Biggest hits of the 2020's so far NZ

Well, I figured I should look at what was popular over in NZ so far this decade given how I did just that for Australia, although for the most part both charts are fairly similar to each other. As such, I'll be recycling the commentary I made on my previous posts unless what I said about a song there makes less than no sense here (due to a song performing better or worse in NZ than it did here in Australia.) I'll also be including NZ artists on here given how the kiwis have done a much better job at supporting their local artists than we Aussies have for our own.

This 2019 single from supergroup L.A.B is the best charting song of all time over there and will forever remain as such as in 2023, the RIANZ charts implemented a rule where a song can no longer chart if it was older than eighteen months to combat songs overstaying their welcome on their charts.

If you want proof that the charts no longer have any meaning to them, consider the fact that this is the best charting song of all time regardless of where in the world you're from. Unlike here in Australia where it went to number one twice, it failed to reach the top spot in NZ likely due to the lack of promotion from Triple J

How about this? The third biggest hit of the decade (so far of course) comes to us from a man who's been famous longer than most of us have been alive. Here he recruits Dua Lipa and Aussie EDM group Pnau to mash together four of his most popular songs which connected with audiences upon its release.

Get used to seeing entries from 2024 that refused to leave the charts due to a sheer lack of competition, this is by far the oldest straggler on our charts as Teddy Swims released this in late 2023 only for it to peak in popularity the following year. We'll have to wait and see what else is in store for the RNB singer.

This is to date Harry Styles biggest hit, it's the lead single to his third album which while a massive success, didn't receive the critical acclaim of his first two albums. That said, there's still anticipation for his fourth album which should come out at some point this decade.

There are two versions of this track, there's the original from the album which was one of the few tracks to not album bomb the charts upon said albums release, and then there's the "remix" with DaBaby which helped it become one of the most popular songs of the 21st century.

Unlike in Australia where "Shivers" slightly outranked this track due to it overstaying its welcome longer, that wasn't the case in NZ which means that this now outranks "Shivers" even if both songs still rank high on this list.

Country music came back in a big way following the Morgan Wallen controversy from 2021, although this did have quite the climb to its success in NZ as it took well over a year to crack their top ten due to the success of his subsequent releases that are still to come on this list.

I'm not sure why this song rebounded on our charts when Ed Sheeran released his final album - here in Australia as that didn't happen anywhere else in the world for him, this means that the song doesn't rank as high on this side of my site as it did on the Australian side.

We have another song from early 2024 that is still charting in our top twenty as of this writing, this time it's from Benny Boone who received quite a bit of ridicule due to his singing style he has on this track. This of course didn't prevent it from finding massive appeal (if anything it helped out immensely.)

We hadn't heard from OneRepublic since 2013 (2014 if you're from America) so to see them back in the spotlight with this theme to the second Top gun flick was a bit of a surprise for audiences. What's more surprising is how well it did, likely due to the film being a massive box office success.

Unlike here in Australia where this rebounded due to it being considered the second-best song of 2021 according to Triple J, this fell off the charts going into 2022 which is why it doesn't rank quite as high on this list compared to the Australian counterpart.

Remember when this was considered the biggest song of all time? Granted it would still rank fairly high on an all-time list given how the only songs that would outrank it we've already looked at on this list, however the fact this 80's throwback isn't higher on this list should tell you how stale the charts are in the 2020's.

This was originally an album track from Lover, however due to popular demand, it was selected as a single a good four years after that album was released. Given how "Anti-hero" didn't rebound on the NZ charts like it did here in Australia, it makes this Taylor Swift's biggest hit over there as of this writing.

She began the decade with this song at number one, so naturally this would be a shoe in for this list as it lasted quite some time on the charts before finally falling out of vogue (it's ranking is based on is full chart run.) Sadly, this would not be the decade for Tones and I as she would be a has-been by 2022.

This is the lead single to L.A.B's fourth album, given how the top entry on this list is the biggest of all time in their homeland, it makes sense their fellow kiwis would give them massive success with their subsequent follow ups.

