tay’s favorite songs of 2024

so many plays, i've got music for DAYS

what a year it has been for music! there were SO many enjoyable releases across genres that i’m sure i’ll be thinking about music from 2024 for years to come. on a personal level, i devoted time to two additional projects centered around music (a filmless score¹ and The Music Directory²).

coming of age

The Music Directory is Live

now, i’m excited to share my favorite songs of the year with you. every monthly playlist i’ve created throughout the year has led up to this moment. for continuity’s sake, i typically correlate the number of favorite songs with the current year (i.e. 24 songs for 2024). well, i ended up with way more favorites than that, so i initiated a different, fun prompt for myself: how many songs can you fit on one sheet of unlined paper without making columns? the result was 42³. we’ll get into all of those songs below — not even in countdown form, i’m starting from the top down.⁴ as i recall these songs, i’ll weave in some one-liners, favorite lyrics, extended cuts, and remixes throughout the selections. you will also find quotes from my mid-year recap!

tay’s favorite music of 2024 (so far)

if this is your first time reading one of my year-end lists, i determine the results by comparing data from last.fm and Apple Music Replay to my personal memories with the music.

my 10 most-played songs of 2024, according to Apple Music Replay

my 10 most-played songs of 2024, according to last.fm

there was some major overlap between last.fm and Apple Music, but certain songs ranked differently based on how each platform tracks plays. last.fm includes plays from YouTube on my computer AND those that i manually added from my physical media collection. however, i’ve found that last.fm sometimes duplicates scrobbles if you track music from different devices, so i don’t rely on it completely. alright, that’s enough fanfare — please read on to see which songs i truly enjoyed this year and why!

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“2 2 BOOTLEG” — Saya Gray

ahhh Saya, my experimental queen! if you like music that takes you on an unexpected journey, then tap in with my ultimate favorite song of the year.

Devil’s dance step with the left dip
My hip quick hit my head on higher purpose
I learned to tuck my chin to chest
You put us on the mend to break me differently
I won't fill your empty words with freedom of speech
In a world where you can't speak freely
I never wanna see you again and do this devil’s dance

“Lucid Girl” — Thee Sacred Souls

i’ve said it before and i’ll say it again: i’ll never get over this song. it’s such a soulful and inspiring tale of knowing when to put oneself first.

“Just A Western” — Nilüfer Yanya

i racked up an obscene amount of YouTube plays for this song’s accompanying video as it kept popping up whenever i opened that app on my TV. so the fact that this song ranks so highly without those plays accounted for in the stats above means i listened to this A LOT. i invite you to get into the original version and the Boy Harsher remix.

'Cause the sun on your face never change, there's a darkness in me
Even more takes up your time
I won't call in a favor, won't do it for free anymore

“! MAVIS BEACON” — Saya Gray

a song with an exclamation point in the beginning of the title that’s named after the typing maven herself? count me in.

Speak now or forever hold your peace
I know who you are by the company you keep (your secrets)
On your sleeve like a scarlet letter
If you don't like me now
You're gonna hate me later

“Clear (full version)” — BETWEEN FRIENDS

when this sibling duo teased a snippet of this track at the end of last year’s standout single “Smiley,” i knew i needed to hear more. this “full” version is still not long enough, in my opinion. so don’t say i didn’t warn you if you find yourself hitting repeat on this one.

“do you have a soul?” — Fousheé

there are so many songs that i could have chosen from this album, but the directness of the question asked in the title is why i’ve included it here. file under: questions that need answers.

“ORANGE LAMPSHADE” — Justin Nozuka

i liked this song as a single. then i REALLY liked it in the context of the album CHLORINE. this is one of those songs i wish i’d written.

Moments fly by like shooting stars
Going down in a blaze
You might miss it from where you are
When you're caught in a chase

“Nasty” — Tinashe

here’s what i said back in September [2023] when BB/ANG3L dropped: [Tinashe is] “an alt-R&B/pop icon coming to collect her flowers, steadily but surely. she’s been worth the wait.” the success of “Nasty” is something to be championed, and longtime fans been knew the moment would arrive.

“Soul Hole” — @

i declared this song one of my favorites at the start of the year, and here it still is! an earworm for the ages.

I'm going to the soul hole and I'm never coming back!

“Paloma” — Angélica Garcia

my love for music in other languages grows stronger and stronger. when i saw Angélica Garcia perform “Paloma” live while opening for Nilüfer Yanya, i couldn’t get it out of my head for weeks! it was my introduction to her music, and she quickly made me a fan. Thea Wood of

Herizon Music: The Newsletter

also reached out to a few women writers to ask us about songs that defined 2024. here’s my anecdote from that feature:

“This song speaks to a divine love that transcends the earthly realm. Throughout all that I experienced this year, love kept me going.”

