Announcement

**cheapthrills** · Wed December 1, 2021, 01:23

I came RUNNING here when I saw your signature. I won't be starting my countdown for a two or three weeks because I am absolutely burned out right now. It will be ice to follow someone else's countdown

**Benny** · Wed December 1, 2021, 22:07

I'm looking forward to your year-end chart. By the way I love that 'Keep an Eye on Dan' picture!

**JSparksFan** · Thu December 2, 2021, 00:00

Originally posted by cheapthrills View Post

I came RUNNING here when I saw your signature. I won't be starting my countdown for a two or three weeks because I am absolutely burned out right now. It will be ice to follow someone else's countdown

Appreciate having you on board!

Originally posted by Benny View Post

I'm looking forward to your year-end chart. By the way I love that 'Keep an Eye on Dan' picture!

Thanks for visiting and yeah, I love that pic, too!

**JSparksFan** · Thu December 2, 2021, 01:00

100. Destiny - Je Me Casse

So if I show some skin
Doesn't mean I'm giving in
Not your baby
(Je me casse)

The first of five ESC entries this year, as well as the most successful of my preferred entries in the final (finishing seventh), "Je Me Casse" is your textbook female empowerment anthem, where the protagonist is cast in some setting where there's a sexist double standard - here it's a man thinking he has access to a woman's physicality because of the way she dresses - and she declares, without any uncertainty, that she's a free woman (is that Madame Germanotta I hear in the background) and if he thinks she's gonna stay and entertain his unwelcomed advances, he's wrong because she's "out of there" (the English translation of "Je me casse"). It's outfitted with the standard big vocals and because it's Eurovision, a quirky, upbeat melody. Despite it being rather standard, I still enjoy this, though there were certainly stronger showings from other nations this year. Still, Destiny lifted Malta to the country's best ESC finish in 16 years, an impressive feat!

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #9
Play Count: 18

099. Kelly Clarkson - Christmas Isn't Cancelled (Just You)

This used to be our favorite spot in this town
Memories with you and me ruin it now (Woah-woah-woah)...
I'll be hanging every light I find in this house
Playin' Christmas music so loud
This year Christmas won't be quite so blue
And I'm gonna shout too much and dance in the snow
Drink just enough to let us go
Christmas isn't cancelled, just you...
Winter Wonderlands weren't made for one
So we've all been told since we were young (Woah-woah-woah)

Kelly Clarkson is no stranger to quality original Christmas music, though "Christmas Isn't Cancelled..." just might be her spunkiest, most soulful holiday release to date. Lyrically, the song is comfortably above the standard Christmas song, the subject matter of which I usually find trite, but Kelly manages to inject enormous personality and relatability into this banger of a festive bop. This is good enough to play year-round.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #4
Play Count: 19

098. Ti�sto & Ava Max - The Motto

That's the motto (Mhm)
Throw it back with no chaser, with no trouble (Mhm)
Poppin' that Moet, baby, let's make some bubbles (Mhm)
Puffin' on that gelato, wanna be seeing double
Gotta do what you gotta...
That's the motto (Mhm)
Drop a few bills and pop a few champagne bottles (Mhm)
Throwin' that money like you just won the lotto (Mhm)
We been up all damn summer
Makin' that bread and butter
Tell me, did I just stutter?
That's the motto (Mhm)

Much like "Je Me Casse" was your textbook feminist anthem song, "The Motto" very much ticks the essential boxes for club bop. I love how there's no real prelude to it - the song pretty much starts at its chorus from synth no. 1. The video is also totes cool - Ava is a convincing club diva.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #6
Play Count: 44

