Best English Songs 2018: From Ariana Grande's 'thank u, next' to Beyonce, Jay Z's power collaboration 'Apeshit'

This year saw many albums and artists fearlessly experiment with their sound and style. As the experience of listening to music is a deeply personal and subjective one, many artists did not make it to our list of the best English songs of 2018. Here are some of the more popular tracks of 2018 across different (though not all) genres, in no particular order. Thank u, next Though ‘thank u, next’ is not the work of a lyrical genius, it has become the ultimate post-break up anthem that everyone needed. Ariana Grande herself went through the end of a whirlwind romance with Pete Davidson to the tragic death of her ex boyfriend , rapper Mac Miller, making her the centre of tabloid headlines and malice from haters online. Unlike every pop star droning about being lovelorn or worse, a heartbreaker, this one is an empowering track and a reflection of her strength.

Sicko Mode Travis Scott has had many impressive collaborations for his third studio album Astroworld , including this one with Drake. The song opens with Drake’s smooth vocals and suddenly the beat changes midway with Scott waltzing in with his verse. It is experimental, and it is addictive with Scott utilising samples from Notorious BIG, Uncle Luke and Big Hawk.

Egyptian Luvr Rejjie Snow released this funk-influenced number with rapper Amine and the soft, sultry vocals of Dana Williams. Produced by Kaytranada, and combining elements of hip hop and electronic music, it is another break up song, with Snow imploring you to move on.

Bad Bad News With this debut album, Leon Bridges drew comparisons to soul music icons like Otis Redding. But ‘Bad Bad News’ from his second studio album Good Thing is a display of his versatility as he mixes classic influences with contemporary ones to create a groovy jam that you just cannot help but want to dance to.

Heavy, California The British electronic funk duo Jungle released their second album this year with singles ‘Heavy, California’ and ‘Cherry’. These tracks sound like butter melting on a hot toast. ‘California’ is a disco inspired song about chasing dreams in the City of Stars, featuring breezy guitar riffs and incredible falsetto vocals.

Petty Lover The 19-year-old emerging singer-songwriter from South London, Jaz Karis, recently released her single ‘Petty Lover’. In a sensual yet soulful number reminiscent to the works of ’90s R&B divas like Alicia Keys and Erikah Badu, Karis pours her heart out.

Apeshit Produced by Pharrell, the first single from  Everything is Love , has the former Destiny’s Child member Beyonce rap-sing flawlessly while Jay Z and Quavo join her on the sidelines. They boast about reaching the epitome of fame and wealth, turning down a performance at Super Bowl ("You need me, I don’t need you") and snubbing the Grammys. The accompanying music video has the couple in the Louvre, posing against the Mona Lisa, which the Rolling Stone calls “a fitting metaphor for rap’s infiltration of predominantly white spaces.”

I Like It ‘I Like It’ from Cardi B’s debut album Invasion of Privacy blends Latin music with trap and samples Peter Rodriguez’ 1967 track ‘I Like It Like That’. Like Cardi, the song is also energetic and fun as she lists off the things she likes, ranging from dollars, diamonds to million-dollar deals and of course Balenciagas that look like socks. J Balvin and Bad Bunny make an auto-tuned appearance, adding more spunk to the overall vibe of the song.

Til Its Over ‘Til Its Over’ is Anderson.Paak’s first song after his 2016 Grammy nominated album Malibu. The song featured in an Apple commercial, directed by Spike Jonze and featuring FKA Twigs. Since the release of this song, Anderson has also released his third album titled Oxnard, which features collaborations with artists like Snoop Dogg, Dr Dre and J Cole.

Honey Swedish pop star Robyn released her first solo album after a gap of eight years. ‘Honey’ is also reminder of her previous hits like ‘Dancing On My Own’ and ‘Call Your Girlfriend’, as it combines dance music with a tinge of melancholy.