Biggest hits of 2011 NZ

This list will go over what was popular in NZ this year, although my commentary comes from my ranking of the biggest hits of the 2010's so keep that in mind when reading through this list.

This was slightly more successful in NZ than it was here in Australia, likely because while both parties remain a one hit wonder each over there like they do internationally, it had the presence of Kimbra who was a rising star in their local indie scene which no doubt led to the success of her album over there. The ballad has often been praised for creating a unique dynamic between the narrators of the song.

This would've been the biggest hit of all time in NZ during the pre-streaming era were it not for the success of Gotye and Kimbra's collaboration from earlier on this list, I guess this goes to show how similar our music scenes were in the southern hemisphere given how we not only had the same songs become hits, but also have said songs gain equal amounts of success.

Much like here in Australia, this was also Adele's biggest hit in NZ despite it failing to reach number one, again it was because it was a hit upon its initial release and then stuck around due to it being placed in every commercial you can think of thanks to her angry performance and the driving production to back it up.

I guess the kiwis weren't as excited about the Voice America as we Aussies were, granted they obviously still were excited about the series as this collaboration between two of the judges was still one of the biggest hits of the decade over there, however it wasn't as inescapable over there as it was over here.

This was more of a success in NZ likely due to Rihanna being more popular over there than she was in Australia throughout her career, admittedly it wasn't that much bigger over there as this lead single to her album Talk that talk was noticeably produced by Calvin Harris to the point where he even got a featuring credit on the track despite him not providing any vocals on the track (that I know of at least.)

I guess I didn't really talk much about the song itself when I featured it on the Australian side of this site, this was the closing track to Adele's second album 21 which is very different from the rest of the album as this is a more sorrowful ballad compared to how angry the rest of the album was. It provided the perfect contrast to the album which made it the perfect choice for a single.

It's a bit odd that although all three of LMFAO's hits in Australia were also as such in NZ, they would all be considerably less successful over there than they were over here despite them being made by members of Barry Gordy's extended family. I guess this would explain why Redfoo decided to launch his solo career in Australia as he felt we Aussies were his biggest fanbase in the world.

Unlike in Australia where this remains Pitbull's biggest hit, his earlier entry takes that crown in NZ even though this was as popular in both countries for the rapper at the time of its release. I'm surprised it wasn't more successful over there given how popular Ne-yo was throughout the 00's, although he does feel a bit wasted to me on this track as does the featured female vocalist Nayer.

This was slightly more successful in NZ than it was here in Australia, I guess the kiwis were more open to J-Lo having a comeback in the music industry during the height of the club boom than us Aussies as for the most part, Pitbull wasn't any more successful over there as he was over here during this time.

This was the first of many hits that Six60 had in their homeland this decade, technically their E.P Rise up 2.0 was their first hit, however that was clearly meant to go onto their album charts and instead of their singles chart (I'm guessing this was their equivalent of Ratcat's Tingles E.P from twenty years prior.) There are still plenty more entries from the reggae band to come going down this list.

It's worth noting that the bulk of this songs success in NZ was upon its initial release, meaning that it didn't need the Kanye West remix for it to become Katy's fourth consecutive chart topper over there like it did on Billboard. This is yet another international hit that saw more success in NZ than it did here in Australia, likely because again, the kiwis never allowed album sales to affect the popularity of their singles like we Aussies have.

It's no surprise that this was also equally as successful in NZ as it was here in Australia for Bruno Mars, in fact with very few exceptions, his popularity in both countries mirrors itself perfectly proving how much audiences around the world loved his music.

This was slightly less successful in NZ as it was here in Australia for Jessie J, this is surprising to me considering that "Do it like a dude" was a modest success over there (which we'll be looking much later on this list) which means they were all on board with what the British pop star had to offer from the beginning of her career. Indeed, two of her other hits this decade was much bigger over there than they were over here.