097. Summer Walker - Throw It Away

We can't let this all go to waste (Go to waste)
Thought you had me safe
We reached a ceilin' (Ceilin')
I had a feelin' (Yes, I did)
From the beginnin' (From the beginnin')
Must be the endin'
I've been takin' on all this baggage (I've been takin' it all)
Addin' on so much weight (Yeah)
Had me thinkin' that I was average (Thinkin' I was average)
When you're really to blame
How you gonna throw it away? (How?)
How you gonna sit and act like it was nothin'? Yeah (How?)
How you gonna throw it away?
How you gonna make it so damn hard to explain?
How you gonna throw it all away and say my lovin' was not the same? Yeah
How you gonna throw it away? (Throw it away)
Throw it away
Actin' like this ain't mean nothin' to you, is you dumb? (Yeah)
Frontin' like you not, ni**a, I'll be gone
('Cause right now I see) You only 'bout yourself
(Keep that same energy) When I find somebody else, so why? (Why?)
Why I put up with this? Why did I even try? (Try)
You said you'd hold me down forever, but you lied to me, lied to me
You gotta be mental in the head

If you ask Ari Lennox, she'd tell you I have this song 96 places too low. Honestly, on an album with as many heavyweights as 'Still Over It', this one didn't stand out from the pack and it took that tweet from Ari for me to revisit it, put it on repeat, and really sit with it, engrossing myself in the lyrics and melodies to begin to hear, to some extent, what Ari heard. Lyrically, it's an easy song to connect to - building a relationship with someone and having that party express a willingness to just walk away from that investment of time, effort, energy, care, attention and affection, and...love is certainly a scenario with which most of us have direct experience. Summer, however, has more impressive slices of R&B magic on 'Still Over It', so while I've grown to appreciate this more within the last 72 hours, enough so that it's featuring here, it's not quite her best, which is obviously still to come. Those bolded bits, admittedly, hit closer to home than I'd like.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #1(x1)
Play Count: 26

096. Nick Jonas - Death Do Us Part

You could put me in a coffin
I'm always gonna find your love
You know there ain't no stoppin'
Even when I'm high above
Spread my ash in the sea
Yeah, I know you're gonna find me
And go right back to the start
There's no death, do us death, do us part
This is watermelon (Yeah), with some cool whip
This is Bougainvillea at the new crib
It's MJ in the playoffs (Swish), it's the real thing
It's a sure shot (Yeah)
This is meditation, heaven sent (Uh-huh)
Worth a trillion dollars, that's my two cents
Our time's gonna come, just wait for the sun, you know...
This is caviar with some Pringles
This a new car (Woo), kinda smell good (Yeah)
It's amazing, kinda found you at the right place at the right time
And we both just knew that it was right
(Woo, woo, woo, woo, yeah)
And now you're saving my life (Now you're saving my life)
From a friend to a lover to my wife (Yeah), yeah, and you know, oh

I don't associate Nick Jonas with quality pop music - he's given us "Champagne Problems" and "Close", but there are way more misses than hits in his catalogue. Well, the Jonas brother returned in 2021 to prove his mettle. Sleek production, great lyrics, good vocals - this is better than I feel like an NJ song should be...and he did even better this year. My singular gripe with this song is its abrupt ending. He recklessly and cruelly pulls the plug when we were having such a good time!

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #7
Play Count: 15

**cheapthrills** · Thu December 2, 2021, 02:36

This is a solid start - I'm always here for a Christmas song making any countdown, and Je Me Casse is actually my favorite Eurovision entry and the only one I had on my personal chart, so I'm glad it squeaked through. I'd say more about the Summer Walker, but it's clear there are more to come and as you mentioned that one didn't stand out much to me.

**JSparksFan** · Fri December 3, 2021, 01:00

Originally posted by cheapthrills View Post

This is a solid start - I'm always here for a Christmas song making any countdown, and Je Me Casse is actually my favorite Eurovision entry and the only one I had on my personal chart, so I'm glad it squeaked through. I'd say more about the Summer Walker, but it's clear there are more to come and as you mentioned that one didn't stand out much to me.

Glad those five mark a solid start for you! Two of the acts in the last set will also be in tonight's.

