Honorable Mentions: "Single Ladies" - Beyonce, "Tik Tok" - Ke$ha. Single Ladies - I didn't like enough of the actual song for it to be included, but the video was so good (Kanye would say the greatest of all time) and became such a phenomenon that it warrants a mention. Tik Tok is awesome, but too new to include in the greatest of the year. Thought about adding "Live Like We're Dying" - but in reality I just love everything Kris Allen does... doesn't deserve to be top 10 of the year though.
10. TIE - "Empire State of Mind" - Jay-Z feat Alicia Keys, "Need You Now" - Lady Antebellum - Empire State of Mind was the ANTHEM for those of us on the East Coast. I wanted to hate it because it was so integral in the Yankee World Series celebrations (don't say "we've waited a long time for this" when you won it 9 years ago. Ask the Cubs, you a-holes). But I couldn't hate it. This song is awesome. Need You Now is a very recent discovery of mine, but has fast become one of my fave songs ever (penchant for drunk dialing, anyone?). The male-female duet combo is always a surefire way to get me to fall in love with a song.
9. "You Belong With Me" - Taylor Swift - T Swift, obviously, had a very big year. I love this song and her entire album. I was toying with putting "Love Story" on this list, cause I also ADORE that song, but I thought since You Belong With Me was the subject of the now infamous Kanye VMA incident, that it goes on the list. This song has a great ability to speak to anyone who's ever had a crush on someone dating someone else. T Swift sort of writes songs for high school girls and tweens, but we all remember what that was like. Plus it's upbeat and fun.
8. "Lucky" - Jason Mraz feat. Colbie Caillat - Beachy, romantic, about being in a relationship with your best friend. Just sort of warms my heart. Love both Mraz and Caillat. Would love to hear them duet more in the future.
7. "Cowboy Casanova" - Carrie Underwood - the first single off her third album. I've never been shy about my love for Carrie, and this song doesn't disappoint. It's got a sexy beat and has an interesting storyline. Every girl loves a bad boy, even if they know better.
6. "I Do Not Hook Up" - Kelly Clarkson - When I first got introduced to this song, I thought it was ridiculous and kind of annoying. The second time I heard it, I was hooked. Every time I hear it, I want to sing and dance a lot. Plus it's the anti-slut anthem. Big fan.
5. "Good Girls Go Bad" - Cobra Starship feat. Leighton Meester - It's such a simple format. Another of these that I thought was TERRIBLE the first time I heard it, but then slowly it sunk into my subconscious. I spent a big part of August driving around the Midwest, and I constantly surfed the radio hoping to hear this song. It's become a "getting ready to go out" staple. It's sort of the opposite of K Clarks, the slut anthem, but man is it fun. 2009 was also the year that I discovered Gossip Girl, and Meester's character Blair Waldorf has become my style hero. Viva Leighton.
4. "Dead and Gone" - T. I. feat Justin Timberlake - this is the song that got me to buy T.I.'s Paper Trail album. That album is probably the best rap album I've bought in the last five years. I love his rap style, and the running theme through this song and the album is making mistakes (T.I. is currently serving a year in prison for illegally having enough guns at his home to win the Iraq war). This song is perfect for anyone who's ever decided to make a change in their life. The combination of T.I.'s lyrics and Justin's mournful chorus is perfect. I find Timberlake's bridge to be particularly awesome/inspirational - "I turn my head to the East, I don't see nobody by my side. I turn my head to the West, still nobody in sight. So I turn my head to the North, swallow that pill that they call pride. The old me's dead and gone, but the new me will be alright."
3. "Party in the USA" - Miley Cyrus - Love it or hate it, but this song is HELLA catchy. Plus it warrants awesome choreography ("I put my hands up, they're playing my song..."). This is one of those songs that you think is RIDICULOUS the first time you hear it, and terrible. Hear it two or three more times, and you're hooked, I promise. It'll be played at my wedding, no lie.
2. "Don't Stop Believin'" - Glee Cast - T Swift had a big year, but 2009, for me, was the year of Glee. This song is the best known (and one of the best) of the first half of the first season of the show. It's the perfect storm of inspirational, catchy, upbeat, and fun to sing to. Journey has had a big year in my book, as the version of "Don't Stop Believin'" from the musical Rock of Ages is also one of my favorites of the year.
1. "The Climb" - Miley Cyrus - (off the Hannah Montana movie soundtrack) This will probably go down as Miley's biggest song. It was certainly her biggest song of the year. Say what you want about Miley, but she wrote this herself, and it represents (in the movie and in life) when she finally steps out fully as Miley, and not as "that girl who plays Hannah Montana." This song could inspire anyone. It's basically the modern "Don't Stop Believin'." Miley's voice may not be the best, but the girl can belt. LOVE IT.
