Todd is literally that tiktok meme that just says "Hey guys when you say something is for the girls and the gays can you include me as well? For the girls and the gays and Todd if its not too much problem"
@@jul1us787ikr? But all the songs in the list this year (and even some honorable) I knew of and even listened. Kinda shocked that there was only a single country mention (i don't like the genre and it seems even Todd is staying away, yikes)
Fr this years list was one song after another that had been in HEAVY rotation in my playlists throughout the year, i did not see the inclusion of Tyler/Sticky coming but it filled me with so much joy, we're so back
@@JonathanLedbetter and both of them would have easily made the list (possibly top 3 in a worse year). Chappell, Kendrick, Charli xcx, and Sabrina Carpenter really put up some great work this year. Music was fun this year for sure.
I've been working Lollapalooza for like 15-16 years as a bartender, and when Chappell Roan played her set the park was so packed people could barely move. Next day we heard that it was a record breaking crowd. That was my introduction to her. I'd never seen anything like it in all my time working there.
Had a friend go to Osheaga (Montreal's biggest music festival) last summer. They had booked her the previous year, before she blew, but they certainly had bet on the right horse. My friend also said that he'd never seen so many people there.
Dude the Chappell Roan crowd at Lollapalooza was INSANE!!! I've been to plenty of music festivals but I have NEVER seen a crowd that big, especially for a brand new star. She is beyond a super star already
When I saw espresso getting really popular I was like "I bet Todd in the shadows is kicking his feet and giggling right now because he predicted right"
Same, in anticipation for this video, I visited last years top and when his bit came up I was like "I bet hes gonna mention it this year" lmao what a killer prediction
@mayaan773 He's actually mixed race (I believe one of his parents is Vietnamese, not sure if he's confirmed his race beyond that). But otherwise, yes, he's the one valid cishet man.
Many a poster online ridicules Todd for his predictions, only for him to hit the mother of all home runs with Sabrina. You earned the right to enjoy that.
@@Venzynt Just say your boring and don't like yourself! Espresso is fun, silly, and tongue-in-cheek. It encapsulates a fun summery afternoon where you're feeling playful, confident, and not taking life too seriously.
I know Todd jokes all the time that he's gonna retire before making another video, but I'll genuinely miss him when that finally happens. After like a decade of following his videos, this is probably the best he's ever made.
@@thegreatmoof I've only been following him for the past couple years or so. I got hooked when I saw his One Hit Wonderland on "You Get What You Give" -- it just hit all the right notes for me. I've gone through and watched just about every video he's ever done at least once, with many of them 3-4 times. I even listened to his podcast. He has perfected his craft by this point, and he would leave a devastating hole if he were to hang it up.
maybe it's a joke about Finn McKenty, the Punk Rock MBA. he said he quit RUclips because he had no actual interest in music and was just doing it for the money (but everyone knows that's bullshit)
These days there is something genuinely emotionally significant to me about his end of the year lists in a way has never been the case with any other critic. The last two picks made me a little emotional
todd has the energy of a dad whose kid just came out as queer and is trying his best to be supportive even though he has no idea what's going on, and i'll never get tired of it
Honestly if Todd ever had kids IRL that came out as some flavor of queer-he’d be the best, most supportive and chill dad ever. Marching in parades, waving flags…I bet he’d do it all. In a black hoodie, ofc.
I promise i say this with love as a former theatre kid myself. But the idea that Todd ever thought it was stolen valor for him to talk about what theatre kids are like when he spent all those years over at channel awesome is genuinely mindblowing
Look, if you’re friends with all the theatre kids, you get clipped by theatre kid drama, and you somehow end up going to Denny’s with the gang after tear down you’re a theatre kid idgaf what anyone says lol
My favorite part of Pink Pony Club is that it's got a sister/almost-sequel song in California, which is an absolutely tragic song about getting what you thought you wanted, moving out to the west coast, and then not finding any success and wanting to just give up and move back in with your parents at home -- and that's what she *did* when she got dropped from her label shortly after this song came out. There's a world in which she never did end up catching on and having the summer she did last year, and California lives as a capstone to someone who tried, failed, and was mostly forgotten.
The "Pink Pony Club"/"Naked in Manhattan"/"California" sequence is my favorite part of Midwest Princess. (Also love NiM for the out-there Mulholland Drive reference. Rest in Peace David Lynch.)
i think it's cause the best of taylor we've seen this year weren't really hits (which we haven't seen since folklore), the deep cuts from ttpd are good just not pop smash material
Was a little surprised Good Luck Babe didn't make number 1... and then I heard the piano intro, and Todd getting into it all and was like "oh. ooooooooh. fair."
What a rollercoaster: -Think halfway through the video that Pink Pony Club is probably #1 -Forgot she only made 1 song this year when Good Luck Babe came and felt a bit sad -Started thinking that the #1 song is country -Music video starts and it's American dudes in bar ---> oh my god it's fucking country -Realize it's PPC Peak 10/10
When I first saw the music video intro I thought it was “you look like you love me” by Ella Langley and Riley Green because that’s indeed a country song whose music video takes place inside a bar (or an old-timey saloon I guess) I felt dumb at the time for thinking that but glad I’m not the only one who was initially misled
I love how your reaction to Birds Of A Feather starts with going "wait, this is Billie Eilish? This could be anybody" and ends with "this is the greatest song I've ever heard" because that's pretty much how it went for me too lol. It's waaay too optimistic and on the nose for her style, but I buy it entirely. it's just such a universal feeling
Don't remember where but I thought the interpretation of the song was generally as a pov of a obsessive fandom of her. But now I can't find a source but can't get that interpretation out of my mind 😅
@@BonJoviBeatlesLedZepit fits because the whole album is a HUGE evolution from what her style has been. I've LIKED Billie since she became popular but I never LOVED her, always felt like there was something missing. 2024 was the year where she finally realized all of her untapped potential and I'm very happy to finally love her music
I feel like the song is deceptively optimistic, which is actually quite on brand for Billie. The lyrics depict an unhealthy love with lots of morbid references to death, and the instrumentals evoke a multitude of conflicting emotions, resulting in an overall melancholic tone. The song is wrapped up in a way that's so different from how she's done it before, but it's 100% Billie. Such a brilliant reinvention of her style!
@chuckbatmangaming Same, HMHAS made Billie my favourite artist, I liked her before, but that album put her on another level for me. A level no other artist has reached before. Billie and Finneas are just making some gorgeous stuff. I hope they'll continue that as long as they enjoy it too.
I think Todd's gotten a lot better at calling trends than he was a decade ago. Pretty sure John Legend's All of Me was already climbing the charts back when he made his Grammy video saying he hadn't even noticed the guy had a new single.
I always get tears in my eyes when I hear pink pony club, and you put the why into words so well: it’s the optimism of “if I just go far away, I can be myself and everything will be rainbows and happiness”. I guess I get emotional because I’ve done that
I feel like it really does hit harder, too, because queer people are now in a state of “Will we even have the choice to live in a couple years or months,” so the song really is all of us wanting to escape to rainbows and happiness. I’m glad it worked out for you, kind stranger!
It’s just such a fucking great SONG too. Every part of it is phenomenal, the arrangement, the synth work, the lyrics, the tone, every bit is perfect. It just popped into my head after my wife has been playing a lot of CR a few months ago, and it’s like musical crack. It’s such a wonderful song from front to back, and the album is just as great.
Todd stumbling into being the friend of a bunch of drag queens cause they started showing up at his usual spot and he didn't feel like leaving the bar is the most Todd thing I've ever heard
@@prodbyellias someone who’s ex told him “you make me happy but I feel like I can do better” when getting dumped good luck baby is depressingly relatable
I love that Drake was making fun of Ken for having no bangers, only for Ken to drop an album of bangers that tied Drake's commercial records and had a meme bigger than anything Drake has had in years.
ngl, I actually teared up when you revealed Chappell Roan was your number 1 AND 2. She's come so far, I'm so glad she's finally getting her recognition.
She's so very talented that it's a little astonishing at this point to think about how close we came to a world where she just never took off and quit pop music. Her rise is well-deserved, all the more for being long overdue.
I know Todd mentions being cynical and in it for the money, but I hope he doesn’t think he’s bad at his job. The best kinds of critics are the ones you can disagree with and still find interesting, and he is absolutely one of those for me.
Absolutely! I have several songs on my playlists that I got from Todd’s Worst lists, but I’ll always watch another video when it drops, because comedy is king!
I’m a teacher and I had the privilege of working in a very artsy, theatre-focused school. Every year before Christmas the teachers put on a little show for the students where different groups put on some choreography set to popular songs. I can confirm your thoughts about Pink Pony Club being an anthem for theatre kids; that auditorium was like the floor at an A-lister’s concert.
One thing I'll say about espresso, it might sound arrogant but the story behind it is actually the opposite. She was feeling super insecure cause her last relationship ended in the guy ghosting her for his ex, she had nobody who showed their interest in her. She wrote espresso cause she needed to feel good about herself again. And I think thats largely why it works. Yes, her wordplay that only she could pull off is important, but I think the heart of it is that when you're singing along to Espresso, it makes you feel good, and I think it does that because that's what it did for Sabrina too
It’s like On My Mama last year you can never tell the pick me songs are pick me ups cause they play it so confident it’s impossible to tell! Iconic to now know this!
So you are eating up this marketing bullshit? Some random author wrote that shit during a lunchbreak, it was bought for her and then they made up a story and fed it to TikTok teens.