This was equally as popular in NZ as it was here in Australia, it goes to show how much we Aussies and kiwis loved Avicii's remix of an Etta James classic with Flo Rida rapping over said remix during the height of the club boom.

This was slightly more successful in NZ than it was here in Australia, or more accurately, it lasted longer on the upper echelons of their charts than ours likely due to the kiwis finding this more sincere of a self-empowerment anthem than we Aussies did. It was her third consecutive chart topper over there and her native America, proving just how inescapable she was throughout the world at the time.

Given how this didn't have to compete with David Guetta's collaboration with Usher, it managed to become slightly more successful for him and Sia upon its initial release which I'm sure is what led the kiwis to fully appreciate Sia given how this was released around the time her collaboration with Flo Rida was becoming a success worldwide.

I guess the kiwis weren't as amused by this song or its video back in the day as the rest of the world was, either that or they allowed the internet to have them second guess how popular this song should be given how even back then it was hard to find someone who enjoyed this song unironically.

The kiwis really must have loved Jessie J and her first album this decade as this proved to be way more successful for the British equivalent of Katy Perry over there than it did over here, although it's worth noting that their love of her only lasted for her debut album as well as her posse cut with Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj from later in the decade (which we'll get to in a bit.)

I guess the kiwis weren't as impressed with this sellout track from Coldplay as the rest of the world was, granted, none of their songs I've featured on this site had more success over there than they had here in Australia, so it's not like this song's lower placement on this list is much of a surprise to me.

Given how this was an instant success over in NZ as opposed to it needing to be a hit twice over here in Australia, it was inevitable that this debut single from 1D would be much lower on this list even though you can make the argument that the song was equally as popular in both countries despite how differently they were successful in them.

This was equally as successful in NZ as it was here in Australia for Lady Gaga, mainly because it's a song whose intentions cancel out the final product given how she's standing up for a good cause in the most bombastic and over the top way possible. It's little surprise that after "The edge of glory" (which is still to come on this list) she faded into obscurity worldwide until her 2018 comeback.

I'm not really sure why this song was less successful in NZ than it was here in Australia for Chris Brown, I would say because the kiwis were tired of him and everyone wanting to take away his prince of RNB crown except there's at least two more entries on this list and both of them performed much better on this list than on the Australian version.

Given how David Guetta's collaboration with Sia wasn't released around the same time as his collaboration with Usher in NZ, it means that said collaboration with Usher managed to be way more successful for him over there than it was over here as the kiwis naturally didn't have to choose which one of these songs to make a hit like we Aussies did.

There's little surprise that this was equally as successful in NZ as it was here in Australia, mainly because the song sounds like it would be the soundtrack to a film that was made specifically to appear on many worst films of all time lists which happens to be the case as that was exactly what happened to it upon its initial release. At least the song remains far better received to this day due to how laid back it is.

There's little surprise this was slightly less successful in NZ than it was here in Australia, although this means that all three of Eve's hits in the southern hemisphere saw fewer success over there than it did over here.

I guess both of the Australian chart toppers that Rihanna had from her album Loud were far less successful in NZ than they were over here, although in this case, it might be because the kiwis didn't find this track nearly as titillating as we Aussies did which would explain its lack of popularity comparatively.

Given how the kiwis weren't as in love with P!nk as we Aussies were, this didn't go straight to number one over there like it did over here which means its lower placement on this list was inevitable even though it was arguably as popular over there as it was over here for her. For whatever reason, P!nk would see more success in NZ than she did over here in Australia with her next album.

While this didn't reach number one in NZ like it did in America, it was nonetheless more of a success over there than it as over here likely due to the kiwis finding the music video to be hilarious given how it seems to borrow heavily elements of 80's films including the nerdy girl played by a hot woman and them getting a makeover that consists of a scene transition.

This was only barely more popular for Nicki Minaj in NZ than it was here in Australia, I guess the kiwis felt she was too much of a copycat of Lil Kim to give her more success initially given how she also failed to achieve any success with her debut album save for this bonus track from its deluxe edition.

