Top 50 of 2022: #15 – 11 / Two Women in Hip Hop, More Aussie Punk and an Indie Pairing Brought to You by Taylor Swift

We are finally here…the top 15! All year I have been putting the top 50 list together and jumping back and forth with the top 15. Some songs got bumped into the top 20, while other new tracks jumped straight into the top 15. Now, every track in the top 15 could easily be in the top 5, but this year was so stacked that it was hard to break through that top 5. So, let’s get into the top 15!

15. Leikeli 47: Chitty Bang

Leikeli 47 is no stranger to the top 50 and has been on in the past with her record Acrylic a few years ago. Chitty Bang has everything you are looking for in a Leikeli 47 track, aggressive versus, great bars, a catchy hook and her unique delivery. However, this is not just a carbon copy of Acrylic, but an evolution of her sound. She has a stripped back bass arrangement with a woman’s vocal looped on top of itself, which creates a complex beat that will move you. This record flew under the radar a little, but it gained momentum during the year. However, this is not the only woman rapper in the top 15.

14. M.I.A.: The One

The London rapper was born to Sri Lankan parents who moved back to Sri Lanka when she was six months old, but needed to return to London as refuges during the Sri Lankan civil war. These different aspects of M.I.A.’s life have informed her music as she promotes women’s rights in her music and has blazed her own trail in hip hop. The One combines aspects of hip hop, electro pop and some world music elements as she raps about her individuality. She has put out music since 2005 and The One shows that she can still bring it.

13. The National ft. Bon Iver: Weird Goodbyes

I know, The National and Bon Iver…how can this not be in Dave’s top 5??!!! What can I say, it is a stacked year. Interestingly, both of these artists appeared on Taylor Swift’s folklore and evermore, so we can credit her for bringing this track together. This is the brooding track you would expect from The National, whose frontman’s vocal is a mix of red wine and regret. Justin Vernon’s vocal makes from some great harmonies as they sing about savouring the present as time flies by and you are left with saying goodbye and interrogating your own mortality. A deep and relatively dark track that can still get its hooks into you.

12. Danger Mouse and Black Thought ft. A$AP Rocky and Run the Jewels: Strangers

Danger Mouse’s return to hip hop production with Black Thought was one of the most anticipated hip hop records of 2022…we will get to the other record in the top 5. There is an endless list of featured artists on this record, but none work as well together as A$AP Rocky and Run the Jewels. THis is a throwback to a good 90s hip hop track where each rapper gets their own verse to spit fire and thrill the audience. Everyone on this track has room to breathe and go through their own bars as Danger Mouse flexes his production muscle on the 70s soul beats and vocal samples. An amazing track that would have been top 5 in any other year.

11. Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers: AHHHH!

This has been a great year for Australian punk. Teen Jesus is an all women band in the classic punk 4 piece structure and sound like a slightly better produced and more poppy Bikini Kill. The pounding percussion, driving bass and crunchy guitar are all there as raw vocals during the verse give way to a poppy all in chorus. This follows Aussie band Skegss who brought a pop aesthetic to skater punk. Teen Jesus does not have a ton out there, but their sound is fresh and has a lot to offer the punk scene.

Next up….the top 10 of 2022!!!!!!!!