Top 10 UK Hits Of 2021 (Quickie)

 

So… this took longer than expected. Let's go!

Rules:

• Song must have debuted on the UK End of Year Singles Chart Top 100 compiled by The Official Charts Company (or OCC for short)

• For a song to be eligible for a Top 10 Hit Singles of {Year} list. It has to have a maximum of five years between its year of release and the year it debuted on a year end list. So for example, if I’m doing a Top 10 UK Hit Singles of 2018 countdown, hits that came out before 2013 do not count.

• I also have a ‘one entry per lead artist’ rule in order for the list to have more variety. Bands and members’ solo material can be separate exceptions to this. 

Number 10

This year, Kendrick dropped Mr. Morale And The Big Steppers, his final studio effort while signed to Top Dawg Entertainment. While we were waiting for that album to come out, some of his TDE labelmates released music last year. Isaiah Rashad put out a recent album, which I am interested in checking out, and another one put out a single that unexpectedly became quite a big hit

Good Days by SZA

SZA’s music fits the Summer vibe quite well, and this song especially so, thanks to the breezy sounds coming from the guitars, as well as some occasional backing vocals from Jacob Collier.

Number 9

Happier Than Ever by Billie Eilish

When I first listened to this song during the listen of her new album, I was blown away, but after a few re-listens, I started to like it more and more, to the point where it may have overtaken “oxytocin” as my favourite song from that album.

The presentation of the structure is what really makes this song stand out. It starts off with a calm acoustic guitar, making the listener think that this is a ballad, but then, after the 2nd verse, we get electric guitars that soon burst into rage along with Billie, resulting in a block of noise that evokes a more distorted version of 90s alternative rock. This compliments the emotional states of the song where we see Billie move on from a past relationship showing feelings of happiness in the first verse, before revealing the ugly details about that relationship and showing feelings of both anger and devastation.

Number 8

I got into Anderson .Paak back in 2016, when he put out his excellent album Malibu. Since then, he has maintained a streak of excellent albums as well as a few users online anticipating the day he would break into the Top 40. Fast forward five years later and he would collaborate with a very well-known popstar to make something spectacular

Leave The Door Open by Silk Sonic

There’s something so enchanting about the soul vibe being displayed there. Maybe it’s the way the instruments are set up before our two vocalists come in. Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars add to the sensual mood of this song and pull off the roles of the lovermen well. My favourite part of this song has to be the chorus where the high register vocals say ‘Tell me that you’re comin’ through’ before the drums, keyboard and strings coalesce together to form a captivating collage of beautiful sounds.

Number 7

These next seven entries are songs I would personally put in the GOLDEN tier. When I made my retrospective UK Hits of 2017 there were five entries in my Top 10 sitting in my GOLDEN tier so that is quite an accomplishment.

Higher Power by Coldplay

It’s quite fascinating to see Coldplay’s chart runs and how they still managed Top 10 success, even as the chart hits started to become more focused on pop, EDM and hip hop. Granted, Coldplay has become more of a pop rock band starting from Mylo Xyloto (although they did have a brief return to alternative rock on 2019’s Everyday Life). On their first Top 20 hit in six years, they try out an 80s synthpop style that has been made popular in recent years thanks to artists like The Weeknd and Dua Lipa (we’ll get to at least one of them later on) and it is quite a powerful song.

Number 6

Talk About by Rain Radio and DJ Craig Gorman

This song samples “Big Hoops (Bigger The Better)”, a song Nelly Furtado released in 2012, a couple of years after her commercial peak in the mid-2000s. It is a weird pop song with random references to hip hop and R&B of the 90s such as The Pharcyde, Another Bad Creation and Bell Biv Devoe. I do enjoy that song, but after listening to Rain Radio and Gorman’s take, I’ve got to say, it’s even better. The beat is more minimal, but its faster pace makes the lyrics stand out more. Most of the chorus and the ‘bigger the better’ parts are taken out, but it is done so in exchange for a drop that slaps hard.

Number 5

Well, this may be disappointing, but I have allowed myself to be defined by one single genre…

1700s sea shanties

Wellerman (220 KID x Billen Ted Remix) by Nathan Evans

The weird thing that happened in the charts earlier in 2021 was this TikTok trend involving sea shanties. It started with an a capella cover, which then spawned an EDM remix that would soon hit number one.

The sea shanty works surprisingly well over a house beat, and we also get an accordion break after the drop. I also like how the structure has been switched up. The original does stay true to the sea shanty structure with verse followed by refrain and vice versa, but I prefer the remix’s structure of two verses followed by refrain and a drop.

Number 4

INDUSTRY BABY by Lil Nas X feat. Jack Harlow

Following the phenomenon of “MONTERO”, Lil Nas X comes with a triumphant trap banger about how he has made it to the top and fires back at those who doubted him. The brass instruments sound wonderful with Nas X delivering a great verse, but then Jack Harlow comes to steal the show with fire line after fire line involving baby boomers and social networks, and also how he ‘didn’t peak in high school’ because he’s getting ‘cuter’. Oh, and the outro further elevates it with an uplifting note to end on.