Lol as a fellow man who is actually too straight to feel the queer struggle your comments about Chappell Roan and your friends feeling unsafe really brought tears to my eyes. I sure hope everything will turn out relatively alright in your country. Love from Germany.
Speaking of - I listened to it, and between the outro music sounding like some song by Passion Pit or Foster the People circa 2010, and her singing voice sounding reminiscent of Kate Bush in the 80s, I TOTALLY get Todd saying it sounds timeless Edit: MGMT’s “Time to Pretend”! That’s the song the chirping riff reminds me of!
It was so validating to hear Todd talk about Good Luck, Babe! like that. I am a straight, very happily married woman and I SOB every time I hear that song. So heartbreaking
To quote a drag show I was at this year “you know that you’re in a gay club when Chappell Roan gets a bigger cheer than Taylor Swift”. That’s when I knew she was going to be a star.
I remember back around 2018 (I think it was the Halsey “Without Me” video) when Todd made the point that there weren’t a lot of big iconic pop stars anymore with their own vibes and personalities. Well, I’m happy to say that’s not the case anymore. Between Billie, Olivia, Chappell, Sabrina, Charli, etc., there’s so much personality and charisma in the pop music scene now. The next generation has definitely arrived and I’m 100% here for it.
I am really happy to see Gen Z (zoomers) blossom last year. Music was getting so insanely bad like just poop poop boop boop autotune computer tells me what to doooo, of course your Generation was going to literally rescue music.
I thought you were a crazy person for putting "Not Like Us" at #6, but with each new song you introduced afterwards I found myself thinking "no I guess that does make sense"
work closing shift in an electronics department. every night since it came out I've had "turn this tv off, turn this tv off" play in my head the moment the customers are out. ridiculous earworm and it’s only like the third most memorable hook on the song. absolutely the right gnx song for this list lol
I listened to Juno because of Todd, was also impressed by the guitar and drum work, checked to see who did it, and the producer for the song John Ryan is credited with like... everything that isn't Sabrina on this song. Literally, from wikipedia/the liner notes on the record: John Ryan - producer, songwriter, drums, guitar, keyboards, percussion, programming, engineer, bass I thought surely he did not do all of that. I googled him and uh it looks like he did. He's a multi instrumentalist and producer whose worked with a ton of huge artists. He produced Bad Chem , Feather and Taste, and i'm low key afraid of how talented he seemingly is.
Skimming his wikipedia- he also did all the best One Direction songs and a bunch of random songs I've always been fond of. I'm kind of shocked he isn't a bigger name.
....I just keep imagining him locked in a studio going from instrument to instrument like a goddamn machine, straight faced as very horny lyrics play on a loop in the background
Hey Todd, I don't know if you're reading this considering it's a RUclips comment and given that you're probably dead exhausted after finishing this video (which BTW, hope you get some good rest in and are taking care of yourselves), but I just wanted to say thank you so much for doing this. Honestly, this might be your best of the best hit songs lists you made and just seeing you passionate about the amount of good music that has come out this year really put a smile on my face. Also, the last thing you said for #1 is something that I think I needed to hear during this dark time. "Keep dancing." Indeed. You're the kind of person that I really aspire to be like as a RUclipsr. Someone who is funny, informative, and overall entertaining while just being an overall presence that's fun to be around. I hope you know that you've really been someone that I look up to and that I'm grateful you're still making great videos as we're all headed for a rough point. So with that said, thanks so much for still doing this and for this video. Keep dancing too, Todd. ^^
I still like last year's best list more. It feels like he totally clocked the 2024 vibe before it happened, discovering his inner teen girl like all of America did this year. Toddstradamus indeed
Oh wow, holy shit, did not expect to see you here! It's MikeTheHuman113, btw, lol. Always nice to see a fellow Todd fan in the wild. But yes, if for whatever reason you're reading this, Todd, it was nice to see you gush over your favorite music in such a banger year for pop as this one. However long you truly end up doing this, I and many others have been enjoying your work for years, and your perspective in the realm of pop music is one that has been nothing short of invaluable in the widespread appreciation of the genre. Also, good to know you're indeed behind the "bands singing karaoke to their own songs" account on Bluesky, lmao.
@@ragalyiakosdon’t hate it at all but it just shouldn’t have been included on this particular list. You can say something doesn’t make sense without hating it
The segue jokes this year are on another level. And Todd mentions wishing he could write a review as scathing as “Not Like Us”, and I’m not gonna say he’s on that level, but he’s had so many lines that have been uniquely brutal. “Uptown Funk if Michael Buble wrote it.” God damn.
Todd does great one liners, just not enough on a single topic to stretch into a full song. Maybe if he dropped a diss track with all his angry comments about Maroon 5, but even then, I don’t know if he could get a full 3 minutes…
I saw Chappel Roan in a small venue in Illinois back about 2018 when she opened for Declan Mckenna. I was blown away by her performance in this tiny bar room. It was maybe 200 people max. I knew in that moment that she was special and hoped she would make it big. So happy to see it come true. It was truly a mesmerizing performance.
the lines "when you wake up next to him in the middle of the night/with your head in your hands you're nothing more than his wife" from good luck babe low-key gave me a crisis
The main line of the chorus, "you'll have to stop the world just to stop the feeling," is one of the most incredibly evocative lines in a pop song... ever.
@@one-onessadhalf3393 I literally learned about it from animatics and I was so inundated with them I avoided listening to the full song for the last, like, 4 months. Finally realizing how weird it is I haven't listened to it so. On my way now. EDIT: HOLY SHIT
Honestly mad that Todd’s thoughts about Espresso are “it’s a song that never gets old, it only gets better the more you hear it” and it’s number 10. Genuine all time year for pop music
I didn't realise how much Chappell Roan had blown up until my well meaning but still slightly conservative Australian mother mentioned how much she loved Pink Pony Club. I know it's hard to do these lists every year but your hard work is greatly appreciated and thank you for being a consistent link to pop music for this aging millennial.
I hear Good Luck Babe in the gym all the time and while that's not a huge indicator of something being big, it can help. I'm pretty sure the staff at the gym set the music as different locations are slightly different, but I'm sure I've heard Good Luck Babe at least once every time I've gone to the gym since the end of summer. Before that, I only knew her as someone all the Tumblr gays would talk about.
I'm a US Army Retired combat veteran. I'm a straight black guy who grew up in the projects of Chicago. I absolutely love Chappell Roan. 🤷🏾♂️ Pop music is like magic. It's damn near universal. I'm not a young gay girl wanting to run away from the Midwest to party in gay clubs in LA. But I'm driving in my pick up truck singing Pink Pony Club at the top of my lungs. Also yes Todd CHROMAKOPIA is my album of the year. GNX is great but I keep going back to CHROMAKOPIA and playing the album in full.
I felt like GNX was great for what it was meant to be but that it’s just a warm up for what Kendrick releases next! I stilllll love TPAB way more. It might have a lot to do with my love for the collaborators on that one though idk. It’s all subjective lol. Chromakopia???? Leagues above GNX imo. Tyler worked hard on that and you have to really sit down and take it in at some points, dance around the room at other points lol.
Pink Pony Club has always resonated with me as a young closeted sapphic in a conservative country. in the same way that Chappell ran away to LA, I’ve also considered escaping to a safe space where my identity is celebrated rather than othered, where I can keep on dancing without the fear of judgement. but with the rise of homophobic sentiment both worldwide and within my country (the election of a specific orange man who opposes everything i stand for, the disproportionate influence of religious groups who silence us under the guise of “protecting the children” and “preserving the family”), I’ve given up on believing that this safe space exists outside my delusions that I’ll be accepted one day. I don’t want to lose hope though, as I desperately want to live as myself without prematurely killing off the confident, genuine person I could be if I came out. Todd, thank you for recognising the value of this hope even if it may be naive. the world is suffocating, but I’ll keep on dancing. as an act of rebellion, as proof that I’m still here. 💗
I'm an out lesbian who still lives in a very conservative area, and I just want to reassure you that you can carve out that safe space for yourself almost anywhere. It really sucks to live in a hostile world where reactionary hatred is on the rise, but even so you can find people who will love, accept, and support you just as you are. It was a difficult process when I first came out, but it was very much worth it to build the kind of life I find worth living. I hope you're also able to find your safe space and live your life the way you want to some day.
As a 30something queer who spent a good decade or so finding my people, hang onto that hope. I promise you they're out there. Finding them is hard, and building that community for yourself and the ones you care about is harder. It's never done and it's never as perfect as you fantasized about, but it's the best thing I've ever done in my life. People like us have been carving out our own safe spaces ever since there have been people, and we're gonna keep doing it.
You know, Mr. In the Shadows, I don't actually mind these videos being chronically late. Waiting for the best list provides the exact right amount of anticipation to keep me going through January.
i was absolutely flabbergasted when good luck babe was number 2 and was SO ready to be mad at whoever you put above her and then i got to number one and you did in fact pick the only song i could accept being higher than good luck babe, well done.
Yeah, I thought for sure Good Luck, Babe! would be number one, no contest. I was very confused about what on earth number one was going to be if not that. When the reveal came, I literally applauded. I didn't see it coming at all, but it was so right.
Todd, it might just be the estrogen in my system, but I cried listening to you talk about pink pony club and being surrounded by what I could best describe as queer joy.. and the talks you've had to have with your LGBTQ friends over the current administration. You're absolutely right, these are the types of songs we need right now. Optimistic tracks that tell stories that we may not be able to live out in the near future. It's a scary time (especially as a trans woman), but we have to fight to protect our futures, fueled by what we know is at stake. Thank you for being here for the queer community. we protect us 🙏
2024: Kendrick Lamar drops the musical event of the decade. 2025: Kendrick Lamar captivates the nation with an all-time Super Bowl halftime show. 2028: Kendrick Lamar is elected President of the United States.
