The Top 100 Best Hit Songs of the 2000s

 The Top 100 Best Hit Songs of the 2000s

In the following article, I look at the music that helped fill the decade that kicked off the new millennium, and highlight the gems one last time.

What’s up guys, welcome back to Fire’s Flaming Hot Takes. And it’s time again, today we’re looking at the top 100 best hit songs of the 2000s!

This took a lot of effort to assemble, maybe even more so than the 2010s best list. But you know what, I did this for the 2010s, so why not do it again for this decade?

In my worst list, I mentioned that since I wasn’t as exposed to the music from the 2000s as the 2010s and as a result, I didn’t hate the worst hits as much. Shouldn’t that logic apply to the best hits as well, where I don’t like the best songs as much? Not really, When it comes to great music, you really tend to enjoy it if you truly find it great regardless of which decade/year/time it came out. And this list honestly produced some incredibly surprising results, at least for me. All I’m saying is, if there were songs from my honorable mentions that managed to place higher than songs that made my best list proper, don’t be too shocked. Music tastes always evolve, So basically, any order these songs appeared on my best lists for respective years of the 2000s is pretty much out the window.

One more thing, as with my 2010s list, don’t be surprised if one year gets more representation on my list than another, there are very good and very bad years for the Hot 100. As a rule, the songs had to debut on the Hot 100 year-end list from any year between 2000 and 2009 in order to qualify, so if I ever end up doing a best of the 90s list, the 1999 repeats will go there. But again, this is a top 100, so let’s not waste any more time. No honorable mentions this time, I’m gonna try to keep the first 75 songs brief before getting a bit more heavy for the top 25, and just as a quick disclaimer, again, as with my 2010s list, my opinions are likely gonna shift wildly and I might regret the order of this list within, like, 3 days, so with all that, let’s get started!

100. Ashlee Simpson - Pieces Of Me (#39 2004)

I honestly feel pretty bad for Ashlee Simpson that she and this song are arguably more remembered for that embarrassing SNL performance than the song itself. And really, this song is just really cute, with the return of D Major and the content depicting Simpson deeply in love with a new partner and her sounding really lovestruck to match it, yeah, great, adorable song!

99. Janet Jackson - Someone To Call My Lover (#38 2001)

From the elegant guitars to the quicker paced percussion, this already sounds really nice, but then we get to Jackson herself, who sells the sentiment of longing for someone to love so well, she sounds incredibly genuine, which absolutely contributes to her amazing performance here. And then there’s the all too charming line “Maybe we'll meet at a bar/He'll drive a funky car/Maybe we'll meet at a club/And fall so deeply in love” which is utterly adorable and never fails to put a smile on my face, great song, and it’s just near the very bottom of this list, we’re in for a huge treat with these songs!

98. Mariah Carey - We Belong Together (#1 2005)

Let’s move onto what wound up being the biggest song of the entire decade!! And while I would argue that other songs helped define the decade more than “We Belong Together” and that Mariah Carey has far stronger in her discography than this, “We Belong Together” is still pretty great, from the elegant production - with the light plucks of the guitar to the piano, it all just sounds incredibly devastating and sad, matching Carey’s delivery perfectly, and then we have the content, which walks through every aspect of Carey’s life affected by this clearly bad breakup that she seemingly started, probably the one that jumped out to me the most was her not being able to even listen to the radio without being instantly reminded of the relationship and/or breakup. This song harbors a lot of desperate emotions and it executes incredibly. Great song!

97. The Veronicas - Untouched (#69 2009)

This is such a great song!! From the thunderous electric guitars to the enticing strings and dynamic percussion that weirdly make this sound like the buildup to a final boss in a video game haha, and then there’s our duo, who are cramming as many syllables as they can into each line, which actually helps this song’s adrenaline-rush vibe and it allows and it actually provides for some swell that lets loose with the “Been going crazy from the moment I met you” line. Fun song!

96. Nine Days - Absolutely (The Story Of A Girl) (#35 2000)

This is a very sweet song with a monster of a hook that’s conveyed with enough sincerity and energy to not come off as sappy. The line about the lead singer saying he absolutely loved the girl when she smiled is so charming and cute! Honestly, I remember the day I published my best of 2000 list, I went on a bike ride after it (I think? Either after it or halfway through making it haha) and I just remember this song being stuck in my head the whole time, and now I weirdly associate this song with that weird memory haha. Still a great song regardless of that memory, though!

95. Alan Jackson - Remember When (#82 2004)

The production just sounds beautiful, from that acoustic guitar to the touches of strings and then there’s that excellent key change, and everything must be stripped back like this to put all the attention on the lyrics, which give a poignant story about Alan Jackson’s relationship and how him and his partner made it through the good and bad times, a really beautiful song, and the fact that it’s this low on this list should speak volumes about how much I like the rest of the songs.

94. Beyonce f/Jay-Z - Crazy In Love (#4 2003)

You know, I think I can make the case that this is Beyonce’s signature song, and it’s absolutely deserving of that! This pretty much works in all the ways “Him & I” by G-Eazy and Halsey didn’t: for one, Bey and JAY-Z have incredible chemistry, and two, the production slaps, with the incredibly triumphant and infectious horns that compliment the clattering percussion really well, and arguably biggest of all, the song didn’t age as bad as a cow that took a shit in its own milk as so many songs that tempt fate like this can often do, and quite frankly, even if the relationship hadn’t lasted, at least these two gave us one hell of a banger.

93. Jewel - Standing Still (#87 2002)

It’s already the return of D Major! But seriously, I knew that my favorite music key was D major before I even knew what a music key or what “D Major” was haha. I really like this song, from Jewel’s pretty vocals to the way the song builds up as the song goes on, it’s just a really cute song, and when she had this great song, what was the need to release “Intuition” in 2003?

92. Gorrilaz - Feel Good Inc (#37 2005)

“Feel Good Inc” could’ve easily become incredibly grating to me because of those laughs, but the bassline is so infectious and funky you basically overlook it! And the chords are also unbelievably positive! Yeah, nothing much to say about it, just a great song that makes you...well, feel good.

91. Five For Fighting - 100 Years (#77 2004)

Well, isn’t that funny, the two great songs about aging from 2004 appeared within the first 10 songs, but I would argue that “100 Years” is very slightly better than “Remember When” because of how all the emphasis is on how mundane life truly is in the end and how fast it goes by - “Half time goes by,/suddenly you're wise/Another blink of an eye, sixty-seven is gone”, there aren’t any milestones stressed in this man’s life, the song just shows life slipping by, as Todd In The Shadows compared it to, like sands in an hourglass. Even if I don’t think John Ondrasik’s vocals sound the greatest, they’re restrained enough to capture this sentiment so perfectly. I know people don’t seem to like this, but this is an overhated and underrated, definitely worth a revisit

90. Gwen Stefani - Cool (#76 2005)

So “The Sweet Escape” wasn’t even close to a contender for this list. It’s a good song, yes, but it was held back from being great because even if the production flatters Akon’s vocals better than usual, he still sounds like kicked-in-the-balls Jason Derulo and his vocals got extremely grating at times. “Cool”, on the other hand, is great by being both adorable and mature at the same time. It deals with the aftermath of a breakup where Gwen and the ex are still on good terms and are still cool. Cool (no pun intended, sorta...ok maybe pun intended haha) song.

89. M.I.A. - Paper Planes (#35 2008)

This is a great song that admittedly wasn’t higher here because of those sound effects, even if they do add to the song’s satirical message, it does make this a bit difficult to listen to repeatedly That said, M.I.A.’s delivery makes it clear that this is supposed to be satire, yeah, I didn’t actually misinterpret the lyrics like that person who made the copypasta I pasted for the review of this song in my 2008 best list haha, this is a great song.