**JSparksFan** · Fri December 3, 2021, 02:15

095. The Killers - The Getting By

My one boy's into shed-horn hunting...
Lately, my patience is in short supply
Nothing good seems to ever come from all this work
No matter how hard I try

The rigour and routine of day-to-day living can make life feel like a slog and "The Getting By", the final 'Pressure Machine' track, does a fine job capturing that energy.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #9
Play Count: 23

094. Nick Jonas - 2Drunk

Should I sеnd that text? Maybe not
But I miss that sex, quite a lot

Well, look at that, Nick Jonas pops up once more, and this time with a song that brakes appropriately to its end. This is a fine chill-vibe song. It's catchy and well-produced, with no real weak moments to incriminate it.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #16
Play Count: 11

093. Summer Walker - Unloyal (feat. Ari Lennox)

I ain't takin' your shit today, no
I ain't takin' your shit tomorrow, no...
I guess I'm unloyal, baby
I guess I'm untrue (Yeah, yeah)
I guess I'm unloyal, baby (Look)
We'll call it what you want
I guess I'm unloyal, baby (Baby)
I guess I'm untrue, oh
Guess I'm unloyal, baby (Baby)
Oh, so call me what you want...
With your Bow Wow durag
Outside with your doggy bag
Bitch, I am so done with that
Tell me how a grown man so childish
Always in Kevin Samuels's comments
You think I'm just gon' stand on by
And watch you waste my time?
Boy, I am too damn fine, baby

Two things: (1) this is Summer's favourite song on her 'Still Over It' album so it seems like I'm just axing all the stars' faves early on and (2) why is one of my artist of the year noms popping up twice this early in the countdown - a sign that she's faltering, perhaps? The weeks will tell. Now back to the song - lyrically, this is a home-run. Summer opens, after patiently sitting to let the light drumbeat set the pace and tone of the track, with a fun statement of intent - she's not taking his shit today, and it's not on tomorrow's calendar to do so either. Then Ari sashays in and reads the dirtbag for filth - may he depart with his cheap "Bow Wow durag" in haste! This song does a phenomenal job of capturing that accusation men love to pelt at women (and other men) for not "holding them down" when they've cheated, lied, or in some other way abused trust and taken advantage of good nature and pure intentions. This song has 10/10 potential, but it stays stuck stubbornly in that early pace set by the aforementioned drumbeat and there are too many opportunities for it to swell to something more gripping. I mean, we get a gorgeous sax solo later on in the song, but I wanted more. Anyway, as you can imagine, there's more of Ms. Walker to come. Oh, fun fact - this was blocked from #1 on my daily chart by another Summer Walker song.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #2
Play Count: 32

092. Mabel - Let Them Know

Pin up girl on that poster
Say so like I'm Doja...
Blonde hair, yeah I bleached it (Ah)
You can call me Khaleesi (That's right)
I stay up on my queen shit
Up here the haters look teeny tiny (Oh)

Musically, I'm a simple man at my core and if you give me a saucy dance-pop track, I will bop dutifully. The Doja Cat/Khaleesi name-drops are awesome.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #3
Play Count: 16

091. Autoheart - Look Up, Look Up

Last night I dreamt that you and I
Were still in love, emulsified
And when I woke an emptiness
Took over me like nothing else
A bitter pill for me to take
(Bitter pill for me to take) (Pill for me to take)
Forgive my need for absolution
I know I'm not the one who's done wrong
Oh clemency you come to me
For bein' foolish, bein' weak
I need to gain control of this (Gain control of this)

A mid-tempo pop ballad performed by a queer group about a lover that's mistreated the protagonist and left him in a pool of heartbreak, disappointment, and surprise? Yeah, I was definitely clicking with this in 2021!

