We've already shared half of our list of the Top 150 tracks of the last 15 years, so make sure to check back here. Some early highlights: 30 of the first 100 songs were hip-hop/rap; 13 others were by women; and Jay-Z leads so far with 5 songs (including one guest appearance) with Kanye West and Outkast trailing with two songs a piece.
1997, our earliest year, leads the list with 10 of the first 100 songs followed by 2000 and 2009 with 9 songs each compared to 8 songs in 2003 and 7 songs in 1998, 2001 and 2006, 6 in 2005 and 2007 and 5 for 2002, 2004 and 2010. 2008 and 1999 bring up the rear with 3 and 2 songs, respectively. Now, we're ready to dive into the Top 50.
50. Beck "Lost Cause" - One of the best songs on heartache ever. The whole album helped me through a break-up.
49. Kanye West "Stronger" - Kanye's "Thriller"; put him over the top across all demographics.
48. Norah Jones "Come Away With Me" - The sweetest track on this list. Her voice is like warm honey in your ear. But not really - you could get an infection like that.
47. Sade "By Your Side" - Cannot go wrong putting this on for your significant other.
46. Missy Elliot "Get Ur Freak On" - Vintage Missy - pop and eclectic.
45. LCD Soundsystem "Daft Punk Is Playing In My House" - The party song for the indie snob set.
44. Beyonce "Single Ladies" - Co-written by a man (The Dream), this is the best of Beyonce's anthems.
43. Jet "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" - Seems like they would've been able to capitalize off this track more.
42. M.I.A. "Paper Planes" - …don't you miss it? This was when M.I.A.'s appeal seemed semi authentic.
41. Dido "Thank You" - Basically the "my life sort of sucks, but not really because I have this amazing man" song.
40. Clipse "Grindin'" - I once saw an old white man nod his head to this - on the beat.
39. Lauryn Hill "Doo Wop (That Thing)" - Put her in the stratosphere - from which she purposefully stepped down from.
38. Linkin Park "One Step Closer" - …"SHUT UP WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU!" How many cubicle dwellers used this track to wild out Office Space style on the fax machine?
37. Outkast "Rosa Parks" - Country sh*t + bass + great sing along chorus + "man…this dudes can rap" = awesome.
36. Radiohead "Karma Police" - Probably should be higher (which could be said about most of the their song on any list). A song about basically being a hater, and then realizing it's stupid.
35. Green Day "Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)" - A departure for Green Day - and the song that should have probably tipped everyone for their future pop turn. Excellent "these were great times" track.
34. Snoop Dogg feat. Pharrell "Drop It Like It's Hot" - Another Neptunes track; testament to Snoop's incredible ear and staying power. He always makes the right move.
33. The Killers "Mr. Brightside" - Poppy, fun, nostalgic, and thematically straightforward.
32. Rihanna feat. Jay-Z "Umbrella" - "Ella, ella,, eh, eh, eh……" And then the video with the umbrella act.
31. Arcade Fire "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" - The start of who will probably end up as one of the great bands of all time. All the familiar sounds you'll hear: lush instruments, the distinct voice, and real life lyrics.
30. Justin Timberlake "SexyBack" - Another Timbaland production. I guess Sexy needs to bring JustinBack now.
29. Blur "Song 2" - Explosive, short, and to the point. Would've never figured animated gorillas would have been the next step for someone in Blur.
28. Queens of the Stone Age "Better Living Through Chemistry" - A collage of influences (bongos?!) An anti-drug song - not in the "just say no" mode, but in the "people need to just understand what they are doing, even if it's doctor-prescribed" mode.
27. The White Stripes "7 Nation Army" - At the height of their powers; that they were able to generate so much sound, with few instruments was amazing.
26. Eminem feat. Dido "Stan" - The best crazy fan song ever. And Dido's Thank You was good enough to make this song even better than her own.
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