I hadn't really processed it as a piece of art because I was already tired of it on day 1, but yeah uh. So like I just think. I really hope Pink Pony holds sufficient whimsy and hope to cover the next four years cuz imma need it.
Beyoncé professing love to Miley Cyrus on a ballad aged way better than all the other affection she threw to her own husband on the entire album, and personally I love that for sapphic representation on 2024
@@audoodle9963 just imagine it's about her extremely buff, long time personal bodyguard Julius like the rest of the hive, since we too don't really care for Jay-Z 😊
I don't know if it was a joke or serious (or both), but I'm glad Todd didn't announce his retirement. Having said that, Todd, you do whatever you need to do to keep yourself sane and healthy.
@@SamridhAnand Finn McKenty aka the Punk Rock MBA is a youtuber who made videos about the history of punk and hardcore music, but a couple weeks ago he announced his retirement by saying "Yeah so I literally did not care or even know anything at all about what I was talking about, I don't even listen to music, I just did it for the money and all my fans should have realized that I didn't care about this, now I have enough money and I'm just gonna start being a LinkedIn influencer", and that went over about as well as you could expect lol
Got married this year and walked down the aisle at my lesbian wedding to a Chappel Roan song. Love seeing how much she's absolutely blown up this year, and my wife and I loved seeing her top Todd's list
@@khatunamezvrishvili6211 It was Red Wine Supernova! We used an orchestral version for the processional theme, and the normal version for our dance right after the ceremony!
I have a really specific memory associated with Pink Pony Club that I will hold close for the rest of my days. So it was late July. I had JUST started seeing this new girl. She really emboldened me, made me feel hella brave, so one night when me and a bunch of her friends went out for karaoke, I decided to wear a dress out in public for the first time ever, and I was really feeling it. Whole night goes by, we are living, it's a warm summer night, I love life. At the very end of the night, the last song is Pink Pony Club. Me and her were walking to my car, and we were singing along as it echoed down the street, arm in arm. From the opposite direction comes this fuuuuuuckin' DRUNK guy. He immediately launches into this TIRADE about how us sodomites need to take it back to San Fransisco and how we're lucky he's not kicking our asses cuz he's got two strikes already. It SOUNDS threatening but all we could do was laugh at him as he slurred. We got into my car and drove away. I've never felt more powerful than I did that night, careening down the highway, rocking my black dress, one hand on the wheel and the other on her thigh, and Chappell was the soundtrack. whenever I put that album on, I'm gonna remember that night.
Since the music industry was so huge last year, it was hard for Megan who always stands out, to stand out. I love Hiss but it’s on par with all her work.
Todd's reaction to the slowed down part of Good Luck, Babe: "Aww, thats sweet" Todd's reaction to the slowed down part of Sweater Weather: "Hello, Human Resources?!"
So many great moments and selections from this one, but I especially loved the Birds of a Feather bait and switch, and his comment about it being what our grandkids will dance to. HELL YEAH, TODD!!
I remember hearing Pink Pony Club once in 2020 when I left spotify on autoplay and thinking "This could be a hit. Hope I hear something else from this girl."
I’m always so later to stuff. Like I hated Billie Eilish at first. Now she charged my entire life Sabrina I hated nonsense but I was addicted to espresso this year I don’t like CR yet but it may be cause I don’t get it yet I only hate Billie cause I hate bad guy every other song she has is life changing
@Aurora_Fan_Ryan Saaaaame. I started listening to Olivia last March, Chappell in June, and Charli and Sabrina in October (I always arrive like months late to the pop girlies)
I never got into that one. The phrasing of "just. pre. e-tend." in the chorus drove me nuts in a way no song has since Katy Perry said she loved you unCOndiTIONalLY.
The Eternal Sunshine album and that song to an extent is what finally got me into Ariana Grande. Sure, seeing her perform that well in Wicked planted the seeds for me deciding to check out her music way beyond the passing familiarity I had to some of her hits (and feeling like they were a mixed bag), but still. And I did like around 2/3ds of her output, which was more than I expected considering that I mostly outgrew the pop charts around 2014-2015, just when she was first blowing up. I mean, I didn't know the majority of the songs featured in this list, which has been a recurring theme for the last few years. Ariana's latest album in particular is really that good, though it surely went under the radar with its understandable lack of promotion as Ari has ofc been focusing more on her movie. Regardless, ES absolutely deserves better. Though I wonder how her future music will pan out now that her pop career went past a decade long and her having found an opening in the acting world, thus most likely slowing down on new music. If anything, I'd like for her to experiment with some genre switch ups, regardless of how commercially successful it might pan out. I think her voice and range are way too good to stay in the Pop/RnB lane.
Personally my favorite thing about apple is that despite being angry and spiteful, it ends on a wistful note. She goes driving when she feels alone- where do her parents go when THEY feel alone? I'm no family therapist but I think the fact that she's trying to find common ground even when she's upset is very sweet.
This month has been so awful, but I knew that at the end of it there was a silver lining, Todd demonstrating that he has the taste of a 15 year old girl, my favorite yearly tradition!
I feel like I’ve been tuned out of the pop scene for most of my life. Every one of these lists I would recognise one or two songs. This year I’ve had all these songs on repeat. I don’t know what changed for me, but it feels great living through such a great time for pop music
It's just nice to get excited for pop music again. It's one of the most universal experiences humans can have: to relive a year through its music and what it made you feel and to share a hype with an entire generation of people across the world
Todd, I’ve been watching your videos for at least 8 years, one thing that really stands out to me that doesn’t get talked about enough is how far you’ve progressed as a piano player, your arrangements in the past few years for the intros have been much more subtly nuanced and passionate than they were at first and it really makes me happy to hear. It also has led me to appreciate on a deeper level the melodic structure of the songs you talk about. I know you might not take it too seriously but you’ve obviously been practicing a lot and it shows!! 💖
I have made a yearly tradition of watching these lists with my mother. She’s a huge music nerd, especially for the 70s and 80s, and this has been such a great way for us to bond. Thanks for that, Todd.
Todd, sorry about your burnout. I have definitely been there. Whatever you decide comes next, thanks for your videos. You've made a positive difference in my life....lots of laughter, lots of learning, and lots of good music. I am being earnest, not ironic. Best wishes, bro.
God it makes me so happy hearing you GUSH about all these artists. Makes me think of something you said ages ago about the worst lists which was “I don’t do these lists because I hate pop music. I do these because I LOVE pop music.” And I see it here more than ever.
even though Alligator Bites Never Heal didn’t make it in the honorable mentions, I really would encourage everyone to check out Doechii. truly gives the energy we need to survive the coming years
First of all, don't worry about releasing the year-end videos late. It's always good seeing videos from you, no matter how "outdated" they are. Second, Good Luck Babe! is the only pop song to genuinely make me cry in the last 20 years. Having felt like both the subject and the singer in that song, it hits way harder than any pop song has the right to.
"Having felt like both the subject and the singer" - I think that's what makes it so GOOD right? Yes, it's an "I told you so" song, but the reason Chappell is trying to get this girl out of the closet is because she has ALSO been there and ALSO knows it can't make her happy. There's too much compassion to sustain her anger when the song dies off. Aches so good.
Chapelle Roan manages to make songs that are both very well written and absurdly catchy. It's great to see really talented artists become enormously popular--I wish it happened more often.
As a person who was a fan of Chappell before she took off, it was so jarring to see her go from an artist who I could've seen for twenty dollars at a random bar in Clearwater, to someone I would have to take out a loan to go see. Bad for my wallet, but good for her.
Felt like instantly weeping with joy seeing Pink Pony Club taking top spot. That song makes me feel something I can't describe, every time I hear it. What a song.
fun fact about pink pony club: the gay bar she’s referencing in the song is The Abbey in WeHo. WeHo is like the Times Square of LA gayborhoods, it’s very popular amongst tourists, people who just moved to LA and basic locals. the general consensus from a gay angeleno perspective around WeHo is that it’s a lot more homogeneous, judgmental unfriendly, and bougie compared to other LA gayborhoods like DTLA or Long Beach or Silverlake. WeHo is also notorious for having bartenders that roofie customers. so in those other gayborhoods, we typically swap out the lyrics “down in West Hollywood” for something like “down in DTLA” and just pretend like WeHo doesnt exist lol
The fact that it's the most touristy and popular among newcomers actually adds to the feeling of naivete and innocence in a way. It reminds me of artsy American teenagers dreaming about moving to Paris, as if its still the heart of the artistic world it was in the 19th century.
@@pinkcupcake4717 i can see what you mean and you’re kinda right. but for a little additional context, WeHo doesnt usually “break the hearts” of people who look like chappell roan. by which i mean, WeHo primarily caters to white, conventionally attractive and well-off people in their 20s. she would probably do well there. and i say that as a hot white 26 year old myself. the way i see how people treat folks that look like me or chappell vs how they treat my fat or dark-skinned or middle aged acquaintances is night and day. and witnessing or even just hearing about that dynamic itself can be pretty heartbreaking.
Can't say I've been listening to her long. What I can say is that I got more and more excited the longer the list went on without her on it because that meant she was taking the top spots. Didn't expect top two though lol.
