If anyone tells you 2024 was anything less than an absolute win for new music, they clearly spent the year with their head stuck in a bin. While the world outside might have been doing its best impression of a dumpster fire, our headphones have been blessed with an embarrassment of riches. From bright-young-things becoming even brighter to established faves finding new gears, the last twelve months have delivered more golden moments than we can count.
That's where this list comes in. Over the next few days, we'll be celebrating the very best tracks 2024 had to offer – from chart-destroying anthems to underground gems that deserve their moment in the spotlight. So grab your party hat, pour yourself something fizzy, and join us as we count down the defining songs of 2024.
10. Addison Rae - Diet Pepsi
A late contender for catchiest song of the year, when 'APT' arrived, it knew it was here to stay. Led by former BLACKPINK member Rosé in an unlikely pairing with Bruno Mars, 'APT's sticky clapping-song intro was inspired by a classic Korean drinking game, but takes on a complete life of its own. Having honed her songwriting abilities in between K-pop idol training and rehearsals in her girl group years, and tested the waters in developing her own sound with solo tracks in 2021 and on BLACKPINK's last album 'Born Pink', the hard work paid off tenfold with the Q4 dominance of 'APT'. Sounding like a concoction of Lolly's 'Mickey' and The Ting Tings, with an extra dash of sugary goodness in Rosé's delivery and an injection of second-verse swagger from Bruno Mars, you'll be lucky to get this out of your head in 2025.
9. ROSÉ feat. Bruno Mars - APT.
There's how to return and then there's 'People Watching'. A soaring anthem that even Bruce Springsteen would be jealous of having in the back pocket, it arrived as the perfect reintroduction for Sam Fender - one that lays his intentions for world domination grander than ever. Written about a loved one who found themselves in a care home, everything about it captures what makes Sam brilliant. A chorus built for stadiums. An unflinching portrayal of modern Britain in all its chips and flaws. A sky-high sax chorus. It's all there and then some. For that, it may sit as one of Sam's greatest to date - a man of the people anthem for a man many see as the very best doing it right now. With 'People Watching', it's hard to argue against him.