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #7
Play Count: 10

**JSparksFan** · Sat December 4, 2021, 02:05

090. Stefania - Last Dance

My heart was born in neon lights
Floating in space like satellites
Looking for signs of life tonight
As we collide in black and white

The verses here are pretty forgettable - it's the power pop chorus that makes "Last Dance" special. It's very Dua Lipa.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #4
Play Count: 12

089. Billie Eilish - NDA

30 Under 30 for another year (Another year)
I can barely go outside, I think I hate it herе (I think I hate it here)
Maybе I should think about a new career
Somewhere in Kaua'i where I can disappear
I've been havin' fun gettin' older now
Didn't change my number, made him shut his mouth (Shut his mouth, yeah)
At least I gave him somethin' he can cry about
I thought about my future, but I want it now, oh-oh

A moody pop song, which has become Billie's signature sound, "NDA" breaks no new ground in its struggling with fame theme, but I do love how the production ebbs and flows. Like Billie herself has described it, it's structureless and that gives way for some pretty surprising melodic twists and turns.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #20
Play Count: 12

088. Doja Cat - Naked

Follow me to my dressin' room
Let me know if you ain't 'bout that NSFW
Now it's safe to finish what we started
First impression of you is you really like to party
Swirlin' all up on you 'cause you know I wanna dance
Let me cordially invite you to this party in my pants
How you got me sprung and don't say sorry in advance?
Show me all your tatts, not just the ones that's on your hands
Who's your designer?
Is that birthday suit one of a kind, uh?
Everything about you look like it's on purpose
God was workin', probably took some extra time though
Ayy, all up in my curves like a puzzle piece, mmm
Jigsaw, let me see your muscleses, mmm
After we f**k, I'ma wanna cuddle
We could take it to the kitchen
I'll be on the island, come and eat, mmm

Fun and sexy is "Naked" in a nutshell. There are some interesting exhibitionistic moments here, but Doja's really in her hip-pop element and bag in that second verse.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #4
Play Count: 10

087. Charlotte Cardin - Sex to Me

You, you don't know me
You don't know nothin' 'bout the things I need, mm
And you, you don't own me
Babe, in the end, oh, we're just friends, and
Friends don't feel
Thought we had a deal
It's just sex to me

An act introduced to me through countdown king CT, "Sex to Me" is a reminder of the NSA arrangements established between two parties when one party seems to have forgotten the terms and conditions to which he's agreed. I love that it's from a female perspective as it's oftentimes thought that women can't lean into physicality without emotions, when I think both men and women can struggle with boundaries, which sometimes shift in sex-only arrangements. Charlotte Cardin serves up a rather rangy, sultry vocal, too. She really sells this.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #2
Play Count: 13

086. Olivia Rodrigo - Deja Vu

So when you gonna tell her that we did that, too?
She thinks it's special, but it's all reused
That was our place, I found it first
I made the jokes you tell to her when she's with you

One of many deeply accessible songs on 'Sour', "Deja Vu" speaks to an ex whom the protagonist sees going through the motions with his new flame. The underlying question that's at the seams of the emotion here is "Did we mean anything?" and I wish Olivia took it all the way there for a big climax.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #6
Play Count: 18

**JSparksFan** · Sun December 5, 2021, 04:10

085. Taylor Swift - Gold Rush

But I don't like a gold rush, gold rush
I don't like anticipatin' my face in a red flush
I don't like that anyone would die to feel your touch
Everybody wants you
Everybody wonders what it would be like to love you
Walk past, quick brush
I don't like slow motion, double vision in rose blush
I don't like that falling feels like flying 'til the bone crush
Everybody wants you
But I don't like a gold rush...
At dinner parties, I call you out on your contrarian shit
And the coastal town we wandered 'round had nеver seen a love as pure as it
And thеn it fades into the gray of my day-old tea
'Cause it could never be

I can be rather possessive in romantic relationships (or non-romantic ones...) so, lyrically, "Gold Rush" clicked immediately.