I’m a queer person myself and while I don’t live in the US, I’ve definitely been feeling the way that the rest of the world has been getting more dangerous recently. I just wanted to say thank you for how you talked about pink pony club, when I first heard that song it took me back to when I was in the closet and had hopes for the future that helped me keep on living even when it was tough. I’m not gonna lie, I teared up a bit at the end because the way you talked about it was so…real. It may not be the most deep or complex of a song, but it reminded me of my younger self and I hope it becomes hope for younger queer kids in the future who feel unsafe. I know I probably would’ve needed it a lot when I was younger. One of you best top 10s yet, thanks for a great 2024 in music analysis Todd!
Grammys are just over and it almost looked like the Recording Academy watched your Top Ten and then awarded the Grammys accordingly ! Congrats to another great review and great analysis !
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
Please never stop making this list. I care about this more than the Grammy's
YES same
Yesss I’ve been watching these since I was 14… I’m now turning 25 😭
Legitimately. I don't give two bugs about the Grammy's but I NEED Todd's lists every year
Real
This videos and Fantano's I only care about.
Todd is literally that tiktok meme that just says "Hey guys when you say something is for the girls and the gays can you include me as well? For the girls and the gays and Todd if its not too much problem"
hahahahahaha
i know this one from the aang version
At this point we might as well just officially declare Todd an honorary fruit and send him a membership card.
@@tatehildyard5332Motion seconded.
he’s allowed he gets the honorary membership
You know pop music is back when Todd's best list doesn't include a bunch of country songs I've never heard in my life 🔥
Fr im only halfway through but i actually know 3 songs so far most of the time todd puts in some bullshit
@@jul1us787ikr? But all the songs in the list this year (and even some honorable) I knew of and even listened. Kinda shocked that there was only a single country mention (i don't like the genre and it seems even Todd is staying away, yikes)
@@pasteldaze The closest one on the list was the Beyoncé/Miley collab, plus Luke Combs and Shaboozey on the runner-up list.
Fr this years list was one song after another that had been in HEAVY rotation in my playlists throughout the year, i did not see the inclusion of Tyler/Sticky coming but it filled me with so much joy, we're so back
@@JonathanLedbetter and both of them would have easily made the list (possibly top 3 in a worse year). Chappell, Kendrick, Charli xcx, and Sabrina Carpenter really put up some great work this year. Music was fun this year for sure.
I've been working Lollapalooza for like 15-16 years as a bartender, and when Chappell Roan played her set the park was so packed people could barely move. Next day we heard that it was a record breaking crowd. That was my introduction to her. I'd never seen anything like it in all my time working there.
Amazing. What a great story.
Had a friend go to Osheaga (Montreal's biggest music festival) last summer. They had booked her the previous year, before she blew, but they certainly had bet on the right horse. My friend also said that he'd never seen so many people there.
Dude the Chappell Roan crowd at Lollapalooza was INSANE!!! I've been to plenty of music festivals but I have NEVER seen a crowd that big, especially for a brand new star. She is beyond a super star already
When I saw espresso getting really popular I was like "I bet Todd in the shadows is kicking his feet and giggling right now because he predicted right"
I was truly happy for Sabrina since I did like quite a few of her post Disney singles but he was on a roll winning Pop Fantasy League so 🏆
Yessir, the whole time my friends were talking about Sabrina, I was pretty excited for him.
Same!! I was so excited for his video this year after seeing her rise up through the ranks
Same, in anticipation for this video, I visited last years top and when his bit came up I was like "I bet hes gonna mention it this year" lmao what a killer prediction
Todd: *reviews pop music for a living*
Also Todd: Why do I have so many gay friends, it's a total mystery
i did not know chapelle roan wrote a gay anthem since erasure of the 80s
@@notmomoayase Literally every song she wrote is a gay anthem 😂
@@tonberry2670😭😭😭
he's the token cishet guy friend in the queer friend group
@mayaan773 He's actually mixed race (I believe one of his parents is Vietnamese, not sure if he's confirmed his race beyond that). But otherwise, yes, he's the one valid cishet man.
Many a poster online ridicules Todd for his predictions, only for him to hit the mother of all home runs with Sabrina. You earned the right to enjoy that.
Espresso is trash, vapid writing, dragging breathy vocals, annoying conceited lyrics. Not hating Sabrina, taste and nonsense are both better
@@Venzynt Just say your boring and don't like yourself! Espresso is fun, silly, and tongue-in-cheek. It encapsulates a fun summery afternoon where you're feeling playful, confident, and not taking life too seriously.
@@Venzynt This guy is seriously committed to commenting the same thing over and over again💀 What did Espresso do to you, bruh? It's just a song
@@HannahPewee Feel free to present an argument.
Todd takes some really big swings so when he misses he really whiffs it, but when he hits it he really knocks it out of the park.
Todd: "Sorry this video is so late"
Everyone watching: "Hell yeah a new Todd video"
We know by now what we're in for.
Ah, the classic "it's actually not BetterHelp" sponsor subversion. Always great.
Never gets old.
Well going into Jersey Mike's, that's the sub-version.
I use SponsorBlock and I unskipped the sponsor bit for this one.
Did. Not. Disappoint.
@@Arbmanthesheep Dude..
@@SundryTornAsunder Someone rightfully removed the section from SponsorBlock.
I know Todd jokes all the time that he's gonna retire before making another video, but I'll genuinely miss him when that finally happens. After like a decade of following his videos, this is probably the best he's ever made.
@@thegreatmoof I've only been following him for the past couple years or so. I got hooked when I saw his One Hit Wonderland on "You Get What You Give" -- it just hit all the right notes for me. I've gone through and watched just about every video he's ever done at least once, with many of them 3-4 times. I even listened to his podcast. He has perfected his craft by this point, and he would leave a devastating hole if he were to hang it up.
Same, when I'm feeling really down I always go back to his videos for comfort
I'm gonna be devastated, Todd has been such a constant in life
maybe it's a joke about Finn McKenty, the Punk Rock MBA. he said he quit RUclips because he had no actual interest in music and was just doing it for the money (but everyone knows that's bullshit)
These days there is something genuinely emotionally significant to me about his end of the year lists in a way has never been the case with any other critic. The last two picks made me a little emotional
todd has the energy of a dad whose kid just came out as queer and is trying his best to be supportive even though he has no idea what's going on, and i'll never get tired of it
This is a video of him cheering for his gay kids and K.Dot, we gotta love it
@@sagetatakis8258”gay kids and k. dot” 💀💀💀
@@sagetatakis8258 the three genders: girls, gays and kdot
"My sister's not gay, but she dyed her hair blue and he doesn't know the difference"
Honestly if Todd ever had kids IRL that came out as some flavor of queer-he’d be the best, most supportive and chill dad ever. Marching in parades, waving flags…I bet he’d do it all. In a black hoodie, ofc.
I promise i say this with love as a former theatre kid myself. But the idea that Todd ever thought it was stolen valor for him to talk about what theatre kids are like when he spent all those years over at channel awesome is genuinely mindblowing
Look, if you’re friends with all the theatre kids, you get clipped by theatre kid drama, and you somehow end up going to Denny’s with the gang after tear down you’re a theatre kid idgaf what anyone says lol
@@AlexofZippo Basically a theater tech then
Todd, you realize you have until April 15th to submit your best songs list for the previous year? The IRS won't even penalize you.
Please don't let him know he can file an extension and not upload until October.
My favorite part of Pink Pony Club is that it's got a sister/almost-sequel song in California, which is an absolutely tragic song about getting what you thought you wanted, moving out to the west coast, and then not finding any success and wanting to just give up and move back in with your parents at home -- and that's what she *did* when she got dropped from her label shortly after this song came out. There's a world in which she never did end up catching on and having the summer she did last year, and California lives as a capstone to someone who tried, failed, and was mostly forgotten.
california is so good
California is my #1 favorite song of hers.
I've been saying that California is GOATed
California was one of the first Chappell Roan songs I heard back in like 2022/23, along with Casual!
The "Pink Pony Club"/"Naked in Manhattan"/"California" sequence is my favorite part of Midwest Princess. (Also love NiM for the out-there Mulholland Drive reference. Rest in Peace David Lynch.)
It's insane that this year, both Drake and Taylor Swift weren't on either of Todd's best or worst lists. Nature truly is healing
Drake is toast. TTPD isn’t really a singles kind of album.
Also, Taylor Swift has long lost the sauce
@@danielesquivel9326 When Kamala didn't win even after Taylor endorsed her, that was when I realized how little influence she has anymore.
@@jbwarner8626 Lorde also endorsed Harris.. famously calling her brat.
i think it's cause the best of taylor we've seen this year weren't really hits (which we haven't seen since folklore), the deep cuts from ttpd are good just not pop smash material
When talking about Sabrina's humor, you missed the line of the year: "Where art thou? Why not upon-eth me?"
Generational songwriter.
Come right on me- I mean camaraderie
Was a little surprised Good Luck Babe didn't make number 1... and then I heard the piano intro, and Todd getting into it all and was like "oh. ooooooooh. fair."
I was like “hell yeah top 2 are Chappell, wonder which song for number 2 because number 1 will be- wait a damn minute”
If there was a sweepstakes for number one I would have guessed Hot to Go, but I’m not mad
@lenaw6137 - Hot To Go is good, but the main reason I like it is some enterprising RUclipsr mashed it up with Mickey by Toni Basil.
Todd its not even February I wasn't ready for this
I know right? When Todd said the video was late I thought I might have fallen into a coma and missed a few months.
I had the same thought
Yah literally what is he talking about, he was early on this one
lol exactly he was early this year
That "I told you so" coming out of the bridge on Good Luck Babe gives me goosebumps every time
Good Luck Babe is at the top for me. It's so beautifully tragic.
