21. Taylor Swift – Shake It Off
Ryan Gibbs: This has been eating at me for months, guys: That beat isn’t very sick. Song is solid, though (except for that entire middle bit with the P!nk monologue and the “Mickey” cheer). It certainly does for Swift’s career what “Physical” did for Olivia Newton-John; It completely secures her transformation from a country crossover act to a pop singer (although much of Red did the same thing, but I digress). I take it this is going to be one of those songs that sticks around the Top 40 for the better part year. However, I think “Blank Space” will have better staying power over time. B-
Melody Rice: A little embarrassing that her anti-hater song is one of her weakest singles, but hardly surprising. Better on the radio than on her album, where it feels completely out of place. C+
22. Big Sean feat. E-40 – I Don’t F*ck With You
Ryan Gibbs: I don’t f*ck with you either, Big Sean. E-40, you’re cool though. Wish you had more hits of your own (“Tell Me When To Go” is still boss, 1000 times better than this). C-
23. Flo Rida feat. Sage the Gemini and Lookas – GDFR
Ryan Gibbs: ESPN is trying so hard to turn this into a ’90s jock jam, but it’s way too stiff to be one. Flo Rida, one of the most baffling success stories in modern hip hop, is not a good fit for a trap song. Pass. D+
24. Natalie La Rose feat. Jeremih – Somebody
Luciana Villalba: Was this song intentionally trying to be similar to Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”? Or what exactly is the point? I can’t really seem to like this song just because it bothers me that the chorus is basically the same as Whitney’s and besides the beat and all, I can’t seem to get past that. C
25. Chris Brown & Tyga – Ayo
Ryan Gibbs: I’m not going to rate this because I’m not giving a Chris Brown single the time of day in 2015, but I will use this space to tell you a personal anecdote about Tyga. Back in 2013, fellow TYF staffer Augie King (then the entertainment editor of my college newspaper; I would eventually replace him when he graduated) assigned me to cover a Tyga concert. He was terrible and the place was basically empty. At one point, he performed a medley of his guest verses. His set was over in 30 minutes. His opening act? The then-rising buzz rapper YG, who put on one of the best opening slots I’ve ever seen at that venue (I didn’t think much of it then, but I kept coming back to how memorable it was in the months following). So yeah, Tyga is so uninteresting that he’s not even the main attraction at his own concerts. He certainly isn’t memorable here, either. Whither “Coconut Juice”? No rating
26. Sam Smith – Stay With Me
Ryan Gibbs: I appreciate how emotional this is, and it’s very rare to hear a song about someone pleading for their one-night stand to stick around. The problem is that it gets very weepy very quickly. At points, it seems as if Smith is about to burst into tears. Maybe that emphasizes the emotions of the song, but to me, it doesn’t really work. C
Melody Rice: I wish this song would leave the pop charts, but they just won’t back down. C-
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27. Lilywood & Robin Schulz – Prayer in C
Ryan Gibbs: This week in surprising international hits: A four-year-old song by the French folk duo Lily Wood & The Prick (since rechristened “Lilywood,” because duh) becomes a worldwide smash after being remixed by German knobturner Robin Schulz. Schulz impressed me with his remix of Mr. Probz’ “Waves,” which turned an unimpressively sleepy song into a hooky deep house banger. This isn’t nearly as good, but it’s decent slice of unobtrusive world-pop. Doubt this will have a particularly long shelf life. C+
28. Meghan Trainor – All About That Bass
Gabrielle Bondi: Why? D
29. Ella Henderson – Ghost
Ryan Gibbs: A superb British “X-Factor” crossover with a very catchy chorus. She’s been getting a lot of comparisons to Leona Lewis, but this is much better than anything Leona ever did. Instead, the danceable soul of “Ghost” reminds me a lot more of Sugababes or Girls Aloud and serves to remind you how insane it is that neither of those groups ever had a hit in America. You can tell from the percussion that Ryan Tedder produced this without even looking it up. This sounds like something that could potentially hit number 1 in the next few months. Watch this closely. B
30. Ariana Grande – One Last Time
Ryan Gibbs: Ariana has a great voice, but she has the tendency to oversing. Here, she’s actually on point and she never goes into melismatics. Very noticeable that this is the first solo Grande song since the summer of 2013, and it’s very surprising that she rarely has a track to herself. Some of her best songs have been short-changed by their guests, and really uses the space to her advantage here. A good showing. B-
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