With quarantine and isolation still hovering throughout 2021, we all needed a little something that we could always rely on, and for many, that was music. Especially for me, whenever I got upset that I could not see my family or friends, I would throw on one of my favorite songs to lighten my mood a bit; a little Nicki Minaj never hurt anybody.
Hundreds of new songs were released in 2021, falling under numerous different genres, including Pop, Rock, Rap, Hip Hop, and Indie, so I hope no one was complaining that they could not find something they liked. Additionally, it seems as though there was a new trending song every month, which we played until it could not be played anymore; this cycle will most likely continue into 2022.
Speaking of trending songs, there were many hits that climbed the charts, including “Levitating” by the queen herself, Dua Lipa. This song captivated both the younger and older generations after it went viral on social media. The song, “Drivers License” by Olivia Rodrigo also took over the music industry after it was released in January of 2021. Although these songs were catchy for a little while, I think we can all agree that they were overplayed.
When Olivia Rodrigo first became famous, she was only seventeen. She had previously starred on the kids television show, Bizaardvark, but her fame truly began to grow after she released her album, SOUR. I remember seeing her new songs, especially Drivers License and Good 4 U, all over Tik Tok, which is an app where you can lip sync and dance to songs. Even though Olivia’s songs are now referred to as “TikTok sounds”, they are still amazing. It is impressive to see young people my age creating such good music; I am jealous to say the least.
In terms of other artists, Lil Nas X, Doja Cat, The Weekend and Adele gave their fans what they wanted this past year by releasing some new songs and albums. Personally, I was very exited to hear Adele’s new album, and I was not disappointed. Adele gained over 180 million streams on her album, 30, which grew popular towards the end of 2021.
During the pandemic, millions of people tuned in to listen to their favorite artists. As crazy as this may sound, Spotify has over 380 million users, and this number is only increasing. This is most likely because listening to music does not require you to leave your house, and you can always count on it to be there. Whenever people were sad, angry, depressed or bored during lock down, they could channel those emotions through music, which is why I believe that music is a gift.
Music, to me, represents a sense of normalcy, especially now that Covid is starting to become bad again. Now, whenever I am bored, I plug in my Alexa and listen to music while I read, clean, and even when I do my homework. Music allows me to drift into my own world, and I am thankful that when I am sad, I can just turn on an old Ke$ha song and my mood will instantly switch.
I think we are all excited to see what kind of music will be produced in 2022, but deep down we know that nothing will ever amount to the music made between the years of 2005-2015.