88. Missy Elliott - Work It (#54 2002)

Well, looks like this 10 is filled with a bunch of 2000s classic and iconic songs, if these first three are any indication haha. But seriously, “Work It” is arguably pretty widely considered a hip hop modern classic for a reason; almost every line of the song is iconic and memorable thanks to Missy Elliott having personality for days on this. There’s so many hilarious moments here, like describing her ass as her “badonka-donk-donk” that goes “ba-bump, ba-bump-bump” and the random shouts of “Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i” on the chorus, this is iconic in all the right ways, let’s put this sentence down, flip it and reverse it. ʇɥᴉs ᴉs ᴉɔuoᴉɔ ᴉu ɐll ʇɥǝ ɹᴉƃɥʇ ʍɐʎs' lǝʇ’s dnʇ ʇɥᴉs sǝuʇǝuɔǝ poʍu' ɟlᴉd ᴉʇ ɐup ɹǝʌǝɹsǝ ᴉʇ˙

87. SoulDecision f/Thrust - Faded (#66 2000)

Ah what the hell, this is just a ton of fun, with that incredibly sticky hook and that great nu-disco groove and a pretty good rap verse from Thrust and glorious amounts of personality that SoulDecision are delivering, this is great and definitely a forgotten gem worth revisiting!

86. Dr. Dre f/Snoop Dogg - The Next Episode (#76 2000)

Back to iconic hits here! This may be here if only for the iconic “smoke weed everyday” line, but I do still think this is great on its own merits, from the production which despite using the same guitar tones as the more aggressive “Forgot About Dre” is more relaxed than this song to help give this song the club-ish vibe it’s going for. Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg are also effortlessly selling this with a big chill tone in their voices. Overall, it’s a ton of fun and very easy to vibe with it. Yet another iconic and great song!

85. Rihanna - Pon De Replay (#18 2005)

The starting point for Rihanna to have an insanely successful career. It’s a razor-tight club jam that Rihanna’s smooth vocals ride effortlessly while having a shit load of personality to allow you to get sucked in for the fun. Great song and debut single!

84. Amy Winehouse - Rehab (#74 2007)

God, this isn’t very easy to talk about, this obviously hits way harder after Amy Winehouse’s tragic passing at the far too young age of 27 due to alcohol poisoning, and you can probably imagine how a song about Winehouse refusing to get the help she needs while knowingly an addict can hit harder after her passing.

83. Blake Shelton - Austin (#76 2001)

Blake Shelton has an incredibly uneven discography, even as someone who’s only really familiar with his Hot 100 hits, but this is by far the best song I’ve heard from him. “Austin” is told entirely in the third person and details the story of a guy and girl who break up and the girl moves to Austin, Texas, the girl, noted by the pseudonym Austin is met with a voicemail after calling the guy out of curiosity and is met with “If this is Austin, I still love you”. And it ultimately ends with the girl leaving a voicemail for the guy saying “This is Austin, and I still love you”, it’s a beautiful song that shows potentially the best songwriting of Blake Shelton’s career. I won’t lie, it’s quite disappointing to know this is what he’s capable of, and then you look at stuff like “Boys Round Here” from 2013 and realize just what he’s wasting his talent on.

82. Destiny’s Child - Jumpin’ Jumpin’ (#13 2000)

You know, I think this may be my favorite Destiny’s Child song. And really, that’s probably just because of how much fun it is, the production is minimal enough to put our attention on the women in Destiny’s Child, who are all delivering killer performances here, especially Beyonce, yet the production is also fun enough to make this an absolute banger! It’s a great “girls’ night out anthem” and it somehow even makes it fun for the guys too!

81. Tim McGraw - Grown Men Don’t Cry (#78 2001)

I’m not familiar with enough of Tim McGraw’s discography to say if this is his best song or not, but it’s definitely a great one, I can tell you that much. McGraw walks through various emotional scenarios throughout the song, like how he ran into a single mother being homeless at a shopping center, leading to him visiting his father’s grave to drop a rose, coupled with McGraw’s restrained and emotional delivery and the beautiful melody, this is a very hard-hitting song and quite frankly, if people say that grown men don’t cry, they clearly are wrong, great track!

80. The Chicks - Cowboy Take Me Away (#95 2000)

“Cowboy Take Me Away” is great in its simple beauty, the trio all sound amazing here and the fiddle sounds gorgeous to no end. Great track for sure!

79. Britney Spears - Everytime (#83 2004)

When people think of Britney in 2004, they tend to think of the much bigger “Toxic” but this can be left out of the conversation more often than not, that said, “Everytime” is an underrated song and a brilliant moment of vulnerable ambient pop that Spears sells in maybe the hardest hitting vocal delivery incredibly well - “Every time/I try to fly, I fall/Without my wings, I feel so small” the composition here is top notch as well, with that piano that sounds hauntingly beautiful. Great track, fragile in the best way possible.

78. Coldplay - Clocks (#81 2003)

No, this isn’t Coldplay’s best song or even hit, even from this decade - “Fix You” absolutely should’ve been a hit in 2005 and y’all royally screwed up by not making it a hit, it would definitely top this list if it were a hit. That said, “Clocks” still sounds stunning, from that piano riff that sounds damn near immaculate to Chris Martin’s restrained delivery and then come the crescendos at around the 3rd minute which sound almost other-worldly. Awesome song, I can almost forgive y’all for not making “Fix You” a hit, at least you guys got this one right.

77. Linkin Park - Breaking The Habit (#79 2004)

Almost every Linkin Park song that I’ve heard has become so much more difficult to listen to after Chester Bennington’s tragic passing back in 2017. Even as someone who wouldn’t necessarily call himself a fan of this band, I can tell that these songs resonated deeply and emotionally for Bennington, and “Breaking The Habit” may be the song I’ve heard from them where I can hear that the most. This wasn’t even written about Bennington specifically, it was written about Mike Shidona’s friend struggling with addiction and desperately trying to break that cycle. The way Bennington sings this song, though, it’s pretty clear to me that this struck an emotional chord with him, from the plucky guitars to Bennington sounding like he’s constantly about to break down in tears. Even he had said that he struggled to perform this song live because he’d choke up every time. It’s not my favorite Linkin Park song, that’ll come quite a bit later, but “Breaking The Habit” is an exhibit of raw emotion that is displayed even if the art wasn’t explicitly written about you. It speaks to how art can deeply resonate with you.

76. Shakira - She Wolf (#64 2009)

I’m still not quite sure what this is about haha but regardless, I think this is a pretty great song, from that wiry, funky bassline to those synths and the strings on the bridge, and then we got Shakira’s playful delivery with so much charisma that she even makes the wolf howls work!

75. Sonique - It Feels So Good (#34 2000)

When I wrote my review of this song for my best of 2000 list, I turned off all the lights at 11:30 PM and turned on my karaoke machine so the little disco ball thing on top would light up, and it was the absolute perfect setting to hear the song - it sounds like something that would be played late night at a club, not even dancing, just chilling with your friends or something, and it sounds glorious, from the incredible sounding synths to Sonique’s restrained vocals effortlessly riding the beat. To say that this song sounds so good may be an understatement, but hell, it’s a banger.

74. Eminem - Without Me (#21 2002)

There’s the reason people consider this one of Eminem’s best songs, it’s super bouncy with an incredibly sticky hook delivered with so much personality by Eminem, to the point where even if the synth sounds a bit flatter than I’d like, Eminem’s personality is so likable here that it keeps the song from being anywhere as bad as the atrocious “My Band”, great track.

73. Dr. Dre f/Eminem - Forgot About Dre (#73 2000)

This and “The Next Episode” are both pretty similarly great, but I ultimately put “Forgot About Dre'' higher here because it’s got some of the best performances Dr. Dre and Eminem have ever put out; both of their flows are on point, Dr. Dre is really clapping back at all his haters that said he fell off and he does it so well that I almost feel bad for whoever he’s clapping back against.  You know what, if Dr. Dre and Eminem decide to make more songs together like this and less like 2011’s “I Need A Doctor”, I think we’d all be better off.

