Kelsea Ballerini - ‘Blindsided (Yeah, Sure, Okay)’

Kicking off this list with a no-brainer, ‘Blindsided (Yeah, Sure, Okay)’ as if ‘Blindsided’ was heartbreaking enough in its original form. I think Kelsea, with Rolling Up The Welcome Mat (For Good), showed how to express vulnerability in the most honest way through music. The whole project easily could have landed on this list, as the entire project impacted me so greatly.

Noah Kahan - ‘You’re Gonna Go Far’

We are only on the second song and we are already at the song that completely destroyed me over and over again.I left my small town in Washington State to move to Los Angeles, and this track highlighted everything I needed to hear while making that move.

If I don't hear this song (bawl while attempting to sing) live this year I will be the saddest person imaginable.

Maisie Peters - ‘Wendy’

‘Wendy’ is, lyrically, the one or the strongest tracks I've ever heard. The entire time I was listening for the first time I was blown away by how much this song sounded like realizing you've been giving too much of yourself to someone. Realizing that you're not putting yourself first. I have felt so incredibly connected to this track ever since I made that personal connection.

Sabrina Carpenter - ‘Nonsense’ (ft. Coi Leray)

Did you really I was about to make this list without talking about Sabrina Carpenter? One of the best pop stars of our time? As if! ‘Nonsense’ is one of my favorite Sabrina releases, and just modern pop songs in general, so it getting a remix that actually holds its own was a musical dream come true.

The line “he said my heads crazy i’m a genius” is perfect.

Bleachers - ‘Modern Girl’

Bleachers has always been my go-to pick-me-up band, so much of their music just feels sun-soaked to me, so when ‘Modern Girl’ which is THE main girl anthem came out? I was hooked! I think I've listened to this song at least a few times a day every day since its release. There is something about their specific indie-pop lane that I can never get enough of.

Maisie Peters - ‘Coming of Age’

Praising Maisie Peters is always going to be something you find me doing. That is my girl, truly. The Good Witch is such an incredible album, and picking just one song to feature was impossible, which is why I ended up featuring two! ‘Coming Of Age’ was my immediate favorite song on the record, as song as I heard the line “Baby, I am the Iliad, Of course you couldn't read me” I knew that this song was lyrically elite.

Taylor Swift - ‘Is It Over Now?’

I am first and foremost the world’s biggest Taylor Swift fan, that has been the person I've turned to to soundtrack the best and worst moments of my life for over a decade, and when I tell you ‘Is It Over Now?’ Is already in my Top 5 Taylor songs of all time, I mean that. I am that serious about this song. Everything about it shows why Taylor is coveted as being in a league of one. She’s unlike any other artist. And it’s because she makes songs at this caliber.

And the blue dress on a boat line? You should have seen my face when I first heard it. You would have thought I'd lost my damn mind.

Taylor Swift - ‘Hits Different’

Another Taylor song, are we surprised? ‘Hits Different’ has one of the best choruses of any song that came out in 2023, that just is what it is. This whole song perfectly describes a situationship that you can't quit, is that what she’s singing about? I don't know, but thats what I'm thinking about while I'm screaming the lyrics “i pictured you with other girls, in love, then threw up on the street.’

Jack Harlow - ‘Lovin’ On Me’

Every moment of every day you will find me singing this song. It’s actual ear candy. I’ve always been a Jack Harlow fan (me and everyone else) but I truly feel that if his next album has a sound and flow even close to ‘Lovin On Me’ I will be a full on-front row-never shuts up about him stan. I need more tracks that make me feel the way this one does like I need air the breathe.

Harrison Boe - ‘Six Years Wiser’

One thing I'm going to do, it is praise the songs that made me cry the most, and ‘Six Years Wiser’ was doing just that since before it even came out just through short TikTok clips. Harrison Boe is in a level of a-tier folk-singer-songwriters that is only otherwise occupied by Hozier and Noah Kahan.

Tate McRae - ‘exes’

Tate McRae is a superstar, and if you weren’t already convinced, there’s no way ‘exes’ didn’t do that job. ‘exes’ is a perfectly crafted pop song, reminiscent of the best of the early 2000s pop girls' best tracks, I truly don't see a single pop song in the near future even coming close to touching ‘exes.’

Olivia Rodrigo - ‘get him back!’

There is no surprise here, I am a twenty-something-year-old teenager and have always related deeply to the angst and anger and heartbreak in Olivia Rodrigo’s music.The chorus of ‘get him back!’ is one of the best in any track of the year i will always scream these lyrics at volumes that have previously been considered unreachable.

Miley Cyrus - ‘Used To Be Young’

I ugly cry every single time I listen to this song. I find so much of the teenage version of myself in the lyrics and in the message. I get flashbacks to moments of innocence in my life that were made out to be rebellious and wrong. The power in which Miley sings this song with is so immense, and connected with so many people, which just further cements that she will always be a fixture in the pop music world regardless of the gap between projects.

Reneé Rapp - ‘Tummy Hurts’ (Remix ft. Coco Jones)

This song has been on REPEAT since the first time I heard it. Every time that line “Now my tummy hurts” I get full-body chills and have to sing it at the top of my lungs. It’s not optional. I was a Reneé Rapp fan before, but I'm a full-on stan now, This is one artist that I think truly is going nowhere but up.

Maddie Zahm - ‘Eightball Girl’

Maddie Zahm has time and time again managed to put life experiences I've gone through to words in ways I never would have been able to, ‘Eightball Girl’ is one of those songs. I remember the first time I realized I had actual feelings for a girl, not knowing her feelings somehow felt scarier than any unknown situation with a man. Hearing that situation played out in a song was monumental for me.

Taylor Bickett - ‘IDIOT!’

Any chance to praise Taylor Bickett and i’m going to be right there taking that opportunity. Taylor released her debut EP, grown up and lonely, back in November, and even though I already knew Taylor could write her ass off and had a relatability that drew people in, I was blown away with how much of myself I found in the lyrics of ‘IDIOT,’ this track felt like reliving my teenage years.