The 25 Best Songs of 2025
Across pop, R&B, rap, rock, and all the blurred edges in between, 2025 was loaded with songs that made an immediate impression and only grew stronger over time. Here, we’re spotlighting the ones that truly stuck around, from chart giants to slow-burn favorites, plus the tracks that quietly nudged certain artists into new territory.
Lady Gaga – "Abracadabra"
Gaga’s Mayhem era finds its purest pop spell in “Abracadabra,” a gleaming electropop single that folds elements of Siouxsie and the Banshees’ “Spellbound” into a pulsing, house-adjacent groove. The production keeps the synths sharp and the rhythm section tight, giving her room to pivot between incantation-like chants and more open, emotional lines about trying to find magic in the middle of a mess. It’s another example of the way she turns a chorus into a full-body rush and still lets all her original pop quirks shine through.
Miley Cyrus – "End of the World"
“End of the World,” from Cyrus’s album Something Beautiful, leans into a glittery, end-of-the-night melancholy, all warm strings, rubbery bass, and the singer’s half-hymn delivery. The writing also hits that familiar Miley lane where she shrugs at existential disaster but still sounds like she’s still holding onto hope.
Daniel Caesar – "Who Knows"
“Who Knows” is one of Caesar’s most bare-faced songs to date, incorporating gentle guitar, light keys, and his voice sitting almost unadorned in the center. And the writing here doesn’t overcomplicate things, circling the doubt around a relationship while effectively letting small details carry the weight. It’s also understated enough that the emotional hit sneaks up on you.
Zara Larsson – "Midnight Sun"
As the title track of Larsson’s 2025 album, “Midnight Sun” dives straight into luminous, European dance-pop with a bittersweet edge. A bright, surging chorus rides on top of synths that feel just a little hazy, like a summer night that never quite gets dark. It’s a clever framing of romance and self-discovery against the backdrop of those long Scandinavian evenings the song takes its name from.
Kali Uchis – "Sunshine & Rain…"
“Sunshine & Rain…” sets the tone for Sincerely, folding smooth R&B, slight psych flourishes, and a slow, swaying groove into one of Uchis’s most controlled singles. Over Dylan Wiggins’ production, her melodies move between tenderness and self-protection, never quite settling in one mood for long. It’s a clear blueprint for the album’s headspace: dreamy, guarded, and sharper than it first appears.
RAYE – "WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!"
RAYE’s viral 2025 single takes a joke premise and builds it into a full narrative, rattling off an ever-more-specific checklist of what she’s looking for over a swinging, almost cabaret-leaning arrangement. The production here stays nimble, giving her room to riff, ad-lib, and lean into the comedic timing without ever losing musical momentum. It’s almost theatrical, but underneath the punchlines is a pretty honest portrait of frustration with modern dating.
Cardi B – "Magnet"
“Magnet” is Cardi in full confrontation mode, but with a sleek, high-budget sheen that makes every line land hard. The beat moves between drill-adjacent drums and rubbery low-end, keeping her verses front and center while ad-libs snap around the edges. Lyrically, it threads personal jabs, status flexes, and commentary about how drama seems to stick to her whether she wants it or not, which makes the title land harder than a simple diss.
f5ve feat. Kesha – "Sugar Free Venom"
Japanese girl group f5ve’s “Sugar Free Venom” threads trap drums, glitchy electronics, and chant-like vocals into a single, hyperactive rush that you can’t quit. Underneath all the attitude is a pretty simple idea—own your money, your image, and your independence—which gives its wild genre mash a surprisingly clear point of view.
Tame Impala – "Dracula"
On “Dracula,” Tame Impala explores psych-pop energy through a darker, nocturnal palette: saturated bass, echoing drums, and synths that feel like they’re slowly closing in. Parker leans into the vampiric metaphor as a stand-in for being a night person and the pull of escapism, running from daylight even as the party starts to fade. The result feels like a connection to his earlier work, but with noticeably sharper teeth.
Japanese Breakfast – "Picture Window"
“Picture Window” pairs a chiming, mid-tempo indie-rock arrangement with lyrics about intrusive thoughts and the kind of anxiety that sits just behind everyday life. The video shot on Seoul streets deepens that feeling, trailing a couple through time as the song slowly blooms. As a single from For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women), it feels like a small map of the record’s world, beautiful on its surface and still crowded with unresolved feelings.
Bon Iver – "There's a Rhythm"
“There’s a Rhythm,” from SABLE, fABLE, moves at an almost meditative pace, weaving acoustic guitar, light percussion, and atmospheric detailing around Justin Vernon’s falsetto. The lyrics circle the idea of finding a new rhythm for yourself, hinting at the moment you decide to step away from what you’ve always known. It’s quietly expansive, and the arrangement does that Bon Iver trick of sounding small and huge at the same time.
KATSEYE – "Gabriela"
“Gabriela,” KATSEYE’s breakout Latin-tinted leaning single, frames a fictional muse as both inspiration and warning sign. The groove pulls from reggaeton and pop, but keeps the percussion relatively light so the vocal harmonies get to do most of the driving.
