Best Songs of 2018
It's the time of the year where every content creator is working the most. The end of the years marks the beginning of a lot of work, with end of the year countdowns having to be made, edited, revised and put out as fast as possible. My last post, The Best Albums of 2018, was met with positive reviews so I decided to give you all the best songs of 2018 so it doesn't feel incomplete.
The year was filled with impeccable songs, meaning my list has a lot of snubs. My most listened to song of the year didn't make the cut. That being because I tried to limit the list to one song per artist, not including features. What came into the list was commercial success, critical reviews as well as my own position on the song. None of these songs were picked lightly in an attempt to keep the list as authentic to myself as it is to the year. With that being said, here is our very extensive list of honorable mentions to the right:
With that done, let's get on with the list shall we?
10. "I Like It" - Cardi B feat. Bad Bunny & J. Balvin
It doesn't take a genius to see that the world loves a latin or latin-influenced track in the summer (see "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi feat. Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber or "Mi Genté" by J. Balvin and Willy William) and Hip-Hop has definitely entered that market. While some fail like "Bebe" by Tekashi69, "I Like It" by Cardi B. was an awe striking hit. It wasn't a lyrical masterpiece in English, but the Spanish verses delivered by Bad Bunny and J. Balvin were amazing. Also helps that the sampling of "I Like It Like That" by Pete Rodriguez is insanely infectious.
9. "1985 (Intro to The Fall Off) - J. Cole
The last track off the KOD album, J. Cole goes inherently meta with "1985 (Intro to The Fall Off). He uses his lyrical and poetic proficiency to talk to the newest rappers in the game about the dangers of being addicted to the game and the fame. He's truthful and poignant, making everyone understand like a parent makes his child understand homework. What's heartbreaking is that after this amazing track - and an amazing album - that he was lambasted for hating the new wave, when he's arguably its most vocal supporter.
8. "I Might Need Security" - Chance the Rapper
Chance the Rapper became a household name last summer when he appeared on DJ Khaled's "I'm The One" and continued his success with another verse on "No Brainer". All that without releasing a project of his own. However, he released six singles through the year, with "I Might Need Security" bringing a fire and a level of anger that had never been seen before in Chance's music. It was exhilarating. From punch line to punch line over the Jamie Foxx sample, bar for bar, it stands as one of his best songs yet and has me excited for whenever he decides to drop a full album.
7. "Self-Care" - Mac Miller
One of the outstanding tracks from Mac Miller's last project released during his lifetime, "Self Care" says a lot about Mac Miller as a person. He is open about his inability to get out of his own head. Carried by a weird and claustrophobic beat, he uses potent lyricism and stark poetry to get his point across. While Swimming can arguably go down as one of the best albums of 2018, it's the openness and candor that is exemplified in this song that explains why it's so great. All I can say is thank you to Mac Miller.
6. "SAD!" - XXXTentacion
A young artist taken way too soon, XXXTentacion's death shocked the entire music world. "SAD!", at least in my opinion, served as the beginning of a new page for Triple X, who had been trying to live a better life and to give back to his community. The song is lyrical, but the emotional weight of it all combined with an impactful video which sees the young rapper battling with his former self is provocative and proves why this is one of the best - and most tragic - song of 2018.
5. "Caterpillar" - Royce da 5'9" feat. Eminem & King Crooked
The difference between a subpar collaboration between two great artists and an amazing collaboration worthy of the history books is the amount of chemistry - this track is full of it. A solid delivery of the hook by King Crooked serves as the touchbase for both Royce and Eminem's verses about the state of the game and where they find themselves today - one as a mentor and one as a icon, respectively. What makes this different is that they both take to the boombastic track with word play and the powerful theme of not disrespecting the youth as they try to come up - exactly what they hated when they were coming up.
4. "Lucky You" - Eminem feat. Joyner Lucas
Welcome to the lyrical master class of 2018 - no song had the same level of mastery of syllable work. rhymes and skill during the entire year. "Lucky You" off of Eminem's Kamikaze featuring Joyner Lucas explores the relationship that they both have with the game in different ways. From speed to overall flow, it's an impeccable track that definitely deserves to be listened to more. Arguably the biggest upside is that this isn't the only collaboration between the two, with Lucas' next album having a storytelling track with Slim Shady.
3. "SICKO MODE" - Travis Scott feat. Drake
"Sicko Mode" by Travis Scott and Drake is the most eccentric musical hit of 2018. Fight me on this. From the very sudden beat switches to the songs lack of lyrical and overall structure, it's an oddity of a song. But it's really good. Change is always good in our medium. I'm not asking for everyone to switch their styles to this particular wave, but to be adventurous like this is good for the culture! It is insane in nature and a definite bump wherever you go. But I do not recommend trying to understand the message of the song, because it's so mental in nature that I had to visit Genius to understand what was going on.
2. "Mona Lisa" - Lil Wayne feat. Kendrick Lamar
The musical highlight of the year was finally listening to Tha Carter V. While the album suffered from the hype around it and the long wait, it was still a great album, highlighted by the Lil Wayne - Kendrick Lamar collaboration, "Mona Lisa". It's a gem of a song that encapsulates both artists perfectly, from witty punchlines, impeccable storytelling to incredible flow. There is not real flaw in this song other than the really long wait, which gives for a few outdated references, but otherwise, the song is both sonically sound and something I enjoy every time it comes on.
1. "God's Plan" - Drake
Is there any other song that could've won the best Hip-Hop song of the year? It got diamond certification (acquiring 10,000,000 sales or equivalent sales) and spent 11 weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and voted the number one song of the year. It could seem like the typical Drake song, but if this is typical, what should great be? I personally liked "Nice For What" (due to my love of Lauryn Hill's music in general, which you can read about here) and "Nonstop" more, but the juggernaut that this song was says a lot about the culture and the world. "God's Plan" was everywhere. Kids were singing in the streets about how the much they loved their beds and their mama's. Lyrically it's basic, but the sound is infectious and powerful. No wonder it's number 1 for 2018.
In conclusion, 2018 wasn't a bad year for music. We had a lot of great songs that spanned genres and that told incredible stories. Hip-Hop had an amazing year, topping the Billboard countless times. This list has admittedly a few misses and snubs, but that's the beauty of making these types of countdowns: they force you to think about the quality level that you expect out of your music. I expected a lot and I suppose that the music industry delivered on that front, even though we really over saturated the market. But can you really stop a genre on a roll like Hip-Hop?