Top Ten Songs of the 2000s that Still Get a Lot of Airplay on Austrian Radio Stations in the 2010s
Most well known Austrian radio stations (Ö3, Radio Arabella, 88.6,...) offer a mix of classic songs of the last 50 years (with the most prominently featured decade being the ever popular 80s), and the most recent chart hits. I have no idea if this is also the case for the US, but I am sure the selection of songs will be different. The stations appear to have a massive playlist in shuffle mode that contains a handful of songs per year that are especially popular, and of course it's these songs that the public then associates with the decade.In a way, these tracks are what we regard as the classic songs of the 2000s, the everlasting hits of that era.
Christina Aguilera's magnificent, breathtakingly sung self empowerment anthem is what guarantees her a spot in music history, at least to Austrians. The song is her most popular one over here, and even 15 years after its release, it is played as excessively as the recent number one hit.
Anastacia, the American singer-songwriter who somehow managed to be a multi-platinum winning megastar while remaining unknown in her home country, and famous Italian crooner Eros Ramazzotti, released this beautiful bilingual love song in 2005, with it topping the German charts in the next year (it peaked at number 2 in Austria).
It's only one of a few Anastacia songs to have become decade defining hits since then, but it is one of her absolute signature tunes.
Sarah Connor is arguably Germany's biggest singing star, the one that has always been said to be able to keep up with international standards. "From Sarah With Love" was not only her first number one hit back in 2001, it also was her breakthrough, it first showed what her voice was capable of, and it is still adored by many Austrian radio listeners on an almost daily basis.
Robbie Williams is one of the most acclaimed, successful and popular musicians of his generation, I'd even go so far to say he has at least the status Justin Timberlake has in the US, both having started as a member of a boy band but then had even more successful solo careers that were also taken seriously in music circles (he's not just a pop star, he is praised as a great artist). I think every album by him spreaded at least one hit song that is still remembered, and "Feel" is among the absolute most played.
The funny thing is, this 2003 cover of The Who's classic song is by far the most successful song of Limp Bizkit in German speaking countries. It's not only their signature song, it's almost eponymous. It also gets a lot more airplay on Austrian radio than the original version (NOTE: The Who's 60s and 70's rock is much more their style than the hard nu metal of Limp Bizkit). And yet, it wasn't even a hit in the US, where Limp Bizkit had more hits and were more successful, only peaking at number 71 (as opposed to number 3 in Austria). The song, which also alters the original version, kind of revived Limp Bizkit's career over here, and maybe the song's popularity us the reason why they aren't harshly criticized over here (really, if this cover was your major impression of Limp Bizkit, would you hate them? ), and why their last album still managed to hit number one in Germany and number 2 in Austria and Switzerland while not being as successful in the US.
I learned on TTT that "Rehab" was Amy Winehouse's big hit in the US. I don't think many Austrians remember it to the extent they remember her second album's title track. It was the most successful single off her worldwide blockbuster over here, and especially after her death, it became her signature song that is constantly played.
"Say It Right" was a massive success back in 2007, and made Nelly Furtado, who was kind of obscure until then, to the foremost pop star of the moment. The song remained a modern day classic that is played a lot on radio, and also helped her previously released songs to get more attention.
The Australian singer-songwriter was a one hit wonder in 2008, her single hitting number 2 in the main three German speaking countries. It was released during a craze around Amy Winehouse, the same which helped Duffy to have her share of fame. Actually, I wouldn't have thought that the song would stick around, as it clearly jumped on a hype bandwagon, but it actually still gets as much airplay as "Back to Black", and more than any other song by the original Amy Winehouse. Although I'm sure many people believe don't even know it's not by her.
Right now, both this and Harry Styles' "Sign of the Times" get much airplay ("Space" being one of Williams' best known and most popular songs and "Times" being a current hit, which hopefully turns into a classic), and I still confuse the songs before the singing begins.
Ich + Ich were one of Germany's big wonders of the decade. The unlikely duo consisted of 80s new wave punk icon Annette Humpe (whose band Ideal is often listed among the top 5 greatest German bands of all time in the German music press) and the much younger singer-songwriter Adel Tawil, who was the member of a short lived boy band called The Boyz, and was more neo soul inspired and rather unknown at that time (he made a massive solo career afterwards, though). Together they crafted songs of a magnificent beauty, and with wonderfully poetic, introspective wordings that touched many people of all ages and genders. They recorded three albums together, all of which were a big success and spawned hits. "So soll es bleiben", off their 2007 sophomore record "Vom selben Stern", arguably gets the most retrospective attention.
Whenever a radio is turned on in a shop, the hair stylist's, the grocery store, or whatever place you have a longer stay in, be sure to hear this 2007 song. But it's okay, because it's Amy MacDonald, the Scottish songwriting talent who has everything that Taylor Swift was originally praised for but that I never saw in her as much as I saw it in Amy. MacDonald's song feel alive, uplifting and honest, and I am glad to say that the right artist brought it to fame.
Needless to say, Lady Gags made a massive international career and of course, "Poker Face" was just as much a number one hit over here as it was in the US. More importantly, it was her first chart topper and established her as the big superstar she would continue to be. Of course, it's also her signature song.
Iconic. This makes me happy
I have absolutely no idea how this got to be such a classic. Rob Thomas is entirely unknown over here. None of his other songs were hits, none of his albums were at least somewhat successful, and even the movie "Meet the Robinsons", of which this is the title song of, was that much of a blockbuster over here. I am surprised to see "Little Wonders" only peaked at number 13 in 2007. By the amount of airplay it still gets I would have assumed at least a top 5 hit. But I guess it just somehow stuck in people's hearts more than other, more successful songs.
If it wasn't for the excessive use of "Crazy in Love" in movie soundtracks, the wonderful ballad "Halo" would be the song Beyoncé was most remembered for over here if she decides to quit one day. It is by far the song that is heard most often nowadays, and it was a lot more successful than "Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)", which was her big hit off that 2008 album in the US.