Code:

Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #2
Play Count: 57

084. Jazmine Sullivan - Girl Like Me (feat. H.E.R.)

Yeah, I made a profile on Tinder
Since you left me to be with her
I think that means I'm gettin' desperate
Wish I could return to sender
But you don't love me no more
And I don't even know what for (Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)...
Why in the hell you ain't choose me?
Why you don't love me no morе? (Yeah)
You must'vе wanted somethin' different
Still don't know what I was missin'
What you asked I would've given
It ain't right how these hoes be winnin'
Why they be winnin'? Yeah (Why they be? Why they be?)
No hope for a girl like me, how come they be winnin'? Yeah...
I can't do this good girl shit no more

In the category of relatability, this one also scores perfect marks. "Girl Like Me" was my initial 'Heaux Tales' fave because it captured a lot of my perspective on the dating scene and the way Jazmine and H.E.R. emote the lyrics is gripping.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #1(x1)
Play Count: 22

083. Autoheart - Better Version of Me

You look at me as I am now and then extrapolate
You say there's good in me but I just want to amputate
The parts that make me sad, the parts I've never had
So I can start anew
I have a coping mechanism that I put in place
I remove every emotion from my hollow face
It's just a thing I do, it's just a thing I do
When I'm confused
I have a feeling that I'm losing my mind
Cannot deny this is a difficult time
And yet I'm telling everybody I love
That I'm fine
I have to pull myself together again
Give something back to all my family and friends
It's such a pressure on my temporal lobe
But I still have hope
I wanna be a better version of me
I have a vision that one day I'll be free
I'm gonna prove that I'm not already gone
I'm not delirious
I wanna be a better version of me
I have a vision that one day you'll be proud
Instead of saving me from every mistake
I'm deadly serious
And when you break it down you say it's psychological
I look at things in the wrong way I'm too illogical
And when it matters most, when it matters most
I fall apart
A broken heart, a broken soul, a broken everything
My inability to mend is at the root of it
If I could find a fix, if I could find a fix
To be a better me

This might just be the 'lyrical' batch because my hand is forced to quote the entirety of "Better Version of Me" as the track's lyrical highlight. I truly relate to every word - that desire to be the very best and brightest version of yourself every day and feeling like you're failing yourself, your loved ones, and the world when you can't be that man is wholly familiar to me.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #4
Play Count: 10

082. Lorde - Secrets from a Girl (Who's Seen It All)

Couldn't wait to turn fifteen
Then you blink and it's been ten years
Growing up a little at a time, then all at once
’Member all the hurt you would feel when you weren't desired? (Doing anything for more touch)
’Member what you thought was grief before you got the call?
Baby girl, no one's gonna feel the pain for you
You're gonna love again, so just try staying open
And when the time comes, you'll fall
Yeah, when the time comes, you’ll fall...
Welcome to Sadness
The temperature is unbearable until you face it
Thank you for flying with Strange Airlines, I will be your tour guide today
Your emotional baggage can be picked up at carousel number two
Please be careful so it doesn't fall onto someone you love
When we've reached your final destination, I will leave you to it
You'll be fine
I'm just gonna show you in and, um...
You can stay as long as you need to get familiar with the feeling
And then when you're ready, I'll be outside, and...
We can go look at the sunrise by euphoria, mixed with existential vertigo?
Cool...

The degree of truth expressed in the bolded lyrics is immeasurable - whew! I also love the outro on this. It's a mature track and the highlight of its parent album.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #3
Play Count: 13

081. Olivia Rodrigo - Enough for You

You found someonе more exciting
The nеxt second, you were gone
And you left me there cryin', wonderin' what I did wrong
And you always say I'm never satisfied
But I don't think that's true...
And maybe I'm just not as interesting
As the girls you had before
But God, you couldn't have cared less
About someone who loved you more
I'd say you broke my heart
But you broke much more than that
Now I don't want your sympathy
I just want myself back

There are definitely some lyrical moments here that are so peak teenage melodrama that I can't quite relate, but that line about wanting yourself back after a break-up - well, I totes relate to that. The general melancholy here is pretty accessible.

