Although 2018 seemed to drone on near the end, the music was consistent with hits coming throughout the year. The year started with 2017 hit “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran at #1 and ended with Ariana Grande’s “Thank U, Next” at the top.

Thank U, Next:

The song “Thank U, Next” became a huge hit in the latter half of the year with Grande singing about her past relationships and how they have impacted her. With the song coming just after breaking her engagement with Pete Davidson and the death of her ex-boyfriend and rapper Mac Miller, Grande’s song came at a time when she was already at the top of the news cycle. This, added to her spoof of the movie Mean Girls for her music video, made “Thank U, Next” a viral hit in 2018.

This is America:

“This is America” quickly became popular after the release of its music video. The video starts off light and happy before taking a quick, 90-degree, turn in which Childish Gambino, also known as Donald Glover, looks at the camera and states, “This is America.” The video became a viral sensation, quickly becoming a meme on social media, and became one of the songs of the 2018 summer. NPR named it the #1 song of 2018 in their list.

Rockstar:

Post Malone and 21 Savage collaborated together and started the year out #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Their song “Rockstar” became a hit, and despite being released late in 2017, its popularity carried into 2018. With Post Malone adding other big songs like “Better Now,” he was able to have a very good 2018.

Havana:

Camilla Cabello’s Havana was released in August 2017. However, it did not hit the top of the charts for 23 weeks when it reigned at #1 in the Billboard charts in mid-January. Its lyrics and tune made it a catchy song to start 2018.

I Like It:

After “Bodak Yellow” and “Finesse” became hits in 2017, and early 2018, Cardi B’s unexpected rise in the music industry continued with the bilingual song “I Like It,” a collaboration with Spanish stars J Balvin and Bad Bunny. The song hit #1 in July, making it one of the songs of the summer.

Sicko Mode:

With Travis Scott’s long-awaited “Astroworld” album release, Sicko Mode” rose to the top of the charts late in 2018, peaking in December. The collaboration with Drake currently sits at #4 in the Billboard Hot 100.

Drake:

Love or hate him, the star of the year was Drake, who released hit after hit in 2018. His year started out with “God’s Plan” which was the most consumed song, according to Variety, and rated as the best workout song of 2018 by Spotify. After that, “Nice for What” reigned atop the Billboard charts for two months. After the release of his album “Scorpion” in late June, Drake dominated the charts as well. With the album’s release, the song “In My Feelings” became a viral sensation reaching #1 and was named the best song of 2018 by the Rolling Stone. With so many hit songs in 2018, Drake cemented his status as an elite artist and as someone that is not going away anytime soon.

Which song do you think was the best of 2018? Put your favorite in the comment section below.