Rolling Stone: Top 500 songs of all-time

Rolling Stone - The 250 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century So Far
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-songs-of-the-21st-century-1235410452/

Rolling Stone is not a music website that i frequent, this list was published 2 days ago

summary provided by
https://www.acclaimedmusic.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=17211

1. Missy Elliott - 'Get Ur Freak On'
2. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - 'Maps'
3. Beyoncé feat. Jay Z - 'Crazy in Love'
4. The White Stripes - 'Seven Nation Army'
5. Taylor Swift - 'All Too Well'
6. Robyn - 'Dancing on My Own'
7. Kendrick Lamar - 'Alright'
8. Radiohead - 'Idioteque'
9. Britney Spears - 'Toxic'
10. Frank Ocean - 'Thinkin Bout You'
11. Bad Bunny, Ñengo Flow, and Jowell and Randy - 'Safaera'
12. The Strokes - 'Last Nite'
13. SZA - 'Snooze'
14. Daddy Yankee - 'Gasolina'
15. OutKast - 'B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad)'
16. Mariah Carey - 'We Belong Together'
17. Drake - 'Hotline Bling'
18. Billie Eilish - 'Bad Guy'
19. Adele - 'Someone Like You'
20. Steve Lacy - 'Bad Habit'
21. Lady Gaga - 'Bad Romance'
22. Wizkid feat. Tems - 'Essence'
23. Chappell Roan - 'Pink Pony Club'
24. D'Angelo - 'Untitled (How Does It Feel)'
25. Jay-Z - '99 Problems'
26. The Killers - 'Mr. Brightside'
27. Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris - 'We Found Love'
28. Daft Punk - 'One More Time'
29. UGK feat. OutKast - 'Int'l Players Anthem (I Choose You)'
30. Usher - 'Confessions Part II'
31. Kelly Clarkson - 'Since U Been Gone'
32. Beyoncé - 'Formation'
33. Lana Del Rey - 'Venice Bitch'
34. Lorde - 'Ribs'
35. LCD Soundsystem - 'All My Friends'
36. Mitski - 'Your Best American Girl'
37. BTS - 'Spring Day'
38. Olivia Rodrigo - 'Drivers License'
39. Eminem - 'Lose Yourself'
40. Ariana Grande - 'Thank U, Next'
41. The Weeknd - 'Blinding Lights'
42. Carly Rae Jepsen - 'Call Me Maybe'
43. Drake feat. Majid Jordan - 'Hold On, We're Going Home'
44. Migos feat. Lil Uzi Vert - 'Bad and Boujee'
45. Kacey Musgraves - 'Follow Your Arrow'
46. Amy Winehouse - 'Back to Black'
47. Lil Uzi Vert - 'XO Tour Llif3'
48. M.I.A. - 'Paper Planes'
49. Maxwell - 'Pretty Wings'
50. Haim - 'The Wire'
51. Disclosure feat. Sam Smith - 'Latch'
52. Franz Ferdinand - 'Take Me Out'
53. Nicki Minaj feat. 2 Chainz - 'Beez in the Trap'
54. 50 Cent - 'In Da Club'
55. Katy Perry - 'Teenage Dream'
56. Shakira feat. Alejandro Sanz - 'La Tortura'
57. U2 - 'Beautiful Day'
58. DJ Snake feat. Lil Jon - 'Turn Down for What'
59. Phoebe Bridgers - 'Motion Sickness'
60. Lil Wayne - 'A Milli'
61. Bob Dylan - 'Things Have Changed'
62. Solange - 'Cranes in the Sky'
63. Paramore - 'Still Into You'
64. Peso Pluma and Eslabon Armado - 'Ella Baila Sola'
65. Kendrick Lamar - 'Not Like Us'
66. Wilco - 'Impossible Germany'
67. 'NSync - 'Bye Bye Bye'
68. Miranda Lambert - 'The House That Built Me'
69. Arcade Fire - 'Rebellion (Lies)'
70. Clipse feat. Ab-Liva - 'Ride Around Shining'
71. Harry Styles - 'As It Was'
72. Bon Iver - 'Skinny Love'
73. Cardi B - 'Bodak Yellow'
74. David Bowie - 'Blackstar'
75. Kanye West - 'Jesus Walks'
76. Lil Nas X - 'Old Town Road'
