81.
C'mon, Ke$ha
82.
Kids, Mikky Ekko
83.
Beneath Your Beautiful (feat. Emeli Sandé), Labrinth
84.
King and Lionheart, Of Monsters and Men
85.
Stay (feat. Mikky Ekko), Rihanna
86.
Dip, Danny Brown
87.
Alien Days, MGMT
88.
Begin Again, Taylor Swift
89.
Mercy, TV on the Radio
90.
Trying to Be Cool, Phoenix
The lowest of the second update is Phoenix's
Trying to Be Cool. Which means, more synthpop!!! I'm a big Phoenix fan and their 2013 release Bankrupt! was certainly not a disappointment (it boasts two songs on the countdown). Seeing as I'm a vocals stan (see: Beyoncé), it's strange that what appeals to me the most is not the frontman's quirky, heavy-accented singing style - it's the dreamy, airy instrumental outro that this song has. It's euphoric.
Next up is
Mercy by TV on the Radio. The song is a release from TVOTR's label Federal Prism (no, not the Katy album, there's none of that
here.) and while I'm still waiting for the new album, this song has successfully helped tide me over for the wait. The band goes hyper power on this one and the lead still manages to keep up. It's a very intense 3:19 song that goes on full-speed and I can't get enough of it.
Taking a break from the band streak and stepping into country territory is the beloved Taylor Swift with
Begin Again. The singles from Red haven't been my favorite, but I truly believe T-Swizzle got it right with this one! The Lord does what she does best - setting up and painting a heartwarming story through her vivid lyrics. The details that have been put into the song - whether it be references to Christmas movies, James Taylor songs, or the preciseness of what happened "on a Wednesday, in a cafe" - shows Taylor at her best.
You don't get it, y'all, Danny Brown is AWESOME.
Dip is the best representative (single, that is) of this on his 2013 release Old (there's a damn Charli XCX feature on it, ffs). Fully intact with an interpolation of "N****s in Paris" - don't let Kanye, nor Danny get into their zone - this song can get you so very hyped in a matter of seconds. The beat slaps as Danny brags "I'm grinding on your bitch while I'm grinding on my teeth".
#DannyBrown4President
Pop Duo/Group nominee #2 goes down! I'm sure we're all familiar with Rihanna's
Stay featuring an artist whose highest entry on my countdown is not Stay. (Sorry, Navy.) The piano chords are repetitive, but effective, Rihanna's broken-down vocals yearns for her lover to staaaaaaaay, and I think it's fair to assume that every line of this song has been tweeted by someone I follow who is going through tough times in their relationship, or just want to seem deep. Best part of the song? The harmonies. Haunting. Cold. Beautiful.
Story time! Of Monsters and Men's lead female and male vocalists have such interesting affectations when they sing that it's hard for me to understand what they're saying often. Because I sonically enjoyed
King and Lionheart, I went on to read their lyrics as I listened along and it solidified just how much I liked this beautiful song. The song tells a narrative with such pretty imagery of their journey under the winter night sky and over the bright blue city lights. The attachment of the titles him a "king" and her a "lionheart" is so childish, but adorable, and there's nothing about this song that I don't smile about.
Let me be completely honest about this next song - it's ALL Emeli Sandé, no Labrinth. I didn't know how to rank this song, because I enjoy such a small portion of it, but that part I like, is SO, so good. Dear Emeli, please release a solo version (see: Alicia's Empire State of Mind, Rihanna's LTWYL) of
Beneath Your Beautiful on your next alberm. I'll settle down, because my vocal stanning is peeking out a bit. But I'll let it be known now, if Clown was released a month later, it would be on this countdown. Belie' dat!
I discovered Mikky's solo work due to Stay, and it turned out that I enjoyed his single
Kids more than I enjoy the former! It's very anthemic, with a chorus that anyone who can utter a sentence can sing along and relate to, and a very summery vibe - it makes me want to drive with the top down and my friends besides me while we shout the lyrics to this song. I'd be lying if I said I knew of Mikky Ekko's other songs, but this is a pretty good taste.
Closing the update is Ke$ha with the pop perfection that is
C'mon. The song is quite the experience, as Ke$ha interrupts a choir with her first verse. Some of the lyrics are silly, but it's appropriate, because it's Ke$ha. And that's the beauty of it. The song is so uniquely Ke$ha. Who else would be able to sing-rap "come give me some of that, yum like a lollipop, let me set you free" or "feelin' like a saber-tooth tiger, sippin' on a warm Budweiser?" over a Dr. Luke beat with wonky synths? It captures Ke$ha almost as well as her best song ever, Party at a Rich Dude's House (w/e w/e I do what I want.)
Stay, Begin Again and Trying To Be Cool, flawless list
Love that song! C'mon is great too! Not a fan of ballads, but I like Stay