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Quality Rating: 8.2/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #5
Play Count: 10

**JSparksFan** · Mon December 6, 2021, 01:30

080. JoJo - Fresh New Sheets

I got these fresh new sheets and you said you were free
To come and break 'em in with me...
Please don't comе over
'Cause you can't competе
With the things that I'm scared of
That keep love from me
No, please don't come over
My heart's too weak
And I know I'm better
Than this heartbroken version of me...
Honestly, I'd rather turn my phone off
Because the energy that it takes to be
Somebody's somebody just ain't in me

Similar to "Better Version of Me", the appeal in "Fresh New Sheets", besides JoJo's ace vocal delivery of course, is that expression of not wanting to share a sub-par version of yourself with the world.

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Quality Rating: 8.3/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #5
Play Count: 11

079. Olivia Rodrigo - Traitor

You betrayed me
And I know that you'll never feel sorry
For the way I hurt, yeah
You talked to her when we were together
Loved you at your worst, but that didn't matter
It took you two weeks to go off and date her
Guess you didn't cheat, but you're still a traitor...
God, I wish that you had thought this through
Before I went and fell in love with you

I appreciate "Traitor" because it addresses an element of infidelity most other songs on the subject matter omit, which is infidelity oftentimes being a process. It's normally a series of boundary-crossing actions that culminate in emotional or physical betrayal (or both) and on "Traitor" Olivia speaks to that process.

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Quality Rating: 8.3/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #2
Play Count: 20

078. Adele - Oh My God

I ain't got too much time to spare
But I'll make time for you to show how much I care
Wish that I would let you break my walls
But I'm still spinning out of control from the fall
Boy, you give good love, I won't lie
It's what keeps me comin' back even though I'm terrified
I know that it's wrong
But I want to have fun
Mmm, yeah, mmm, yeah...
I don't have to explain myself to you
I am a grown woman and I do what I want to do

I'm usually wary of Adele upping the tempo as one of the last times she did that was with "Send My Love..." which I didn't enjoy. This one is a bit better, though. It shows her in single and ready to mingle form, but with all the guilt tied to motherhood and expectations keeping her company.

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Quality Rating: 8.3/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #3
Play Count: 27

077. Lil Nas X - Tales of Dominica

Woke up on the floor
Oh, this plastic bed don't blow up no more
In this broken home
Everyone becomes predictable
Oh, sometimes you're angry
Sometimes you're hurting
Sometimes you're all alone
Sometimes I'm anxious
Sometimes it makes me
Feel like there's only now
I've been living in my lowest, it's safe to say
Hope my little bit of hope don't fade away
I've been living on an island made from faith
Can't go running back to home, I can't face her face (Oh)
Oh, finally grown, ain't nothing like I hoped it would bе
Out on my own, I'm floating in an oceanless sea
Could I be wrong? Was everybody right about me?
Scary things in my head, I can't dream

Alongside the big, brash horn-led anthems on 'Montero', you have incredibly vulnerable, soft, sombre moments like "Tales of Dominica". Lyrics aren't always Lil Nas X's strong area, but the lyricism certainly gets top billing on this track and the instrumentation is beautiful, too. The outro is particularly gorgeous.

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Quality Rating: 8.3/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #13
Play Count: 39