*This is "Controller" for the uninitiated*

Given how this became a surprise hit in 2020 due to it being heavily featured in a Tik Tok video, I can now feature one of the most easily recognisable songs of all time on my site as it infamously bombed in the southern hemisphere back in the day. For what it's worth, this was a Billboard chart topper for the band in 1977.

This song proves that there isn't a time limit to escape the one hit wonder bin as the only other success Hozier had been with his breakthrough single "Take me to church" from a decade prior to this entry. He can also rest easy now that he has a hit that became as such without any assistance from the Grammies.

Whatever did happen to Lil Nas X? He was on top of the world in 2021 thanks to his highly promiscuous music videos which were deemed offensive by the idiots from the daily wire. Of course, the songs themselves were also popular including his collaboration with Jack Harlow about how predatory the music industry is.

This is meant as a kiss-off anthem to Miley Cyrus's ex-husband Liam Hemsworth, it was a massive success among her audience as well as fourth wave feminists likely due to the song interpolating "When I was your man" by Bruno Mars and making it a pseudo response to that track.

Morgan Wallen is living proof that getting cancelled on the internet means nothing as he managed to score one of the biggest hits of all time off his third album with this song. He also ushered in the golden age of country music which is why there's a ton of country artists on this list.

*I found this picture on the internet and used it as a substitute for the album art as this song was never released as a single.*

This is another 2019 carry over and one that would've appeared at the start of the list had the charts not become so stale post pandemic, it was the lead single to Dua's second album Future nostalgia and would've been the biggest in her career had her earlier entry not charted for so long worldwide.

It took her a decade; however, Sabrina Carpenter was finally able to make it to the mainstream with this lead single to her fourth album Short n sweet. The overwhelming success this and her album achieved might mean we're finally seeing the end of Taylor Swift given how similar their respective catalogues are.

Given how we haven't revisited "Need to know" on this list, this means that this is Sza's biggest hit over in NZ which goes to show how much the kiwis appreciated its Quenten Tarantino reference. This was the moment where Sza went from a mere critical darling to a mainstream household name given how inescapable it was.

This is tied for the longest run at number one on Billboard with "Old town road" by Lil Nas X, if this isn't proof that black men are welcome in the country scene, then I don't know what is. Another thing this song's success proves is that no one cares about Billboard chart records anymore as you likely didn't know about this song's achievements on the American charts.

This was only a sleeper hit here in Australia, meaning that we Aussies passed up on this track from RNB singer Libianca in favour of the other entries from 2023 that made it on the Australian version of this list. Not only did the kiwis gravitate towards this track, but they made it one of the biggest of the decade.

Well, here's another controversial song for this list, this time it's due to mega superstar Jason Derulo taking the beat from underage NZ producer Jawsh without his permission which of course resulted in a lawsuit. This lawsuit of course didn't prevent the song from being a worldwide success for the RNB star.

Even now, Sza and Doja Cat are two of the biggest names in music, so it makes sense these two women of colour would collaborate for this song and for it to be their biggest hit in their respective careers. We'll have to wait and see what the future has in store for these women.

There's been a rise in a style of music I can only describe as hill billy, this is the biggest hit from this genre which comes to us from Noah Kahan which manages to outrank several entries you'd swear would be the songs of the decade so far on this list.

This was the lead single to Billie Eilish's fourth album Hit me hard and soft, an album where the indie darling seemed to finally discover what a tempo is as all the tracks are much bouncier than her previous material. It's no surprise this is on track to becoming the biggest hit in her catalogue.

This is a carryover from 2019 and ties with Tones and I as the third oldest song on this list (behind Fleetwood mac and Kate Bush obviously.) It's a collaboration between Six60 and NZ DJ Drax which promised both acts massive international success which sadly never came for either of them.

This was another song that was released to deafening silence upon its initial release, however it was given the remix treatment which helped it become a success during the early months of the pandemic for Saint jhn and the DJ who remixed it Imanbek.

Given how "You broke me first" wasn't a hit over in NZ like it was here in Australia, this means this was the kiwis introduction to Tate McCrea meaning that they likely think she's merely a Taylor Swift knockoff rather than an aspiring pop star who copies whoever is in vogue to find success.

