Top 10 Greatest Songs of 2018 According to Rolling Stone
So, on December 14th, Rolling Stone released their Greatest Songs of 2018 list. Much like with laut.de, who released their list a week before, I wonder why they didn’t wait until the end of the year to release it to be sure not to miss a single tune. Of course, you will always overlook a couple of great songs; you can’t know everything, especially in times when overnight surprise releases have become more common. I know my lists, on which I am currently working, won't be out until early into 2019.The tracks featured on it are just as expected: it features a bunch of not-as-famous songs in the lower positions and then puts a bunch of songs that got much attention and airplay in its highest places. And that’s fine, in and of itself. They are the biggest music magazine in the world, and their job is to depict something that most people who love music can relate to, regardless of their own taste. In the last couple of years, they often tried to find a nice cross between popularity and quality. Did they manage to do this in 2018? That’s up to you.
In my opinion, the songs featured - at least the ones I know - are mostly passable. Only very few of them will appear on my list, though - but some will. Many are not my taste, but are fine for those who like them. "Mo Bamba" is the only one I know that I absolutely dislike (apart from that: while it became a hit in 2018, it's actually from last year).
So, this is underwhelming.
Don't get me wrong: "In My Feelings" is a fine pop song. It's catchy and has a cool production mixing trap with old school hip hop, and on any other rank on the list, it would have fitted well, even at number two. But still, the fact that it's nothing more than that makes it unworthy of the number one spot. In the past years of the decade, Rolling Stone picked songs as the best of the year that were the most ambitious out of the mainstream: "Rolling in the Deep" (2011), "Hold On" (2012), and "Sign of the Times" (2017) were massive soul and rock numbers that would have also been huge in the '70s; "Formation" (2016) was a statement of pride in politically extremely hard times; "Runaway" (2010) and "Drunk in Love" (2014) were the musically most experimental yet still gripping songs of the hip hop and R&B genres in that year; "Get Lucky" (2013) blended genres and artists together you wouldn't have expected to work so well. I can perfectly understand why they are on here. Next to "Can't Feel My Face", this one feels out of place in this lineup of songs.
I would have bet that "This is America" would be their number one song. It would have fit their taste so well: it was a chart-topper in the US, it's a statement lyrically, and it's musically experimental. But it only appeared at 39, nowhere near the top.
Rolling Stone should have switched "Shallow" and "In My Feelings." "Shallow" has the same ambitions of songs like "Rolling in the Deep" and "Sign of the Times," and would qualify.
Yes, this is a rather odd list, especially seeing a song that I have otherwise seen panned as either mediocre or even plain garbage at number one.
Shallow should have been number one instead of In My Feelings.
This is truly one of the worst songs that I have ever heard. Not exaggerating.
Nah. The song is a banger, but it's nowhere near the greatest song of 2018.
Haha, I like Camila Cabello and all, but this is far from the greatest song of 2018.
I am so very happy Rolling Stone took notice of this song. Del Rey's 2018 singles weren't hits, and they had no mainstream appeal whatsoever - hopefully, she'll finally get rid of that pop star reputation, which never suited her. She's a traditional singer-songwriter, more suited for indie audiences.
