Music is the best inspiration and escape. We create playlists and they become the soundtracks of our lives. We exercise to music, take it on the road, blast it while getting ready for a night out. It is the background to almost everything we do.
This year, the artists turned out some of the best songs to fill our playlists. Adele’s Easy On Me gave us a moment we didn’t know we needed. Taylor Swift’s 10-minute version of All Too Well made us forget we heard it before. Dua Lipa paired up with Elton John and Cold Heart was my favorite collaboration of 2021. Olivia Rodrigo’s Drivers License was an unforgettable anthem to heartbreak. Saturday Night Live even did an entire skit around it. It featured Bridgerton’s Regé-Jean Page and the SNL cast; it was one of their best skits this year.
I asked my team to share their favorite five songs this year. The result? A song collection of the best of 2021 and a few older suggestions that helped get us through the year.
Stokes O'Shields top 5 Oldies but Goodies
Way Down We Go by Kaleo (2015)
Valerie by Amy Winehouse (2011)
Movement by Hozier (2019)
An Alternative to Freedom by Witchcraft (2012)
Patience by Eivor (2020)
Chelsea Craig's 5
New by Ben Platt (2019) - a pop BOP that can help anyone's mood instantly improve
Shake My Head by Ivory Layne (2017)- May or may not be a great song for looking back at a relationship that was never going to work in the first place (LOL) Cross My Mind by A R I Z O N A (2016) - Perfect song for discovering a new love interest but still working on yourself (also LOL) Born Without a Heart by Faouzia (2019) - one of the few concerts I went to this year. Her voice is INSANE and I hope she becomes the next global superstar!!!
the 1 by Taylor Swift (2021)- both Evermore and Folklore were on repeat for me this year
Katy Matello 5 Songs plus 1 Got Her Through The Year
So I'm realizing how little new music I listen to...Favorite would be a tough descriptor, but these are songs I remember intentionally stopping to listen to throughout the year.
Bad Habits by Ed Sheerhan (2021)
Beautiful Mistakes by Maroon 5 (2021)
Dancing With the Devil by Demi Lovato (2021)
To Be Loved by Adele (2021)
Your Song by Elton John (1970)...The line "How wonderful life is while you're in the world" kept popping into my head throughout my pregnancy and became part of our announcement of our daughter's birth."
All I Know So Far by Pink (2021)
Gina Duncan's Favorites of the Year
Lo Vas A Olvidar by Billie Eilish & ROSALIA (2021)
Hold On To Me by Lauren Daigle (2021)
Shivers by Ed Sheeran (2021)- I dare you not to dance when you hear this song.
Willow by Taylor Swift (2021)
Easy on Me by Adele (2021)
Martha Sanderson's Rediscovered 5
Walking On A Dream by Empire of the Sun ( 2008 rediscovered this era) exile by Taylor Swift (2020) The Journey by Sol Rising (2017)
Sunset Lover by Petite Biscuit (2016)
Heat Waves by Glass Animals (2020)
Lili Kinsey's 5 Favorites
Heat Waves by Glass Animals (2020)
August by Taylor Swift (2020)
Levitating by Dua Lipa (2020)
This Girl by Kungs (2016)
Susie Save Your Love by Allie x and Mitski (2020)
Abbi Stickle's Twenty One Pilots Plus 3 others
good 4 u byOlivia Rodrigo (2021)
Rooftop Dancing by Sylvan Esso (2020)
Heat Waves by Glass Animals (2020)
The Outside by Twenty One Pilots (2021)
Shy Away by Twenty One Pilots (2021)
Michael's 5 Favorites of the Year
WhoWho by WizTheMC & Hugo (2020)
Heat Waves by Glass Animals (2020)
Solo by Samsa (2017)
Stay by The Kid LAROI & Justin Beiber (2021)
Moon by Kanye West (2021)
Pop music group, Us the Duo, does an annual mash up of the top songs of the year. Here are their 2021 top hits.
Please share your favorite of 2021 in the comments below.