72. Ciara f/Petey Pablo - Goodies (#9 2004)

“Goodies” could’ve very well been obnoxious because of that one synth just being an F note going through the octaves, but what helps me not hate this song is Ciara, even if she’s not delivering the most technically great performance here, she has a ton of personality to elevate it and detract some attention from the admittedly sloppy writing - “If you're looking for the goodies/Keep on looking, 'cause they stay in the jar” never stops sticking out to me, I know this was called “Cookies” in earlier drafts, but I still think they should’ve rewritten that metaphor. That said, this is still a banger.

71. Iyaz - Replay (#83 2009)

I’ll say it again, even though I don’t recall ever hearing this song when it was popular - then again, I don’t remember much from 2009 in general haha - this still sounds weirdly nostalgic. From the hook that is stickier than you’d expect to the pure sweetness of the content expressing Iyaz’s lovestruckness over this girl that never once feels cloying to me, this is a forgotten gem, and a great one at that too!

70. Alan Jackson - Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning) (#98 2002)

“Have You Forgotten?” was bigger than this. Y’all have absolutely failed by doing that. “Have You Forgotten?” is a blatantly misleading pro-war anthem disguised as a 9/11 tribute to get the public to support the war in Iraq. This song, on the other hand, does no such thing, it’s clearly coming from a place of heart. Alan Jackson's delivery is very sincere, and the track depicts really well what was going through people’s minds the day of 9/11. I was born several years after 9/11, so even if I’m not able to really resonate with this, the song still feels really damn potent all the same. Great song!

69. OutKast - Hey Ya! (#8 2004)

This song is just so damn happy, from the bassline to Andre 3000’s infectious energy in his delivery. Great song, there’s a reason this is often regarded as one of the best hits of the 2000s.

68. Shaggy f/Rik Rok - It Wasn’t Me (#22 2001)

Well, I mean, I’ve compared this song in a positive light at least twice already, once to the atrocious “Follow Me” by Uncle Kracker and the other to the trash “Lips Of An Angel” by Hinder, and there’s a reason why: “It Wasn’t Me” is getting us to sympathize with a guy cheating on his girlfriend by making the excuses intentionally bad so the song winds up as a novelty song as a result. On top of that, Rik Rok’s hook is honestly better than you’d expect and even despite finding Shaggy’s voice grating here initially, his contributions grew on me too! Hilarious song!

67. Green Day - Holiday (#39 2005)

This was a song I really liked even well before I knew it was an anti-war protest song, just really because it sounds awesome, thanks to that pop punk guitar riff and Billie Joe Armstrong’s potent vocal delivery. Great song, but not Green Day’s best hit this decade, we’ll get to that in a little while.

66. Jimmy Eat World - The Middle (#14 2002)

One pop punk banger right into another, and “The Middle” is a great shot of optimism when you’ve lost all hope, it’s an anthem to not listen to the haters and that everything will be alright and to keep going at whatever you may be facing, Jim Adkins’s potent, energetic vocals helps this so well, and then there’s the guitars and percussion which also explode with so much energy, it’s a great song and a bit of reassurance when you truly need it.

65. Taylor Swift - Our Song (#41 2008)

Gee, This Taylor Swift girl seems pretty talented, hopefully she goes pop or something and becomes one of the biggest artists in the mainstream. I kid, obviously, Taylor is of course an absolutely humongous pop artist today, but this, though not her debut single, was her first hit, and what a wonderful introduction it is, it’s an adorable track about how Taylor and this guy don’t have a special song but they realize that their “song” is the fun things they do together. Taylor’s youthful vocals here, while not as strong as they are now, help exhibit that innocent vibe that helps this song not feel cliche. Not among my favorites from her by any means, but this is still a great song.

64. Avril Lavigne - Girlfriend (#12 2007)

I absolutely get the hate for this, it’s a song where Avril Lavigne is trying to steal a girl’s boyfriend and Lavigne is going out of her way to sound extremely obnoxious, but that obnoxiousness is kinda why this song works for me, it’s very toxic, and Lavigne is playing directly into it, “Girlfriend” isn’t trying to hide the fact that it’s toxic, it’s not saying “I think your girlfriend is treating you badly” without giving any evidence. Lavigne is plainly trying to just steal the guy for herself. It also helps that Avril has a ton of personality to make this song feel more fun than annoying or obnoxious. Or for all I know, I may just like this song because it’s in D major.

63. Britney Spears - Toxic (#48 2004)

Well, I did say that this song tends to overshadow “Everytime” when talking about Britney Spears from 2004, but it’s not like there isn’t a reason for that, because “Toxic” is great, from the razor-tight groove to the hypnotizingly great strings and Britney’s presence here being so commanding and she makes this song feel really sexy and danceable, great song!

62. TI f/Rihanna - Live Your Life (#37 2008, #18 2009)

Yeah, I’m still not sure the Numa Numa sample really works here, but I can definitely overlook that when the production sounds this good, with the synths that yes, may sound a bit dated, but still have a very triumphant vibe to them. And that matches the content, which is about overcoming your challenges and that you’ll go far in life - “You're gonna be, a shinin' star/In fancy clothes, and fancy car-ars/And then you'll see, you're gonna go far/Cause everyone knows, just who ya are-are”, and TI and Rihanna both have incredibly aspiration tones in their voices to match that. Great track!

61. My Chemical Romance - Welcome To The Black Parade (#59 2007)

This one was a grower. I did say in my best of 2007 list that this was more of a song I respected more than liked but the more I listened to it, the more it grew on me to the point where it’d likely make my top 5 of that list now, and keep in mind, I’m judging this without having listened to My Chemical Romance’s album The Black Parade. Purely as a song that stands on its own, it’s great. The song takes you on a journey, from that opening G note to frontman Gerard Way’s consistently cathartic vocal delivery, and then there’s those guitars which are extremely potent and then there’s the marching band percussion, this is an outright symphony, great song, for all I know I’m probably not giving this song enough credit by putting it here.

60. Lil Jon & The East Side Boys f/Ying Yang Twins - Get Low (#11 2003, #70 2004)

Ah, Arguably the catalyst for crunk to reach mainstream popularity! And “Get Low” is an utter banger! Everyone here brings so much energy to match the energy of the synths, the constant high energy allows the song to be danceable and so much fun. If you don’t completely lose your shit when this song comes on or mindlessly bang your head to this song, you’re truly not doing it right. Absolute banger and the catalyst for the defining genre of the 2000s to gain prominence.

59. Justin Bieber - One Time (#89 2009)

Yeah, young Justin Bieber is a big guilty pleasure for me, I mean, considering that “Baby” made my best list for 2010, which I still stand by - it’s a legitimately great song - I’m pretty sure you could discern that pretty easily. Young Bieber’s vocals sound nice, I don’t care what y’all say. They bring out an innocent vibe that makes me able to skate past a lot of admitted flaws of this song, like how Bieber should really stay away from the word “shawty” or how he repeats the title a bit too much.

58. Colbie Caillat - Bubbly (#67 2007, #21 2008)

Guilty pleasures aren’t stopping with young Bieber, though! I absolutely get how one could consider this as grocery store-core or something, but I’m sorry, to me, “Bubbly” is adorable, from Colbie Caillat’s sweet, gentle vocals, that convey a sense of genuineness and then comes the soft acoustic guitar production that puts all the focus on that, and this combination works so well for this song, which is all about how this guy makes Caillat feel great, super cute song, possibly the most overhated hit of the 2000s.