This was slightly more successful in NZ than it was here in Australia for Ed Sheeran, likely because the kiwis felt this was a tribute to the 80's TV series of the same name and didn't end up minding when they realised the darker subject matter of the song like several online reviewers did back in the day.

I guess the kiwis weren't as impressed with this "homage" to Dirty dancing that BEP made as we Aussies were, it was still a big hit over there, however considerably less so than it was here. In fact, I'm sure they more than most people in the world like to pretend that the Beginning was never released given how much less successful that was over there overall compared to Australia.

This was the debut E.P that made Six60 a household name in their homeland, it was supposed to chart on their album charts but for some reason was placed on their singles chart which explains its high placement on this list given how popular it was upon its initial release.

This was another song that found more success over in NZ than it did here in Australia this decade, although this might be because it charted higher over there due to the video featuring Zelda Williams for some reason (she must have been a huge fan of them.) Like everywhere else in the world, the band's popularity died out once this fell off the charts.

This was one of the theme songs from the first Breaking dawn film from the Twilight saga, it was a song that wasn't well received at the time due to it being too melodramatic even for the likes of Bruno Mars and the Twilight saga despite it being a massive worldwide hit for him. It was a minor hit here in Australia, too minor in fact to qualify for the list.

It doesn't surprise me that this was more of a success for Rihanna over in NZ given how the song that it sampled was a hit over there for Avril Lavigne eight years prior, although we Aussies would've recognised "I'm with you" given how it did receive tons of airplay even if it was never released as a single over here.

This was the second hit that Six60 achieved in their homeland, it was a massive hit for them as was most of their catalogue which is why it makes a respectable appearance on this list of mine.

I guess the kiwis weren't quite as impressed with this tribute to the LGBT community that Kesha made as us Aussies and her fellow Americans were, I do remember this getting a lot of flak back in the day for how quickly it seemed to come out following a tragic shooting at an LGBT bar that happened that year. Kesha in general didn't see as much success in NZ as she did in Australia this decade for whatever reason.

This was also the final hit that Enrique Iglesias had in his career over in NZ (for now at least, I wouldn't rule out a comeback from him) it was for the same reasons as everywhere else in the world given how openly skeevy it is which no doubt led to the rise of PC culture later in the decade.

Given the popularity Gym Class Heroes had in NZ compared to Australia with their previous album, it only makes sense that this lead single to their final album would be slightly bigger over there than it was over here even if the other two songs from the album were more popular here than they were over there. I guess this was bigger due to the presence of Adam Levine who was on a roll this decade worldwide.

For whatever reason, this sat on shelves in NZ ignored for almost a full year until it finally became a surprise hit for them over there, naturally it was only a success once during its chart run which is why this appears much lower on this list where it was a success twice here in Australia. This did lead to them having a hit with "I will wait" later in the decade over there which we'll be looking at in a bit.

This is the one and only hit from NZ rapper Ladi6, it became a massive hit for her after being in the hip hop scene for nearly a decade likely due to the kiwis seeing her as their equivalent of Nicki Minaj or some other female rapper that was big in America at the time.

I guess there was still some room left for indie rock over in NZ this decade given how Avalanche City managed to score two chart toppers over there (even if they appear fairly low on this list for chart toppers.) Their success did lead to some interest from us Aussies, mainly because they received some airplay from Triple J due to being on a tiny indie label.

I guess the kiwis were more forgiving towards "Born this way" from earlier on this list given how the second single from the album of the same name managed to be an even bigger hit for Lady Gaga over there compared to what it was over here, either that or they just loved the song for what it was given how uplifting it continues to be to this day for listeners.

I guess the kiwis weren't as impressed with this remix of Snoop Dog wanting to watch a girl sweat as he puts it, perhaps they were too distracted by the lyrics to bump to this on the dance floors which would explain its lack of success over there despite the beat being provided by David Guetta at the height of his popularity. He would bounce back with his earlier appearance on this list with Wiz Khalifa.