77. Rosalía - 'Malamente (Cap.1: Augurio)'
78. Future - 'March Madness'
79. Fall Out Boy - 'Sugar, We're Goin Down'
80. Boygenius - 'Not Strong Enough'
81. Bad Bunny - 'Baile Inolvidable'
82. OutKast - 'Hey Ya!'
83. The Rapture - 'House of Jealous Lovers'
84. Justin Bieber - 'Sorry'
85. Arctic Monkeys - 'Do I Wanna Know?'
86. Charli XCX - 'Vroom Vroom'
87. Chris Stapleton - 'Tennessee Whiskey'
88. Madonna - 'Hung Up'
89. Justin Timberlake - 'Mirrors'
90. Broken Social Scene - 'Anthems for a Seventeen Year-Old Girl'
91. Tyler, the Creator - 'Yonkers'
92. Sean Paul - 'Get Busy'
93. Eric Church - 'Springsteen'
94. Dua Lipa - 'Levitating'
95. Burna Boy - 'Last Last'
96. My Chemical Romance - 'Welcome to the Black Parade'
97. Lana Del Rey - 'Video Games'
98. Carrie Underwood - 'Before He Cheats'
99. The Hives - 'Hate to Say I Told You So'
100. Frank Ocean - 'Novacane'
101. Missy Elliott - 'Work It'
102. Lady Gaga - 'Poker Face'
103. Florence + the Machine - 'Dog Days Are Over'
104. Miley Cyrus - 'Wrecking Ball'
105. Kelis - 'Milkshake'
106. One Direction - 'Fireproof'
107. Kylie Minogue - 'Can't Get You Out of My Head'
108. The New Pornographers - 'Letter From an Occupant'
109. Karol G and Nicki Minaj - 'Tusa'
110. Courtney Barnett - 'Depreston'
111. Calle 13 - 'Querido FBI'
112. Panic! at the Disco - 'I Write Sins Not Tragedies'
113. Natalia Lafourcade - 'Hasta La Raíz'
114. Taylor Swift - 'Blank Space'
115. Little Big Town - 'Girl Crush'
116. Bruce Springsteen - 'Land of Hope and Dreams'
117. The Shins - 'New Slang'
118. Childish Gambino - 'Redbone'
119. Sky Ferreira - 'You're Not the One'
120. Destiny's Child - 'Survivor'
121. Eminem - 'Stan'
122. Azealia Banks feat. Lazy Jay - '212'
123. Fountains of Wayne - 'Hackensack'
124. Mary J. Blige - 'Family Affair'
125. Gyptian - 'Hold You'
126. Lucy Dacus - 'Night Shift'
127. Lorde - 'Green Light'
128. The Postal Service - 'Such Great Heights'
129. Megan Thee Stallion feat. Beyoncé - 'Savage Remix'
130. Selena Gomez - 'Hands to Myself'
131. Gorillaz - 'Clint Eastwood'
132. Avril Lavigne - 'Complicated'
133. Rihanna feat. Jay-Z - 'Umbrella'
134. Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber - 'Despacito'
135. Tyla - 'Water'
136. Mike Jones feat. Slim Thug and Paul Wall - 'Still Tippin''
137. Maren Morris - 'My Church'
138. Beyoncé feat. Jay-Z - 'Déjà Vu'
139. Rilo Kiley - 'Portions for Foxes'
140. M.O.P. feat. Busta Rhymes, Teflon, and Remi Martin - 'Ante Up'
141. Coldplay - 'The Scientist'
142. Blackpink - 'Ddu-Du Ddu-Du'
143. Icona Pop feat. Charli XCX - 'I Love It'
144. Zach Bryan feat. Kacey Musgraves - 'I Remember Everything'
145. Miguel - 'Adorn'
146. Ivy Queen - 'Quiero Bailar'
147. Travis Scott feat. Drake - 'Sicko Mode'
148. Jason Isbell - 'Cover Me Up'
149. Alvvays - 'Archie, Marry Me'
150. Nelly feat. City Spud - 'Ride Wit Me'
151. Vampire Weekend - 'A-Punk'
152. Pink - 'So What'
153. Beck - 'Lost Cause'
154. J. Cole - 'Middle Child'
155. Alicia Keys - 'Fallin''
156. Blink-182 - 'I Miss You'
157. Johnny Cash - 'Hurt'
158. Kendrick Lamar feat. Jay Rock - 'Money Trees'
159. Modest Mouse - 'Float On'
160. Chief Keef feat. Lil Reese - 'I Don't Like'
161. Taylor Swift - 'Cruel Summer'
162. Drake - 'Marvins Room'
