Best of the Decade: Songs

Before we delve into the best songs of the decade, let's first review the criteria.

- Did I enjoy it? Did the movie/song/moment/etc. resonate with me personally?
- Did the people who's opinions really matter like it? Was the movie/song/moment nominated for an Oscar/Grammy/ESPY?
- How much does it typify the decade? In 20-30 years will people think of it when they think of the 00's?

I'll tell you now that there are a few songs on the list that I absolutely hate, but they made the cut because of how well they rate in regards to the other criteria.

Lastly, although I tried to be as thorough as possible, I'm sure that I forgot plenty of songs that deserved to be on this list. Feel free to let me know which songs I left out.

* signifies a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year or Song of the Year
** signifies a Grammy win for Record of the Year or Song of the Year

100.) Crazy Town- Butterfly (2000)

99.) Owl City- Fireflies (2009)

98.) Kenny Chesney- Young (2002)

97.) Gavin DeGraw- I Don’t Wanna Be (2004)- So what if I used to watch One Tree Hill. Sophia Bush is a smokeshow.

96.) M.I.A.- Paper Planes (2009)*- Check out this cool music video type trailer for Slumdog Milionaire (2008) that it was used for.

95.) Hoobastank- Crawling in the Dark (2002)- This might be the YouTube video that I've seen the most and now that Charlie's gone it just doesn't feel the same.


94.) Dave Matthews Band- The Space Between (2001)

93.) Incubus- Pardon Me (2000)

92.) Chris Brown- Forever (2008)- This song's popularity will always be linked to this and this.

91.) T.I.- Whatever You Like (2008)- Gotta love the one white kid in this video.

90.) Finger Eleven- One Thing (2004)

89.) Wheatus- Teenage Dirtbag (2000)- I will forever associate this song with the "friendship test." In the first few weeks of college my cousin and I, like most college kids do, had become friends with many of the kids that lived on our floor. In order to "test" the validity of these friendships we played this song for a few individuals (one by one) and asked them to either sing the first line of the song or to name the title and artist before the chorus began. In case you're wondering, a one Mr. Kyle Korver belted out, "Her name is Noel" almost instantly.

88.) Audioslave- Like a Stone (2004)- Is this song on Guitar Hero yet? The guitar solo is awesome so it better be.

87.) 3 Doors Down- Kryptonite (2000)

86.) JET- Look What You’ve Done (2004)

85.) Big and Rich- Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy (2004)- 2004 World Series of Poker commercials anyone?

84.) Timbland- The Way I Are (2007)

83.) Linkin Park- In the End (2001)

82.) T Pain featuring Young Joc- Buy You A Drank (2007)

81.) U2- Walk On (2002)**

80.) Creed- Higher (2000)

79.) Jimmy Eat World- The Middle (2001)- I wish I was kidding when I tell you that while on vacation in 2006 some kid told my cousin Kate that she had to go back to his room to hear an, "awesome, new song." She wanted nothing to do with this kid, but was too nice to break his heart so she brought me along because it was on our walk home. When he put this on, after hyping up this "awesome, new song", I literally almost lost it. To this day, Kate nor I can hear this song witout laughing.

78.) The Black Eyed Peas- I Gotta Feeling (2009)

77.) Kanye West- The Good Life (2007)

76.) Bruce Springsteen- The Rising (2002)*- This list wouldn't be complete without The Boss.

75.) Sara Bareilles- Love Song (2008)*

74.) Hinder- Lips of an Angel (2006)- Although my friend Matty K is probably wondering why JoJo- Too Little Too Late (2006) didn't make the cut, this should suffice.

73.) Howie Day- Collide (2005)

72.) Fabolous- This Is My Party (2003)

71.) Kid Rock featuring Sheryl Crow- Picture (2003)

70.) Katy Perry- I Kissed A Girl (2008)*

69.) Dave Matthews Band- Everyday (2001)- Judah Friedlander's breakout role. Can you think of anyone better to star in this music video? I can't.