From what I can gather, the Babysitter's circus was an RNB group who scored their one and only hit in their homeland with this gem that was a bit of a sleeper hit compared to a lot of the other entries on this list. In fact, it was technically a hit twice as it rebounded on the charts several months after its initial release likely due to it being ranked high on a 2011 yearend list and rebounding in the new year as a result.

While this wasn't quite the big hit over in NZ as it was here in Australia, this collaboration between David Guetta and Rihanna was nonetheless a huge hit for the pair of them over there likely due to how inescapable they both were at the start of the decade.

This remains the final hit single that BEP managed to achieve in NZ as was the case everywhere else in the world, it was much less successful over there compared to here in Australia where we Aussies at least appreciated it as yet another song where the three rappers were fighting over Fergie's affection.

Given how the kiwis never allowed successful albums to impact the success of their singles in NZ, it makes sense that this third hit from Adele's 21 managed to be much bigger over there than it was over here even if once again, this was due to a live rendition of the track which helped it become her third Billboard chart topper several months after its international release.

This was about as popular in NZ as it was here in Australia for Calvin Harris, I'm guessing because the kiwis were becoming more receptive to EDM music during the height of the club boom which this happened to be released in. It's one of only to appearances on this list which sees the Scottish producer singing on his beats, the other being "My girl" which is among his least remembered songs.

Given how this wasn't a hit twice in NZ like it was here in Australia, it seems fitting that it would have a much lower placement on this list. For what it's worth, this is roughly where the song would be on the Australian side of my site if I disqualified its sudden rise to the top of our charts in early 2012 which suggests that at least initially, this was equally as popular in both countries when it finally took off.

It's no surprise that this was an even bigger hit in NZ than it was here in Australia given how all three people involved in this track seemed to be more popular with the kiwis this decade than they were with us Aussies, indeed I would've been shocked if this wasn't the case given how this feels like something the kiwis would've gravitated towards upon its initial release more so than us Aussies.

Like most songs from Rihanna's catalogue, this was a bigger hit in NZ than it was for her here in Australia due to how well loved she was with the kiwis, I guess so long as it wasn't given overexposure on the internet, everything she releases will find massive success over there.

This is one of many hits that Jason Derulo had here in Australia that didn't see the same level of success over in NZ this decade, perhaps because the kiwis weren't interested in him stealing the prince of RNB crowd from Chris Brown and were only interested in his music purely for the RNB aesthetic and little more.

This was the first hit single that Ryan Tedder had without the presence of OneRepublic to back him up, although here he merely provides the chorus for the Far East Movement who managed to make up for their terrible placement of their earlier entry on this list by scoring a second hit over there from the start of the decade. People feel that the chorus is what saves the song from being as terrible as their other catalogue.

Even though this was released on time over in NZ compared to here in Australia where it was delayed, it managed to be far less popular over there once again proving that a song having its released delayed in a country was a good way of ensuring the maximum potential for its success even in recent years.

This is the only other new entry from P!nk on this side of my site, it almost made the cut for the Australian side of this site but alas, failed to rack up the points to do so due to being too much of a sleeper hit. This was her second self-empowerment anthem in a row and one that was more to the point than "Raise your glass" from earlier on this list which perhaps explains its popularity in NZ over Australia.

I honestly would've been surprised if this wasn't a hit over in NZ like it was here in Australia, although it's worth noting that this being less popular over there isn't that surprising to me given how the kiwis have always made it clear that they were team west coast when it came to the hip hop wars of the 90's.

It's becoming rarer to find a song that did equally as well in NZ as it did here in Australia as we go further down this list, this entry from Bruno Mars is one of those few songs to appear this far down the list to achieve this feat given how the kiwis were equally as impressed with this love ballad as we Aussies were back in the day.

Lady Gaga seemed to be on a roll with the kiwis on her second album as she released this country pop track under the guise of her alter ego Jo Calderone, this was basically her coming out as a man hence why the album art had a picture of her as such. It was a huge success over there and mere modest success here in Australia given how it failed to appear on that side of my site.

