tl;dr: Spotify Playlist
2021 was a lot. Living with the pandemic for a full year, much of the time felt like it was spent dulling my senses as I waited for the cloud to pass. With constant starts and stops in day-to-day life, it was hard to feel like much progress was being made . While I had some accomplishments, like running my first half-marathon, moving to London, and starting a new job, the flip side is that I also spent a lot of time in quarantine, planning for things that never came to fruition, and trying to stay connected to others when screen and social fatigue has taken its toll.
Of course, music always felt like an escape when things got overwhelming. While in years past I’d try to listen to every critically acclaimed album I could find and comb through countless blogs for a diverse group of songs, this year I let natural impulses lead the way. This means even more pop music and love songs. I needed music to be my comfort and that was exactly what it was.
Top 100 Songs of 2021
| 100 | Ali | Mustafa |
| 99 | her shadow | Thomas Ng |
| 98 | Year to Year | Yaeji, OHHYUK |
| 97 | Tell Me | 9m88, DJ Mitsu The Beats |
| 96 | A New Day (feat. Phum Viphurit) | Nulbarich |
| 95 | All My Friends | STVN |
| 94 | So Slowly | Beirut |
| 93 | Last Train Home | John Mayer |
| 92 | galore – french version | Oklou, Pomme, Danny L Harle |
| 91 | it only gets worse, i promise | EKKSTACY |
| 90 | I’ll Be Loving You | Yellow Days |
| 89 | Slowtime | Science Noodles |
| 88 | From The Back of a Cab | Rostam |
| 87 | The Sun Dancing In Her Hair | Noble Oak |
| 86 | Missing Out | Syd |
| 85 | Shelter (feat, Wyclef Jean & Chance the Rapper) | VIC MENSA |
| 84 | Be around | kayan9896 |
| 83 | Spiral | Akira Kosemura |
| 82 | Rose | Manast LL’, Denzel Macintosh |
| 81 | Illusion of Dreams | We Are The Night |
| 80 | Baila | Summer Salt |
| 79 | Get Lost | Mija, sharks! |
| 78 | Orange | Pinegrove |
| 77 | 有吗炒面 ALGTR | Lexie Liu |
| 76 | It Takes Two | Fiji Blues |
| 75 | 用破碎的心修好破碎的心 | Chih Siou |
| 74 | Afterglow (feat. Kimberley Chen) | AmPm |
| 73 | Mess It Up | Gracie Abrams |
| 72 | Eventually | Chiiild |
| 71 | december (feat. Gareth.T) | Tyson Yoshi |
| 70 | Donuts Mind If I Do | CHAI |
| 69 | Night Drive | Elijah Lee |
| 68 | hurts 2 hate somebody (with Chase Atlantic & No Rome) | ELIO |
| 67 | You Were in My Dream Last Night | Babygirl |
| 66 | Coffee’s on Me | Sunset Rollercoaster |
| 65 | does it really matter? | yaeow |
| 64 | Hardline | Julien Baker |
| 63 | Julia (Deep Diving) | Fred again… |
| 62 | Every Summertime | NIKI |
| 61 | No More Monday Blues | Mars Ma |
| 60 | Begin Again | Adam Melchor |
| 59 | Reality | Yayyoung |
| 58 | 多久才懂妳的心 | ADEN |
| 57 | Honey | Molly Payton |
| 56 | 5AM in Tokyo | Yusei |
| 55 | Leave The Door Open | Silk Sonic |
| 54 | About Summer | Luli Lee |
| 53 | Two Dimensions | EASHA |
| 52 | Bunny Is A Rider | Caroline Polachek |
| 51 | Stromae | Santé |
| 50 | Jail | Kanye West |
| 49 | Tiptoeing | Hope Tala |
| 48 | Simple, Sweet, and Smiling | Kacy Hill |
| 47 | Hypotheticals | Lake Street Dive |
| 46 | Silk Chiffon (feat. Phoebe Bridgers) | MUNA |
| 45 | hoon (feat. cehryl) | boylife |
| 44 | On Your Side | Wet |
| 43 | Hope | Arlo Parks |
| 42 | London | Lucid Fuzzy |
| 41 | All My Friends Are Dead | The Dinosaur’s Skin |
| 40 | Let’s Sing Let’s Dance | Park Hye Jin |
| 39 | Get High | Chet Faker |
| 38 | Comeback. | Gallant |
| 37 | Come In Closer | Rhye |
| 36 | Eureka (feat. kojikoji) | HENTAI SHINSHI CLUB |
| 35 | Space | Audrey Nuna |
| 34 | Chelsea | Slim Gabriel |
| 33 | 1 step forward, 3 steps back | Olivia Rodrigo |
| 32 | On The Ground | Rose |
| 31 | Leicester Square | Loafy Building, Socrab, ticofaces |
| 30 | Paprika | Japanese Breakfast |
