated Latin music as a realm of experiment, ache and — basically — risk. — A.B.
41. Particular Curiosity feat. Mykki Blanco, “Midnight Legend”
New Orleans industrial punks Particular Curiosity crew up with rapper Mykki Blanco for this starry-eyed disco fete, promising hope past the hedonism of nightlife. — S.E.
40. Paramore, “This Is Why”
“Home of Jealous Lovers” for everybody who went out to the membership after COVID, took one go searching and went straight again residence. — A.B.
39. Child Rose, “Go”
Child Rose’s supernatural vocals can stand out anyplace, however they’re much more superior when paired with this lavish instrumental. — Okay.D.
38. Gatherers, “Black Marigold”
If early-aughts screamo is traditional rock by now, these New Jersey vets introduced it into modernity. Slinky, horny and explosive, with a well-deserved Geoff Rickly endorsement. — A.B.
37. Say She She, “Prism”
Image this: the Muses of Greek legend, dropped at life within the type of a Brooklyn soul-funk band. — S.E.
36. Soccer Mommy, “Shotgun”
Chic ’90s alt-fuzz from a younger songwriter born 4 years after the Breeders’ “Cannonball” dropped. — M.W.
35. Hitkidd and GloRilla, “F.N.F. (Let’s Go)”
Hitkidd and GloRilla earned Grammy noms for rap efficiency because of this rousing anthem to clearing out unhealthy vitality and returning to single actions. — Okay.D.
34. Muna, “Runner’s Excessive”
Earlier than you let their Phoebe Bridgers-assisted “Silk Chiffon” steal the present, give up to the techno-pop ecstasy of “Runner’s Excessive.” — S.E.
33. Ice Spice, “Munch (Feelin’ U)”
Twenty-two-year-old Ice Spice has all of it: withering humor, saucy charisma and the flexibility to will new slang about ineffective dudes into existence. — A.B.
32. The Weeknd, “Out of Time”
Can a love music double as a ghost story? “I bear in mind after I held you,” the Weeknd sings sweetly in a voice stuffed with dread. “You begged me together with your drowning eyes to remain.” — M.W.
31. Bino Rideaux feat. Roddy Ricch, “Lemme Discover Out”
Good issues occur while you pair two of L.A.’s strongest melodic rappers. — Okay.D.
30. Bizarrap feat. Villano Antillano, “Villano Antillano: Bzrp Music Periods, Vol. 51”
Studio time with 24-year-old Argentine producer Bizarrap has turn out to be a standing image within the Hispanic world. On this trap-house session, Puerto Rican rap starlet (and Dangerous Bunny affiliate) Villano Antillano spits with model and a beneficiant dose of queer camp. — S.E.
29. Chat Pile, “Grimace_Smoking_Weed.jpeg”
This one belongs right here for the title alone, nevertheless it accompanies one of the vital savage, astringent metallic data of the yr. — A.B.
28. The 1975, “Oh Caroline”
Think about Lloyd Dobler hoisting that boombox outdoors Diane Courtroom’s window and blasting “The Method It Is” as a substitute of “In Your Eyes.” — M.W.
27. V.C.R, “Blue”
The Memphis-born singer and violinist V.C.R makes being spellbound sound oh so good. — Okay.D.
26. Becky G and Karol G, “Mamiii”
Actual Gs solely. After years spent trailing one another on purple carpets and Latin pop charts, reggaeton-pop stars Becky G and Karol G — no relation — fused their Mexican and Colombian sensibilities into an empowered cumbiatón breakup jam for the women. — S.E.
25. Elton John and Britney Spears, “Maintain Me Nearer”
To observe up his hit 2021 collab with Dua Lipa, Captain Unbelievable enlists pop’s blue-jean child for a soft-touch disco jam about freedom, endurance and the shrewd monetization of 1’s mental property. — M.W.
24. Sam Smith feat. Kim Petras, “Unholy”
It’s a milestone No. 1 music for trans and nonbinary artists. And the way cool that it’s additionally as dumb as a bag of hammers. — A.B.
23. Kendrick Lamar feat. Blxst and Amanda Reifer, “Die Arduous”
The very best music from “Mr. Morale & the Huge Steppers” speaks to the nervousness that comes with placing your coronary heart in another person’s palms. — Okay.D.