You'd think Post Malone would have a ton of entries on this list given how this was the biggest hit of his career leaving the 2010's, while he has a few other entries to come on this list, this remains his most successful due to an inconsistent release schedule.

I guess the kiwis weren't as impressed with Taylor Swift going indie as we Aussies were given how much less popular this was over there compared to over here, admittedly this is likely due to it not rebounding on their charts like it did on ours when her earlier entry finally became a single.

This is a song that makes it so high on my list purely due to its refusal to go away as it failed to crack the NZ top ten, it's less due to its appeal and more due to the lack of competition 2024 had to offer in the music scene. That said, at least audience did gravitate towards this female country bop.

This could've only been a hit during the height of the pandemic as the lyrics hold no meaning to the average person these days, indeed this had novelty written all over it as the two singers have found no success since this become a hit for them despite its overwhelming success back in the day.

This was originally a flop for Rema given how he was a reggaeton artist who was about five years late to the party when this came out, however it was given a second chance when Selena Gomez hopped on board the remix which helped it climb up the charts worldwide.

Even though Post Malone is listed as the main artist, this collaboration became a hit more for the presence of Morgan Wallen who's been on a role since his "cancellation" from the start of the decade. The song was widely mocked upon its initial release due to the implication the two were trying to woo each other.

To my knowledge, this is the only hit single from a trans artist post transition, sure we've had hits from the likes of Wendy Carlos and Teddy Geiger pre transition, however Kim Petras is the only artist to have a hit post transition. She's joined by Sam Smith who reinvented themselves as a naughty playboy (or I guess play person) on this track.

From what I can gather, there are two versions of this track as the original is a ballad from RNB star Cat Burns which didn't make a dent anywhere in the world upon its initial release during the height of the pandemic. It was given the remix treatment two years later where it became a massive hit in NZ and her native UK.

You thought Sza was inescapable in Australia? The love we Aussies have for the RNB star is pitiful compared to how much the kiwis love her as this sleeper hit here in Australia was a massive hit for her in NZ just like it was in her native America.

This collaboration between DaBaby and Roddy Rich was already a massive success upon its initial release, however it became a best seller when it received a remix to appeal to the Black Lives Matter protests which took place following the senseless murder of George Floyd.

Even though we were all locked in our homes during the pandemic, that didn't prevent club tracks from becoming a success in 2020 with this being one of the biggest hits from the sub-genre. This helped MNEK of "Never forget you" fame escape the one hit wonder bin as well as put Joel Corry on the EDM map.

The first time we heard from Raye, it was on Jax Jones's hit "You don't know me" from 2017, here she is as the lead artist scoring a massive hit about escapism which obviously connected with audiences stressed with real world events. This proved to be more popular in NZ than her hit with Casso which we'll revisit later down this list.

These guys were so inescapable at the start of the decade that the second single from their fourth album managed to peak higher than their previous entry which of course confirmed them as the hottest new act of the decade amongst their fellow kiwis.

*This is "Why oh why" for the uninitiated*

It was shockingly difficult to do research on Corrella and their biggest hit, it turns out they're a NZ band who had a massive hit with this number that likely connected with their fellow Māori's (first nation kiwis for the uninitiated) hence making it a success for them.

*This is "Blue eyed Māori" for the uninitiated*

Although it's too early to say, Tommy Richman might just be the new Jack Harlow given how he's scored two hits worldwide since Jack's final hit. Unlike here in Australia where this is currently his only hit, he still has another entry to come on this list proving that the kiwis are ready to make him a household name.

Even though this was a massive hit for Doja Cat, the album that spawned it wasn't as it was accompanied by a string of rants from the rapper that put off her fanbase from further supporting her. We'll have to wait and see if she'll recover from this publicity blunder.

This is to date Adele's final hit as she's yet to release another album as of this writing, it's the lead single to her fourth album 30 (despite being 33 when she released it) and is about begging for her son's forgiveness for ending her marriage to his father.