“Moonlight” — Forest Claudette

this song has proven to be very central and important to the development of a filmless score. you can read more about it in the “coming of age” feature under the header “1. the protagonists are questioning their identity: “who am i?””

I've been thinking 'bout moonlight
I been thinking 'bout the boys in my life, I guess
It's not like me to be keeping quiet, no silence

“No One Noticed” — The Marías

i know a hit song when i hear it. “No One Noticed” was my instant favorite when i first listened to Submarine, so it does not surprise me that this became one of the most popular songs in the band’s discography. hear the extended version below!

It's getting old (I'd kinda like it if you'd call me)
All alone ('cause I'm so over bein' lonely)
May have lost it (I need a virtual connection)
I have lost it (be my video obsession)

“Deliver Me” — Demae

this song and its accompanying video both give me goosebumps. here’s what i said about Demae in a note during the fall.

what artists keep you on the edge of your seat waiting on their next move?? Demae is one for me! i’ve been following her journey since Hawk House.

“Silence is Loud” — Nia Archives

wow, this is an amazing opener for a debut album!

And if I ain't got you around
Then I'm lost and I don't wanna be found
You're the only thing keeping me sound
And without you, the silence is loud

“Common Blue” — Warpaint

my favorite LA psych-rock girlies are back at it again!

“Akira” — MICHELLE

obsessed isn’t even the word for how i feel about this track that takes on all the right inspirations from late 90’s pop and R&B, while incorporating a bisexual love triangle into the narrative.

“Comedy” — Infinity Song

my first thought when listening to this song was, “what in The Who’s Tommy, Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” sardonic rock opera is this?” (complimentary). i was fully captivated and proceeded to play it on repeat for days (and weeks) to come.

check out the “coming of age” feature on a filmless score for more of my thoughts on this song (listed under the header “9. is it the end or the beginning?”)

“100 bux” — Fousheé

in Fousheé’s recap of a night out where she indulged in one too many, the recovery solution has never sounded so easy and hopeful until now.

Did you recover from the party favors?
Did you recover from the party favors?
We'll drink a coffee and we'll be one hundred bucks

“If U Don’t Know By Now” — Laila!

i wrote about this song in the “coming of age” feature for a filmless score (listed under the header “7. young (first) love.”)

for this specific characteristic, i look to Laila!’s debut album Gap Year!, which has the essence of (unrequited) puppy love. i could imagine someone serenading their crush with “If U Don’t Know By Now” or sneaking it onto a mixtape of other lovesick jams. knowing that she produced the release herself adds another element to this song’s inclusion.

“Alesis” — Mk.gee

i don’t think y’all were really hearing him on this song! play the studio recording first, then the equally stirring live rendition.

Why me, or better, why you?
When we can fake it like any way we want to
Why bleed when we don't have to?
Yeah, just shut your mouth, I only really want you
Are you holding on?
Don't you wanna get a move on?
Escapism so easily
When we don't have the money to be
Healthily gettin' out of here
Don't you wanna get a move on?

“Method Actor” — Nilüfer Yanya

with her distinctive voice, Nilüfer Yanya has a way of sardonically singing about slightly violent imagery (as you’ll see in the featured lyrics below) and making it sound not all that disturbing.

Not gonna solve all my problems
I'd love to drown in my new costume
It's not a fault, won't apologize for
How comes right now, there's no advice for?
People like you and me get jaded
People like us, our dreams get faded
Why go back so soon?
What do you keep in that room?

“Right, Wrong, or Ready” — Kara Jackson

this Karen Dalton cover brought me to tears a few times, ngl.

“Light Work” — Elmiene

There's nothing heavy 'bout this love, girl, it's light for me

“Love Around the World” — Pale Jay

such a fun, slice-of-life ditty from my artist of the year.

“Tell Me What It’s Like?” — Nia Archives

… I try to run but go where
I feel like you just don't care
I'm looking for love that's not there
And this game of life's so unfair

“MUTT” — Leon Thomas

what do you mean he started off the first verse of this song with “I can't smoke on reggie, so pardon my bluntness”?? it could only go up from here. i’m dubbing this a modern R&B classic, right up there with the likes of SiR’s “John Redcorn” and SZA’s “Supermodel.”

“Are You Looking Up” — Mk.gee

this was my favorite track when i first listened to Two Star & the Dream Police. “Alesis” has since taken that spot, although it changes all the time. man, what an album. Mk.gee’s guitar, pen, and voice are all golden!

