Top 100 Favourite Songs of 2025 (50 – 41)

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 – 61 // 60 – 51

50. NouerA – Bring the Crunk

NouerA spent much of their debut year reinventing the K-pop sounds of old with a modern twist, delivering tracks that felt tailored to long time fans of the genre whilst still keeping a firm eye on modern audiences and the charts. Bring the Crunk felt the most emblematic of this approach, harnessing a propulsive electro pop sound that feels intrinsically tied to the idol industry. The combination of the stabbing synths and descending melody line of the two part chorus just feels so damn right.

49. Ariana Grande – twilight zone

Achingly melodic and undeniably bittersweet, twilight zone served as a gorgeous epilogue to Ariana’s excellent 2024 album “eternal sunshine”, working in many ways as a musical extension of the projects biggest hit—the emotive we cant be friends. It’s one of the most transcendent moments in a discography full of them, concluding this era of her career with a stunning final touch.

48. no na – superstitious

Anchored by an absolutely killer chorus and one of the years strongest vocal performances, Indonesian girl group no na harkened back to the golden age of RnB with the incredibly addictive superstitious. When done right, this sound is absolute catnip to my ears and from the moment I heard that slapping percussion—it was love at first sight. And just when you thought you were done, the heavenly freestyle comes in to sweep you off your feet in the final moments. I’m definitely keeping an eye out for these girls moving forward.

47. &Team – Deer Hunter

Though the past few years have made me lose the kind of undiluted faith I had towards HYBE’s musical sensibilities, &Team (and a few other groups on the countdown) continue to prove that when the company hit, they hit. Deer Hunter may be a far cry from the uplifting pop perfection of the groups 2024 work but it still carries all the hallmarks of what makes the group so special, capturing the listeners attention with a killer vocal arrangement before engulfing you with its dark, slinky groove.

46. JADE – This is What We Dance For

Fashioning herself as a true modern day pop-star, Jade had a real breakout year with the rollout of her debut album. Almost all of it was excellent but it was the deluxe that really felt like the cherry on top, stretching her sound in even more thrilling directions. This is What We Dance For sees her stake her claim on the requisite euphoric dance sound with immense results. It may not be the most interesting track on the album but sometimes the most simple of arrangements can give the biggest rush. And boy is it a rush!

45. TWS – overthinking

TWS have slowly managed to develop two signature sounds. The first and most well known being the buoyant pop of their singles (ala Plot Twist and Countdown) and the second being the more subdued, emotive dance efforts (ala Last Festival). Overthinking falls more in the second bracket but comes with a bit of a (plot) twist. Harnessing a bubbling house beat and buoyed by one of the years most catchy synth riffs, it works as a fusion of the groups sounds—twisting their signature sound in a very interesting new direction which they would do well to follow even further.

44. Kis-My-Ft2 – Glory Days

In a year where J-pop left me severely underwhelmed, old favourites Kis-My-Ft2 managed to pull me out of the lull with one of their strongest songs in years. In a year that felt far too musically stale, the soaring melodic nature of Glory Days‘ chorus felt all at once familiar yet revolutionary, injecting a burst of optimistic energy every time it came around. And while the post chorus doesn’t quite work for me, the rest of the track bounds ahead with the kind of energy that you rarely see anymore. It really—as the name suggests—brought the group back to the sounds of their glory days.

43. ZEROBASEONE – BLUE

Undeniably consistent for a project group, ZEROBASEONE continued their winning streak with the buoyant, melodically rich Blue. Much like Glory Days, the chorus here is one for the ages, soaring to new heights with a melody that feels distinctly familiar whilst intrinsically tied to its surrounds. But what really gets it over the line is the vocal performance. The group have one of my favourite vocal blends of the current generation, imbuing each moment with a real sense of character—even in its quieter moments. It’s another song that showcased the strength of a killer melody.

42. Lady Gaga – Zombieboy

Sparkling synths and killer guitar solos make for an immense pop effort that felt like a seamless mix of Gaga’s darker and more upbeat sensibilities. It’s undeniably a fun time, echoing the campy sounds of halloween style pop though its spooky synths and rhythm guitar assisted hook. And though it had the potential to come off as a little slight in an album full of thrills, the tracks inherent desire to entertain and not stagnate lends very well to repeat listens, resulting in a song that gave a great first impression and only improved from there.

41. STAYC – Bebe

Since their debut in 2020 with the phenomenal So Bad, STAYC have—in my opinion—been one of the most consistently solid kpop groups out there, rarely missing a beat even when switching concepts. Bebe continued that trend with style, reinventing their sound with a pulsing electronic house beat that powers forward with the kind of energy that speaks to me on a visceral level. It’s a treasure trove of hooks that only got stickier as the year went on. What an absolute track.