This was originally an album track from the Weeknd's 2016 album Starboy, however following the massive success with his collaboration with ex-girlfriend Ariana Grande (which we'll revisit in a bit) he teamed up with her again to rerecord this track to further reminisce on their failed relationship.

While we've seen many artists who were born in south Africa find success once they've relocated to a western country (usually the UK) Tyla is the first artist to be born in that region to find success without relocating to another region. She did so by hopping on the 00's RNB throwback trend that's popped up in recent years.

He may have broken Billboard records with "Old town road" through a controversy, however what happened there pales in comparison to how he achieved a hit here Lil Nas X went out of his was to offend far right conservatives (particularly those from the Daily wire) with the video to this track.

It was only a matter of time before we saw a revival of 80's inspired 00's rock, leading the charge is Chappell Roan who has the additional gimmick of being a cis woman cosplaying as a male drag queen to really tap into the bombastic nature of 80's hair metal.

2024 was the year of Sabrina Carpenter, impressive considering she was nothing more than a bitter rival to Olivia Rodrigo prior to her mainstream breakthrough this year. Here she confirms herself as the real deal following the surprise success of her earlier entry which led to her fourth albums success.

It looks like the kiwis don't have as many fond memories of "Blue" by Eiffel 65 than we Aussies do; however, they did allow this collaboration between David Guetta and Bebe Rexha to be a huge hit over there regardless. Unsurprisingly, both artists have once again fallen into obscurity since this collaboration.

Unless you're a Disney fanboy, this was everyone's introduction to Olivia Rodrigo which has all the hallmarks of a Disney star trying to appeal to a "mature" audience. Out of place swearing? Check. Melodrama akin to a soap opera? Check. Billie Eilish influence? You bet.

Up until recently, this was the only success that Bruno Mars had in the 2020's, it's a collaboration he has with Anderson Paak which they referred to as Silk sonic (which ranks up there as one of the worst band names ever.) The songs placement on here is much more accurate to how well it did worldwide than where it placed on the Australian list.

This was the theme song to the Idol, one of the worst shows to ever come out due to how poorly it conveys the predatory nature of reality singing shows. I think this was a hit more due to the presence of Madonna who scores her first hit since 2008 with her collaboration with the show's star the Weeknd (for the record, this would be at the bottom of my Madonna ranking.)

Given how he ended the 2010's with one of the biggest hits of the decade, it makes sense that Lewis Capaldi would begin the 2020's with a massive hit which he did with this track from the deluxe edition of his debut album. It was slightly better received than "Someone you loved" but still widely mocked.

Two of the biggest names in the UK music scene are Central Cee and Dave, naturally the two men would join forces to make this track which of course remains their most successful to date in their respective catalogues. Like many British artists on this list, the two men are more successful in their homeland.

This proved to be the bigger hit for Chris Brown in NZ than "Under the influence" (which is still to come on this list) likely due to the kiwis love for Young Thug which is more palpable than the love we Aussies have for him. This is the last we've heard from Young Thug as he dropped off the face of the earth after this collaboration.

It turns out this rebounded on our charts here in Australia due to Triple J showing love to her which is odd given how she's a Disney star who's on a major label. Naturally her presence on their yearend list for 2021 led to a massive backlash as the station was selling out for social media clout by including her.

This managed to confirm Zach Bryan as the real deal given how it's the reason why his earlier entry on this list managed to finally become a hit worldwide, it's also the first time Kasey Musgraves has charted anywhere outside her native America given how she's the featured artist on this track.

If you read my 2010's lists, you'll know I had a running gag where I wrote obituaries for artists who collaborated with Justin Bieber given how few artists have had a successful career following their work with the troubled pop star. Here's two more for you as neither Daniel Ceaser nor Giveon have had a hit since this came out.

This was released on the fortieth anniversary of the Men at work classic, so naturally this remix of the Australian classic was bound to be a success for Australian DJ Luude upon its initial release. The real surprise is that it was a much bigger hit internationally due to the drill production elements.

This might be the most infamous song on this list as every other entry on here saw controversy through other means (be it the music video or the performer) here we have a completely juvenile track from an artist who blew up on Tik Tok inorganically (that is, she's an industry plant) before scoring this hit.