22. My Chemical Romance, “The Foundations of Decay”
For individuals who declared emo lengthy lifeless and buried, let this music be a fist, bursting defiantly from the soil. — S.E.
21. Joji, “Glimpse of Us”
Practically a decade after he helped launch Baauer’s jock-trap “Harlem Shake” to a fluke No. 1 displaying atop the Sizzling 100, this former YouTube prankster topped Spotify’s international chart himself with a bare-bones piano ballad as fairly as peak Nick Drake. — M.W.
20. Makaya McCraven, “The Fours”
An ideal suture between heady jazz and digital precision. — A.B.
19. Sessa, “Canção da Cura”
Brazilian singer-guitarist Sessa creates a hypnotic ode to heartbreak on a standout music from his sophomore album, “Estrela Acesa.” — Okay.D.
Moist Leg’s Rhian Teasdale, left, and Hester Chambers.
(Caity Krone/For The Instances)
18. Wet Leg, “Moist Dream”
On this saucy minimize off their debut LP, Isle of Wight indie rockers Moist Leg make enjoyable of one thing that Harry Kinds couldn’t fairly seize in his cowl of their music on BBC Radio 1: the yawning banality of male consideration. — S.E.
17. Harry Kinds, “Matilda”
Say what you need about his performative allyship: The empathy on this music — within the delicate melody, within the sighing tenderness of Kinds’ vocal, within the vivid picture of a woman tying up her hair as she tries to pop a wheelie on her bike — is actual. — M.W.
16. Chappell Roan, “Informal”
All of the excessive drama and meticulous melody-writing of Taylor Swift at her finest, with some NC-17 zingers that make this situationship really feel like a recent wound. — A.B.
15. Khruangbin and Leon Bridges, “Mariella”
The psychedelic-funk trio Khruangbin proved way back that they don’t want vocals to make nice music. Nevertheless it doesn’t damage to have Leon Bridges’ honey-soaked voice floating over their alluring sounds. — Okay.D.
Anitta performs at Coachella 2022.
(Christina Home/Los Angeles Instances)
14. Anitta, “Envolver”
Brazilian funk-pop star Anitta scaled her solution to the height of the Billboard International 200 chart with this slick reggaeton joint a couple of strictly informal affair. Though the music is probably not secure for work, it’s confirmed optimum for golf equipment, bachelorette events and different websites the place reckless abandon is inspired. — S.E.
13. Lizzo, “2 Be Liked (Am I Prepared)”
The important thing change of the yr. — M.W.
12. Fousheé, “Double Normal”
Fousheé’s expertise earned her high-profile visitor spots on albums from Vince Staples, Steve Lacy and King Princess, however right here she owns the highlight by daring to defy gender-based relationship roles. — Okay.D.
11. Sudan Archives, “NBPQ (Topless)”
A defining assertion about colorism within the music business, the exultations of Black womanhood and Sudan Archives’ musical virtuosity — that ends with a full minute of her howling, “I simply wanna have my titties out, titties out, titties out.” — A.B.
Rosalía.
(SeoJu Park / For The Instances)
10. Rosalía, “Bizcochito”
The Spanish art-pop queen’s “Motomami” LP comprises profound reflections on emotional torment and pandemic-era isolation. However TikTok regulars got here to know Rosalía finest on this gum-smacking reggaeton-pop clapback to misogyny. — S.E.
9. Taylor Swift, “Anti-Hero”
If she felt like “a monster on the hill too large to hang around” earlier than the concert-ticket debacle, simply take into consideration the metaphors she may deploy in her subsequent anthem of celebrity self-loathing. — M.W.
8. Well being and 9 Inch Nails, “Isn’t Everybody”
Getting Trent Reznor to revisit the lyrics to “Piggy” in your collaborative industro-goth single? That’s music historical past proper there. — A.B.
7. Doja Cat, “Vegas”
Doja Cat launched just one unique solo music this yr: this Grammy-nominated single from the “Elvis” soundtrack. There’s poetic justice in the truth that she sampled Huge Mama Thornton’s “Hound Canine” somewhat than Presley’s 1956 cowl. — Okay.D.
Yahritza Y Su Esencia.