So are you looking up? Are you asking why?
'Cause if you wanna go then baby go wide
And I can shift shapes but I can't deny
Yeah, we can put it all to rest just for one night

“ILY” — Free Party

rap duo Free Party slides on an old-school beat while wavering back and forth about loving a girl who’s been equally wishy-washy. ultimately, it’s giving “it’s me and you against the world because ain’t much else out there anyway.”

Now why would I believe in love
When loving don’t believe in me
If the heaven is above, do that mean hell is at my feet?

“Alibi” — Sevdaliza, Yseult, Pabllo Vittar

i didn’t know until now how badly i needed a multilingual bop like this in my life. the femme-centric track “Alibi” cleverly incorporates Spanish, Portuguese, English, and French, resulting in a unique pop song with an engaging and empowering narrative. personally, i’d watch this movie if they wanted to take the video concept a step further.

“Fist Bump” ft. Free Nationals — Durand Bernarr

i love the way that Durand Bernarr sets boundaries on this track. like i love you, but i also do not want your makeup ruining my clothes when we embrace. so DAP it is.

I got you on a fist bump
Even a smooch on the cheek but I can't give you no hug
My shirt gon’ be riddled with makeup

“ROCKMAN” — Mk.gee

i love this song, but i really love that the song often sounds as chaotic as its cover art would imply.

“Activate” — Common Saints

I’m stuck inside a place, a world I can’t tell the night out from the day
It’s like a purgatory, a paradise, so paradoxically
I have no name
But I’m a figment of my own imagination

“Heaven Knows” — Gavin Turek

what a beautiful disco tribute to a dear departed loved one. it deserves many, many spins. plus, the extended mix JUST dropped the same day as this newsletter!

“Second Nature” — Clairo

And once you get in my ear
I see kismet sinking in
It's second nature

“Along the Red Rim, The Sun Settles” — Mourning [A] BLKstar

perhaps it’s the theatre kid in me, but i will gladly listen to a song with multiple acts — i live for the transitions! the passion of this song reminds me of all the times that my family belted “Fire & Desire” at the top of our lungs, taking turns being Rick James and Teena Marie. i listen to this and recall some core memories that i’ll cherish forever. also, it’s not hard to get me hooked on a song with the following attributes:

• 7 minutes long

• starts off with a drum solo that leads into a raucous orchestral instrumental

• the first lyric is “I WISH A MOTHERF***ER WOULD!”

yeah, i’m sold!

“XFaded” — Brainstory

an engaging, cautionary tale of being crossfaded. like the song’s narrator, i’ve been there before.

Off of a few cups and puffs
One too many times
You get entangled
Trying to unwind

“Hell of A Ride” — Nourished by Time

i’ve seen this song featured on a couple “best songs” lists and it makes me happy that it didn’t get lost within the streaming ethers, which unfortunately happens too frequently to music released in Q1.

“Bassline” — Matt Martians

another favorite from January that’s persisted in my rotation! one thing’s for sure: Matt Martians is an elite vibe curator.

“A Dream Is All I Know” — The Lemon Twigs

an introspective bop from The Lemon Twigs’ ever-growing arsenal of retro-inspired tunes.

“CHIHIRO” — Billie Eilish

i really appreciate the journey that Billie Eilish takes us on throughout this jam. like many of her songs, there’s a sly playfulness to the well-crafted narrative of "CHIHIRO,” but a sobering reality underlies the song’s meaning.

“Mary Jane” — Orion Sun

with her honeyed voice, Orion Sun employs a bluesy cadence while singing about the healing power of the little green plant that could.

Good day, Mary Jane
Take this pain away

“Ain’t Sad About It” — LAYA

LAYA returns to my favorite songs list with her first independent release. first, i love how sassy this song is. second, i really appreciated how LAYA paid homage to various ‘90s sitcom classics via the teasers she shared prior to releasing “Ain’t Sad About It” on streaming.

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alright friends, those are my top 42 songs of 2024. which ones made your list? feel free to let me know in the comments. i hope you found some new songs to check out as well. per usual, here’s the handwritten list!

zoom in! (written with a Pigma Micron 08 pen)

i’ll return early next week with the favorite albums list and the 2024 playlist (which includes the aforementioned tracks). until then, happy listening!

1. returning in January with an addendum for my founding members first. next, i’ll introduce the second playlist in the series.

2. submissions for the directory are currently open through the beginning of January. i am also taking submissions for your year-end favorite/top/best lists through 12/25.

3. with my penchant for repetition, this also works for me because it’s the same numbers, just flipped.

4. i simply do not have the energy right now to wrestle with numbering and re-numbering this many selections in reverse order because it gets wonky when you do line breaks.