The 100 Best Songs of 2025

A classic Wu Tang ruckus, styled as a legal thriller: Ghost and Rae play defendants in a courtroom drama, facing down a thicket of accusations, while their Wu brethren and some younger stalwarts get in on the drama. The MCs ping-pong bars back and forth as “attorneys” address the court and toss out a cavalcade of details — narcotic-sniffing dogs, white powder hidden in luggage — worthy of the finest Wu joints. —Christian Hoard

The Polish art-rock band offers up a swirling, psychedelic dream with a sly bass line that evokes 2000s Radiohead and a steadily mounting sense of tension. “Oh, let the mourners go,” guitarist Wojtek Juchniewicz sings and shouts. Bandleader Grzegorz Kwiatkowski, a poet and anti-fascist activist, provides a counterpoint with his Beatlesque backing vocal: “Let the mourners come.” Listen enough, and it starts to sound like a scream against the rising drone of right-wing authoritarian politics around the world. —S.V.L.

Vintage Chicago house throwbacks have been thick on the ground ever since Renaissance dropped. But Sudan Archives gives that old framework a fresh and playful urgency. On paper, “A Bug’s Life” describes a rocky relationship with someone who’s “so relentless … She never looks back/’Cause she can’t go home.” In the air, the Italo-house piano, hypnotically shuffling hi-hats, and soaring vocal-sample patchwork behind the chorus all work to make the song’s bittersweet tone even more tangible. —M.Matos

After catapulting into meme lore last summer with “Doot Doot (6 7),” Philadelphia rapper Skrilla spent the rest of 2025 proving that he’s more than a one-hit wonder. “Rich Sinners,” which finds him trading bars with Lil Yachty, marks a step forward. “I’m from the bottom, Bikini Bottom, who knew Patrick be a star?” raps Skrilla. But leave it to Yachty to offer the track’s most outrageous — and potentially offensive — line: “I’m the one call all the shots, I feel like Putin.” —Mosi Reeves

BigXthaPlug’s 2022 track “Texas” got noticed by the country community for its combination of grimy slide guitar, fluttering trap snares, and gospel-tinged bravado. That interest led to I Hope You’re Happy, an EP that twinned BigX’s husky bellow with crooning from current country-radio staples. The project’s first single, the breakup sulk “All the Way,” takes the minor-key sullenness that defines a hefty slice of mid-‘20s Nashville and adds BigX’s booming voice on top, creating a guilt trip in stereo. —M.J.

Will Anderson of Hotline TNT delivers shoegaze guitar majesty deepened by aching tunefulness. With its rousing, tidal distortion, “Julia’s War” is named after a great Philadelphia indie label and sounds like it could’ve been on MTV’s 120 Minutes in 1991, maybe between Swervedriver and the Catherine Wheel. Anderson reaches through the building noise to make a connection with someone slipping out of focus, as a perfect “na na na na na” refrain pushes him from faint hope to straight-up bliss. —J.D.

The party that Netón Vega and Peso Pluma attend on “Morena” is a lavish affair — with Balenciaga, tequila of the Cruz Azul variety, and a bit of white powder to get the blood flowing. Hopelessly hedonistic, right? And yet, this música mexicana gem is wrapped in a gauzy, slo-mo sheen of spiraling trombone riffs and pulsating bass that adds a near spiritual vibe to the story of the title’s captivating beauty. Melancholy to the core, and achingly beautiful. —E.L.

This standout off Samia’s excellent LP Bloodless has it all: Diet Dr. Pepper, Raymond Carver, leeches, and Degas dancers. It’s a slow-burning odyssey into the indie rocker’s mind — she sings that she wants to “be impossible” before the song culminates in the refrain, “And drained, drained bloodless.” Samia uses the bizarre concept of cattle mutilation to explore themes of patriarchal society and purity — as she put it, “this clinical pursuit of emptiness.” The result is the prettiest song about slaughtered livestock to date. —Angie Martoccio

“You better stop doing that pocket watchin’, keep a good eye on your hoe,” Veeze warns in his typically slurred vocal style on “L.O.A.T.” Set over skittering 8-bit digital production by Rocaine, the track — an acronym for “lamest for all time” — is a two-minute showcase for the Detroit rapper to flip imaginative metaphors, from comparing himself to Iron Man to referencing Destiny Child’s “Cater 2 U,” while satiating fans eager for a follow-up to his acclaimed 2023 breakout, Ganger. —M.R.