57. Black Eyed Peas - Let’s Get It Started (#88 2004)

The Black Eyed Peas have had a pretty turbulent career even beyond the 2000s, they usually make utter bangers or complete garbage with very little, if any, in between. But this may be the best hit they made this decade. We don’t claim the version of this song with the ableist slur in the chorus, but this version is a complete banger, from the funky groove to the rock-leaning guitars and then there’s the Peas themselves, who are all having an awesome time here, more like this and less like “My Humps” and “GIRL LIKE ME” would be greatly appreciated.

56. Eminem - Lose Yourself (#63 2002, #28 2003)

You know, I think I can make the case for this being Eminem’s most iconic song, period. And it’s such a great track, from the opening piano chords that set the mood well to the tense guitar rollick and then there’s Eminem’s aggressive flow which just sounds so good and that hook is super sticky. Easily one of my favorite Eminem songs this decade, what a banger!

55. Usher f/Lil Jon & Ludacris - Yeah! (#1 2004)

Well, you can’t discuss the best hits of the 2000s if you don’t even mention this song, let’s be real, this is the defining song of the 2000s in my opinion, it perfectly encapsulates the crunk trend of the mid-2000s, from those blaring synths to all our performers here bringing their A-game, especially Usher who has so much charisma to make this feel so much fun, no one has ever paid any attention to the lyrics here because everything else is just so attention-grabbing that you completely gloss over them.

54. Green Day - 21 Guns (#78 2009)

I’ve not heard Green Day’s album 21st Century Breakdown, I know that I’ve seen people say that this song is better in the context of the album, but like “Welcome To The Black Parade”, I’m judging this as a song standing alone, and I still find it great! The guitars have a surprising amount of punch for a slower song like this one and Billie Joe Armstrong’s vocals are still extremely potent, and for Green Day’s last hit to date they’ve had on the Hot 100, they went out with a bang.

53. Rihanna f/Jay-Z - Umbrella (#2 2007)

This song is probably head-to-head with “Disturbia” for Rihanna’s signature song, and it’s a great song to be that as well, even if I think JAY-Z is really phoning his part in here, Rihanna’s parts and the production make up for that in spades, the synths and drums are mixed damn near impeccably, and the song is about Rihanna promising that she’ll be there for this lover when things get really bad, and she’s selling it so well, I just love her vocals here, especially on that transcendent bridge, honestly I partly feel like I’m not doing this song justice by only placing it here, but it’s a great song for sure.

52. Truth Hurts f/Rakim - Addictive (#40 2002)

Yeah, this was one that kinda fell back for me, I initially felt some sort of pride by hearing that indian sample in the song, but it quickly started becoming the most grating part of the song for me, and yet I still think this is pretty damn unique because of that sample and, yeah maybe the sample is doing a lot of heavy lifting here, but it does make this song memorable, I still think it’s excellent enough for me to put way up here, but admittedly not as much as I used to.

51. *NSYNC - This I Promise You (#51 2001)

Yeah, I said it in my best list for 2001 and I’ll say it again, the reason I love this so much is because it reminds me of High School Musical, a franchise I have a huge soft spot for to this day. I know this song is extremely cheesy and sappy but fuck it, *NSYNC are selling it so well that I can’t help but love it, and yeah, it’s the return of D major haha, it later changes into E major near the end of the song, another music key I really love haha. Excellent song, definitely underrated.

50. Ne-Yo - So Sick (#17 2006)

This works so wonderfully, from the production, which strikes a perfect balance of being catchy yet also melancholic while being muted enough to put our focus on the content and Ne-Yo. The content, reflects Ne-Yo, similarly to Mariah Carey in “We Belong Together”, is still hurting from a breakup but unlike “We Belong Together”, it specifically zones in on the fact that Ne-Yo is so sick of love songs, but again, unlike Mariah, he actually can’t turn off the radio because he just wants to experience these happier moments again even if just for a brief moment, something I somewhat relate to, I won’t lie, I’m not gonna detail how here, because really, it’s pretty irrelevant, but then we get Ne-Yo, who may be one of the best artists of the 2000s, he is selling this magnificently, it feels like you can hear the heartbreak in his voice. Excellent song!

49. Avril Lavigne - I’m With You (#18 2003)

The lowest of my #1 picks for my best lists, but that really doesn’t change how excellent “I’m With You” is. This song is showcasing a more mature side of Avril Lavigne, and that she’s an underrated songwriter and singer, her range gives me goosebumps, her belting on the bridge is absolutely stunning. And then there’s the writing, which is Lavigne pleading for ANYBODY, even a complete stranger, to be with her. The aforementioned belting, when paired with the explosive rock production, do an incredible job of bringing out the desperation vibe this needs, and overall, this song showcases why Avril Lavigne is another one of my favorite artists of the 2000s.

48. Eminem - The Real Slim Shady (#51 2000)

Yeah, I said “Lose Yourself” was one of my favorite Eminem songs this decade, and this song was the reason why it’s not my absolute favorite, from the harpsichord line that makes this beat that much bouncier and catchier, and then we get Eminem’s delivery which is humorous yet also intense, and Em keeps things humorous without getting obnoxious, excellent song!

47. Fort Minor f/Holly Brook & Jonah Matranga - Where’d You Go (#43 2006)

Let’s write this song title and artists in a more recognizable way: Mike Shidona f/Skylar Grey & someone I’m not sure exists - Where’d You Go. Okay, funny comment aside, I genuinely love “Where’d You Go” and it proves that a song doesn’t need to have a complex composition to be excellent, because the production sounds like a simple beat I could probably make, it’s just comprised of a really pretty, melancholic piano melody and a kick drum and handclaps for the percussion, but then we get to the content...about a singer on tour and his loved ones deeply missing them, and I do think there was some missed potential here, Shidona doesn’t feel like the most expressive performer here, but Skylar Grey’s (Holly Brook’s, really) hook is pretty excellent, and if the content focused more on how both sides (loved ones and singer on tour) are affected, I feel it could’ve been even better, that said, I do still love this song

46. JoJo - Too Little Too Late (#72 2006)

This song just harbors tons of despair, mainly in the production, where, yeah it’s the return of D major, but it also explodes in that chorus. And in my best of 2006 list I compared JoJo’s belting to Avril Lavigne, but honestly upon relistening to this, I feel it reminds me of something - make fun of me for this - Gabriella Montez from High School Musical, I’m not sure why but yeah haha, well at least until the whistle notes at the end of the song! Yeah, regardless of what this reminds me of, this song is pretty excellent.

45. Avril Lavigne - Sk8er Boi (#96 2002)

I did mention with “I’m With You” that I appreciated the more mature side of Avril Lavigne, but I love her pop punk side just as much! Her vocals are really potent and they have so much energy to them, the production is also super powerful, from the high-energy guitars to the explosive percussion, and it makes this story of a girl who turned down a boy who loves skating, and then the boy goes on to be an MTV star, and the girl falls in love with him and they live hAPPily eVer aFTer so much fun! The amount of energy that is present everywhere doesn’t make this feel cliche! Such a banger, love this song!

44. Taylor Swift - Teardrops On My Guitar (#89 2007, #48 2008)

The beauty of this song lies in its simplicity, it just sounds really gorgeous and again, Taylor’s youthful vocals gives this an innocent vibe that fits this song really well. The content is about Swift’s unrequited love for her classmate who apparently got arrested in 2015 for child abuse...yikes, Taylor really dodged a bullet there haha. But hey, this is an amazing song.

43. Avril Lavigne - My Happy Ending (#54 2004)

Another song that showcases some of Avril Lavigne’s more mature side, like “Too Little Too Late” by JoJo, it harbors despair in its production, but unlike that song, there’s an additional hint of bitterness, with that sarcastic “so much for my happy ending” and Lavigne sounding extremely upset throughout the song, she constantly sounds like she’s about to explode into a pit of rage in the song, and that helps build swell for that catharsis in the chorus.