Number 3

After a year off due to COVID, Eurovision came back in 2021 with a bang. The entrants delivered an exciting repertoire of songs, but the biggest surprise was an Italian rock band entering the stage with an explosive rock banger that would later shoot up to the top. This would then result in another song of theirs to climb quickly up to the Top 10

I WANNA BE YOUR SLAVE by Maneskin

This is a weird sex song, where Damiano David sings about wanting to be a ‘sex toy’ and a ‘teacher’ and that he’s a ‘blonde girl who’s searching for redemption’. What does make this work however is how hooky the rock instrumentation is, evoking a similar vibe to Arctic Monkeys when they first broke out, and Damiano delivers a good amount of charm in his verses. Oh, and that guitar solo after the chorus goes so hard.

I was hoping for them to get a bigger chart career along the way, but sadly, neither “Mammamia” nor “Supermodel” made it to the Top 40.

Number 2

Kiss Me More by Doja Cat and SZA is, unfortunately, not going to be on this list

I think it’s a great song, but after listening back to a few singles from that album, there is one song that I’m leaning more towards.

Woman by Doja Cat

There have been plenty of UK hits that have been influenced by afrobeat (particularly some of the UK rap), but this feels less like the usual afrobashment stuff and more like the traditional afrobeat like on Tony Allen and Hugh Masekela’s collab album Rejoice. It sounds very delicate!

I like Doja’s vocals on Verse 1, but her rap verse afterwards is excellent, where she not only gives a shoutout to women across the world, but also tackles the media’s perception of them and how certain women are pitted against each other, including in the music industry.

Let's skim through these honourable mentions quick

HM1. Fly Away by Tones & I

Tones And I goes for a lower vocal register than on “Dance Monkey” as she sings an euphoric synth-driven song about her ambitions.

HM2. The Business by Tiesto

Tiesto nails that dark, moody vibe on the synths, making this feel like a MEDUZA song.

HM3. Bad Habits by Ed Sheeran

On the topic of synthpop with a dark vibe, we have a semi-atmospheric song from Sheeran about love and alcoholism. Some people say the guitar line in this song is similar to the one in Bronski Beat’s Smalltown Boy but it reminds me more of On The Loose by Niall Horan.

There’s also a drill remix with Tion Wayne and Central Cee, and it slaps.

HM4. Heat Waves by Glass Animals

Like Anderson .Paak, Glass Animals was an act I got into 2016 and it was a delight to see them break into the charts (though I did not expect them to stick around that long, or take weeks upon weeks to reach number one on Billboard). It’s no “Black Mambo” or “Season 2 Episode 3” but it’s still a great song.

HM5. Save Your Tears by The Weeknd

While it’s not my favourite song from After Hours, it still has some of the beautifully layered synthpop aesthetic that makes the album stand out.

HM6. Clash by Dave feat. Stormzy

Two of the biggest names in UK rap right now team up for a braggadocious drill banger. Dave has some amusing lines involving Area 51 and his left wrist planning on retiring, but Stormzy’s verse is my fave with a How To Get Away With Murder reference (Ghetts did it on “No Mercy” this year too) and rapping about possibly flying to Dubai because ‘the weather’s been shit’.

HM7. Easy On Me by Adele

Adele’s first new song (and album) in six years comes in the form of a nice piano ballad looking at divorce and Adele wanting to start a new path in life.

HM8. STAY by The Kid LAROI feat. Justin Bieber

The Kid LAROI is usually known for trap, but this time, he’s going for a Weeknd-esque synthpop cut which is well-paced as he sings about heartbreak.

HM9. Sweet Melody by Little Mix

This pop trap song has a sweet melody, indeed, and makes good use of some syncopation.

HM10. My Head & My Heart by Ava Max

I like the ATC original and the way Ava Max flipped it is interesting. 

HM11. Don't Play by Anne-Marie, KSi and Digital Farm Animals

This and Rudimental’s “Come Over” show that Anne-Marie fits well over UK garage beats, and both her and KSi bring some good perspectives into the lyrical concept.

HM12. love nwantiti (ah ah ah) by CKay

A song I initially thought was alright kept growing on me the more I heard it. The afrobeat influence leads to a nice chill vibe. Though I did not know that the ‘ah ah ah’ could be referring to a sexual climax until I saw Kumerai Fang’s thoughts on the song.

NUMBER ONE

When I first listened to the album this song came from, it already became my favourite song from it, and I was hoping it would get released as a single. It eventually did in August, but only as a remix. Then another remix came a few months later, causing it climb up to the Top 10

Levitating by Dua Lipa

Dua Lipa put out some vibrant synthpop at a time when nightclubs were being shut and we couldn’t go anywhere, making up some of the big pop lockdown soundtracks of 2020 along with The Weeknd and Lady Gaga. Levitating is the highlight thanks to succeeding in bringing out a spacey vibe thanks to the production. The pre-chorus and chorus are filled with rhythmic pulses, with the chorus being quite similar to the vocal rhythms on Outkast’s “Rosa Parks”. The extended chorus and rap verse near the end serve to make things more uplifting.

The song mainly hit the Top 10 thanks to the DaBaby remix but after the Rolling Loud incident, most radio stations switched to the original album version. Around the same time, Victoria Monet (who worked with Ariana Grande) tweeted that she would be happy to work on a potential new remix of Levitating. Having listened to her song “Experience”, I could totally picture her singing over this beat. She would be fantastic!

I don’t mind which version I hear, as I like both on similar levels (as well as the Blessed Madonna remix which switches the synthpop production for a more minimal house vibe a la Roisin Machine).

And that concludes the end of my 2021 End Of Year countdown.

If you want to know what my Top 50 Songs Of 2021 were, head to this link: http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=251747

End of year list: https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/end-of-year-singles-chart/20210101/37501/