I've been saying since I heard it, but that's gotta be the best bridge of the last 10 years. It's so good.
I had this exact thought while watching, glad Todd included it
Agree. It’s an excellently crafted song. Glad Todd included it
It has such a kate bush feel and chappell comes in and murders my heart because, girl...I've been there
saying a song "feels like it's always existed" i think is one of the greatest compliments you can give a songs
It often also means the song's vocals are double tracked and have slapback delay
Agree
What a rollercoaster:
-Think halfway through the video that Pink Pony Club is probably #1
-Forgot she only made 1 song this year when Good Luck Babe came and felt a bit sad
-Started thinking that the #1 song is country
-Music video starts and it's American dudes in bar ---> oh my god it's fucking country
-Realize it's PPC
Peak 10/10
Cinema
I'm so glad it wasn't another fucking country song I never heard of. 😂
He totally got me! And i am so happy for it!
oh so we all had the same experience LOL
When I first saw the music video intro I thought it was “you look like you love me” by Ella Langley and Riley Green because that’s indeed a country song whose music video takes place inside a bar (or an old-timey saloon I guess)
I felt dumb at the time for thinking that but glad I’m not the only one who was initially misled
I love how your reaction to Birds Of A Feather starts with going "wait, this is Billie Eilish? This could be anybody" and ends with "this is the greatest song I've ever heard" because that's pretty much how it went for me too lol. It's waaay too optimistic and on the nose for her style, but I buy it entirely. it's just such a universal feeling
It fits on the album too, which you'd think it wouldn't
Don't remember where but I thought the interpretation of the song was generally as a pov of a obsessive fandom of her. But now I can't find a source but can't get that interpretation out of my mind 😅
@@BonJoviBeatlesLedZepit fits because the whole album is a HUGE evolution from what her style has been. I've LIKED Billie since she became popular but I never LOVED her, always felt like there was something missing. 2024 was the year where she finally realized all of her untapped potential and I'm very happy to finally love her music
I feel like the song is deceptively optimistic, which is actually quite on brand for Billie. The lyrics depict an unhealthy love with lots of morbid references to death, and the instrumentals evoke a multitude of conflicting emotions, resulting in an overall melancholic tone. The song is wrapped up in a way that's so different from how she's done it before, but it's 100% Billie. Such a brilliant reinvention of her style!
@chuckbatmangaming Same, HMHAS made Billie my favourite artist, I liked her before, but that album put her on another level for me. A level no other artist has reached before. Billie and Finneas are just making some gorgeous stuff. I hope they'll continue that as long as they enjoy it too.
statistically toddstradamus has to get a win at some point and im always happy to witness one
Toddstradamus hits a lot it’s just that usually his misses are way louder than his hits, this was just a really loud hit he had
@Crosroad yeah even glorilla he got right
I think Todd's gotten a lot better at calling trends than he was a decade ago. Pretty sure John Legend's All of Me was already climbing the charts back when he made his Grammy video saying he hadn't even noticed the guy had a new single.
Personally i think hes actually more accurate than not
Quasimodo predicted all this
Hating is fun but the joy and compassion you exude talking about the music you like is magical.
I always get tears in my eyes when I hear pink pony club, and you put the why into words so well: it’s the optimism of “if I just go far away, I can be myself and everything will be rainbows and happiness”. I guess I get emotional because I’ve done that
I feel like it really does hit harder, too, because queer people are now in a state of “Will we even have the choice to live in a couple years or months,” so the song really is all of us wanting to escape to rainbows and happiness. I’m glad it worked out for you, kind stranger!
In these trying times, I feel like Pink Pony Club is the queer version of We'll Meet Again.
Don't leave us hanging - how did it work out?
It’s just such a fucking great SONG too. Every part of it is phenomenal, the arrangement, the synth work, the lyrics, the tone, every bit is perfect. It just popped into my head after my wife has been playing a lot of CR a few months ago, and it’s like musical crack. It’s such a wonderful song from front to back, and the album is just as great.
Todd being the Token CisHet Dude for his larger, very queer, circle is heartwarming and hilarious. We all need that guy in our circles.
Todd stumbling into being the friend of a bunch of drag queens cause they started showing up at his usual spot and he didn't feel like leaving the bar is the most Todd thing I've ever heard
yeah it felt weirdly natural when he said, that he relates to chappel roan
@@prodbyellias someone who’s ex told him “you make me happy but I feel like I can do better” when getting dumped good luck baby is depressingly relatable
Lowkey, Todd is like the quintessential token straight and I mean that as an *utmost* compliment.
@@saydaddy91 Oof, that's a rough one. I'm sorry, man.
I love that Drake was making fun of Ken for having no bangers, only for Ken to drop an album of bangers that tied Drake's commercial records and had a meme bigger than anything Drake has had in years.
Well said Sean.
Even before this year, Kendrick absolutely had bangers. Thank you, Kendrick, for making more
For a solid second I thought you were talking about Ken from Barbie. I sure was confused.
@@f-y8k Kung Fu Kenny
@@RockOfAllAges-81for real I remember pre pandemic swimming pools and humble came on at a party and best believe people turned up.
As a gay man who is from a small town with no gay scene who first time in a bar was in LA, Pink Pony Club hits so hard and means so much to me.
ngl, I actually teared up when you revealed Chappell Roan was your number 1 AND 2. She's come so far, I'm so glad she's finally getting her recognition.
Had a feeling she would be :)
She's so very talented that it's a little astonishing at this point to think about how close we came to a world where she just never took off and quit pop music. Her rise is well-deserved, all the more for being long overdue.
Every song on this list was an absolute banger. However, number three made me stop and actually stream the song because it’s so damn catchy.
omg princess hi!!
Yo Princess this is so cool, I just saw your Nosferatu video, great stuff
Between Tyler, Doechii, Kendrick, GloRilla, Meg, etc 2024 had some of catchiest, most memorable hip hop of my life.
@@letranger4461Doechii gotta make the best list next year, she’s so impossibly good
#3 screams “halftime at a HBCU football game in the South in the middle of October”, and I hear the call
I know Todd mentions being cynical and in it for the money, but I hope he doesn’t think he’s bad at his job. The best kinds of critics are the ones you can disagree with and still find interesting, and he is absolutely one of those for me.
Absolutely! I have several songs on my playlists that I got from Todd’s Worst lists, but I’ll always watch another video when it drops, because comedy is king!
It was a Punk Rock MBA (seriously, look it up, that situation is hilarious) reference, I don't think he actually meant it that seriously
I agree. I think a lot of his takes are trash but at the end of the day no one really makes content like he does
@@miglek9613I had to check that someone posted that in the comments so I wasn’t just imagining the reference x)
@@miglek9613 A truly money whack!
I’m a teacher and I had the privilege of working in a very artsy, theatre-focused school. Every year before Christmas the teachers put on a little show for the students where different groups put on some choreography set to popular songs. I can confirm your thoughts about Pink Pony Club being an anthem for theatre kids; that auditorium was like the floor at an A-lister’s concert.
In 2040 when Gen Alpha starts saying “music nowadays isn’t as good as it was in my day” they’ll be thinking of 2024
They might be right is the sad part, this year was very good. The best we’ve had in a long, long time imo.
And honestly? They might be right
I think they’ll think of this year the same way Gen Z thinks of 2012
@@tylerhackner9731yeah and early 10’s were a great time for pop music!
Call Me Maybe is still a jam.
Tbh I'm gonna be 45 and saying "music nowadays isn't as good as pop music when I was 30" because it'll be hard to top 2024
@@tylerhackner9731 2036 is going to go nuts, trust me
I forgot you didn’t make this video yet. 2025 already feels like it’s taking forever.
We're only 28 days into 2025 and already I'm missing 2024.
West Coast on fire. Lower forty are frozen. Current administration is on its way to being called the Current Regime.
Yeah. Yeah.
Yeahhhhhhh...no.
I agree. And yet, January also vanished. It's both and I don't know why or how.
I’m surprised it’s not 2026 yet 😨
Bruh, fr.
One thing I'll say about espresso, it might sound arrogant but the story behind it is actually the opposite. She was feeling super insecure cause her last relationship ended in the guy ghosting her for his ex, she had nobody who showed their interest in her. She wrote espresso cause she needed to feel good about herself again. And I think thats largely why it works. Yes, her wordplay that only she could pull off is important, but I think the heart of it is that when you're singing along to Espresso, it makes you feel good, and I think it does that because that's what it did for Sabrina too
It’s like On My Mama last year you can never tell the pick me songs are pick me ups cause they play it so confident it’s impossible to tell! Iconic to now know this!
@@sunnybloom7272yo i love your wording. Pick me becoming pick me ups is poetic to me idk.
The song is about her being made of espresso. "That's that. Me espresso"
So you are eating up this marketing bullshit?
Some random author wrote that shit during a lunchbreak, it was bought for her and then they made up a story and fed it to TikTok teens.
@@miskatonic6210 cool story bro
No joke - the first time I ever heard Chappell Roan I thought to myself; "that's Todd's song of the year." She's just incomparable.
Lol as a fellow man who is actually too straight to feel the queer struggle your comments about Chappell Roan and your friends feeling unsafe really brought tears to my eyes. I sure hope everything will turn out relatively alright in your country. Love from Germany.
Thanks for being a nice and empathetic ally
As another man from Germany who also teared up I‘m glad you wrote this comment because I felt embarrassed about it at first
America is a really scary place right now.
one doesn't have to be able to relate to the struggle of another to feel for them - the most important thing is that we look out for each other
It won't.