076. Kanye West - Jail Pt. 2 (feat. DaBaby)

I'll be honest, we all liars
I'll be honest, we all liars
I'm pulled over and I got priors
Guess we goin' down, guess who's goin' to jail?
Man, tell them haters open up the jail (Open up the jail)
And you can tell my baby mamas get the bail money (Bail me)
I said one thing they ain't like, threw me out like they ain't care for me
Threw me out like I'm garbage, huh?
And that food that y'all took off my table
You know that feed my daughters, huh? (Mmm)
But I ain't really mad, 'cause when I look at it
I'm getting them snakes up out my grass and, ****, that's a good habit
I'm ready for war, let's get at 'em
And teaming up ain't gon' help 'em
'Cause beating the odds too deep
Just me and God, ****, ****, I'm good at it
Matter of fact, I'm great at it, my cell phone back at it
I know these people gon' try to tell me how to talk
Don't know what I seen or what I was taught
My mama worked two or three jobs to take care of three of her kids, my uncles watched
Yeah, we was raised by the crack addicts
Mmm, raised by the drug dealers, killers, and the junkies (Junkies)
Mama couldn't save us 'cause she had to get the—
Mama couldn't save us 'cause she had to get the money
Feel like your world falling, getting too hard to catch it, ain't it?
You and your girl arguin', you don't like how she actin' lately
Giving it everything that you can give and you don't get half the patience
You was busy hustlin', the things come with your hustle
They got in her head, corrupted her
Yeah, that's probably what happened, ain't it?
Large amount of capital, invested in myself
Underground, I ain't even have a basement, I read the affidavit
Let's see what it is with you
Only thing I did to you
Was always keep it real and true
Guilty, guess they gon' have to take me

It's not often that Kanye West is outrapped on one of his songs, but I must say that I much prefer DaBaby's moments on this than Kanye's. The former comes with fire, passion, and emotion, whereas Kanye seems content to just ride the beat he helped produce.

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Quality Rating: 8.3/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #4
Play Count: 21

**JSparksFan** · Tue December 7, 2021, 04:15

075. Lil Nas X - That's What I Want

These days, I'm way too lonely
I'm missin' out, I know...
I want (I), someone to love me
I need (I), someone who needs me
'Cause it don't feel right when it's late at night
And it's just me in my dreams
So I want (I), someone to love
That's what I f**kin' want
Look, you know it's harder to find in these times
But I got nothin' but love on my mind (My mind)
I need a baby while I'm in my prime
Need an adversary to my down and weary
Like, tell me that's life when I'm stressin' at night
Be like, "You'll be okay" and, "Everything is alright," uh
Love me or nothin' 'cause I'm not wanting anything
But your loving, your body, and a little bit of your brain

No one's owned the visual realm this year the way Lil Nas X has and for me "That's What I Want" is 2021's second-best music video. I love the extreme ends of the spectrum we see from Montero - football-playing jock to full-out wedding dress drag. And, okay, yeah, the make-out scene was a highlight, too. As for the song, that desire for affection and love is definitely relatable, and the story that plays out in the music video is heartbreaking because it's so many guys' realities.

Code:

Quality Rating: 8.3/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #4
Play Count: 30

074. JoJo - Spiral SZN

Lover girl, lovin' everything but herself
Pedestals for everyone, but she's on a shelf
Emotion comatose
You know how that shit goes, yeah
Lover girl, loves to overthink it to death
Underwhelmed by everything that she's ever did
Full cups are half empty
That's how I see it
Ooh-ah, usually people compliment my positivity
But my sanity ain't always there for me
It's like that when you're your biggest enemy
Guess I'm havin'
Ice in my Sauvignon, I'm havin' one of those nights
Where I need it right now, you know that I can't chill (Oh)
Never could, probably never will
I, I could do somethin' nice for myself, but I don't
I keep on startin' fights with myself, all downhill
Postpone the healin', it's
Spiral season again, yeah

I definitely feel like JoJo is subtweeting me with some of the lyrics on "Spiral SZN". I love the punchy production and vocal delivery on this.

Code:

Quality Rating: 8.3/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #1(x1)
Play Count: 30

073. Lil Nas X - Scoop (feat. Doja Cat)

I been workin' on my body
You ever seen a n*gga hit pilates? (Ah)
Baby, I ain't tryna be your baby
Understand, I'm just tryna be the daily
Now it's, he get flown, then he sit back
And I won't call on the phone if I hit that
And I'm tryna f*ck, lil' nigga, f*ck the chit-chat
I ain't talkin' guns when I ask where your dick at (Grrr)
Tomorrow is my day off (Okay)
All them rehеarsals got me tight, look at the payoff (Okay)
And now my body look like somеthing you'd eat cake off
I just got my veneers, now bitches wanna rip they face up
But you thought you'd have a chance after you wanna disrespect me?
Let him apologize, and eat it in a Bentley
He named my right cheek Jennifer and left one Lopez
Can't call me stupid with this big ol' f*ckin' forehead

Montero's deep in his hormonal bag on this one and I love the cleverness behind the use of the term "scoop". It took social media's reaction to really get me to notice it, but I think Doja might've taken the W for best line with those bolded lyrics. "Scoop" actually topped my chart the day 'Montero' came out; it was a clear standout from play no. 1. I hope it gets a single release soon. It really has chart-topping potential and I can picture a grade A video for it, too.

