Here are the 25 songs that had us tapping our toes, bobbing our heads, tearing up, dancing and — because it’s the season — prancing in 2013.
In making this list, we revisited many of the songs we featured in our mid-year review, the 25 Best Songs of 2013 (So Far), and found that some of them just didn’t hold up compared to the trove of goodies that came at the end of the year.
As we predicted in June, it was hard to put together this end-of-the-year list. Narrowing down the incredible offerings to a Top 25 was challenge as we sifted through genres, artists, albums and tempos. Choosing between incredible newcomers like Ariana Grande, Chvrches, and A$AP Ferg and seasoned veterans like Jay Z, Vampire Weekend and Justin Timberlake is a daunting task. Narrowing down a year that easily had hundred of incredible tracks to a svelte 25 was almost impossible.
Our list includes everything from country heart-breakers to hip-hop anthems to effervescent pop songs sure to worm their way into your ear.