68.) Green Day- Wake Me Up When September Ends (2005)

67.) Akon featuring Snoop Dogg- I Wanna Fuck You (2006)

66.) Train- Drops of Jupiter (2001)*

65.) John Mayer- Waiting on the World to Change (2006)- Fairfield's finest

64.) Kenny Chesney- I Go Back (2004)

63.) Coheed and Cambria- A Favor House Atlantic (2004)

62.) Nappy Roots- Awnaw (2002)

61.) Kanye West- Family Business (2004)-
I woke up early this mornin' with a new state of mind
A creative way to rhyme without usin' knives and guns
Keep your nose out the sky, keep your heart to God
And keep your face to the risin' sun

60.) John Legend- Ordinary People (2005)*

59.) Coldplay- Viva La Vida (2008)**

58.) The Black Eyed Peas- Let’s Get it Started (2005)*

57.) O.A.R.- Love and Memories (2005)

56.) Kenny Chesney- The Good Stuff (2002)- The lyrics of this song tell a great story.

55.) Beyonce- Single Ladies (2008)

54.) Gwen Stefani- Hollaback Girl (2005)*- My least favorite song on the list.

53.) The Killers- Mr. Brightside (2005)

52.) Warren Zevon- Keep Me in Your Heart (2003)


51.) Fabolous- Into You (2003)

50.) Kings of Leon- Use Somebody (2009)

49.) Amy Whinehouse- Rehab (2007)**

48.) Fall Out Boy- Sugar, We’re Goin Down (2005)

47.) The Roots- Seed (2.0) (2003)- If you've ever watched Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (is anyone else routinely awake at 1:30 a.m.?) you know that The Roots are incredibly talented.

46.) Nelly- Country Grammar (2000)

45.) Kelly Clarkson- Miss Independent (2003)

44.) Blink 182- Adam’s Song (2000)

43.) Jordin Sparks featuring Chris Brown- No Air (2008)- Her dad is a former New York Giant and the song was performed on Glee. Both positives if you ask me.

42.) Coldplay- The Scientist (2002)- Probably best known for the video in which everything is going in reverse.

41.) Usher- Burn (2004)

40.) Shakira- Whenever, Wherever (2001)- Right back at ya Shakira. Whenever, wherever.

39.) 50 Cent featuring Eminem- Patiently Waiting (2004)

38.) Dr. Dre featuring Eminem- Forgot About Dre (2001)- Detroit what

37.) Carrie Underwood- Before He Cheats (2007)*- Easily the hottest chick on this list. Did anyone else see her in those leather pants during her Christmas special?

36.) Gnarls Barkley- Crazy (2006)*

35.) Outkast- Ms. Jackson (2001)*

34.) Jay-Z and Linkin Park- Numb/Encore (2004)- Now batting, #13, Alex Rodriguez

33.) U2- Beautiful Day (2001)**

32.) Green Day- Minority (2000)

31.) Usher featuring Young Jeezy- Love in this Club (2008)

30.) Soulja Boy- Crank That (Soulja Boy) (2007)- The girls I went to college with made sure that everyone knew that they knew the dance to this song.

29.) Kanye West- Gold Digger (2005)*- Speaking of dances, Kanye's dance in this video where he throws his head back is hysterical.

28.) Jay-Z featuring Alicia Keys- Empire State of Mind (2009)

27.) Rascal Flatts- Fast Cars and Freedom (2005)

26.) Chris Brown- Run It (2005)

25.) Justin Timberlake- SexyBack (2006)

24.) Beyonce- Irreplaceable (2007)*

23.) James Jones- We Fly High (2006)- Any song that references grey poupon and is adopted by the New York Giants defense is A-OK in my book.

22.) Kanye West featuring Jay-Z- Diamonds from Sierra Leone (Remix) (2005)

21.) James Blunt- You’re Beautiful (2006)- One day I was going somewhere with my mom and I was driving. Now I can't remember the exact song that was playing at the time, but it was from one of my CD's and the word "fuck" was in it. As soon as my mom heard the explitive she said, "Turn this garbage off. Can't we listen to something without any curse words. What about that James Blunt song? Can you play that?" Now of course she had only heard the edited version on the radio and didn't know that the actual lyric is, "She could see from my face that I was fucking high." You better believe that I let her know that Mr. Blunt wasn't as innocent as he seemed.

