Every song of the summer from the past 45 years
Kirsten Acuna
- Everyone always wonders what song will break out to be the undisputed song of the summer.
- Insider used Billboard's charts to choose the highest-ranking summer song of each year from 1975.
Every year, there's a battle to see which song can claim the title of "the song of the summer."
It can become a point of contention as people argue over whether or not Carly Rae Jepsen is beating Justin Bieber or why Rita Ora isn't getting her due recognition, but it's a fun accolade to give an artist.
The jury is still out on which song will be this year's biggest hit, but we used Billboard's charts to choose the highest-ranking summer song for each year.
Whether or not you agree with the top song, here are the No. 1 summer songs from 1975 to 2020.
Anjelica Oswald contributed to a previous version of this article.
1975: "One of These Nights" — The Eagles
1976: "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" — Elton John and Kiki Dee
1977: "I Just Want to Be Your Everything" — Andy Gibb
1979: "Bad Girls" — Donna Summer
1980: "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" — Billy Joel
1981: "Jessie's Girl" — Rick Springfield
1982: "Eye of the Tiger" — Survivor
1983: "Every Breath You Take" — The Police
1985: "Shout" — Tears For Fears
1990: "Vision of Love" — Mariah Carey
1991: "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" — Bryan Adams
1992: "Baby Got Back" — Sir Mix-A-Lot
1993: "(I Can't Help) Falling In Love with You" — UB40
1996: "Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix)" — Los Del Rio
1997: "I'll Be Missing You" — Puff Daddy and Faith Evans feat. 112
1998: "The Boy is Mine" — Brandy and Monica
1999: "Genie in a Bottle" — Christina Aguilera
2004: "Confessions Part II" — Usher
2005: "We Belong Together" — Mariah Carey
2009: "I Gotta Feeling" — The Black Eyed Peas
2010: "California Gurls" — Katy Perry feat. Snoop Dogg
2011: "Party Rock Anthem" — LMFAO feat. Lauren Bennett and GoonRock
2013: "Blurred Lines" — Robin Thicke feat. T.I. and Pharrell
2014: "Fancy" — Iggy Azalea feat. Charli XCX
2016: "One Dance" — Drake feat. WizKid and Kyla
2017: "Despacito (Remix)" — Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee, featuring Justin Bieber
2018: "In My Feelings" — Drake
The song was on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for 10 weeks and inspired a viral Internet challenge.
You can watch the music video here.
2019: "Old Town Road" — Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus
The undisputed song of summer 2019 was Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road," which sat atop the Hot 100 Billboard chart for 17 weeks. The song beat the record set by Mariah Carey's 1996 song "One Sweet Day." It stayed on top of the Billboard charts for a total of 19 weeks.
The song's celebrity-filled music video features cameos from Chris Rock, Vince Staples, Haha Davis, and more.
You can watch the music video here.
2020: "Rockstar" — DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch
While you may be rocking out to Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga's "Rain on Me" on the radio, DaBaby's "Rockstar" featuring Roddy Ricch has held the Billboard No. 1 spot for 10 weeks and counting.
Originally released in April, the song became an instant No. 1 after DaBaby released a Black Lives Matter remix to the song on June 12 that addressed police brutality and the George Floyd protests across the nation.
Other honorable mentions go to Taylor Swift's "Cardigan" and Harry Styles' "Watermelon Sugar." "Cardigan" became Swift's second No. 1 debut after "Shake It Off." Though "Watermelon Sugar" was released in 2019, it returned to the Billboard charts after the music video's release in May and reached No. 1 in August.
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