Defining Pop Culture Moments 2024

Kendrick Lamar and Drake went at it through quick-fire releases, culminating in a smash-hit album drop from Kendrick and Not Like Us ping-ponging up and down the charts since its release.

Drake is now taking the beef to court. Make of that what you will, but it was one of the biggest moments in 2024. Megan thee Stallion and Nicki Minaj put pen to paper in their feud, helping Megan scoop her first solo number one with HISS.

Beyoncé showed up and showed out with COWBOY CARTER. The album secured over a billion streams and was the second-most nominated album in Grammy history, including a nomination for Album of the Year and Best Country Album. Yet, not a single Country Music Award nomination appeared. Controversy ensued.

How does one of the biggest-selling and streamed albums in Country Music for 2024 not get a single nomination for the awards dedicated to the genre? 

“I’m working late, ‘cause I’m a singerrrrrr”. The earworm of the year might go to Sabrina Carpenter for Espresso. It's a song with more than a couple of conspiracy theories floating around the internet. Was it payola? Was it just incredible marketing? Or is the song genuinely that catchy?

Lime green might not be your color, but it was the color of the summer - that’s for sure. BRAT spread like wildfire. BRAT walls, BRAT clothing, BRAT lifestyle, and being BRAT. That is a lot of BRAT. Charli XCX’s album artwork was picked up by brands and politicians alike. While BRAT Summer has faded now, there is still winter to get through. Will BRAT ever end? Who knows.

It was a tragic final quarter of the year with the death of One Direction member and solo artist Liam Payne. The sudden death of the boyband sweetheart put a dark spin on October and highlighted the relentlessness of the press and social media during these sad occasions.

There were many more notable moments, like Elton John getting his EGOT, Eminem knocking Taylor Swift off the top spot, Steven Tyler of Aerosmith retiring from touring, and Killer Mike getting picked up by the police after picking up 3 Grammys—a big year.

10 Tracks That Defined 2024

The year's biggest tracks do well in the charts and are often the feature songs on all social media channels —specifically TikTok. We hear them countless times daily and eventually head to Spotify or Apple Music to find them.

We’re using a combination of KWORB streaming data, Billboard data, and cultural impact (a bit subjective, we know) to make our list. And these are in no particular order.

1. A Bar Song (Tipsy)

2. Espresso

We have already mentioned Espresso, but it would be hard to avoid it in terms of year-shaping songs. And, even if there were other things in play, there is no denying that Sabrina Carpenter is making big waves. Her concerts are sell-outs, her music is everywhere, and her fans are many and loyal. Espresso has a phenomenal 3,594,076 daily streams and a massive 1,648,894,956 total, both on Spotify.

The track reached 1.2 billion in just 146 days, the fastest song ever to manage it. Hot on the heels of Espresso was Please, Please, Please. She held spots one and two on the Official Single Charts and was the youngest female to do so.

3. Too Sweet 

The song that caused a million bar tenders to ask, ‘Are you sure?’. When Too Sweet fans tried neat whiskey for the first time.

Hozier likes his whiskey neat, but most people prefer some ice. That aside, it hasn’t stopped Too Sweet from becoming one of the year's biggest tracks. Too Sweet is such a big deal; not only did it not make it to the Unreal Unearth album released some months earlier, but it is Hozier's first mass-streamed release since Take Me To Church. Usually not making it into the mainstream charts, this track has put Hozier on the map for many new fans.

4. LUNCH

5. Die With A Smile 

Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars delivered with a capital D. With 5.4 million views on YouTube in just 24 hours, it has 1,114,858,568 streams (count up until 1st December 2024) and enjoyed over 80 days in the top spot. This standalone single from the unusual pair turned out to be a hit. For Gaga, it was the first time she was back at the top of the Pop Airplay charts since Born This Way in 2011 - a long 13-year break. Die With A Smile held #1 on the Billboard charts for 8 weeks between September and October.

6. Not Like Us 

While this track isn’t in the top 10 for the most streams on Spotify to date - it did the unthinkable. Not only did it debut at #1 on the Billboard charts, but it meant that Kendrick surpassed Drake’s long-held spot for most streams on Spotify.

Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper Kendrick has since released GNX - his 6th studio album, currently residing in almost the entire top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. GNX also debuts at number 1 on the Billboard 200.

Oh, and after Not Like Us slipped out of the top ten, it bounced back a few weeks later and then once more. It spent a consecutive 21 weeks at number one and has been announced as Apple Music’s Song of the Year.

7. Good Luck, Babe! 

Good luck, Babe! Reached 1 billion streams on the 29th of November, 2024. Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess was released in September 2023.

In a recent interview with Billboard, she stated that Good Luck, Babe! was a bitch to write. Roan has plenty of support from other female artists, including the formidable SZA, who said: “Yeah!!!! Never been more proud to contribute 500 streams” when Chappelle announced on Instagram that she had hit the 1 billion mark.

8. I Had Some Help

9. APT 

New, but stacking up the streams thick and fast. Another massive hit for Bruno Mars. Die With A Smile and APT sat in positions 1 and 2 in the Spotify streaming charts for a short time before this newsletter was sent out.

APT, in particular, was a TikTok smash. Reached 1 billion views on the platform and 111 million views on a single reel on Instagram. It is one of the biggest TikTok trends of the year and has only just been released.

10. TEXAS HOLD’EM

Back in the Country genre, only this time, this is more of a cultural impact—the album COWBOY CARTER and single TEXAS HOLD’EM did exceptionally.

TEXAS HOLD'EM had a TikTok trend, with people donning cowboy boots and having a hoedown of their own.

But let’s look outside of the chart figures for a minute.

Media outlets, country music fans, and the Beyhive started and continued having conversations about parity (or lack of) within this genre. Further compounded by the lack of CMA nominations, the album and this track notably opened up a broader conversation. Making it one of the pivotal tracks of the year.