It escapes me why now, but I seem to remember it being something about actually voting... maybe... not sure.
I know Todd does truly hate making these lists but god do I wait for these every year and eat it up every single time.
I had Birds of a Feather close out my wedding reception. It was beautiful
I was already crying listening to the album and that came on and I was shaking crying Billie is life changing levels of masterful
Its a beautiful song sung by a beautiful singer, no one does it better!
Speaking of - I listened to it, and between the outro music sounding like some song by Passion Pit or Foster the People circa 2010, and her singing voice sounding reminiscent of Kate Bush in the 80s, I TOTALLY get Todd saying it sounds timeless
Edit: MGMT’s “Time to Pretend”! That’s the song the chirping riff reminds me of!
It was so validating to hear Todd talk about Good Luck, Babe! like that. I am a straight, very happily married woman and I SOB every time I hear that song. So heartbreaking
For Not Like Us, I was on a deployment most of this past year. Not Like Us was so big I heard it at a club in Greece
I was finishing college with a hospital placement when it dropped. I heard people singing it in the ER it was nuts
I saw a reel of Russian grannies discussing the beef and roasting drake 😂
@@sam3851I listen almost exclusively to modern metal.
"Not Like Us" was one of my favorite songs of the year, it made me check out GNX.
i heard it playing in a restaurant in china. literally a global hit
I heard it in a bar in Thailand. I also heard espresso on the radio in Malaysia.
To quote a drag show I was at this year “you know that you’re in a gay club when Chappell Roan gets a bigger cheer than Taylor Swift”. That’s when I knew she was going to be a star.
The year is never over until Todd releases his best songs of the year list
By the lunar new year calendar he didn’t do it before the end of the year
Then the end of 2024 has been REAL bad lol
Finally I can flip the calendar
i'm glad APT is not on the lists especially the honorable mentions is where APT mentioned by todd himself
Cashing in that sabrina prediction and minutes after making another correct one in Beyonce AOTY... are the days of toddstradamus behind us?
I remember back around 2018 (I think it was the Halsey “Without Me” video) when Todd made the point that there weren’t a lot of big iconic pop stars anymore with their own vibes and personalities. Well, I’m happy to say that’s not the case anymore. Between Billie, Olivia, Chappell, Sabrina, Charli, etc., there’s so much personality and charisma in the pop music scene now. The next generation has definitely arrived and I’m 100% here for it.
The industry finally realized if they just got out of their own way, there's enough creativity and enough personality for music to thrive
Guess it was just a rebuilding year
Absolutely!
I am really happy to see Gen Z (zoomers) blossom last year. Music was getting so insanely bad like just poop poop boop boop autotune computer tells me what to doooo, of course your Generation was going to literally rescue music.
Love how it’s so many women too
Listen I'm not even gay and Chappell Roan is the exact artist we needed. Seeing both her and Sabrina Carpenter claim 2024 is just great overall.
I thought you were a crazy person for putting "Not Like Us" at #6, but with each new song you introduced afterwards I found myself thinking "no I guess that does make sense"
All of these songs could’ve been Number 1 in a worse year
Birds of a feather is the only one that made me go "above not like us?"
work closing shift in an electronics department. every night since it came out I've had "turn this tv off, turn this tv off" play in my head the moment the customers are out. ridiculous earworm and it’s only like the third most memorable hook on the song. absolutely the right gnx song for this list lol
I listened to Juno because of Todd, was also impressed by the guitar and drum work, checked to see who did it, and the producer for the song John Ryan is credited with like... everything that isn't Sabrina on this song. Literally, from wikipedia/the liner notes on the record:
John Ryan - producer, songwriter, drums, guitar, keyboards, percussion, programming, engineer, bass
I thought surely he did not do all of that. I googled him and uh it looks like he did. He's a multi instrumentalist and producer whose worked with a ton of huge artists. He produced Bad Chem , Feather and Taste, and i'm low key afraid of how talented he seemingly is.
Dang a multi instrumentalist make me ga-ga honestly 😮
Skimming his wikipedia- he also did all the best One Direction songs and a bunch of random songs I've always been fond of. I'm kind of shocked he isn't a bigger name.
@@sam3851Unsung heroes... literally
....I just keep imagining him locked in a studio going from instrument to instrument like a goddamn machine, straight faced as very horny lyrics play on a loop in the background
@@sam3851hoping he gets some of that jack antonoff juice he seems impressive
Hey Todd, I don't know if you're reading this considering it's a RUclips comment and given that you're probably dead exhausted after finishing this video (which BTW, hope you get some good rest in and are taking care of yourselves), but I just wanted to say thank you so much for doing this. Honestly, this might be your best of the best hit songs lists you made and just seeing you passionate about the amount of good music that has come out this year really put a smile on my face. Also, the last thing you said for #1 is something that I think I needed to hear during this dark time. "Keep dancing." Indeed. You're the kind of person that I really aspire to be like as a RUclipsr. Someone who is funny, informative, and overall entertaining while just being an overall presence that's fun to be around. I hope you know that you've really been someone that I look up to and that I'm grateful you're still making great videos as we're all headed for a rough point. So with that said, thanks so much for still doing this and for this video. Keep dancing too, Todd. ^^
I still like last year's best list more. It feels like he totally clocked the 2024 vibe before it happened, discovering his inner teen girl like all of America did this year.
Toddstradamus indeed
100% up this
This comment made me tear up! So sweet to see such positivity 🩷
Oh wow, holy shit, did not expect to see you here! It's MikeTheHuman113, btw, lol. Always nice to see a fellow Todd fan in the wild.
But yes, if for whatever reason you're reading this, Todd, it was nice to see you gush over your favorite music in such a banger year for pop as this one. However long you truly end up doing this, I and many others have been enjoying your work for years, and your perspective in the realm of pop music is one that has been nothing short of invaluable in the widespread appreciation of the genre.
Also, good to know you're indeed behind the "bands singing karaoke to their own songs" account on Bluesky, lmao.
I think this might be the most sapphic best list Todd has ever made
Makes sense, it was a pretty dang sapphic year for music.
Todd in the shadows is queer culture
but we’re missing the boygenius squad 😢
oh yeah so THAT'S why I actually know all the songs this time, makes sense
Makes sense why I came across the video
The fact that a 2020 song topped a 2024 list, and we’re all ok with it, is fantastic
We?
@@Zaslanetz Hating popular things doesn't make you interesting.
@@ragalyiakosdon’t hate it at all but it just shouldn’t have been included on this particular list. You can say something doesn’t make sense without hating it
The segue jokes this year are on another level. And Todd mentions wishing he could write a review as scathing as “Not Like Us”, and I’m not gonna say he’s on that level, but he’s had so many lines that have been uniquely brutal. “Uptown Funk if Michael Buble wrote it.” God damn.
Todd does great one liners, just not enough on a single topic to stretch into a full song. Maybe if he dropped a diss track with all his angry comments about Maroon 5, but even then, I don’t know if he could get a full 3 minutes…
I like the song he described with that but it is completely accurate
Oh my god where is that Uptown Funk line from, it's amazing
@ worst of 2023
@@MeepsNcheese If I'm not mistaken, Top 10 Worst, 2022, #8: Music For a Sushi Restaurant, by Harry Styles
I saw Chappel Roan in a small venue in Illinois back about 2018 when she opened for Declan Mckenna. I was blown away by her performance in this tiny bar room. It was maybe 200 people max. I knew in that moment that she was special and hoped she would make it big. So happy to see it come true. It was truly a mesmerizing performance.
the lines "when you wake up next to him in the middle of the night/with your head in your hands you're nothing more than his wife" from good luck babe low-key gave me a crisis
It has so much animatic potential
The main line of the chorus, "you'll have to stop the world just to stop the feeling," is one of the most incredibly evocative lines in a pop song... ever.
High key
@@one-onessadhalf3393 I literally learned about it from animatics and I was so inundated with them I avoided listening to the full song for the last, like, 4 months. Finally realizing how weird it is I haven't listened to it so. On my way now.
EDIT: HOLY SHIT
the other day my mom got asked if she was (name of my dads) wife and i didnt truly understand that line until now and how degrading it is
"Not Like Us" may not be our anthem, but as of now, it is both Record and Song of the Year.
Honestly mad that Todd’s thoughts about Espresso are “it’s a song that never gets old, it only gets better the more you hear it” and it’s number 10. Genuine all time year for pop music
i find kinda mid and vapid 😅
@@slorenz5626i think it's vapidness is its charm. Kind off like early Katy Perry songs, ridiculous and horny. Will Todd ever be free😂
Espresso has been stuck in my head permanently since I first heard it
Yeah I thought it was kinda blah when I heard it at first, and then it just kept growing on me. Now I can sing every word.
I get why ppl like it but its a bit low key for me. I guess not compared to late 2010s tho lol
I didn't realise how much Chappell Roan had blown up until my well meaning but still slightly conservative Australian mother mentioned how much she loved Pink Pony Club.
I know it's hard to do these lists every year but your hard work is greatly appreciated and thank you for being a consistent link to pop music for this aging millennial.
I hear Good Luck Babe in the gym all the time and while that's not a huge indicator of something being big, it can help. I'm pretty sure the staff at the gym set the music as different locations are slightly different, but I'm sure I've heard Good Luck Babe at least once every time I've gone to the gym since the end of summer. Before that, I only knew her as someone all the Tumblr gays would talk about.