163. TV on the Radio - 'Wolf Like Me'
164. The Flaming Lips - 'Do You Realize??'
165. Café Tacvba - 'Eres'
166. Jay-Z and Linkin Park - 'Numb/Encore'
167. Sabrina Carpenter - 'Espresso'
168. The Chicks - 'Long Time Gone'
169. Jimmy Eat World - 'The Middle'
170. Girls' Generation - 'Gee'
171. T.I. - 'What You Know'
172. Ciara feat. Missy Elliott - '1, 2 Step'
173. Waxahatchee - 'Lilacs'
174. System of a Down - 'Chop Suey!'
175. Aaliyah - 'Rock the Boat'
176. Car Seat Headrest - 'Drunk Drivers/Killer Whales'
177. Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper - 'Shallow'
178. Amerie - '1 Thing'
179. Juanes - 'Es Por Ti'
180. Kings of Leon - 'Use Somebody'
181. Rihanna feat. Drake - 'Work'
182. Brandi Carlile - 'The Story'
183. Billie Eilish - 'Happier Than Ever'
184. OutKast - 'Ms. Jackson'
185. Los Tigres del Norte - 'Somos Más Americanos'
186. Beyoncé - 'Cuff It'
187. MGMT - 'Kids'
188. Wisin & Yandel - 'Rakata'
189. Grimes - 'Oblivion'
190. Rae Sremmurd - 'No Flex Zone'
191. Phoenix - '1901'
192. Ed Sheeran - 'The A Team'
193. Parquet Courts - 'Stoned and Starving'
194. SZA - 'Drew Barrymore'
195. Evanescence - 'Bring Me to Life'
196. Radiohead - 'There, There'
197. Toni Braxton - 'He Wasn't Man Enough'
198. Three 6 Mafia feat. Young Buck, 8Ball, and MJG - 'Stay Fly'
199. Leonard Cohen - 'You Want It Darker'
200. FKA Twigs - 'Cellophane'
201. Gucci Mane - 'Lemonade'
202. Rauw Alejandro - 'Todo de Ti'
203. Original Koffee - 'Toast'
204. Pop Smoke - 'Welcome to the Party'
205. Green Day - 'Jesus of Suburbia'
206. NewJeans - 'Hype Boy'
207. Rich Gang feat. Young Thug and Rich Homie Quan - 'Lifestyle'
208. Ashlee Simpson - 'Pieces of Me'
209. Aventura feat. Don Omar - 'Ella y Yo'
210. Usher feat. Lil Jon and Ludacris - 'Yeah!'
211. Alabama Shakes - 'Hold On'
212. Doja Cat feat. SZA - 'Kiss Me More'
213. Taylor Swift - 'Love Story'
214. The Hold Steady - 'Killer Parties'
215. Lizzo - 'Truth Hurts'
216. Old Crow Medicine Show - 'Wagon Wheel'
217. Rich Boy feat. Polow Da Don - 'Throw Some D's'
218. T-Pain - 'I'm Sprung'
219. Father John Misty - 'Holy Shit'
220. Ke$ha - 'Tik Tok'
221. The Mountain Goats - 'No Children'
222. Paul Simon - 'Rewrite'
223. Kanye West feat. Rihanna and Kid Cudi - 'All of the Lights'
224. The Knife - 'Heartbeats'
225. Bright Eyes - 'First Day of My Life'
226. 5 Seconds of Summer - 'Youngblood'
227. Tyler Childers - 'Feathered Indians'
228. Rema - 'Woman'
229. Old 97's - 'Rollerskate Skinny'
230. Mastodon - 'Blood and Thunder'
231. Florida Georgia Line - 'Cruise'
232. Tems - 'Free Mind'
233. John Prine - 'Summer's End'
234. J Balvin and Willy William - 'Mi Gente'
235. Foo Fighters - 'Times Like These'
236. Shaboozey - 'A Bar Song (Tipsy)'
237. Kid Cudi - 'Day 'n' Nite'
238. Bleachers - 'I Wanna Get Better'
239. Skrillex feat. Sirah - 'Bangarang'
240. Mac Miller - '2009'
241. Wheatus - 'Teenage Dirtbag'
242. Scarface - 'My Block'
243. Davido feat. Musa Keys - 'Unavailable'
244. Warren Zevon - 'Keep Me in Your Heart'
245. Tego Calderón - 'Pa' Que Retozen'
246. Post Malone and Swae Lee - 'Sunflower'
247. Avicii - 'Levels'
248. Fleet Foxes - 'Tiger Mountain Peasant Song'
249. Tweet - 'Oops (Oh My)'
250. Train - 'Drops of Jupiter'