| 29 | I Could Be Yours | Zooey Wonder |
| 28 | 虧欠 Owe | 壞特 ?te |
| 27 | The Weekend | BIBI |
| 26 | Tweety | Raveena |
| 25 | Be Fine feat. 李芷婷Nasi | 張三李四Chang & Lee |
| 24 | I’LL TAKE YOU ON (feat. Charlie Wilson) | BROCKHAMPTON |
| 23 | Whole World | RAFA, Gareth.T, puff |
| 22 | Blouse | Clairo |
| 21 | Have A Nice Day | Waa Wei |
20. (We Like To) Do It With The Lights On – Islands
After a 5 years absence, Islands is back with this irresistibly fun and groovy dance-pop song.
19. Paradise (feat. Elijah Lee) – Milky Day
This was the first song that I put on my 2021 playlist on January 1st. A little jazzy and a little lo-fi, it was a song I constantly came back to all year.
18. Hard Drive – Cassandra Jenkins
Hard Drive plays like a 5-minute meditation on life during the pandemic. Between the musings of random characters, the everyday experiences of the protagonist, and the breathing exercise baked into the song, Cassandra Jenkins expertly creates a world simultaneously away and close to the reality we are living in today.
17. 沒了感覺 – Jinbo, 艾許 Ashlee
According to Spotify, my most played song this year was a song by Jinbo called Stay (which unfortunately was released last year). The Taiwanese musician quickly became a favourite of mine with his Bruno Mars-inspired tracks effortlessly jumping between pop and hip hop. In 沒了感覺, he and 艾許 Ashlee duet over pretty production to create one of the smoothest love songs of the year.
16. Last Day On Earth – beabadoobee
On Last Day On Earth, beabadoobee is imagining what her last normal day before the pandemic would have been like. Over infectious guitar and a chorus that is just a bunch of sounds that don’t make words, beabadoobee sounds like she’s having the time of her life doing normal things like walking around naked and listening to songs she wrote.
15. Spinning (with Charli XCX & the 1975) – No Rome
The 1975 did production on the last song on this list and again shows up here as a feature with beabadoobee and No Rome both signed to their label. In Spinning, No Rome, Charli XCX, and the 1975 storm in like a tornado, and the song is over before you even know what happened. You’ll never catch all the words, but after just one listen, you’ll catch yourself singing the chorus on repeat.
14. LMLY – Jackson Wang
On LMLY (Leave Me Loving You), Jackson Wang crafts a straightforward pop song with a music video that continues his homages to old-school Hong Kong cinema. As the song pleads to a lover to be gentle when leaving, heartbreak has never seemed so uplifting.
13. hair tie – ØZI
ØZI, the Taiwanese-American rapper, has been growing his dedicated fanbase in Taiwan for a few years. With upbeat production created by Sweater Beats, hair tie sees him in a conflicted position when a love interest has dominated all his conscious thoughts.
12. Butter – BTS
I never thought I’d be a BTS fan but in a year where things were increasingly bleak, their songs hit like a much-needed shot of positivity. I listened to this song a lot when I was training for a half marathon. Butter is such a fun song and proves why BTS are the biggest boyband in the world.
11. Temporary – Kiri T
Over the last few years, Kiri T has been growing a dedicated fanbase in Hong Kong and abroad with her indie-pop songs. Bittersweet, lush, and affectionate, Temporary is reminiscent of Carly Rae Jepsen at her softest. “I like you a little too much” she sings as she puts words to the uneasy moments of new love.
10. Suenos Bravos – Bodysync
Bodysync is the new collaboration between Giraffage and Ryan Hemsworth. The two electronic music wizards known for sometimes upbeat, sometimes chill music put together a tropical jam that will be in your mind for a long while.