So, Chris Brown is still having hits in the 2020's, admittedly this came from his 2019 album Indigo but for whatever reason wasn't released as a single until 2022 which was three years later. I'm not sure if we'll be hearing anything more from the troubled RNB star as his subsequent releases have all flopped.

Does the production on this song remind anyone else of a Sega Genesis game? I feel that's the real reason why this took off as Pinkpantheress is another British RNB singer of colour who struggled for mainstream success following the end of the pandemic. OK there's also the Ice Spice remix; however, even die-hard Ice Spice fans will tell you the rapper added nothing to the track.

This is the only international hit that Benee has had in her career, although like most kiwis, she's had far more success in her homeland as unlike us Aussies, the kiwis tend to look out for their own in their music industry. This got big due to Tik Tok despite it being a fairly normal song compared to other entries on this list.

Just before she found international success with her earlier entry, Benee managed to score a massive hit in her homeland with this track which was pulled from her debut album right as the 2010's were coming to an end. She hasn't had a hit since these two songs, however they both did really well amongst her fellow kiwis.

*This is "Glitter" for the uninitiated*

This is the only appearance from Kendrick Lamar on this list, even then its success is more due to his (in my and many others opinion) pointless feud with Drake where many believe this was the kill shot Kendrick made towards Drake due to some nasty accusations that Drake has yet to refute as of this writing.

Not only did Luude manage to score more success internationally with his earlier entry than he did here in Australia, but he managed to score a second hit worldwide with this remix of the Mattafix hit "Big city life" which coincidentally bombed here in Australia upon its initial release in 2005.

You know the American market has officially taken over the music industry when there's a dearth of British artists on this list, here's one of the lucky few from the UK to score success worldwide as Kenya Grace scored a massive hit with this 00's throwback track (also because the name Kenya is Kanye, but gender flipped.)

Remember when Justin Bieber began the decade with one of the most critically panned albums of all time? Here's the only song from the album that wasn't completely torn to shreds given how the bizarre lyrics were kept to a minimum here. It's also the final hit that Quavo had as JB is known to kill artists careers after collaborating with them.

This is to date Jack Harlow's final hit; it remains his biggest hit likely due to not having any particular gimmick tied to it as opposed to his other entries still to come which either relied on an obvious sample or assistance from some of the biggest names in hip hop.

Prior to this becoming a massive hit for Doja Cat, she was known as a lolcow in the music industry (for the uninitiated, a lolcow is someone deemed exceptionally foolish) due to her novelty track "Bitch I'm a cow." She managed to escape such a fate thanks to this throwback track which featured disco production from disgraced producer Dr Luke.

We have another entry from L.A.B, this time it's the lead single to their fifth album which picked up where they left off from the singles from their fourth album we looked at earlier on this list. This is their final top ten hit, although we still have two more entries to look at from them on this list.

*This is "Mr reggae" for the uninitiated*

Oh Lizzo, you were such an inspiration for so many people prior to being exposed for your toxic behaviour. Here she scores her final hit with a song about how good it is to be yourself which was an obvious hit for the throwback artist about a year prior to those sexual abuse allegations.

Talk about bad timing, this song which was written before the pandemic had begun became somewhat of an unofficial anthem for said pandemic given its lyrics about death and existential dread. Naturally few people have fond memories of this track even though it's through no fault of its own.

I hope you weren't expecting many Australian artists on this list because I'm afraid you're not going to get many Aussie representation (or non-American representation for that matter.) Here's one of the lucky few Aussies to make it big as he took the world by storm with his Christian hip hop track in 2021.

Even though this was the world's introduction to The Kid Laroi, this was in fact his second single here in Australia given how his debut did quite well on our charts (not so much in NZ as it won't be reappearing on this list.) This took off internationally due to a remix with Miley Cyrus to help him appeal to an American market.

This was a bonus track from the deluxe edition of Six60's third self-titled album, even a year after the album's release, this was a massive hit for the band and ensured they were still welcome in their local music scene during the height of the pandemic.

