Biggest hits of the 2020's so far

I guess I should do a recap on the biggest hits of the 2020's here in Australia so far given how we're at the halfway point of the decade. That said, I don't know how I'm going to come up with effective commentary for each entry given how stale the charts have become in recent years. Yes, the decade began with the pandemic which meant we were stuck with whatever the internet wanted to become a success; however, the charts have only gotten worse since the lockdowns ended to the point where 2024 only had 32 songs to become a hit that weren't as such from 2023 for a total of 49 songs altogether. This is in contrast with 2020 which had 49 songs that weren't hits from 2019 becoming a hit that year and 65 hits altogether. I guess I'll bring up why certain songs refused to go away on our charts for this ranking, however, don't expect anything too substantial with my commentary.

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. That said, this did sit on shelves for a while before finally taking off here in Australia when it was declared the best song of 2020 on Triple J.

The first few entries on this list were technically hits twice given how they were massive upon their initial release and a success a second time once ARIA incorporated YouTube data onto their charts. As for this entry, we have a collaboration with Justin Bieber and the Kid Laroi with a song that appealed to both their fanbases.

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.

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.

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, the original which was the second single from the Weeknd's greatest hits album from 2020 and the "remix" with Ariana Grande which is explicitly about the relationship they had back in the mid 2010's that obviously connected with audiences.

Although this was the second single from Ed Sheeran's album =, it wound up sticking around much longer than the lead single which is why it slightly outranks that track on this list. It's also his most recent hit as his final album - was a massive flop for him in 2023.

Here's the lead single from =, it was initially the bigger hit for Ed Sheeran off the album but got overtaken when the previous entry outlasted this on the charts. This song is more well known for the video which depicts Ed as some sort of mix between the Joker and a vampire.

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 here in Australia as it took well over a year to crack our top ten due to the success of his subsequent releases that are still to come on this list.

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.*

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.

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.

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.

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.)

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.

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.

It looks like going indie paid off for Taylor Swift given how this is her biggest hit to date, although it took her a few attempts to get to this point given how her previous two albums failed to spawn a hit for her like her 2000's and 2010's output did.

We'll be seeing a lot of entries from Olivia Rodrego and her frenemy Sabrina Carpenter on this list, this is the best either Disney star could do likely due to it reminding audiences of "Misery business" from Paramore to the point where Hayley Williams demanded songwriting credits once this took off.

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. Were it not for her earlier entry rebounding on the charts when this came out, this would be Taylor's biggest hit to date.

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.

By all accounts, this was a 2019 hit, however I included it on here due to it rebounding on the charts when it was declared the best song of that year by Triple J which allowed it to become a minor hit almost a year after its initial release.

This is to date Luke Comb's only hit, it's also the third version of the Tracy Chapman classic to become a hit after the original and the Jonas Blue version from 2015. What's interesting is that Luke didn't change the pronouns from the original, which led to hilarious assumptions about the track.

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 (we'll be looking at it in a bit.) This took off internationally due to a remix with Miley Cyrus to help him appeal to an American market.

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.

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.

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.

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.

This is a song that makes it so high on my list purely due to its refusal to go away as it only spent a single week in our 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 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 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.

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.

Named after the Quentin Tarantino movies from 2003 and 2004, this would've been Sza's biggest hit were it not for her collaboration with Doja Cat from earlier on this list. This was the moment where Sza went from a mere critical darling to a mainstream household name given how inescapable it was.

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.

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 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.

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.

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.

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.

It's really hard to look up information on Casso (apparently, they're named after a serial killer) however this dance track does have Raye on featured vocals who had a hit prior to this collaboration which we'll look at in a bit. Maybe we'll know more about the person who created the track as time goes on.

Tate McCrea was all set to be a one hit wonder at the start of the decade with "You broke me first" (stay tuned for that) however she escaped the one hit wonder bin by trading her Billie Eilish impersonation for a Taylor Swift impersonation with this entry.

This is the final hit from Justin Bieber as of this writing, it was the inevitable sleeper hit from his most recent album which was released months after said album came out. Like many songs on this list, it was ridiculed for its bizarre lyrics which ended up boosting its popularity.

This initially charted with the album bomb that Fine line created at the end of 2019, however it was chosen as an official single during the height of the pandemic which allowed it to become a genuine hit for Harry Styles months after its initial chart presence.

This was a case of one song getting two artists out of the one hit wonder bin as both Lost frequencies and Calum Scott only had one hit each prior to their collaboration ("Are you with me" and "Dancing on my own" respectively.) Both men have yet to achieve a third hit in their respective careers, although I wouldn't count them out just yet.

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.

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.

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.

This isn't the only song on this list sample "Blue" by Eiffel 65, however the sample on here is so egregious that it no doubt tricked listeners into thinking this was a mere remix of the track and not an original track from David Guetta and Bebe Rexha. This was a comeback of sorts for both artists, although it was short lived for them both.

Well at least there's no provocative imagery in the video to this track from Lil Nas x (unless of course you consider a man wearing a wedding dress to be provocative) as such it wasn't as big a hit as his previous two entries proving that rage baiting the right people can be fairly lucrative in this day and age.

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 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.

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.

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.

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.

You knew there would be an influx of 00's nostalgia moving into the decade; however, I don't think anyone was expecting there to be a song that blatantly samples "I don't wanna know" from Mario Winans from 2004 become such a massive hit for the likes of the Weeknd and 21 Savage.