@@jlbeeenGLB was her highest charting song last year (even beating out “Hot To Go”!), and it was a top 10 hit
I'm a US Army Retired combat veteran. I'm a straight black guy who grew up in the projects of Chicago. I absolutely love Chappell Roan. 🤷🏾♂️ Pop music is like magic. It's damn near universal. I'm not a young gay girl wanting to run away from the Midwest to party in gay clubs in LA. But I'm driving in my pick up truck singing Pink Pony Club at the top of my lungs.
Also yes Todd CHROMAKOPIA is my album of the year. GNX is great but I keep going back to CHROMAKOPIA and playing the album in full.
I felt like GNX was great for what it was meant to be but that it’s just a warm up for what Kendrick releases next! I stilllll love TPAB way more. It might have a lot to do with my love for the collaborators on that one though idk. It’s all subjective lol. Chromakopia???? Leagues above GNX imo. Tyler worked hard on that and you have to really sit down and take it in at some points, dance around the room at other points lol.
Pink Pony Club has always resonated with me as a young closeted sapphic in a conservative country.
in the same way that Chappell ran away to LA, I’ve also considered escaping to a safe space where my identity is celebrated rather than othered, where I can keep on dancing without the fear of judgement. but with the rise of homophobic sentiment both worldwide and within my country (the election of a specific orange man who opposes everything i stand for, the disproportionate influence of religious groups who silence us under the guise of “protecting the children” and “preserving the family”), I’ve given up on believing that this safe space exists outside my delusions that I’ll be accepted one day. I don’t want to lose hope though, as I desperately want to live as myself without prematurely killing off the confident, genuine person I could be if I came out.
Todd, thank you for recognising the value of this hope even if it may be naive. the world is suffocating, but I’ll keep on dancing. as an act of rebellion, as proof that I’m still here. 💗
❤❤❤
I'm an out lesbian who still lives in a very conservative area, and I just want to reassure you that you can carve out that safe space for yourself almost anywhere. It really sucks to live in a hostile world where reactionary hatred is on the rise, but even so you can find people who will love, accept, and support you just as you are. It was a difficult process when I first came out, but it was very much worth it to build the kind of life I find worth living. I hope you're also able to find your safe space and live your life the way you want to some day.
As a 30something queer who spent a good decade or so finding my people, hang onto that hope. I promise you they're out there. Finding them is hard, and building that community for yourself and the ones you care about is harder. It's never done and it's never as perfect as you fantasized about, but it's the best thing I've ever done in my life. People like us have been carving out our own safe spaces ever since there have been people, and we're gonna keep doing it.
You know, Mr. In the Shadows, I don't actually mind these videos being chronically late. Waiting for the best list provides the exact right amount of anticipation to keep me going through January.
i was absolutely flabbergasted when good luck babe was number 2 and was SO ready to be mad at whoever you put above her and then i got to number one and you did in fact pick the only song i could accept being higher than good luck babe, well done.
Exactly how I felt 😂 it truly was the year of Chappell Roan ❤️
I was floored, and delighted. Only song I thought might be up there was Chihiro.
LITERALLY and then i was up screaming that she got back to back
Yeah, I thought for sure Good Luck, Babe! would be number one, no contest. I was very confused about what on earth number one was going to be if not that. When the reveal came, I literally applauded. I didn't see it coming at all, but it was so right.
That transition to TV Off was fucking PERFECT.
MUSTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRD!
*_MUSTAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRDDDDD_* 🗣🗣🗣❗️❗️❗️
I honestly fell for it and had skipped ahead only to realize my mistake when I saw the song.
I was wearing headphones at full volume
Full ass jumpscare lmaoooo
Timestamp?
@@miladkhan3313 7:50
Todd, it might just be the estrogen in my system, but I cried listening to you talk about pink pony club and being surrounded by what I could best describe as queer joy.. and the talks you've had to have with your LGBTQ friends over the current administration. You're absolutely right, these are the types of songs we need right now. Optimistic tracks that tell stories that we may not be able to live out in the near future. It's a scary time (especially as a trans woman), but we have to fight to protect our futures, fueled by what we know is at stake.
Thank you for being here for the queer community. we protect us 🙏
2024: Kendrick Lamar drops the musical event of the decade.
2025: Kendrick Lamar captivates the nation with an all-time Super Bowl halftime show.
2028: Kendrick Lamar is elected President of the United States.
Kanye could never
On a platform of 7:51
we can dream
Nice to see some optimism about this country's future for once
god willing
You might be in the Shadows, man, but you bring a little light to all our lives.
i don’t know why but the Chappell Roan part genuinely made me start weeping. straight up crying in the club rn.
I sobbed when it was Pink Pony Club
pink pony club always makes me smile and want to cry at the same time. i love it so much
Why the f are you watching youtube in the club? that's tragic.
I hadn't really processed it as a piece of art because I was already tired of it on day 1, but yeah uh. So like I just think. I really hope Pink Pony holds sufficient whimsy and hope to cover the next four years cuz imma need it.
@@Carloshacheit's a meme, relax
I’m loving the “assuming it hasn’t already happened by the time this video is out” bit, idec how many times he says it it just gets funnier
Beyoncé professing love to Miley Cyrus on a ballad aged way better than all the other affection she threw to her own husband on the entire album, and personally I love that for sapphic representation on 2024
bodyguard is one of my favorite songs of the year but when I listen to it I go "god this is about Jay-Z????" it just doesn't make sense to me
@@audoodle9963 just imagine it's about her extremely buff, long time personal bodyguard Julius like the rest of the hive, since we too don't really care for Jay-Z 😊
bey: hey miley wanna be on my country album we can duet
miley: sure i've got a song about lesbian outlaws if you need smth
bey:
bey: i'm listening
I don't know if it was a joke or serious (or both), but I'm glad Todd didn't announce his retirement. Having said that, Todd, you do whatever you need to do to keep yourself sane and healthy.
Don't worry it was just a jab at Finn McKenty
@jona7357 Could someone explain this jab? I feel like I'm missing some cool but pointless insider lore.
@@SamridhAnand Finn McKenty aka the Punk Rock MBA is a youtuber who made videos about the history of punk and hardcore music, but a couple weeks ago he announced his retirement by saying "Yeah so I literally did not care or even know anything at all about what I was talking about, I don't even listen to music, I just did it for the money and all my fans should have realized that I didn't care about this, now I have enough money and I'm just gonna start being a LinkedIn influencer", and that went over about as well as you could expect lol
@@djmarz7123 thanks for commenting and oh my god I'm so glad you did 'cause this sounds insane.
Got married this year and walked down the aisle at my lesbian wedding to a Chappel Roan song. Love seeing how much she's absolutely blown up this year, and my wife and I loved seeing her top Todd's list
congrats!
Was it Casual
@@pervertedreflectionthat would be very bad lmao
Which song was it??
@@khatunamezvrishvili6211 It was Red Wine Supernova! We used an orchestral version for the processional theme, and the normal version for our dance right after the ceremony!
I have a really specific memory associated with Pink Pony Club that I will hold close for the rest of my days.
So it was late July. I had JUST started seeing this new girl. She really emboldened me, made me feel hella brave, so one night when me and a bunch of her friends went out for karaoke, I decided to wear a dress out in public for the first time ever, and I was really feeling it.
Whole night goes by, we are living, it's a warm summer night, I love life.
At the very end of the night, the last song is Pink Pony Club. Me and her were walking to my car, and we were singing along as it echoed down the street, arm in arm.
From the opposite direction comes this fuuuuuuckin' DRUNK guy. He immediately launches into this TIRADE about how us sodomites need to take it back to San Fransisco and how we're lucky he's not kicking our asses cuz he's got two strikes already.
It SOUNDS threatening but all we could do was laugh at him as he slurred. We got into my car and drove away. I've never felt more powerful than I did that night, careening down the highway, rocking my black dress, one hand on the wheel and the other on her thigh, and Chappell was the soundtrack. whenever I put that album on, I'm gonna remember that night.
This year was so good that Todd forgot he’s a head hottie and didn’t even mention HISS by Megan the Stallion😭
😭
I was hoping he’d add megan, she had such a good year 😭
i was hoping shed pop out for the honorable mentions 😭😭😭
Maybe he’s saving a special video for it 🥺
Since the music industry was so huge last year, it was hard for Megan who always stands out, to stand out. I love Hiss but it’s on par with all her work.
Todd's reaction to the slowed down part of Good Luck, Babe: "Aww, thats sweet"
Todd's reaction to the slowed down part of Sweater Weather: "Hello, Human Resources?!"
To this day I cannot hear sweater weather without imagine them getting hypothermia during that part. Thanks, Todd.
Tbf - he doesn’t seem to think the slowed down part is “sweet”. Just… cathartic.
Finally my yearly dose of "hmmm this actually sounds pretty good, maybe I should've payed more attention to music last year"
I finally caught the wave. But boy, do I relate based on previous years 😅
@saranemcova5448 Yeah, to be fair I haven't recognize this many songs in his top 10 lists in YEARS, that's how good 2024 was
I honestly wish I _liked_ a single song on this list, besides Tipsy.
@FixTheWi-Fi u don’t like good luck babe?
Wig. 😅
So many great moments and selections from this one, but I especially loved the Birds of a Feather bait and switch, and his comment about it being what our grandkids will dance to. HELL YEAH, TODD!!
Shocked that doechii wasnt on this one but absolutely overjoyed at the list as a whole, another year of banging content from Todd!!
literally i was expecting nissan altima or denial is a river to get honorable mention at LEAST 😭 do have to agree w his picks tho
@@oswald2286 Denial is a River might not be on next years list either. It did chart in 2025, but not very high though. Might be an honorable mention.
