top 40 of 2019 | 30-21

30. Katy Perry - "Never Really Over"

I'm not sure if Katy Perry is becoming less annoying, or it's just been enough time since her last annoying release that I didn't have fatigue from it and was able to listen to one of her songs without immediately being turned off by the mere fact that she was the performer.

This is a great track, though, and I hope this trend of her being less annoying continues.

29. Normani - "Motivation"

The ladies of Fifth Harmony are a talented bunch, but since their split, the solo attention has focused almost entirely on Camilla Cabello. I was so glad to see Normani spring forth in her own right with a couple of super fun singles this year, because she really deserves every bit of that same success. Her music, much like Fifth Harmony's, recalls a very specific fun sound from the early '00s. That's not an era of which I'm particularly fond, which speaks all the more to her talents.

28. tofubeats - "Plastic Love"

This came up on Spotify Radio one morning, and my immediate thought was "This sounds like a 2019 version of City Pop," which makes sense as it turned out to be a cover of a classic of that genre. If you're unfamiliar, City Pop is a subgenre of adult contemporary and soft rock that was popular in Japan in the early 1980s.

I love love love his vocal delivery on this, and the production is perfect!

27. Futurecop! ft. Parallels - "We Belong"

A beautiful synthwave track about humankind's place in the universe, brought to life by Holly Dodson's gorgeous voice. Parallels have been doing their thing for over a decade now and are still as great as ever, and this new collaborative partnership with Futurecop! seems to be keeping the creative juices flowing.

26. Caroline Polachek - "So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings"

I absolutely love the reserved way with which she sings this song, as it's a hilarious contrast to the hyperbolic title. The video is funny too -- it's sort of like watching a preteen try to put a spell on her class crush because she stayed up late on a Saturday and saw The Craft.

25. Rebecca Black - "Anyway"

I don't think any other pop culture figure of this decade has turned more bitter lemons into deliciously sweet lemonade than Rebecca Black. I'm glad to see that she continues to laugh the last laugh as she makes quality pop music with a big beautiful smile.

24. Meg Myers - "Running Up That Hill"

Kate Bush is one of those artists that's on such a high pillar of reverence that covers of her music are few and far, far between. This is the second-best one I've ever heard, behind only Solange covering "Cloudbusting" one time in concert, which was absolutely brilliant. I feel like Meg's version of this iconic track finally let it breathe as the italo song that it's always begged to be.

And what a cool video!!

23. Stacey Q - "Trippin' Me Out"

I didn't really know what to make of this on my initial listen, but in true Stacey Q fashion, the hook embedded itself in my brain and I caught myself humming it for the rest of the day. It's reminiscent of a song that she did with longtime collaborator Jon St. James' on his Echo Junkies project about a decade ago, and really, this psychedelic sound isn't too much of a surprise from her, because she's always been kind of a hippie at heart. I'm excited to see what else she comes up with in the coming months, and I'm beyond stoked for the return of SSQ next year!

22. Kygo & Whitney Houston - "Higher Love"

I'm a big fan of Kygo and I obviously love Whitney, so when I heard that he'd decided to rework a cover that she'd recorded in 1990 and only released on the Japanese version of I'm Your Baby Tonight, I was 100% on board. This is great!

21. Great Good Fine Ok - "Change"

I haven't heard a song that quite taps this specific sound since the early 1990s. It's something about the way it's layered and the way the lyrics are written. I can't quite place exactly one thing that makes it recall that specific era in pop for me, but it does, and it's wonderful!