42. Miley Cyrus - The Climb (#21 2009)

Okay, I get the criticisms saying this is boring or cliche, but I genuinely love this song, I don’t care haha, maybe partially due to a scene in High School Musical: The Musical: The Series involving this song, I won’t spoil it but it was a good scene haha, kinda powerful too. Miley’s vocals help this not feel so cliche and I actually love the production here, I think it sounds pretty potent even if it can tend to fade into adult contemporary mush at points, yeah, this is really overhated, an excellent song.

41. Akon f/Colby O’Donis & Kardinal Offishall - Beautiful (#54 2009)

Yes, Akon still sounds like he’s suffering from DCG Syndrome while sounding like he got kicked in the balls, but “Beautiful” is genuinely really sweet. Akon genuinely sounds lovestruck over this girl, and then there are the hazy synths, which sound amazing. Yeah, Akon tended to be more bad than good in the 2000s (even on some of the good songs he was on that missed my best lists, he was usually the weakest part of the song), but this is a real gem.

40. Avril Lavigne - Keep Holding On (#64 2007)

I’m pretty shocked that this, of all songs, was the highest Avril Lavigne song on this list, but I genuinely love this. Avril’s vocals are stunning and they have an encouraging tone that makes it feel like she’s talking directly to you. YouTuber “honest” once described Avril as “she wasn’t the girl next door, she was your friend”, and if anything, “Keep Holding On” is acting like a friend when you’re most in need of one, she says she’s here for you whatever adversity/challenge you may be going through. Excellent song!

39. Daniel Powter - Bad Day (#1 2006)

Yes, we’re doing this. I genuinely love “Bad Day”, despite every criticism I hear: yes, Powter’s delivery in the chorus does get old, maybe even a bit annoying, after a while. And yeah, even if the song itself isn’t supposed to be uplifting, it DOES have a peaceful, uplifting vibe in the production, with the warm-sounding piano. Yes, this has probably been overplayed in some retail store out there somewhere, but for me, at least, where I live, it’s kinda vanished off the radar, maybe that’s why I’m not sick of it? Underrated and overhated song, love it!

38. Jordin Sparks - One Step At A Time (#61 2008)

“One Step At A Time” is such a lovely, cute, and excellent song. From the beat built off of footsteps to the piano line that delivers a genuinely pretty melody and then there’s Sparks’s delivery, in addition to me just loving her voice, it’s very encouraging and fits the content, which is about facing a challenge slowly and that you’ll overcome it one step at a time, amazing song!

37. Alice Deejay - Better Off Alone (#88 2000)

I know, the vocals are basically a loop of “do you think you’re better off alone” ad-nauseum, but the appeal of this song is the beat, which is just pure bliss, especially in building up towards the drop, the keyboards support the synth loop so well, excellent song!

36. Boys Like Girls - Love Drunk (#72 2009)

If there was any act that pleasantly surprised me the most when I was going through the year-end lists for the 2000s, it was definitely Boys Like Girls. And “Love Drunk” is such a fun song, from the high-energy guitars to frontman Martin Johnson having such a great time on this song, and then there’s that great key change. It’s not my favorite Boys Like Girls hit - we’ll get to that - but “Love Drunk” is a fun, silly song that’s definitely worth revisiting.

35. Jay Sean f/Lil Wayne - Down (#20 2009)

I’ve made this joke several times in this article already, but fuck it, it’s the return of D major!! And honestly, that may actually be the biggest reason I love this song haha. Jay Sean is also delivering an excellent performance that really makes up for Lil Wayne’s lackluster performance.  Love this song!!

34. Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling (#4 2009)

You know, I think I could make the case for this being the most iconic club boom-era hit, or at least putting up some strong competition with “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO, and it’s such an excellent song, from the guitar lick that just elicits a bunch of fun energy and then there are those synths which help build a ton of swell, and it all helps make this not feel as dated as so many club boom-era hits can often feel, but there’s also the fact that the Peas are all having a great time here and allowing everyone listening to also have a great time, amazing song, and I gotta feeling that for many years to come tonight will be good night.

33. OneRepublic - Stop And Stare (#33 2008)

I get it, this song is about as deep as a puddle, but I think it should be applauded that OneRepublic managed to make a song literally about standing sound this huge and not be laughable, Ryan Tedder is selling this song like he means it, he’s pushing his performance to the absolute max, and even though he sounds like he’s straining here, I don’t mind! Awesome song

32. Filter - Take A Picture (#58 2000)

So rarely, if ever, has a song so unrelatable felt somehow all the more relatable haha. I at least hope no one can relate to this, given how this song is about how the guys on Filter got so high on a plane that they literally got naked. But the way I find this relatable, even if not to me, is that it represents a dreamy, hazy state of mind where it feels you could do anything, it’s how I imagine being high feels like. And with how dreamy everything is, all 6 minutes go by in the blink of an eye. Plus, there are the cathartic screams of “hey dad, what do you think about your son now!?” Overall, this song proves that you don’t have to relate to the literal meaning of a song to love it. This is a moment of euphoric joy captured almost perfectly in song form, excellent stuff!

31. Jordin Sparks - Tattoo (#30 2008)

It’s the 354450586545774659678547605945486347548347237235416322324354650th return of D major! Every aspect of this song brings out sadness and despair, from the production being a perfect blend of synths, guitars, and strings, and Jordin Sparks’ really heartfelt delivery, to even the content is about Sparks making the difficult decision to end a relationship even though she still has feelings for this partner, it’s very cute and yet also weirdly mature, love this song!

30. Linkin Park - Numb (#33 2004)

This is the climax of being put under so much pressure by society or people in your life to fit into a certain mold that you don’t wanna be in, helped out immensely by Chester Bennington’s powerful, aggressive delivery. And the emotional conflict in the lyrics makes this extremely powerful, the fact that you wanna be your own person but are so terrified of disappointing this authority figure that you have to continue being in this mold that you don’t wanna be in, it’s a heartbreakingly relatable song that really packs a punch thanks to Bennington’s cathartic screams backed up by the powerful guitars.

29. Fall Out Boy - Sugar, We’re Goin Down (#40 2005)

This song is so easily Fall Out Boy’s best song, it’s not even funny. Yes, it’s the 354450586545774659678547605945486347548347237235416322324354651st return of D major, but the rest of the song also kicks ass, from Patrick Stump’s potent delivery to the great-sounding percussion and guitars

28. Savage Garden - Crash And Burn (#78 2000)

I know the Savage Garden song that people probably remember more is “I Knew I Loved You”, which is also good but incredibly sappy, “Crash And Burn”, on the other hand, is way more romantic, it may be pretty cliche “if you feel like you need to cry, just let it all out, I’m here for you” but Darren Hayes sells it so well that it doesn’t feel cliche! He’s not overselling this, his delivery is restrained to allow for a sense of comfort and intimacy. But then there’s the production, which just sounds ethereal, from the guitar melody that somehow sounds nostalgic even though I was negative years old when this song was big haha. Love this song! Definitely a little underrated gem that deserves some revisiting. Also, fun little anecdote, for my Audio & Music Production class in school in junior year, for my final project, I created a beat entirely built off of the chorus melody of this haha

27. Lady Gaga f/Colby O’Donis - Just Dance (#3 2009)

A song so iconic it gets an entire game series named after it. And this is one of the quintessential songs of the club boom-era, with the tight synths, Gaga's powerful and dominant personality here and the content, which is basically dumb party lyrics I have a huge soft spot for, and then there’s Colby O’Donis...I think he exists? Not 100% sure on that to be honest, but yeah, “Just Dance” is a banger, but you guys already knew that.

26. Colbie Caillat - Fallin’ For You (#68 2009)

I know, like “Bubbly”, it’s basically just department store-core, and it definitely feels like a song you’d hear when you walk into a Home Depot or something, but it’s the type of department store-core that I think really works, with Colbie Caillat’s gentle vocals matching the acoustic guitar really well and her vocals give this a vibe of cuteness that matches the content, which quite literally is about falling for a person, excellent, adorable little song!