20.) Rihanna featuring Jay-Z- Umbrella (2007)*- The most overplayed song on the entire list.

19.) Alan Jackson featuring Jimmy Buffett- It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere (2003)- From September 1st 2008-November 30th 2008 I had a desk job and I listened to this song just about every day.

18.) Kelly Clarkson- Since U Been Gone (2004)

17.) Beyonce featuring Jay-Z- Crazy in Love (2003)*

16.) The Black Eyed Peas- Where is the Love? (2003)*

15.) Vanessa Carlton- A Thousand Miles (2002)*- This song came on in the ESPN cafeteria the other day just as I started to stand up to go back to my work station. Obviously I sat right back down and waited until the song was over before returning to my work station.

14.) Taylor Swift- Love Story (2008)

13.) Nelly- Grillz (2006)- An underrated contender for Artist of the Decade.

12.) Avril Lavigne- Complicated (2002)*- If she wasn't Canadian this might have cracked the top 10.

11.) Alicia Keys- Fallin’ (2001)**

10.) Rodney Atkins- These Are My People (2007)-


An awesome song that makes me think of my friends from home. Let's go orange.

9.) R. Kelly- Ignition (Remix) (2003)

8.) Nelly Furtado featuring Timbaland- Promiscuous (2006)*- I just found out that Nelly Furtado is Canadian, so I'm sorry Avril, but props to her for mentioning fellow Canadian celeb Steve Nash in this song.

Hey, is that the truth or are you talking trash?
Is your game MVP like Steve Nash?

7.) Justin Timberlake featuring Timbaland- Cry Me A River (2003)

6.) 50 Cent- In Da Club (2003)

5.) Eminem- Lose Yourself (2002)

4.) Kanye West- Through the Wire (2004) -


I'm not so sure about his claim as the artist of our generation, but he could make a great case for artist of the decade. This is his 5th appearance in the countdown.

3.) Nelly featuring Kelly Rowland- Dilemma (2002)*

2.) Outkast- Hey Ya! (2003)*- Shake it like a polaroid picture

1.) Usher featuring Lil John and Ludacris- Yeah (2004)- Peace up, A-town down

You say you a gangsta but you neva pop nothin'. We say you a wanksta and you need to stop frontin'

The musical genres of rap and hip hop are essentially for black people. It's almost like the old clothing line FUBU (for us by us). But of course, plenty of white kids attempt to 'rebel' against their environments and embrace this music. Rappers and hip hop artists have recognized this suburban market and have, as Jay Z said in the song "Moment of Clarity", dumbed down for their audiences and doubled their dollars. When rap songs turn pop, white kids eat them up and memorize the lyrics. Here then, are the top 10 rap/hip hop songs that make white kids think they are cool because they know the lyrics.

Honorable Mention- Tupac- Changes



Tupac rapped this song relatively slow and therefore it was a little easier to learn the lyrics. Now although my cousin who shall remain nameless has told me that he thinks I am one of the few white kids out there that have this song memorized, I think it is still worthy of being mentioned because every white kid out there was obsessed with thinking that Tupac was still alive. The video is also worthwhile to see again (especially the 1:43 mark). I know girls that love this song and that just goes to show you how mainstream it became.


10.) Sir Mix-A-Lot- Baby Got Back



"Oh, my, god. Becky look at her butt."

This song has been around long enough for the majority of suburbia to memorize at least the beginning of the first verse.

I like big butts and I can not lie
You other brothers can't deny
That when a girl walks in with an itty bitty waist
And a round thing in your face
You get sprung

I know plenty of guys out there that consider themselves ass men, but they pale in comparison to black guys. Rich white kids don't grow up infatuated with the backside of females. They focus their adoration on different areas. Black guys are notoriously known for lovvving what are often referred to as BBBW's (big, beautiful, black women).

9.) Dr. Dre- The Next Episode



The Chronic 2001 album was the white kid's rap anthem (Yeah I bought it too). You had "Still D.R.E" and "Forgot About Dre" (Detroit, what?) that were released before "The Next Episode", but it was "The Next Episode" that was championed by White America, and mainly for one lyric.White kids loved to recite the line at the end of the song, "Smoke weed everyday", but no one ever timed it right.

