#hedda mae

#10: Billie Bossa Nova - Billie Eilish

This song is just so pretty. Billie was truly meant to sing these lounge jazzy type songs - her voice is perfect for sensual, quiet and romantic songs like this one. Is it bad that I want a full album with this vibe?

Favorite lyrics: “Nobody saw me in the lobby / Nobody saw me in your arms”

#9: Tipsy - Spotify Singles - Chloe x Halle

I feel like I sort of cheated (again). No, but I genuinely prefer this a lot over the original arrangement. The production is less noisy and cleaner, but it’s still interesting because it brings a different vibe. Their vocals are also a lot pleasant as they went for a more “pretty” approach of singing, compared to the album version where they’re singing a bit more off-pitch and “sloppily” to emphasize the “tipsy” part. I love that they can always find something new with their songs and play around with it, which is why I think this song deserves to be highlighted. Also, don’t we all just love songs about murdering men???

Favorite lyrics: “And I don't give no apologies / If you lose a life, that's not on me”

#8: Angel Baby - Troye Sivan

Even though this came out sometime during fall, I didn’t discover this until early December. But you better believe when I started listening to it, I made up for those months I lost. I can’t remember a day that has gone by where I haven’t listened to this less than five times a day. I can’t fully grasp why I got so quickly attached to it, but the initial feeling I got was that it feels like the kind of song I would bawl my eyes to at age 5. It’s very specific, but one of the things I remember about me as a young child was listening to certain songs and wanting to cry even though I didn’t know what they meant. I definitely did not understand English at that age, so I wouldn’t have understood this song if I heard it then. Whatever this song has, it makes my inner child cry.

Favorite lyrics: “Started giving up on the word "forever" / Until you gave up heaven so we could be together”

#7: Deserve You - Justin Bieber

Okay, this might be one of the best Bieber songs yet. This song is honestly close to pop perfection and I don’t understand you if you don’t agree. The drums transition to the chorus? Definitely on the list of best 2 seconds of pop music in 2021. Is it also a coincidence that the best tracks on this album are co-written by Jon Bellion? No.

Favorite lyrics: “I'm on my ten thousandth life / Nine thousand nine hundred nine and it slipped my hands / But this the one I'm not giving up”

#6: voodoo voodoo - iris & SKAAR

The best Norwegian collab of 2021, and I knew it couldn’t be topped when it came out in January. Who knew that a witchy, ethereal, spooky bop was what 2021 needed? Highly slept on song by two amazing artists - how does this song only have 200k streams? I’m mad.

Favorite lyrics: “But don't worry, I'm a good girl, really (really?) / Just playing, I'm the reason you'll need therapy, baby”

#5: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic

The world got a whole lot better when Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak decided to release this. I’m really happy that Bruno Mars decided to continue doing retro R&B, soul/funk type of music, but I’m happier he decided to do it with Anderson .Paak. They’re truly a golden duo meant to make music together, and I really, really hope this isn’t the first and last time we see a collaboration between them. 

Favorite lyrics: “I'm talking kissing, cuddling / Rose petals in the bathtub / Girl, let's jump in, it's bubbling”

#4: Until The Night Falls - Hedda Mae

I’m so weak for the Y2K vibe, but I’m realizing that I think I prefer songs that sound like Y2K songs and made within the past 3-4 years more than songs that actually were made in that era. This song makes me so nostalgic for the kind of music I didn’t know I was nostalgic over. It reminds me a lot of pop music we heard from Norwegian and other Scandinavian artists in the early 2000s, because there was a specific way they created melodies back then. And the chorus melody is like??? The best ever??

Favorite lyrics: “So I'm keeping my head cold / I'll be okay until night falls / But then I'll go over it again”

#3: Kiss Me More (feat. SZA) - Doja Cat

This, along with “Leave The Door Open”, was my most played song of 2021. It just hits all the spots. SZA’s verse is amazing, Doja sounds great and it’s a super fun and playful track. I don’t think I need to say anything more than that, because everyone knows how great this song is.

Favorite lyrics: “I, I feel like fuckin' somethin' / But we could be corny, fuck it”

#2: All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault) - Taylor Swift

Are we surprised? One of Taylor’s greatest songs, the biggest fan and critics favorite of all time, in all its glory. Do we really believe all of the added lyrics were written during that first session? Absolutely not, but every added verse, chorus and bridge is worth all the gold to make this song even greater than it once was. All Too Well 5 minutes who? I don’t know her.

Favorite lyrics: (how do i choose just one) “And then you wondered where it went to as I reached for you / But all I felt was shame and you held my lifeless frame”

AAAAAND for some honorable mentions before we get to SONG OF THE YEAR !!

Clothes - Scuuut

Fancy - Lennon Stella

Introvert - Little Simz

Rather Be - James Vickery

Voila - Barbara Pravi

AND THE SONG OF THE YEAR GOES TO.......

#1: Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish

Like most people, I wish I had recorded my reaction to the second part of this song, because that was a very unexpected experience. While there were new elements and sides of Billie in the album before this, there’s nothing like starting a song like we always have heard her: soft, quiet singing over an acoustic instrument. You think, this is where this song is going? That’s fine, it’s a pretty song, nothing special. Then the guitar picks up and you’re like, okay interesting, nothing biggie. Then it changes to an electric guitar, and the curiosity increases, you wonder if this might go somewhere… then “and I don’t talk sh– about you” kicks in and she’s yelling and the song intensifies and distorts and ?!?!?!? I get chills listening to it every time just thinking back to the first time I experienced this. Absolutely baffled that this isn’t the album closer, because it should 100% be.