Okay, those were the first 75, now it’s time to get a bit more heavy for the last quarter of this list.

25. Michelle Branch - All You Wanted (#23 2002)

This is a song that, like “Teardrops On My Guitar” by Taylor Swift, is excellent in its simplicity, with that vibrant guitar melody and Michelle Branch’s really pretty singing to match the content about wanting someone who understands you while being there to catch you when you fall, yeah, not too much to say for this one, just an excellent little pop song.

24...So I mentioned with “Let’s Get It Started” that the Black Eyed Peas have had a pretty turbulent career thus far, even extending to now, their lows are utter garbage, but their highs would lead to them having 3 entries on this list, and this was the best of them!...

24. Black Eyed Peas - Where Is The Love? (#26 2003)

This is a plea for world peace that still hits to this day. The string work gives a beautiful melody, the song brings up racism - But if you only have love for your own race/Then you only leave space to discriminate/And to discriminate only generates hate” - and terrorism - “Overseas, yeah, we tryna stop terrorism/But we still got terrorists here livin'/In the USA, the big CIA/The Bloods and The Crips and the KKK” - And then there’s that outro constantly reminding us that we only have one world and to not waste it. If nothing else, “Where Is The Love?” exposes the Black Eyed Peas’ true talents. I know that the Peas tried to recreate this song in 2016 to quite disastrous results, but that doesn’t change the fact that this is a really potent track.

23...There's been a bit of a surprising absence of Disney-core from this list, considering how much I brought it up in my best lists for the 2000s, but on this list, so far, the only song where I’ve mentioned Disney was “This I Promise You” by *NSYNC, so why not go for the song literally from a Disney movie here? What is it, though? High School Musical? Nope, it’s Cars...

23. Rascal Flatts - Life Is A Highway (#76 2006)

I still don’t think this changes anything from Tom Cochrane’s original, or at least anything noticeable, but luckily, I still think this is pretty damn excellent, maybe it’s on Cars nostalgia, but I still think that even separated from that movie, this is tons of fun, from the bombastic and lively guitars to the guys in Rascal Flatts having tons of fun in this song to add to the vibe of life being a fun highway and wanting to have fun all night long. Excellent song, and I think I’m gonna drive this highway for many years to come.

22...One song that’s gonna be missing this list is “7 Things” by Miley Cyrus, it was bizarrely enough the last cut I made from the list, and I’m not gonna say there was any factor of the song itself that made it miss the list, when you have a list of this size, individual aspects of songs don’t matter as much, this really just came down to pure subjective opinion and which songs I was feeling more at the moment (for this list, I literally plugged in 200+ great songs into a preference revealer, and to get a final order was incredibly tedious haha), all that said, if you want the Miley Cyrus song from this decade that has rightfully stuck around today and is definitely great...

22. Miley Cyrus - Party In The USA (#29 2009)

This is a cute, summery bop about Miley moving to LA from Nashville and trying desperately to fit in, from the production with that guitar that elicits nothing but complete summer vibes to the point where even if the bass gets a bit too cranked up in the chorus, I can easily overlook that fact! And Miley’s delivery just has a ton of fun in it that I find it impossible to not have fun along with this song. A fun teen pop bop that is rightfully still relevant in the cultural memory today.

21...So, I’ll be honest, I never was a big fan of “Pocketful Of Sunshine” by Natasha Bedingfield, honestly, it was actually quite close to my worst list for 2008 for how bland and aggressively mediocre it is, and believe me, I’ve tried to like that song for years, especially considering how much I love this song, but alas, it wasn’t meant to be, that said, this song is absolutely magnificent...

21. Natasha Bedingfield - Unwritten (#6 2006)

Natasha Bedingfield is just a constant fountain of happiness and joy, and it utterly radiates this song and makes it so innocent-sounding and I absolutely love it. From that really beautiful guitar loop that also reflects the joy that Bedingfield is expressing in this song and she’s in this song, I imagine a wide open meadow with clear blue skies and Bedingfield just running in the meadow having the time of her life singing about how no one else can live your life and to forge your own path ahead, it’s just a constant source of joy that never fails to make me smile even when I’m feeling down.

20...You know something I was kinda surprised to learn on New Years’ Eve 2022 was that my dad actually owns several eurodance albums, this song wasn’t on any of them, but I could literally not think of anything else to put as the intro for this...

 

20. Yanou - Heaven f/Do (#32 2002)

I mentioned in my best of 2002 list that this is apparently a cover of Bryan Adams song, and I don’t like Bryan Adams at all, and I actually have not heard Adams’s song, so I’m judging this cover separated from the fact that it’s a cover, and it’s an utterly awesome gem, from the breathtaking production from Yanou and Do’s amazing vocals, this is a gem that I’m sure shines brightly in heaven and would likely do the same in hell as well, excellent track!

19...I mentioned in my worst list for the 2000s that post-grunge was the worst genre trend of the decade. That said, if you want the song from that genre this decade that rose up to be better than the rest in spades...

19. The Calling - Wherever You Will Go (#5 2002)

I know why someone may call these lyrics condescending, but this song isn’t about a breakup, it’s written from the perspective of a relative of one of the members of the band that passed away, and with that knowledge, this feels far less condescending. And then there’s the fact that this was apparently this was The Calling’s first ever song, which means that some of the basicness here can be excused for me, helps that they hit a pretty strong melody, yes, maybe it’s because of D major haha. Regardless, this is amazing, and at least it justifies the existence of post-grunge to me.

18...Now all of those songs were really either happy or sad, let’s go for something more angry, shall we?...

18. DMX - Party Up (Up In Here) (#71 2000)
“Party Up (Up In Here)” is an excellent song. Hip hop had such a glorious year in 2000, and this was the best of that genre that year! It’s not a very smart song, but the point of the song is simply to be meat-headed, the late DMX is really getting it in your head that given the chance, he’ll beat your ass, even the lyrics that I would ordinarily find kinda cringey like “Shit [an] [n-word] tried to diss you/That's why you layin' on your back, lookin' at the roof of the church” actually wind up working. And this is partially because it’s just so awesome in every other way, with the late DMX’s incredibly angry delivery and is so forceful it almost forces you to cower in fear that he’ll kill you, and I mean that in the best way possible, then the production, with the synths and the whistle that conveys a sense of urgency that fits this so well, excellent song, just don’t blast this song as you destroy a car with a laptop inside or something, losing that Valorant game or whatever game is even “trendy” right now is not the end of the world.

17...Well, that was admittedly an exhausting listen, let’s cool down with a pop classic...

17. Kylie Minogue - Can’t Get You Out Of My Head (#45 2002)

The “la-la” bits are almost hypnotizing, I’ll say it again, paired with the groovy, funky production and Kylie Minogue’s cooing, it just all comes together and makes you wanna just melt in the song. Excellent stuff!

16...I’ll admit, despite always finding this song excellent from the first time I heard it a couple years ago, it only further clicked with me after seeing the Super Bowl performance of this song, and if that doesn’t give the song away already, then I don’t know what does...

16. U2 - Beautiful Day (#51 2001)

I described this song as a shot of hope and optimism when everything is dark. Despite not being alive at the time, I recently saw U2’s Super Bowl halftime performance with this song, and knowing that this was mere months after 9/11, I felt like I could feel the emotions of the people in the stadium, after such a traumatic event like that, I’d have to imagine that this shot of hope was much felt and potent at the time. That said, as a song, “Beautiful Day” is also utterly excellent,  the crescendos are outstanding and Bono’s vocals are restrained in the verses to allow them to explode with potency in the crescendos. It’s a beautiful song that still feels pretty potent for me personally because admittedly the sentiment of optimism and hope is something I feel like I need to hear more. Just an outstanding song.