Here's the breakthrough track from Tate McCrea I mentioned earlier on this list, like I said, it's a Billie Eilish knockoff as opposed to her earlier entry which is more in line with what Taylor Swift has been releasing in recent years. We'll have to wait and see if Tate releases something that isn't derivative of another artist.

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.

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.

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.

Although she was never quite a critical darling, this was the song where audiences began to turn on Olivia Rodrigo given how bizarre the lyrics were on this track as well as everyone getting tired of the Billie Eilish influences (including Billie herself it seems.) This backlash is perhaps the real reason why Sabrina Carpenter exploded in popularity.

We've had plenty of 00's throwbacks on this list so far (with plenty more to come on this list) however I bet you weren't expecting a throwback to traditional pop, were you? Here we are with this one and only hit from Stephen Sanchez with a song that would fit in with the likes of Frank Sinatra or Dean Martin.

We have another song I would describe as hill billy music; this time it's from English singer/songwriter Myles Smith who took the world by storm with this entry during the height of the country music scene. Again, we'll have to wait and see how much mileage he has in the music industry following his breakthrough.

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.

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.

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.

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 from earlier on this list, he teamed up with her again to rerecord this track to further reminisce on their failed relationship.

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 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.

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. It would quickly be overshadowed by her earlier entry with Casso.

This was one of the last hits of the 2010's, so naturally it would find some of its success going into the pandemic which allowed it a spot on this list. Sadly, we haven't heard anything more from Regard likely due to non-American artists struggling for success in the 2020's.

One of the few non-American artists to score multiple hits on this list is Tiesto as we still have another entry from the Italian artist to come on this list, here he is with his biggest hit he released just as the pandemic was beginning to wind down which no doubt convinced party goers to vibe with the track.

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.)

Topic first busted onto the scene in 2016 with "Home," he was all set to be a one hit wonder but scored a second hit during the height of the pandemic with this collaboration with Swedish singer a7s (yes, he named himself after a camera model.) The two reunited with ATB for "Your love" which did well in the UK.

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.

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.

We have another 2019 carryover for this list, this time it's the third single from Tones and I's debut E.P The kids are coming which promised the Australian busker turned singer/songwriter massive success as the 2020's unfolded. Alas she only has one more entry on this list before her popularity faded.

One of the biggest names in the YouTube music scene is Oliver Tree, so the fact that this is his only appearance on this list should tell you just how irrelevant that scene is to the music industry despite the platform trying to make their clientele a thing. It doesn't help that Oliver as a person is completely obnoxious.

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. This is his only success here in Australia, however "Devil is a lie" has made waves throughout the rest of the world.

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.

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.)

While this wasn't the lead single to Fine Time (that honour goes to "Lights up" which bombed) this was the song that made the album an instant hit likely due to the music video which depicts Harry dedicating this track to an (in my opinion) horrendously ugly CGI fish.

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.

Here's the debut single from the Kid Laroi I mentioned earlier on this list, given how it was far from the biggest hit here in Australia for the RNB singer, it naturally bombed internationally which compelled him to commission Miley Cyrus to hop on the remix to his earlier entry which got him an international audience.

This was originally released in 2017 to deafening silence for Maneskin, likely because Italian rock has never had much of an international appeal. It was given a second chance in 2021 when they won Eurovision for their native Italy making it one of the few rock tracks on this list.

Barbie is a movie that divides people, mainly because many fail to see it as a satire of fourth wave feminism and takes its story of combating the patriarchy seriously. At least the soundtrack was well received (for the most part) given how this opening dance number from Dua Lipa was a massive hit for her.

We have another British woman of colour for our list, this time it's Eliza Rose who managed to score a massive hit with this 00's style EDM track about how she's the "baddest of them all" (B.O.T.A for short.) Naturally this has novelty written all over it, so it's unlikely she'll escape the one hit wonder bin.

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.

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.

If you're wondering if I'm "anti-woke" based on what I've said on this site, then rest assured that I'm not and will take any and all opportunities to shit on the Daily wire and other far right publications just like I do for the far left. This is mainly because we have their stupidity to thank for this song becoming a massive worldwide hit for Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion by reacting to the music video even though said video breaks YouTube's TOS.

This is to date P!nk's final hit anywhere in the world, likely because people were put off with it being a duet with her daughter which makes it little more than a proof of concept for said daughter's career. She released an album after this, although it bombed likely due to her time in the spotlight finally being up.

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.*

We haven't seen many Tik Tok artists on this list, have we? Here we are with one of the bigger names Nicky Youre (that's how he spells his name) who took the world by storm with this bop that managed to become a massive hit for him in the music scene.

Have you had nostalgia for "Meet me at the hotel room" from Pitbull lately? This is the song for you as British DJ Riton managed to have a DJ battle with British group Nightcrawlers which resulted in this collaboration from the two EDM acts. Naturally it was a big hit worldwide except for on Billboard.

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.

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.

You're probably wondering how on earth a song from 1985 managed to become a massive hit in 2022 (especially considering it wasn't even among that year's biggest hits worldwide.) The answer is simple, the song was used in promotional material for the fourth season of Stranger things which helped it find a new audience in the Tik Tok crowd.

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.

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.

Another song from early 2020 that few people look back on fondly due to nasty implications the song had no intention of making, after all it's called "You should be sad" right when the world was going into a lockdown for reasons I don't think anyone fully understand five years later. It's also Halsey's final hit, again likely due to these implications rather than her fans growing tired of her music.

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.