@@ShinMario098 it's still rising
I remember hearing Pink Pony Club once in 2020 when I left spotify on autoplay and thinking "This could be a hit. Hope I hear something else from this girl."
I’m always so later to stuff. Like I hated Billie Eilish at first. Now she charged my entire life
Sabrina I hated nonsense but I was addicted to espresso this year
I don’t like CR yet but it may be cause I don’t get it yet
I only hate Billie cause I hate bad guy every other song she has is life changing
@Aurora_Fan_Ryan Saaaaame. I started listening to Olivia last March, Chappell in June, and Charli and Sabrina in October (I always arrive like months late to the pop girlies)
I’ve had Casual on a playlist for like 2 years, and then when her Tiny Desk came out and she opened with that I was like ‘Wait wha?!?’
hearing we can't be friends piano in the intro is what made me realize it didn't make the cut 😭
Yeah that one hurt a little bit. It absolutely slaps, even if it's a total ripoff of "Dancing On My Own".
Sameee and I totally had it on my Todd’s best list bingo
I never got into that one. The phrasing of "just. pre. e-tend." in the chorus drove me nuts in a way no song has since Katy Perry said she loved you unCOndiTIONalLY.
The Eternal Sunshine album and that song to an extent is what finally got me into Ariana Grande. Sure, seeing her perform that well in Wicked planted the seeds for me deciding to check out her music way beyond the passing familiarity I had to some of her hits (and feeling like they were a mixed bag), but still. And I did like around 2/3ds of her output, which was more than I expected considering that I mostly outgrew the pop charts around 2014-2015, just when she was first blowing up. I mean, I didn't know the majority of the songs featured in this list, which has been a recurring theme for the last few years.
Ariana's latest album in particular is really that good, though it surely went under the radar with its understandable lack of promotion as Ari has ofc been focusing more on her movie. Regardless, ES absolutely deserves better. Though I wonder how her future music will pan out now that her pop career went past a decade long and her having found an opening in the acting world, thus most likely slowing down on new music. If anything, I'd like for her to experiment with some genre switch ups, regardless of how commercially successful it might pan out. I think her voice and range are way too good to stay in the Pop/RnB lane.
It wasn’t even honourable mentions…
7:20 Todd was right
Personally my favorite thing about apple is that despite being angry and spiteful, it ends on a wistful note. She goes driving when she feels alone- where do her parents go when THEY feel alone? I'm no family therapist but I think the fact that she's trying to find common ground even when she's upset is very sweet.
exactly!!
I’ve met her dad. He seems like a regular British guy. I hope they’re all doing well
This month has been so awful, but I knew that at the end of it there was a silver lining, Todd demonstrating that he has the taste of a 15 year old girl, my favorite yearly tradition!
2024 is still an awful year for pop music even chappelle roan mentions two times in this video
This is actually your best best list yet, in terms of songs and in writing. Always outdoing yourself
watched the video in 2 minutes great job
@@seanod1234some of us watch it on nebula, but we can't comment on it until it gets here
there’s no way you watched the whole thing already bro 💀💀
It's only been out for 2 minutes when you wrote this
@@egill624lol im guessing its available on patreon or nebula or something
I have listened to "Clueless" a few dozen times since this list dropped. That's a new favorite of mine.
Thanks Todd!
I feel like I’ve been tuned out of the pop scene for most of my life. Every one of these lists I would recognise one or two songs. This year I’ve had all these songs on repeat. I don’t know what changed for me, but it feels great living through such a great time for pop music
It's just nice to get excited for pop music again. It's one of the most universal experiences humans can have: to relive a year through its music and what it made you feel and to share a hype with an entire generation of people across the world
Pops been great this year, like a real standout compared to previous ones
Same for me, first year where i know every song and have been actively listening to most!
Todd, I’ve been watching your videos for at least 8 years, one thing that really stands out to me that doesn’t get talked about enough is how far you’ve progressed as a piano player, your arrangements in the past few years for the intros have been much more subtly nuanced and passionate than they were at first and it really makes me happy to hear. It also has led me to appreciate on a deeper level the melodic structure of the songs you talk about. I know you might not take it too seriously but you’ve obviously been practicing a lot and it shows!! 💖
I have made a yearly tradition of watching these lists with my mother. She’s a huge music nerd, especially for the 70s and 80s, and this has been such a great way for us to bond. Thanks for that, Todd.
I love this comment ❤❤❤
Todd, sorry about your burnout. I have definitely been there. Whatever you decide comes next, thanks for your videos. You've made a positive difference in my life....lots of laughter, lots of learning, and lots of good music. I am being earnest, not ironic. Best wishes, bro.
God it makes me so happy hearing you GUSH about all these artists. Makes me think of something you said ages ago about the worst lists which was “I don’t do these lists because I hate pop music. I do these because I LOVE pop music.” And I see it here more than ever.
even though Alligator Bites Never Heal didn’t make it in the honorable mentions, I really would encourage everyone to check out Doechii. truly gives the energy we need to survive the coming years
Word!
I feel like we're going to see a lot of Doechii on his best of 2025 list
I was going to say, no Doechii?
I was definitely expecting Nissan Altima to appear somewhere on the list
This has to be the truth lol I was so confused when she didn't make it to this years@@maggie5990
First of all, don't worry about releasing the year-end videos late. It's always good seeing videos from you, no matter how "outdated" they are. Second, Good Luck Babe! is the only pop song to genuinely make me cry in the last 20 years. Having felt like both the subject and the singer in that song, it hits way harder than any pop song has the right to.
"Having felt like both the subject and the singer" - I think that's what makes it so GOOD right? Yes, it's an "I told you so" song, but the reason Chappell is trying to get this girl out of the closet is because she has ALSO been there and ALSO knows it can't make her happy. There's too much compassion to sustain her anger when the song dies off. Aches so good.
I've never seen the Pink Pony Club music video, how did that not make her a star it's actually insane.
Pink Pony Club is genuinely one of the best songs ever written, full stop. Its so amazing, its crystalized pure youth
Chapelle Roan manages to make songs that are both very well written and absurdly catchy. It's great to see really talented artists become enormously popular--I wish it happened more often.
As a person who was a fan of Chappell before she took off, it was so jarring to see her go from an artist who I could've seen for twenty dollars at a random bar in Clearwater, to someone I would have to take out a loan to go see.
Bad for my wallet, but good for her.
A Chappell Loan?
I am so sorry
@lrs3 I am so mad that I didn't think of that lmao 😂 good joke
Felt like instantly weeping with joy seeing Pink Pony Club taking top spot. That song makes me feel something I can't describe, every time I hear it. What a song.
fun fact about pink pony club: the gay bar she’s referencing in the song is The Abbey in WeHo. WeHo is like the Times Square of LA gayborhoods, it’s very popular amongst tourists, people who just moved to LA and basic locals. the general consensus from a gay angeleno perspective around WeHo is that it’s a lot more homogeneous, judgmental unfriendly, and bougie compared to other LA gayborhoods like DTLA or Long Beach or Silverlake. WeHo is also notorious for having bartenders that roofie customers. so in those other gayborhoods, we typically swap out the lyrics “down in West Hollywood” for something like “down in DTLA” and just pretend like WeHo doesnt exist lol
The fact that it's the most touristy and popular among newcomers actually adds to the feeling of naivete and innocence in a way. It reminds me of artsy American teenagers dreaming about moving to Paris, as if its still the heart of the artistic world it was in the 19th century.
@ i absolutely agree
honestly that makes the song hit all-the-harder, knowing she's dreaming of a place that will break her heart once she actually gets there.
@@pinkcupcake4717 i can see what you mean and you’re kinda right. but for a little additional context, WeHo doesnt usually “break the hearts” of people who look like chappell roan. by which i mean, WeHo primarily caters to white, conventionally attractive and well-off people in their 20s. she would probably do well there. and i say that as a hot white 26 year old myself. the way i see how people treat folks that look like me or chappell vs how they treat my fat or dark-skinned or middle aged acquaintances is night and day. and witnessing or even just hearing about that dynamic itself can be pretty heartbreaking.
Wait, so the song is about a specific real place but that place isn't actually named the Pink Pony Club???
chappell in the top 2 spaces… i’m emotional!!! i’ve been repping her since 2021
another Chappell fan here to congratulate you on always being right🙂↕️
Can't say I've been listening to her long. What I can say is that I got more and more excited the longer the list went on without her on it because that meant she was taking the top spots. Didn't expect top two though lol.
I am OVERJOYED!!!!
*Looks at profile picture* Yup, they're not lying
I got emotional too!! I love how Todd tees up the artists in the buildup to the reveal of who's music is in what spot, I teared up both times
I’m a queer person myself and while I don’t live in the US, I’ve definitely been feeling the way that the rest of the world has been getting more dangerous recently. I just wanted to say thank you for how you talked about pink pony club, when I first heard that song it took me back to when I was in the closet and had hopes for the future that helped me keep on living even when it was tough. I’m not gonna lie, I teared up a bit at the end because the way you talked about it was so…real. It may not be the most deep or complex of a song, but it reminded me of my younger self and I hope it becomes hope for younger queer kids in the future who feel unsafe. I know I probably would’ve needed it a lot when I was younger. One of you best top 10s yet, thanks for a great 2024 in music analysis Todd!
Same sex attraction is under threat from the gender goblins.
Grammys are just over and it almost looked like the Recording Academy watched your Top Ten and then awarded the Grammys accordingly !
Congrats to another great review and great analysis !