(Adali Schell/For The Instances)
6. Yahritza Y Su Esencia, “Soy El Unico”
Singer-songwriter Yahritza Martinez was simply 13 years outdated when she penned this forlorn heartbreak ballad, the primary hit by her household band, Su Esencia. But her sonorous voice carries the burden of 100 years of solitude. — S.E.
5. Steve Lacy, “Dangerous Behavior”
It’s rock, it’s soul, it’s biscuits, it’s gravy. — M.W.
4. Burna Boy, “Final Final”
A music so good that newlywed {couples} have been utilizing it of their marriage movies — even supposing the Nigerian celebrity is singing about heartbreak. — Okay.D.
3. Ethel Cain, “American Teenager”
Zoomers lastly have their very own “Born to Run,” courtesy of a trans woman from the evil swamps of Florida. — A.B.
2. Dangerous Bunny, “Titi Me Preguntó”
In his dembow smash, Puerto Rican dynamo Dangerous Bunny paid tribute to all of the meddlesome titis, or aunties of the world, and efficiently baited new anglophone followers with a (uncommon!) sliver of English within the refrain: “[Let’s take a] selfie, say cheese!” — S.E.
1. Beyoncé, “Break My Soul”
Not solely essentially the most exuberant music of 2022 however essentially the most diversified in its sensible purposes. Did you simply fall in love? Did you simply stop your job? Did you simply fortunately proclaim that you just’d taken your last-ever COVID check? (That one might require some strolling again.) No matter you had been celebrating — no matter you had been resisting — “Break My Soul” made for the fitting soundtrack. Its wiggle comprises multitudes. — M.W.
And in alphabetical order, one other 50 songs to not be missed:
Charlotte Adigéry and Bolis Pupul, “Blenda”
Alex G, “Cross the Sea”
Omar Apollo, “Evergreen (You Didn’t Deserve Me At All)”
Automated, “New Starting”
Huge Thief, “Simulation Swarm”
Bleed, “Killing Time”
Blxst.
(Francine Orr/Los Angeles Instances)
Blxst, “About You”
CKay, “Emiliana”
Cloud Rat, “Babahaz”
COIN, “Chapstick”
Dixson feat. Tinashe, “Warmth”
Doechii, “Loopy”
Drake, “Down Hill”
Silvana Estrada, “Te Guardo”
Brent Faiyaz, “All Mine”
Fontaines D.C., “Jackie Down the Line”
Mabe Fratti, “Cada Músculo”
Gel, “Psychological Static”
Genesis Owusu, “Get Impressed”
Lady Extremely and Little Jesus, “Punk”
Gunna and Future feat. Younger Thug, “Pushin P”
Hardy feat. Lainey Wilson, “Wait within the Truck”
Hemlocke Springs, “Girlfriend”
Larry June feat. 2 Chainz, “Nonetheless Boomin”
Kalan.Frfr, “Gentle Breeze”
KayCyy, “Shoutouts”
Omah Lay and Justin Bieber, “Consideration”
Ravyn Lenae, “M.I.A.”
Ari Lennox, “Stress”
Demi Lovato.
(James J. Robinson/For The Instances)
Demi Lovato, “29”
Submit Malone with Roddy Ricch, “Cooped Up”
Ashley McBryde with Pillbox Patti, “The Lady within the Image”
Mitski, “The Solely Heartbreaker”
Maren Morris, “The Furthest Factor”
Carla Morrison, “Diamantes”
Paopao feat. iZaak, “Jodona”
Plains, “Abilene”
Pusha T, “Let the People who smoke Shine the Coupes”
Adrian Quesada feat. iLe, “Mentiras Con Cariño”
Purple Sizzling Chili Peppers, “White Braids & Pillow Chair”
Reyna Tropical, “Pajaritos”
Smino.
(Christina Home/Los Angeles Instances)
Smino feat. Lil Uzi Vert, “Pudgy”
Jazmine Sullivan, “Harm Me So Good”
Victony and Ktizo, “Jolene”
Summer season Walker with SZA and Cardi B, “No Love”
Westside Boogie feat. Smino and Teezo Landing, “Can’t Get Over You”
Weyes Blood, “It’s Not Simply Me, It’s All people”
Pharrell Williams feat. Tyler the Creator and 21 Savage, “Money in Money Out”
Nicky Youre and Dazy, “Sunroof”
Bailey Zimmerman, “The place It Ends”