For their first official collaboration, U.K. staples AJ Tracey and Jorja Smith flip Brandy’s 2002 deep cut “Love Wouldn’t Count Me Out” into a grime hit. The London rapper and R&B star trade verses about second chances throughout the track, including one in which Smith slips into a silky-smooth rap cadence herself, crafted in her distinct Walsall accent. Tracey matches his collaborator’s reluctant tone with clever, streamlined bars that make a pretty undeniable case for hitting repeat. —L.P.

You gotta love a guitar band whose one-liners snap just as hard as its riffs. Wet Leg’s new album, Moisturizer, crackles with searing guitars and brash jokes that distill their “make a mess now and worry about it later” philosophy. “Mangetout” chugs out of the gate as Rhian Teasdale makes quick work of a “bottom feeder” with the devastating line, “You wanna fuck me, I know most people do.” If the casual contempt here wasn’t so fun, you’d almost kind of feel bad for the poor fool. —J.D.

Rochelle Jordan never lets you see her sweat. She nimbly navigates rhythm tracks that effortlessly commingle house music with R&B and pop, and this track may be her peak to date. It chimes with the year’s dance-floor swerve toward vintage U.K. garage — the snares skip suavely, and Jordan’s syllables are cut up over the coda — and whether she’s semi-rapping the verses or infusing the chorus with grainy soul, she commands everything with subtle but unmistakable aplomb. —M.Matos

“Verano Rosa” was famously left on the cutting-room floor during Karol G’s sessions for Mañana Será Bonito (Bichota Season); the star revealed the song was a collaboration with fellow Latin music titan Feid in her 2023 Rolling Stone cover story. After two years, Karol and Feid delivered with a wistful, summer-ready track. Against a sunny reggaeton beat, the two musicians embody former flames who long for each other over drunken mid-party phone calls, liquor bottles in hand, and remember their unmatched love. —Maya Georgi 

The latest from the Iowa country upstart is a whip-smart, fiddle-heavy travelogue about the trials and travails of being an aspiring heartland country star. Sound familiar? “The Colonel just called/said the next song might go all the way to the top,” Hailey Whitters sings over a throwback earworm arrangement that conjures everyone from Miranda Lambert to Alan Jackson. If there’s any justice, the Colonel’s false promise would become prophecy. —J. Bernstein

What’s more fun than a dance-pop song about depression? The answer is clearly a Marina song about depression. On this Princess of Power cut, she opens up about loneliness and anxiety through a candid, lyrical inner monologue. The lyrics are refreshingly blunt and at times devastating, but when paired with the bouncy Eurodance house beat, they feel like a badge of honor she wears bravely and proudly. —B.S. 

Katseye proved they weren’t afraid to get a little messy with “Gnarly.” But “Gabriela” is where they leaned into undeniable girl-group pop — the kind tailor-made for the choreography they serve onstage. Produced by Andrew Watt and John Ryan, the track layers in Latin-tinged guitars as the members glide through the vocals, and Daniela taps into her Latina roots with a full Spanish verse. It’s a reminder why Katseye are pushing the idea of what a global girl group can look like. —T.M.

Few artists can probe the multifaceted nature of grief like Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner. On “Picture Window,” she confronts its long shadow in the face of love, contrasting her anxiety-racked self with a more carefree partner who “only cries on Ferris wheels.” In a note to fans, Zauner wrote that this disconnect can be “both a relief and a struggle,” but it’s not something to run from. “Picture Window” is warm and inviting — indie rock mixed with cosmic country — even as our ghosts live among us. —J. Blistein

Doechii dropped the inescapable “Anxiety” in March — except, she actually made the song in 2019 and only rerecorded it after a snippet of the original gained traction online. It’s a clear testament to the potency of her creative instincts. The song rides a mesmerizing flip of Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” and finds Doechii deploying a dexterous yet playful flow as she navigates feelings surrounding the emotion in the song’s title. It’s no wonder it took off. Doechii articulates the feeling of the moment. —J.I.

