2018 might’ve seemed like a dry year for music, but if you were paying attention you found some gold.
Don’t believe me? 2018 ended up being a good one, financially, for the music industry. One website reports that 51.5 billion dollars were earned in the music industry globally, and almost 20 billion of that was from the U.S. alone.
Here are eight of my favorite tunes from 2018 that you might’ve missed.
- Nicki Minaj – “Barbie Dreams”
We didn’t even know if Nicki Minaj’s latest album Queen was going to be released this year because the date had been pushed back so many times. She killed it with a nod to classic hip-hop in “Barbie Dreams” this year.
2. Zedd & Maren Morris – “The Middle”
This was totally the year of collaborations. One of the first ones to hit big happened when a country star teamed up with an EDM dream, and then we had “The Middle” and it was everywhere.
3. Bad Wolves – “Zombie”
The passing of Dolores O’ Riordan of The Cranberries is already approaching its first anniversary soon. This event revealed that Bad Wolves was going to record a version of The Cranberries famous hit “Zombie” with her just before she died. Though they wouldn’t get the chance, the band released a special version in her honor that blew up everywhere this year.
4. Ariana Grande – “Thank U, Next”
Girlfriend had a year this year. Her personal life hit some snags, but her career was on fire thanks in part to this tune about her exes that we couldn’t help but love. The video kills!
5. Halestorm – “Uncomfortable”
Halestorm got grittier, darker, and more honest this year. They proved it when they released Vicious in July.
6. Carrie Underwood – “Cry Pretty”
After a quick hiatus, Carrie Underwood came back with her big voice this year in a big way! Her nod to the power ballads of the late eighties and early nineties, “Cry Pretty”, was an instant hit.
7. Drake – “In My Feelings”
No other song had its own dance dedicated to it in 2018! I’m still asking who the hell Kiki is though.
8. Cardi B – “I Like It”
Did anyone have a bigger year than her? I don’t think so.
I have to admit, 2018 was a pretty good year for music! What tunes were your favorite?