15...So in my best of 2005 list, I excluded “Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson, which is good but not great, I’ll say it again. It was what wound up being the bigger hit, but if you want the Kelly Clarkson hit from 2005 that was way more instant for me...

15. Kelly Clarkson - Behind These Hazel Eyes (#10 2005)

This has always hit with greater impact for me than “Since U Been Gone”, because of that swell in the pre-chorus that lets loose in the cathartic chorus -“Now I can't breathe/No, I can't sleep/I'm barely hangin' on/Here I am, once again/I'm torn into pieces/Can't deny it, can't pretend/Just thought you were the one/Broken up, deep inside/But you won't get to see the tears I cry”, There are a lot of emotions going through this chorus, from devastation to bitterness to sarcasm, and then we of course can’t forget Kelly Clarkson’s vocals which are absolutely stunning, and give it a really anthemic feel that makes you wanna sing along despite the fact I’m pretty sure Clarkson is the only one who can actually hit the notes, well okay, maybe Ariana Grande or Sia could do it too, but yeah haha.

14...Okay, yeah, this song has so thoroughly cemented itself as a modern classic in the culture today, there was no way in hell it was gonna miss this list...

14. Coldplay - Viva La Vida (#13 2008, #55 2009)

There’s really no way for me to describe this song other than as a symphony, the strings, bells, and piano just all come together so flawlessly and then all the vague lyrics, which take a look at the rise and fall of many historical figures intertwined with many historical references, I’m still not talented enough to dissect what these mean but I still think these actually contribute to the symphony that is this production it feels like it takes you on a journey, I may not like it more than “Fix You”, but “Viva La Vida” is still a masterpiece, but you guys already knew that. Excellent song,  that was just barred from my top 10. So what kept it from that special threshold?

13...So you’d figure that for these next 13 songs to all place above “Viva La Vida”, they’d all have to be outright symphonies or modern classics like that song, but that’s not really the case. While I’d agree that “Viva La Vida” is objectively better than quite a few of the songs in my top 10, the song missing my top 10 comes down to pure subjective opinion. I actually would revisit these songs more than “Viva La Vida”...

13. Cascada - Everytime We Touch (#31 2006)

A leftover from the early 2000s, and an amazing one at that, too! “Everytime We Touch” has a monstrously awesome production, even by the standards of eurodance, it feels huge! With the powerful kick, the synths, and the lead singer of Cascada  has so much personality and perfectly captures the feeling of being over the moon in love, even just the feeling when you have a huge crush on someone, it feels like the song itself has butterflies in its stomach somehow, which I realize is impossible for this song to do haha. Awesome banger! Definitely worth a revisit if you haven’t heard it in a while.

12...And yet, “Behind These Hazel Eyes” wasn’t even Kelly Clarkson’s  best hit this decade…

12. Kelly Clarkson - My Life Would Suck Without You (#23 2009)

“My Life Would Suck Without You” is just super anthemic, from the synths to the guitar to Kelly once again having incredible vocals. And the song is about Clarkson and her partner, despite how bad this relationship is, they complete each other and can’t break up. This song, I said it in my best of 2009 list, is the musical equivalent of a sugar rush, it’s just so fun and makes you wanna scream the chorus even if you suffer from DCG Syndrome haha.

11...Look, even as someone who’s willing to defend some of this band’s modern singles, I can acknowledge that they peaked with this in 2004...

11. Maroon 5 - She Will Be Loved (#35 2004, #61 2005)

This topped my best of 2004 list for how  it truly encapsulated Maroon 5’s potential that they would only choose to flush away in the 2010s and beyond with atrocities like “Don’t Wanna Know” or “This Summer’s Gonna Hurt Like A Motherfucker” or the terrible “Lost”. The way “She Will Be Loved” works is how Adam Levine plays on the sidelines for this song, acknowledging that even if he’s not the one for this girl, she will be loved, if not by him, by someone who makes her happy. Coupled with Levine’s best vocals in any song, and delicate falsetto and the beautiful melody courtesy of the guitars, with how tragically Maroon 5 have declined, this only stands out more, such a masterpiece, just barred from my top 10, so what could be better than Maroon 5’s best ever hit?

10...So now we’re at the top 10, arguably a very special group of songs, most of my top 52 at any point could’ve made it here, so which song is at the very bottom of this top 10? Well, it’s maybe the  easiest song for me to ever sing haha...

10. Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars (#29 2006, #61 2007)

Possibly the most other-worldly song of the decade, with Gary Lightbody’s delivery that strikes the perfect balance of being strong yet comforting to match the content, which is about the desire to just escape the real world with a partner, just a desire to leave the pressures of the real world and go somewhere more carefree. And then there’s the production, which is breathtaking, the guitars are dreamy yet strong. It’s like it's transporting you into another world, and yeah, it’s an excellent song. If I lay here, would you guys lie with me and just forget the world?

9...So why don’t we look at arguably the catalyst for my favorite era of mainstream pop music to get traction?...

9. Flo Rida f/T-Pain - Low (#1 2008)

This song is just the perfect blend of the crunk era and the club boom, it truly was the only song you could possibly call the defining and biggest song of 2008. “Low” has one of the most catchy, if not the catchiest hook, of the entire millennium so far, T-Pain injects so much personality and fun into the hook that if making a song fun was a crime, he’d be getting the electric chair. To say that these guys struck gold with this chorus would be an understatement “apple bottom jeans, boots with the fur, the whole club was looking at her…” is the most hypnotically catchy shit ever haha. Even if Flo Rida’s rap verses are kinda forgettable here, if you mindlessly bop to them they’re awesome too haha. That’s not to say his verses aren’t at least a little bit impressive though, he busts out the triplet flow several years before Migos even came onto the scene! Yeah, this was rightfully a monster hit, excellent song. Apple bottom jeans, boots with the furrrrrrrrr, the whole club was looking at herrrrr-what? Oh, Don’t pretend this isn’t a fun chorus you can’t sing along to, stop being a grumpy old man and just sing along to this already.

8...No joke, my Eagle Scout Court of Honor was 5 days ago as of writing, and when creating a video compilation of my favorite Scouting memories, this was the music I used in the video haha...

8. Boys Like Girls - The Great Escape (#77 2007)

I’ll say it again, the reckless abandon type of vibe here probably laid the groundwork for the club boom to slide in. “The Great Escape” is just utter fun and joy, a song made about frontman Martin Johnson and his friends’ graduation having one more night to have fun together so they spend it doing all sorts of crazy things. Even if they don’t seem all that crazy by themselves, (I’m not sure putting your belongings in shopping carts is all that crazy) the production and frontman Martin Johnson sell it as if they are, and rather than underwhelming the song, it makes it feel all the more huge, and isn’t that how hanging out with your friends should feel like? Mundane things on paper, but when you’re with your friends, they all seem massive and important to you? And the production definitely, as mentioned earlier, makes this feel this way, from the high-energy pop punk guitars to Martin Johnson having a fun time here, these two aspects allow this to soundtrack any fun moments you spend with your friends, well that’s at least what I think of when listen to this song, I’m not sure what you wanna do when you hear this song, maybe set your listening device on fire, I hope you don’t do that, because this is an utterly excellent song and an underrated gem.

7...Well that was a lot of fun, how about something...less fun...

