Top 100 Favourite Songs of 2025 (70 – 61)

If you want to check out my rankings for other years:

The only rules and guidelines for this countdown:

This is all just my opinion. There is much bias to be found and if you’re unhappy with any of the placements, just remember that this is not meant to be a purely objective list.
Songs must released between the 1st of January to 20th of December 2025.

2025 Countdown

Honourable Mentions // 100 – 91 // 90 – 81 // 80 – 71

70. Kpop Demon Hunters (Huntr/x) – Golden

Arguably the year’s biggest pop hit, Golden was—for better or worse—inescapable this year. From the already iconic chopped vocals that frame its opening moments to the gargantuan hook at its core, there was just so much to love. And while many have lamented that the song is nothing more than a cheap remake of IVE’s transcendent I AM, I personally don’t see that as a bad thing at all. Like any great reimagining, Golden more than does the original justice, tracing its melody and retaining its bombast while imbuing the entire package with added cinematic, heft.

69. MARINA – Cuntissimo

Camp is an underrated and heavily under-utilised feature of pop music that when done right can result in some truly legendary tracks. And while Cuntissimo may not quite fall into the legendary category, it’s the first song in a long time to really lean into the camp category without sacrificing quality in the process. Supplemented by a high NRG style pulse, occasional disco strings and an irresistibly catchy chorus, it’s MARINA at her most addictive. This is one of those songs that doesn’t take itself seriously at all (I mean it’s called Cuntissimo for god’s sake) and is all the better for it.

68. RIIZE – Fame

SM Entertainment have always had a knack for delivering great hip hop adjacent tracks with towering hooks and RIIZE continued that tradition with the immense Fame. Many groups this year have attempted a Travis Scott or Playboi Carti esque sound (usually to less than great results) but few managed to leverage the sound to their strengths as well as RIIZE. Sohee’s adlibs as usual stand as an undisputed highlight but it’s the blazing guitar and gargantuan central melody that really seal the deal with this one.

67. LE SSERAFIM – HOT

Le Sserafim have been pretty hit or miss with me ever since their fantastic debut year but they hit me hard with the hyper melodic goodness of Hot. It’s not as incessantly catchy or as energetic as some of their more popular efforts but it makes up for it with one of the strongest hooks of the year. It’s a gorgeous melody performed to perfection by the groups instantly recognisable and diverse vocal tones. But it’s the killer outro that really cements the track’s spot this high on the list. Given a longer run time and it could have easily gone higher.

66. Sabrina Carpenter – Tears

Disco bliss delivered with a healthy dose of raunchy snark, Tears continued Sabrina Carpenter’s excellent run of throwback singles. It was one of those songs that took a while for me to come around to, with initial impressions eliciting nothing more than a shrug. But as time went on, the hooks got catchier, the groove stickier and the vibe almost undeniable. And honestly, it’s a genuinely cinematic sounding track, one that stakes its claim early and then utterly becomes a slave to the groove once that fantastic dance break hits during the climax.

65. Conan Gray – Vodka Cranberry

As evil as it sounds, I personally think artists release their best music when under severe emotional turmoil. And while Conan has famously been without a direct muse for most of his musical career, his recent alleged breakup sparked the release of the emotional “Wishbone”. Vodka Cranberry stood as the second of the albums 3 singles and was by far the strongest, hinging on a soaring melody and utterly transcendent bridge. Conan’s music has always been heavily tinged with emotion but he takes it to another level here.

64. Tate McRae – Sports Car

While most of Tate McRae’s work has pulled heavily from stars of years past, Sports Car was the rare occasion where it felt more like the soul of the inspiration had taken over and performed through her. Throughout most of the song, Tate just transforms into another being entirely, channeling Nelly Furtado and riding the dynamic production with a sense of charisma previously untouched. It’s an utter revelation that could have become truly legendary given production that just went a *little* harder in some areas.

63. ALL(H)OURS – Gimme Gimme

Most K-pop groups played it quite safe this year with songs that didn’t quite push the boundaries as hard as they could have and instead stayed quite reserved in both scope and presentation. Now, enter ALL(H)OURS’ Gimme Gimme, a song that felt like the complete opposite of that notion. This is how you do noise music right, delivering madcap energy with production that feels genuinely exciting and hooks that supplement the instrumentation without resorting to mindless chanting. A banger in almost every sense of the word.

62. RE:WIND – Little Too Late

RE:WIND were one of my favourite discoveries of the year and much of that was down to them tailoring their sound almost directly towards my tastes. While the bright Re:set felt like a tribute to early 2nd gen K-pop, Little Too Late conjured a dynamite mix between the NSYNC*/Backstreet Boys sound of the early 2000’s and modern pop sensibilities. It’s a track that unfurls over almost 5 minutes with melodic sucker punches on par with some of the years biggest releases. The chorus alone is one of the years’ biggest earworms and one that I wish got much more recognition than it did.

61. KickFlip – Band-Aid

Though undercut by an utter buzzkill of a first verse, Band-Aid is home to one of the years biggest and best choruses. This segment is what dreams are made of, powering forward with a sense of urgency that feels more instant and genuine than most releases this year. It’s arguably the most fitting soundscape for the concept at hand, expertly conveying the frantic mental state associated with the many emotions of youth. I may be biased towards pop-rock as a genre but when you’ve got such a thrilling double-time chorus, can you even blame me?