extremely goofy list

how do you even start making a list like this?

and how is it that I've never heard Maps in my life before?

Well this is a list

I didn't like it at all when they kept boosting old classic rock acts and throwbacks to classic rock acts, now they seem to be a more conservative version of pitchfork and I guess that's slightly better but now they don't really stand out, just a characterless list.

1 Thing all the way down at #178 feels like a deliberate troll, but it probably isn't.

You've got to admit, they really did pick a number and come up with that many songs.

funny how the top 4 looks like a best of the half-decade list published in 2004.

yeah, apparently the past 9 of these 25 years produced zero of the 10 best songs. really weird how stuff like Get Ur Freak On and Maps and Toxic and Seven Nation Army are just encased in amber and the idea that this *century* could subsequently generate anything comparable is apparently beyond the pale.

You didn't see Train on the list?

I'm sure "Hey Soul Sister" used to be in the top 10, but then Jann intervened and said, come on, we already have five Train songs on the list. And then someone else suggested that because everyone assumes "Hey Soul Sister" will be in the top 10, and several other Train songs will appear as well, RS should just get rid of all Train songs but one, and that one should be "Drops of Jupiter" and it should be at the bottom, for lols.

Hey Ya seems low.

And out of all the 21c Bob Dylan songs, why is Things Have Changed regarded as the best? He's got literally dozens better.

i suspect Pazz & Jop in the 2000s helped enshrine a consensus about recent releases that made their appearances on lists like these seem obvious. the closest equivalent now is the discourse around the "song of the summer."

Late 90’s and early 00’s was also the peak of printed media influence before the internet swallowed it all so I guess it makes sense that RS might have special nostalgia for the early 00’s since it was one of the last moments where they still had a good amount of credit as tastemakers and they played a relevant part in making all of the rock revival acts a thing as well as laying the groundwork for hip hop and poptimism to be considered as part of their canon.

So yeah it’s a pretty useless list as it’s pretty much a revision of their 00’s and 10’s lists with almost no 20’s onwards in there, but it kinda makes sense to me.

You didn't see Train on the list?

― Josh in Chicago, Friday, October 10, 2025 9:39 AM (thirty-two minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

Legitimately surprised no Morgan Wallen

Not to defend the list, but can you honestly name any song released in the last 9 years that's better than "Get Ur Freak On" and "Seven Nation Army" that wouldn't look incredibly weird in the Top 5 of on a list like this

A third good, a third bad, a third I don't even know

xp would it have been that weird if "Bad Guy" beat out "Maps"?

or "Pink Pony Club"?

I mean, again “Maps” has had a long life that’s influenced huge songs by Kelly Clarkson and Rick Ross. Beyoncé isn’t singing a Chappell Roan song on Lemonade

I saw Kelly Clarkson, Miranda Lambert, and Kacey Musgraves all cover Chappell Roan last year. I think it would have been perfectly defensible to elevate "Pink Pony Club" to a top 5 spot, which is what you said would have been incredibly weird. I'm not saying that's the right decision, though. If anything "Maps" is one of the few songs here that looks like an editorial decision and not a reflection of what they think would be acceptable to the broadest audience.

That list makes me feel old because there are only about 30 songs on it that I definitely know, maybe a few more that I'd know if I heard.

Not to defend the list, but can you honestly name any song released in the last 9 years that's better than "Get Ur Freak On" and "Seven Nation Army" that wouldn't look incredibly weird in the Top 5 of on a list like this

― *pies flung everywhere* -- Pill's Trap Goin' Ham (Whiney G. Weingarten),

“Run away with me”!

Which is missing from the top 250 btw

And it’s 10 years old

Put that goofy ass white stripes song in the top 5 so it “doesn’t look weird”

Personally I prefer Good Luck Babe or The Giver, but yeah either of those would have felt totally natural in the top 5.

It would have been fun if something like "Black Earth, WI" made this list. Hell even "Inside Out " would work.

And it’s 10 years old

― Judi Dench's Human Hand (methanietanner)

Ah yeah that’s true. It’s still missing from the top 250 tho.

“the giver” rules

I guess it’s true there hasn’t been many anthems that both critics and the GA in the english speaking world love in the past 9 years. Closest I can think of at that level is “Not like Us”.

These lists are whatever, but I legit YAY'd at Rilo Kiley, Mountain Goats, and John Prine.