*This is "Sundown" for the uninitiated*

It looks like this victory lap Maroon 5 took in 2019 proved to be the last straw for audiences as the band haven't had a hit since this dropped off the charts in 2020. Many things were left behind once the pandemic came to an end, it appears Adam Levine and company were among those casualties.

This is one of the first songs that likely would've fallen into obscurity were it not for its popularity on Tik Tok, it was in 2019 that charts around the world considered it a streaming service, meaning this repetitive track designed to be enjoyed in fifteen second intervals benefitted from the site.

This charted around the same time as "Bad habits" by Ed Sheeran was still bouncing in and out of the top twenty, fortunately that didn't seem to affect the success of this track from Steve Lacy who took the world by storm with this RNB jam. Sadly, he's yet to score a second hit following this breakthrough.

Well, the transition from the 00's to the 2010's gave us Young money, so naturally the transition from the 2010's to the 2020's would give us a new batch of rappers who has a cash theme for their posse. Enter Internet money who scored a massive hit with this gem at the start of the decade.

Niko Walters is a NZ artist who scored his one and only hit during the height of the pandemic with this ballad, it was a major hit amongst his fellow kiwis and likely would've been a hit here in Australia if we Aussies weren't so interested in chasing American trends over supporting local talent.


This is another carryover from 2019 on this list, it was a hit from Six60's third album and one that stuck around for quite some time during the early stretch of the pandemic in their homeland.

This is one of the more recent entries on this list, it's also a bit of a comeback for both artists as neither of them had much success following the end of the pandemic. Admittedly Lady Gaga did resurface more for her role in the infamous Joker folie a deux as Harley Quinn, so perhaps this was a silver lining for that disastrous role.

One of the more revered films of the 2020's is the Elvis Presley biopic from 2022, it was a huge critical and commercial success due to respecting the legacy of the king of rock and roll while also not shying away from his many controversies. It also spawned a huge hit for Doja Cat with this theme song she provided the film with.

This is another track that became huge due to Tik Tok, although it had more of a point to its lyrics as opposed to several other entries on this list that got big off the site. Roddy of course became a household name with his collaboration with DaBaby from earlier on this list.

This is the second time that "Glamorous" from Fergie became a hit, although here it's used as a sample for Jack Harlow's first chart topper as he raps from the perspective of Fergie's benefactor which helped the song reach past nostalgia status and make it a success in its own right.

This is a song meant to throw people off given how there's two distinct halves to its runtime, the first half is your typical Billie track where she's remorse beyond all reason whilst the second half picks up energy to overcome her personal demons. It may not be her biggest hit; however, it's by far her more well respected.

Unlike on my Australian list where it barely made the cut, this was a much bigger hit for Giveon in NZ likely due to the kiwis still having more love for RNB than we Aussies do. This does make his failure to overcome the Bieber curse from "Peaches" over there all the more puzzling.

This is the advanced single to Six60's fourth album which they titled Castle st, finally an album from the reggae band that wasn't self-titled I can talk about on this site. While they're not quite as popular as they were in the 2010's, the band is still racking up the hits in the 2020's.

We have another entry from Post Malone on this list, although like his collaboration with Morgan Wallen, I feel like this only took off due to the presence of Doja Cat given how popular she's been so far from this decade. The song was criticised for the lack of chemistry the two artists had on display, a criticism I agree with.

*Apologies for the poor quality of the album art, it's surprisingly hard to find images of it online.*

Well, this was hard to look up online, mainly because googling King George will give you results for the historical figure rather than the man behind this track. I eventually got some answers when I googled his real name George Holliday as he's an American RNB singer the kiwis somehow discovered despite this flopping in his homeland.

We have another Christian artist to make the list, this time it's David Kushner who scored a massive hit with this track which was reportedly fuelled by his belief in God. Hopefully the number of entries on this list that appeals to Christians and other conservative audiences proves that not all music is meant to cater to the far left like the media wants us all to believe.

We've seen plenty of album bombs so far this decade, however only the album bomb Guts created managed to spawn a string of hits for the artist in question as this was just one of several entries on this list to become a success when the album dropped for Olivia Rodrigo.