This was the only hit that Romanian pop star Alexandra Stan managed to achieve anywhere in the world, although at least it was a massive hit for her likely due to it being a swing revival track complete with a saxophone solo that sounds like it was ripped from "We no speak Americano" from earlier on this list. This wasn't a bit hit here in Australia likely due to how overcrowded the market was for this type of music.

This is a bit of a misleading title as it suggests that Beyonce is reminiscing on the love of her life that she gave up for something else, it turns out it's a song about how she dodged a bullet with the person she's singing to which changes the context of what a song with this title would traditionally mean. It appears the kiwis were impressed with this ballad in a way we Aussies weren't as it was a big hit over there.

Even though this didn't go to number one in NZ like it did here in Australia, this still proved to be equally as popular in both countries proving that Kelly Clarkson still had some appeal during the club boom with her music. She would score one more minor hit over there with "Stronger" (which we'll look at in a bit) that would end up being her third Billboard chart topper.

This was where it all began for Jessie J, although many consider this to be a more of a meme than a song given how it often appears on many worst of lists of the decade thanks to how abrasive it is even for a song released during the height of the club boom. We Aussies didn't even entertain the idea of making this a hit back in the day, however the kiwis did hence its appearance on this list.

Much like "Price tag" from way earlier on this list, this managed to be equally as successful in NZ for Jessie J as it was here in Australia, suggesting that the kiwis were only interested in making some of her songs more successful than they were over here from her debut album. Admittedly this song has long since been lost in the shuffle with her other entries on this list and especially "Do it like a dude."

It looks like this collaboration between Calvin Harris and Kelis was far less successful in NZ than it was here in Australia given how much lower it appears on this side of my site, although at least now Kelis has had all of her entries on the Australian side of my site reappear on this side of my site even if two out of three of them were less popular with the kiwis than they were with us Aussies.

You'd think that the son of one of the most popular reggae artists of the 90's would've had more success in NZ than he did here in Australia, then again, he was based here in Australia at the time he launched his career, so he was likely seen as a local artist who had to find his success over there the same way as most Aussies did over the years.

I guess the kiwis were also able to get their hands on this track from former reality contestant Alexis Jordan like we Aussies did, although it appears they were far less impressed with it than we were given how much less popular it was over there compared to what it was over here.

Well, this is a bit of a downgrade when it comes to appearing on this list, not that this was among the biggest hits of the decade here in Australia, but at least it did much better over here than it did in NZ upon its initial release. I guess the kiwis were ready to wash their hands of Avril's music but couldn't quite bring themselves to do so with this lead single to her fourth album.

I'm a bit surprised that this wasn't more of an international success when it came out given how it was a collaboration between two of the biggest stars of the moment, although even back then, JB was heavily disliked in the music scene, and this was at the beginning for Chris Brown's redemption ark which explains why it wasn't a huge success in many parts of the world.

This was the only hit that Eminem had with his former partner in crime Royce da 5'9, an old colleague of his that hadn't had a hit until the start of the decade when the pair collaborated with Bruno Mars of all people to help give them a hit. It was a huge success in NZ and their native America and even a minor success here in Australia due to it coming off the heels of Eminem's comeback album Recovery.

This was far less successful in NZ than it was here in Australia, although at least he managed to have both of his songs from F.A.M.E reappear on this list even if neither of them was able to reach the same level of success over there that they did over here.

Here's that entry from Tinie Tempah that I mentioned much earlier on this list, here he recruits Kelly Rowland of all people to provide him a chorus to connect his hip hop verses which went over well in NZ and his native UK but nowhere else in the world given how much of a flop it was outside those two countries.

It makes sense that Pitbull would have more success in NZ with this collaboration with Marc Anthony than he did here in Australia given how the latter did achieve massive success with his breakthrough album back in 2000 over there where he failed to do so over here.