The U.K. punk duo Lambrini Girls’ songs are an onslaught of riot grrrl shrieks, violent riffs, and flashing synths. On “Cuntology 101,” singer-guitarist Phoebe Lunny relishes repeating the song’s chosen expletive. But the list of what constitutes cunty — standing up for yourself, respecting others, learning how to say no — has an explicitly Gen Z feel. As Lunny said earlier this year, “It was genuinely just about, like, how many stupid funny things can someone say in a song and relate it back to self love?” —Elisabeth Garber-Paul

British Nigerian artist Obongjayar’s second album, Paradise Now, was inspired by David Bowie and Prince. “There’s not too much fat,” he told Rolling Stone of their work. “It’s so fine and understandable and also very unique.” “Talk Olympics” with Little Simz is great at this. The frenzied percussion elicits the commotion of an African market but mirrors the similarly incessant chatter that can spill from the internet into real life. Obongjayar plays with high life, electro-pop, all kinds of rock, and a touch of rap. —M.C. 

The 21-year-old 2hollis is quickly shaping up to be Gen Z’s experimental pop It boy, and “Nice” solidifies it. The song is a hyper-pop dream, bouncy and ecstatic. In the lyrics, 2hollis is talking to a lover whom he promises he just wants to be nice to, in spite of some missteps in his past. While the rest of Star leans toward the weirder, “Nice” feels like the type of pop cut that any pop star working now would kill to put out. But only 2hollis could truly sell it. —B.S.

It’s fitting that “Dark Thoughts” came together in a flash. The 22-year-old rapper Lil Tecca speaks to a generation driven by instinct, able to decipher a hit from a few seconds of a snippet. He told Rolling Stone that he made the song at nine in the morning “straight off the wake up as a vibe check,” after looking for a “Pharrell type beat” on YouTube. “Dark Thoughts” cuts to something more than just nostalgia, though. With its glistening production and buoyant melody, it’s a showcase for one of hip-hop’s brightest new talents. —J.I.

“Marlboro Rojo” was the beating heart of Fuerza Régida’s excellent 111Xpantia, the clearest example of the Mexican stars tapping into what frontman JOP called the “old Fuerza.” And while the album went into new sonic territory, the single leaned into the tuba, charchetas, and guitars that built the group’s original sound. It also extended the winning streak of songwriter Armenta, who’s the pen behind some of Fuerza’s biggest hits, including “Bebe Dame” and “Sabor Fresa.” —T.M.

The beloved New Zealand indie-rock foursome speak the truth in “Straight Line Was a Lie,” over the maddeningly catchy guitar jangle. It’s the melodic power-pop title tune from their first album since their 2022 breakthrough, Expert in a Dying Field. Elizabeth Stokes rejects the whole idea of personal, creative, or commercial growth. “I guess I’ll take the long way,” she sings, “Because every way’s the long way”—that’s the kind of tough wisdom we needed (but didn’t want) this year. —Rod Sheffield

Florence + the Machine’s lead single off their latest album, Everybody Scream, is a simmering track packed with killer lines like, “It must be nice to be a man and make boring music just because you can.” Florence Welch reflects on both her own mortality and legacy as a musician in a misogynistic industry; each line tumbles out with a hurried necessity. The lyrical ferocity is matched with moody, dissonant guitar riffs, courtesy of Idles’ Mark Bowen. —M.G.

“Shake It to the Max” was released last December, but it became a song of the summer contender with a remix featuring Shenseea and Skillibeng. The two added their vocals to a beat from producers Silent Addy and Disco Neil that melds classic dancehall vibes with modern instrumentation. Moliy’s intercontinental collaboration made the club a prime venue for a breakup anthem. But even those who don’t resonate with lyrics like “Said he want me back, he can’t touch this” can jam to the song’s irresistible hook. —Andre Gee

Big Thief marry the commonplace and the cosmic like a 2020s version of the Grateful Dead. When Adrianne Lenker performed the lead track on their new Double Infinity a year before the album’s release, it was an acoustic tune in the vein of Neil Young’s “Helpless.” The band turned it into a gorgeous psychedelic swirl, perfect for Lenker’s lyrics, which begin with a missed flight and spiral into a road-trip meditation on memory, time, family, aging, and freedom. —J.D.