Twenty songs, one restless year, and a culture still humming from the impact.
By the time 2025 wound down, it was clear this wasn’t a year ruled by a single sound. It was a year of collision—genres crashing into each other, indie voices elbowing their way onto the same playlists as global superstars, and songs that didn’t just chart but stuck. The best singles of 2025 weren’t simply hits; they were emotional markers, little time capsules that captured how the year felt while it was happening.
What follows isn’t a countdown or a scoreboard. It’s a reshuffled map of twenty singles that defined the year from multiple angles—radio dominance, streaming endurance, cultural conversation, and the slow-burn victories that we’ve always loved as much as the blockbusters.
Chappell Roan – “Pink Pony Club”
Still galloping long after its initial release, “Pink Pony Club” became something larger than a pop song. It’s part anthem, part refuge—queer joy rendered in neon and sincerity. In 2025, it felt less like a hit and more like a movement that just happened to have a killer chorus.
Kendrick Lamar & SZA – “Luther”
If any song proved that mainstream success doesn’t require creative compromise, it was “Luther.” Kendrick’s precision and SZA’s elasticity turned the track into a slow-burning prestige piece—hip-hop and R&B meeting at a place where patience pays off.
The Perfect Storm – “We Fell in Love”
A reminder that adult pop still has teeth, “We Fell in Love” quietly grew into a monster. Its climb to the top of the National Radio Hits AC40 chart wasn’t about hype—it was about craft. Big chorus, clean lines, and a sense that romance doesn’t have to shout to be heard.
Billie Eilish – “Birds of a Feather”
Eilish’s gift has always been intimacy at scale, and “Birds of a Feather” perfected that balance. The song whispers even when it’s blasting, its emotional pull living somewhere between confession and obsession.
Shaboozey – “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
Equal parts party chant and cultural Trojan horse, this track crashed country, pop, and hip-hop spaces without asking permission. It was messy, joyful, and impossible to escape—which is exactly why it worked.
Shweta Harve feat. Dario Cei – “What The Troll?”
One of the year’s sharpest left turns, “What The Troll?” took aim at online cruelty and digital mob mentality with teeth bared, and it hit the Billboard Top 40 AC Chart. Harve’s vocal authority paired with Cei’s edge made it less protest song, more confrontation—danceable, defiant, and unapologetically current.
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – “Die With a Smile”
A masterclass in star power restraint. Instead of competing, Gaga and Mars leaned into chemistry, letting the song breathe. It felt timeless on arrival, like it had always existed and we were just catching up.
Gracie Abrams – “That’s So True”
Abrams sharpened her pen in 2025, and nowhere did it cut cleaner than here. “That’s So True” is the kind of song people quote in texts, captions, and arguments they’ll replay in their head for years.
Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen – “I Had Some Help”
Crossover doesn’t always feel organic, but this one did. Malone and Wallen leaned into each other’s instincts, crafting a song that felt less like strategy and more like inevitability.
DPB – “American Strong”
Where much of modern hip-hop leans inward, “American Strong” looked outward. DPB delivered a unifying anthem rooted in resilience and belief, blending faith-forward messaging with modern rhythmic muscle. It didn’t chase trends—it stood its ground.
Benson Boone – “Beautiful Things”
Boone made vulnerability sound stadium-sized. “Beautiful Things” rose because it felt unfiltered, the kind of earnest emotional swing pop radio rarely takes anymore—and desperately needs.
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars – “APT.”
Global pop at its most polished. “APT.” was sleek, international, and engineered to travel, proving once again that Mars can bend his style to anyone without losing himself in the process.
Morgan Wallen – “Love Somebody”
Country-pop at cruising altitude. Wallen’s ability to dominate without overreaching made this song feel like it was always on—radio comfort food with mass appeal.
Alex Warren – “Ordinary”
A song built on relatability rather than spectacle, “Ordinary” found power in restraint. It didn’t chase drama; it let listeners project their own lives into the gaps.
The Weeknd & Playboi Carti – “Timeless”
Dark, nocturnal, and meticulously styled, “Timeless” felt like a soundtrack to the after-hours version of 2025. All mood, no excess.
Sabrina Carpenter – “Espresso”
Effortless pop with bite. “Espresso” proved that clever doesn’t have to mean complicated, and flirtation can still be smart.
Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
A cultural lightning bolt. Part provocation, part victory lap, the song blurred the line between diss track and moment-defining event.
Morgan Wallen – “I’m the Problem”
Self-awareness as spectacle. Wallen leaned into contradiction, and the audience followed, flaws and all.
Teddy Swims – “Lose Control”
One of the year’s great vocal performances. Swims turned emotional overload into a shared experience, making heartbreak sound communal.
Kendrick Lamar – “Squabble Up”
Restless and kinetic, “Squabble Up” closed the year like an open question—proof that Lamar could still surprise even while dominating the conversation.
Taken together, these singles tell the story of 2025 better than any chart ever could. They argue, dance, confess, confront, and occasionally collide. Some were everywhere. Some earned their place slowly. All of them mattered—and long after the year fades, these songs will still be playing somewhere, reminding us exactly how it felt to live through it.
–Bill Blackburn