7. Ludacris f/Mary J Blige - Runaway Love (#35 2007)

Of all the songs on this list, this was honestly the one I changed positions most, when I first finished the preference revealer, this song was still in the top 50 but nowhere near this high, I knew that this deserved way higher, but I did have a bit of struggle on where on this list I’d place it because all of these songs are uniquely excellent in their own way (another reason why I wouldn’t take this list all that seriously outside of maybe the top 5), “The Great Escape” and “Low”, for example, are excellent in a fun way, ultimately, I decided that top 10 was only right for this song. This is definitely not a fun song, it’s excellent in its underlying show of empathy. This song is honestly pretty remarkable in a few ways, firstly, did anyone actually expect the same dude who made “Move Bitch” to make a serious song of this nature? But he made this serious song and it became a top 2 hit! Now onto the song itself, the song looks into the very dark lives of three little girls in each verse, each verse ending with the cutting line “she says she’s about to run away and never come back”, because to these girls, home is a scarier place than anywhere outside of it. And Ludacris never stretches the realm of believability, these things are all very much possible, and that may be the frightening thing about this song. The fact that these horribly violent things are very much possible in the real world is utterly terrifying to think about. When you hear these stories you just wish you could hug the little girls tight and end their suffering even though you know that you can’t. And Ludacris at the end of the song knows that he can’t end these girls’ suffering, he just offers them a moment of solidarity at the end of the song, and isn’t able to offer them a solution because he knows he can’t. Coupled with Mary J Blige’s beautiful vocals on the chorus that although initially I found repetitive, I realized that it only intensified the despair of the song. And then there’s the production is also similarly really devastating, a perfect blend of drum machines, guitars, and synths all delivering an impeccable melody. And this all makes for a brilliant show of empathy, and maybe if only for that, it may be the most important hit song of the decade. It may only be #7 on this list, primarily because this song is a really difficult song to listen to repeatedly because of all the imagery here, but don’t undervalue its importance, it’s a reminder to show empathy to those suffering, just be that shoulder to cry on, even if you can’t directly solve the problem, you may make things just a little bit easier for someone.

6...Well this was a shoe-in for my top 10 from the start, I have to recognize a song that made me go from hating this artist for petty reasons to loving now, one of my favorite artists of all time…

6. Taylor Swift - Love Story (#81 2008)

Well, arguably Taylor’s signature song, and for good reason! It’s a pretty cliche retelling of Romeo & Juliet here the ending is instead “tHeY lIvED haPPiLY eVeR aFter”, but the key to this working so well is Taylor’s youthful vocals. They have a vibe of innocence that makes this not feel cliche. Yeah, I do wish the production was mixed better because at points it is kinda difficult to make out what instruments are playing, the reason why I think the 2021 Taylor’s version’s production is better even if I think this version is better because of the vocals. And yes, it’s the 59756069757645954967497469749496745949496496746974949456945965965695695th return of D major, but then it does transpose into E major really well. Excellent song, it’s a love story for sure, and a damn adorable one.

5...So I’ve touched on it several times before on this blog and even a few times in this article that the unfortunate thing that tends to happen is that an artist’s work can hit harder after the artist passes away or something terrible happens, and ell “Breaking The Habit” may be the Linkin Park song that hits the hardest after Chester Bennington’s death, but this was always my favorite song from them...

5. Linkin Park - In The End (#7 2002)

If most post-grunge is brooding in the wrong way, “In The End” is brooding in the right way, the production isn’t sluggish, it’s a constant stream of anger and catharsis, even Mike Shidona’s rapping is on point here! And Chester Bennington is really wailing in despair and frustration here, he’s wailing in agony in a good way, if you will, and the production backs it up nicely so it doesn’t sound obnoxious. Fantastic song, it’s been one of my all-time favorite songs for a few years now, and yet 4 songs still topped it?

4...I mean, was this ever gonna miss this list?...

4. Vanessa Carlton - A Thousand Miles (#6 2002)

If you’ve heard this song, which you most likely have, you know it’s pop perfection and that it was a shoe-in for this list from the start. From that soaring piano melody and crescendos that feel so liberating to Vanessa Carlton’s delivery that exuberates adolescence and matches this song’s sentiment of being a mix of fantasy and reality, the song just makes you wanna run free like no one’s watching, it’s easily a power pop classic that I don’t know if I can say too much that hasn’t already been said about this song. Fantastic song, but you already knew that.

3...There was a point in time not too long ago, maybe like 2020 or something, where this song would’ve been my #1, I was familiar with my top 2 on this list for probably just as long as I was with this one, and I think it all clicked for me when I started listening to all the year-end lists of the 2000s...

3. Green Day - Boulevard Of Broken Dreams (#7 2005)

I’ve adored “Boulevard Of Broken Dreams” since the first time I heard it back in 2015, and I still adore it now. 2005 was a year that was all over the place in quality for the Hit 100, and this was on the great end of the spectrum, from the trudging percussion to the minor key guitars that really highlight this song’s sadness and then Billie Joe Armstrong’s dead-eyed, yet powerful voice swoops in and basically completes this song. Even if I think the outro goes on a bit too long for my tastes, it’s far too miniscule of a nitpick for me to discount the song. Then there’s the lyrics, which are about how Armstrong is walking on Sunset Boulevard in LA, which he refers to as the “Boulevard Of Broken Dreams”. He emphasizes how he walks alone with nothing but his shadow, the loneliness is trying so hard to consume him, and he has to check his vital signs to keep himself from being consumed by that loneliness, or you know he’s probably just walking alone on Sunset Boulevard, I don’t know, I’ve gotten pretentious enough for this review haha. Whatever, it’s a fantastic song regardless.

2...Extreme apologies to any British people who see this given I know this has made 6 year-end lists over there and will likely make more for the years to come, but there’s a reason it’s endured this long!...

2. The Killers - Mr. Brightside (#16 2005)

It shouldn’t be possible for a band to knock it out of the fucking park with their debut single but, here you have it. From the incredibly lively guitars that, yeah, maybe could’ve helped this work a teensy bit better if transposed in a lower key, but they still keep the anthemic feel of the song. And you can notice subtle changes in Brandon Flowers’s delivery throughout the song, he starts off paranoid that his partner is cheating on him, and as the song goes on, that paranoia takes over him and turns into outright despair, the repetition of “I never…”  in the outro just sounds absolutely heartbreaking. This is a masterpiece, and yet, it falls just short of my #1, what could possibly be better?

1...I’m gonna quote what I said in my 2010s list, “I’m a little bit shocked at my own #1 pick. I mean, I knew that it would be a lock for this list from the get go…”, I’m kinda stunned that this guy is topping my best of the decade list for a 2nd time, (even if “Good Time” would probably not top my 2010s list now) but god damn it, you’ve done it again Owl City, and this time, with a masterpiece...

1. Owl City - Fireflies (#60 2009)

I’ll say it again, if you hate this, sorry you didn’t have a good childhood, this is a magical song to me where even if I don’t have any specific memories associated with this song from 2009, it still manages to feel nostalgic for me, the song itself is literally about nostalgia and longing for innocent/simpler times, and it being nerdy is the entire point of the song, it’s unabashedly putting itself out there like a little kid would. It’s just so innocent and charming, from the strings to the cascading piano keys that help contribute to the pure euphoria of the chorus, and when that chorus hits it’s like a bunch of my memories of simpler times appear before my eyes and they feel tangibly within reach. With all the imagery of fireflies teaching you how to dance, it’s pretty clear, at least to me, why I feel this way. And note that line in the chorus “I’d like to make myself believe”, it’s just hopeful optimism to me, like he’s optimistic that these good times will return one day. Yeah, this is one of my top 5 favorite songs of all time, and thus, I really don’t think I could’ve chosen anything else as my favorite hit of the 2000s except for “Fireflies” by Owl City, a transcendent piece of music, the best hit of the 2000s, and lightning in a bottle, etc.

Wow, that took a long time to compile. But I’m glad this is finally finished! Agree with this result or not, this is my list, and those are my picks. With that, I’m officially done with the 2000s! I’m taking a break till the 4th of July, which isn’t that far away, when I publish my 2-year anniversary article. And the Spotify playlist is right below this text if you wanna give some of these songs a listen. But until then, you’ve been reading Fire’s Flaming Hot Takes, and I’ll see you in 5 days!

Spotify playlist