9. honest (feat. moon tang) – Gareth.T
Gareth.T seemed to be all over the Hong Kong music scene this year, with him dueting with some notable names across songs and youtube live sessions. On honest, he links up with frequent collaborator moon tang on a sweet song about chasing your dreams.
8. Kiss Me More (feat. SZA) – Doja Cat
Doja Cat and Sza sing and rap through disco-like production to create one of the year’s best megahits. Doja Cat is quickly becoming one of the best hook writers and this might be the best of the year. Even as someone who rarely uses Tik Tok, this was a song I couldn’t get away from.
7. beside you – keshi
In the last two years, keshi has dominated my year-end lists with his lofi/singer-songwriter tracks. Beside you showcases all the things that make his songs great: a hip-hop beat, strong melodies, notable samples, and bittersweet lyrics. keshi makes the smallest interactions feel like it has the biggest stakes and this is one of the greatest examples of that.
6. In Agreement – Lizzy McAlpine
There is a sense of vulnerability in In Agreement that cuts through anything else that might be going on and forces you to listen. Written and recorded during the pandemic with just a guitar and her voice, Lizzy McAlpine beautifully captures the feeling of life and love during these times. This is a love song that feels like it can only have been born through forced contemplation and reflection.
5. Dive with you (feat. eaJ) – Seori
Another year, another collaboration between Seori and eaJ on my year-end list. With Seori’s strong vocals and eaJ’s soft touch, they trade verses about love against a summery backdrop. These two Korean artists continue to make some of the prettiest music around. Here’s to hoping for more between these collaborators.
4. Enough – Eloise
The first concert I attended since the pandemic started was Eloise in August of this year. After a year and a half without live music, the experience was emotional and I had a hard time holding tears back. Eloise’s music was a big reason for that. Enough is from her stellar debut album and describes the complicated thoughts that come from the end of a relationship. Produced by Bruno Major, the song contains much of his signature sentimentality and romanticism. Combined with Eloise’s beautiful voice and devastating lyrics, this song is absolutely heartbreaking.
3. Let You Break My Heart Again – Laufey
Laufey is perhaps best known for bringing vocal jazz to the Instagram generation. Her instrumentation and voice beckon back to a simpler time but her lyrics somehow feel simultaneously timely and timeless. Let You Break My Heart Again is her first song backed by the Philharmonia Orchestra. Laufey’s lyrics crawl and pull as she describes the feeling of unrequited love with remarks about not eating (“all I’ve had is coffee and leftover pie”) and complicated emotions (“I get overwhelmed and confused if you only you knew what I felt like”). This is a song of someone in the middle of the storm. There is the hope of getting out but the light at the end of the tunnel is still far away.
2. philadelphia – cehryl
It’s impossible to listen to cehryl’s music and not feel like you’re missing something: an interaction, a feeling, or a person. Philadelphia is the standout track from the Hong Kong musician’s newest EP and it instantly fills you with a sense of nostalgia. Against a repeated piano line, the song unveils like a series of diary entries used to create a timestamp of a specific period of her life. The verses describe specific situations that gain extra meaning in the context of the others. A simple chorus (“oh Philadelphia you were so close to me”) and bridge deliver lines with so much emotional impact that it feels like consecutive gut punches. By the time you get to the last line of the song (“I promise nothing will change once we hang up the phone”) you’re reminded that people change, places change, and there’s no matter how hard you try to hold on you can’t stop it from happening.
1. Sexy Villain – Remi Wolf
Remi Wolf has been one of the breakout stars of 2021. With sold-out shows across both sides of the Atlantic, the former American Idol contestant is making a name for herself with her brand of off-the-wall pop music. Sexy Villain is the most infectious, energetic, and fun song of the year. If it didn’t come out in early fall, this song would have been the song of the summer. In what Remi Wolf described as a “weird” popsong, she channels her love of true crime podcasts and the state of her relationship into her newfound “sexy villain” persona. Stringing in Ted Bundy and pop culture references, the song will get you singing lyrics about murders and infidelity without you even knowing. The contrast of topics against the most feel-good melody and production of the year is what makes this song so striking and unforgettable. In a year where things seemed increasingly bleak, it seemed appropriate to have a topically dark pop song that doesn’t take itself too seriously sit at the top.