Code:

Quality Rating: 8.4/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #1(x1)
Play Count: 17

072. JoJo - Worst (I Assume)

Even though I thought I was right (Oh)
I was goin' off that night (Oh)
Sometimes, I'm not that nice (Ooh, woah)
Even though I'm not that type (Ooh, woah)
I just had to call for forgiveness (Oh)
I know it's at least in double digits (Ooh, woah)
And I do it all the time, yeah (Yeah)
Thinkin' you can read my f*ckin' mind, yeah
I keep assumin' you're gonna do shit
That might break my heart, so I keep up my guard
And I know it's confusin' how I put you through it
My past and my scars, still make it hard
I assume, ooh
Always the worst, I assume
Ooh, ooh
Always the worst, I assume

The defence mechanism the protagonist employs in this song is one that I do, too, so I immediately took to the song on the elementary level of relatability. With such an approach, there's definitely a lot of room for toxicity so I appreciate that JoJo illustrates the discord distrust can sow.

Code:

Quality Rating: 8.4/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #7
Play Count: 10

071. Jazmine Sullivan - Bodies

Was it your friend? Or a friend of a friend? (Was he a?)
Was he a four? Or was he a ten? (I know)
And my mama wouldn't like it if she knew about (All my)
All my rendezvous' and all my whereabouts (I keep on)
I keep on pilin' up bodies on bodies on bodies
Yeah, you gettin' sloppy, girl

I will admit that there was a period not too long after things ended with my entanglement that I engaged in serial dating (or meet-ups, since I don't know what qualifies as a date these days), the apex of which was me going clubbing one night and waking up the next morning with new numbers in my phone and text messages from guys I didn't remember meeting. (They were all cute, though, so clearly even intoxicated me has taste). I think sometimes we believe there will be some kind of therapy derived from casual encounters, but oftentimes they leave you feeling rather soulless and replaying soulful memories of the same person you were trying to forget.

Code:

Quality Rating: 8.4/10
Akini's Daily Top 20 Peak: #6
Play Count: 15

**crystalphoenix** · Tue December 7, 2021, 19:20

I know I haven't been as good about regularly checking your chart as I was in years past, but apparently I'm even more out-of-touch than I realized, cause I would NOT have guessed that under-the-radar Nick Jonas album would land several songs inside your Top 100 Including a No. 1 contender! (Unless that's a red herring? You usually have at least one of those, IIRC).
I did notice the recent Summer Walker domination, though. I've only spun "No Love" so far - which was good, but didn't hit hard enough to make me want to dive into her whole album (yet).
Excited to see the first of many evermore entries. I haven't started tabulating the points for my own Top 50 of 2021, but "Gold Rush" is a sure contender (if it doesn't end up inside my official Year-End Top 50, it definitely would rank in an expanded Top 100 like this).
"That's What I Want" might be my favorite Lil Nas offering yet, so it's a bit of a shame that it's getting eclipsed by the longevity of "Montero" and especially "Industry Baby." I hadn't heard it until reading that's it a VERY poppy Ryan Tedder co-creation, so I had to rush to check out what that pairing produced. Lil Nas really knows how to deliver the visuals too.

EDIT: Forgot to vote in the poll! I went with LSS, which might be wishful thinking, but I know it'll do at least reasonably well. "What Doesn't Kill Me" was a tempting pick too.

**JSparksFan** · Wed December 8, 2021, 01:25