Now that line is not recited in the video that I have above, but it is most definitely on the album. This song is so obviously known to white kids that when I searched for "the next episode" on youtube it told me to also try "smoke weed everyday" and "smoke weed everyday snoop dog". This includes the "Smoke weed everyday" at the end, but look how embarrassing it is.

8.) Mase- Feels so Good



Mase disappeared from the rap game and became a minister (a big time white person rap fact that they thought no one else knew), but before he went away he came out with "Feels so Good". This song was his only signature single and it appealed almost directly to the suburban market. The fact that Puff Daddy opened his verse with this:

Do Mase got the ladies? Yeah, yeah
Do Puff drive Mercedes? Yeah, yeah
Take hits from the 80's? Yeah, yeah
But do it sound so crazy? Yeah, yeah

all but sealed this song's fate as a pop hit.

7.) Jay Z- Big Pimpin'



It was a toss up between this and "Can I get A" (a song that I know better and I am a suburban white kid), but I think "Big Pimpin" was more pervasive among my peers. If a male from the ages of 20-25 denies every having any part of the following lines in their AIM profile or as an away message than they are most likely lying.

Me give my heart to a woman
Not for nothin' never happen'
I'll be forever mackin'


6.) Warren G- Regulate

Regulators
We regulate any stealing of his property
And we damn good too
But you cant be any geek off the street,
Gotta be handy with the steel if you know what I mean, earn your keep!
Regulators!!! Mount up!

I apologize, but whoever posted this video on youtube disabled the embedding option. I actually like this song a lot, but I feel as if too many people are aware of its greatness. It's kind of like finding a great bathroom that you think is scarcely used, but then you find out that a lot of people are taking care of business in there as well.

5.) Will Smith- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air


Yo homes, smell ya later

This one almost needs no explanation. It would probably be #1 on the countdown if it was an actual song from an album. I don't think I know anybody that doesn't know a handful of lines from this theme song. Little did we know that this song was just the tip of the iceberg. Will Smith became the quintessential white man's rapper with his later work.

4.) 50 Cent- In Da Club



If you watch how I move you'll mistake me for a playa or pimp
Been hit wit a few shells but I dont walk wit a limp

Just think about the absurdity in suburban caucasians uttering these words. How many people do you know that have been shot? I know zero. This song was very catchy from its onset and it took white kids by storm. Most of 50 Cent first album, from what my rap insiders tell me, is very pop oriented and this was the king of them all.

3.) Dr. Dre featuring Snoop Dogg- Ain't Nothing But a G Thang


One, two, three and to the fo

It's from the original Chronic album and at first was solely embraced by its intended audience (black people), but over the course of time white people began to adopt it because of its lyrical quality. The very title of this song illustrates my point. It has nothing to do with white people because what white people out there can be considered G's?

2.) Notorious B.I.G featuring Puff Daddy and Mase- Mo' Money Mo' Problems



Puff Daddy chose to release a feel good song after Christopher Wallace's death and this was just that. Let's look at the cultural contrast from the very beginning of this video. First off, the title "Mo' Money Mo'Problems". The only white guy that ever said Mo was Mike O'Malley on Guts. Let's go the leader board with Mo, MO! Secondly, black people playing golf?? Come onnn. If that's not an attempt to appeal to white people, I don't know what is.

While Puff Daddy's closing line in the second verse, "And I'm bigger than the city like down in Times Square. Yeah, yeah yeah,"is very popular, it is the third verse (Notorious B.I.G's) that is the most well known. If you have that verse memorized (and I'll assume a bunch of you do), please don't ever recite it in front of people.

1.) Notorious B.I.G.- Juicy



So I was at a party at a girl's house in New Jersey in the summer going into my junior year in college and this song came on. Literally on cue, as if I needed another reason to hate Jersey, the host's older brother (a college senior or older at the time) and his friends proceeded to sing this song as if they were Biggie Smalls reincarnated. My friends and I were thoroughly unimpressed because we decided that kids in 6th grade probably knew the words to this song. It truly is a shame that suburban white kids have ruined a song about a drug dealing black man making it in the rap game.



What do you think of the top 10? Do you also hate New Jersey? Would you have added anything different to the list?