GIVEON – "Rather Be"
“Rather Be” keeps GIVĒON’s baritone in its sweet spot—smooth but slightly frayed—over a restrained R&B arrangement that relies on soft drums and piano. The chorus boils down to a choice between one messy love and a safer, duller option, and the way he stretches certain syllables makes that conflict feel almost physical.
Sabrina Carpenter – "Manchild"
On “Manchild,” Carpenter turns frustration into theater, stacking barbed one-liners and melodic hooks over a retro, glossy pop-rock foundation. Guitars crunch, drums smack, and her vocal slips between sweet and scathing in a way that fits the album Man’s Best Friend’s larger interest in calling out emotional immaturity. It’s playful on the surface, but the specificity makes it land closer to a case study than a generic breakup song.
Lexie Liu – "X"
“X,” from Lexie Liu’s TEENAGE RAMBLE EP, rides a minimalist, late-night pop beat that enhances her cool, almost interpersonal delivery. The production stays narrow and controlled, so small melodic shifts and changes in tone end up doing most of the emotional work. It lands in that liminal space between runway soundtrack and late-night headphones song, sleek but still very much personal.
Rob49 – "WTHelly"
Rob49’s “WTHelly” barrels forward on heavy New Orleans bounce DNA and a hook that sounds custom-built for a crowd. It’s also the kind of song that explains his rise better than any profile could; engaging, charismatic, confident, and deeply rooted in where he’s from.
Naomi Scott – "Cherry"
“Cherry” marks a clear step into Scott’s current lane: a clean, mid-tempo alt-pop/R&B blend built on tight drums, a warm bass line, and light, flickering keys. Lyrically, it’s a gentle plea to slow down and not rush things, using simple, physical images to keep the message grounded. With her voice mixed close and conversational, the track feels less like a big persona showcase and more like a quietly confident check-in.
Bad Bunny – "Baile Inolvidable"
On Debí tirar más fotos, “Baile Inolvidable” stands out as a full-on salsa turn, folding classic Puerto Rican dance-band energy into his already genre-hybrid catalog. The horns and percussion feel almost old-school, but the writing is more reflective, turning a past dance into a memory he can’t quite leave behind. Paired with a video that literally finds him learning salsa steps, it lands as a simple love letter to the music and movement that raised him.
Soobin (TOMORROW X TOGETHER) – "Sunday Driver"
In a year full of maximalism, Soobin’s “Sunday Driver” wins by staying light on its feet. Bright guitar and a steady groove leave plenty of air around an easy, unforced melody, capturing the quiet thrill of taking the long way home. By the time it’s done, the entire song proves it’s built for the scenic route
Ruel – "I Can Die Now"
“I Can Die Now” is all about the high of feeling fully seen by someone, rendered in big strings, a dramatic build, and Ruel’s vocal climbing even higher than usual. The structure is old-school pop ballad—verse, pre-chorus, explosive hook—but the production keeps things modern with subtle electronic touches. It’s unabashedly sentimental, and that lack of irony is a big part of its charm.
no na – "shoot"
On “shoot,” no na taps into an R&B-tinted pop sound with a tight, mid-tempo groove that blends sleek 88rising polish with little flashes of their own flavor. The beat snaps and sways instead of overpowering, giving the four members room to stack harmonies and deliver lines about taking aim at someone’s ego “straight for the heart.” It’s a debut that hits with instant confidence, clear enough about its attitude that you get why it blew up so fast.
Role Model – "Sally, When The Wine Runs Out"
Role Model’s “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out” walks a tightrope between wry and genuinely bruised, sketching out a late-night connection over jangly guitars and an easy drum groove. Underneath the bright, summery melody, it’s easy to miss how uneasy some of the lines are on first listen. That contrast feels intentional—the night’s fun is real, but there’s a quiet question hanging over what happens when the buzz finally wears off.
Perfume – "Meguloop"
Perfume’s “Meguloop” is delightfully efficient J-pop futurism, spinning staccato synth figures and precision drums into something that still feels weightless, with the trio’s vocals cutting through like light. As a late-era single, it feels like the right place for the group to temporarily press pause—fully sure of who they are, with the door still wide open for what comes next.
CORTIS – "What You Want"
On their debut, CORTIS uses “What You Want” as a warning shot, fusing jagged, punk-leaning guitars with a tight, driving rhythm track. The opening vocal comes in already sure of itself, and from there the song keeps tightening the screws until the hook hits, all massed voices hammering the title over and over. By the time it peaks, it feels less like a single and more like a rallying cry, the kind of opener that tells you exactly what sort of group you’re dealing with.
HAIM – "Relationships"
“Relationships,” the band’s first single in three years, feels like equal parts sunset road-trip song and a therapy-session brain dump. Co-produced by Danielle Haim and Rostam, the song keeps the drums and bass slightly funky while the guitars shimmer around lyrics about questioning whether long-term love is worth the mess. Consider this another Haim hit.
