One person’s trash is another’s treasure, but what happens when everyone agrees a song is just plain garbage? That’s where year-end “worst of” lists come in, serving as sonic dumpster fires we can all gather around to roast the overproduced, lyrically inept, and culturally tone-deaf tracks that somehow infiltrated playlists everywhere. Think of it as group therapy for your ears—a chance to collectively exorcise the earworms that burrowed too deep. Multiple critics have already started dropping their lists, calling out everything from comeback attempts that face-plant to cringe-worthy genre fusions drowning in autotune.
10. 7 Minute Drill by J. Cole
Even legends aren’t immune to questionable decisions.
Critics called “7 Minute Drill” underwhelming and petty, solidifying the narrative of a misstep year for J. Cole’s artistic judgment. It’s like watching Jordan in his Wizards era—flashes of brilliance, but ultimately a reminder that even legends stumble. Anyone who’s ever seen their favorite rapper jump headfirst into a beef only to awkwardly backpedal later knows this cringe.
Cole walked back his involvement in the Kendrick feud, rendering the track both musically flat and strategically pointless. If a diss track lands like a wet firework, what’s the point? The pros: it was brief. The cons: it existed at all.
9. I Don’t Wanna Wait by David Guetta & OneRepublic
Plain flour in audio form—technically functional but flavorless.
Critics have called “I Don’t Wanna Wait” aggressively bland, and multiple outlets ranked it #1 on their worst songs of 2024 lists. Despite charting in multiple countries, this David Guetta and OneRepublic collab got slammed as a cynical, generic EDM-pop template. The earworm potential is MIA, leaving you with the sonic equivalent of elevator music.
This track coasts on Spotify-core formulas, lacking any memorable melody or personality. If pop songs were prescription meds, this would be the generic version—same basic function, zero soul. The result? A sound so forgettable, it vanishes like a sugar rush.
8. Spicy Margarita by Jason Derulo & Michael Buble
Built on the bones of a classic, but the surgery went horribly wrong.
Built on the bones of the classic song “Sway,” this track allegedly serves as rage bait to extend Jason Derulo’s TikTok reign. Anyone who’s seen a once-great band reunite for a cash-grab tour knows the feeling—sometimes it’s better to let sleeping dogs lie. Even Stevie Wonder receives a writing credit due to the sample chain, proving that sometimes the best alibi is pretending this track never happened.
Want to perform your own autopsy? Start with a classic tune, add lyrics that would make a cat wince, then douse it in auto-tune until it sounds like a dial-up modem. Finish with a music video where everyone looks like they’re having more fun than the song deserves.
7. Grippy by Cash Cobain & J. Cole
What happens when a Pulitzer-nominated wordsmith tries drill beats after midnight.
“I want to feel like I’m touching your kidneys,” J. Cole raps on “Grippy,” a line that Anthony Fantano ranked as the #2 worst song of 2024. What happens when a wordsmith tries out lo-fi production with a drill beat? You get a track that sounds like a demo tape got drunk and wandered into the wrong studio.
In a year packed with career head-scratchers, this collab stands out like a vegan at a barbecue. For someone who prides himself on lyrical finesse, Cole’s foray into cringe-worthy autotune feels like watching your professor try to do the “Renegade” dance. Sometimes sticking to your brand beats chasing a TikTok trend.
6. Love On by Selena Gomez
Arriving to the disco party two years after everyone went home.
Selena Gomez’s “Love On” showed up to the disco trend approximately two years after Dua Lipa and Doja Cat had already cleared the dance floor. Picture a Parisian bistro, but instead of Edith Piaf, you get nails on a chalkboard—that’s the vibe. It’s like showing up to a Studio 54 party wearing Crocs.
The overbearing autotune smothers any raw emotion, leaving you wondering if Selena’s even in there. The lyrics, much like a soufflé that refuses to rise, just don’t land. If you’re hoping to channel some Parisian chic at karaoke night, you’re more likely to clear the room than ignite a dance floor.
5. Think U The Shit (Fart) by Ice Spice
When the punchline stops being funny and starts being painful.
Ice Spice’s “Think U The Shit (Fart)” became a minor hit in 2024, but frequently appeared on worst-of lists for its repetitive hook and one-note flow accusations. Picture this: you’re stuck in traffic, the same three bars loop like a broken record, and even your grandma starts side-eyeing your taste. What began as playful meme-rap curdled into tiresome gimmickry for many listeners.
Critics argue the song highlights accusations that her flows and lyrical ideas lack variety. If you’re betting on long-term staying power, ask yourself: Is this a chart-topper or just a flash in the pan that confirms the novelty has worn thin?
4. Lose Control by Teddy Swims
Raw vocals wrapped in so much digital processing, authenticity filed a restraining order.
Some dads just glom onto anything vocally solid, but lyrically, “Lose Control” is about as original as airplane peanuts. Teddy Swims belts it out, sure, but the whole thing sounds like it was assembled in a lab—a vocal fry factory mixed with an overproduction machine. Picture your uncle at karaoke thinking he’s auditioning for The Voice, then slap a filter over it.
This track is basically musical comfort food for people who think Meghan Trainor is edgy. It’s engineered to sound raw but feels faker than a Kardashian apology. The problem isn’t Swims’ voice, but how it’s suffocated under layers of digital processing, like they’re afraid of letting him just sing.
3. Alibi by Ella Henderson
Sampling “Gangsta’s Paradise” should have been a layup—instead, it’s an airball.
Sampling Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise” should have been easy money, but “Alibi” sounds like someone tried to recreate a classic with a Casio keyboard. Instead of a dance track, it’s an uninspired, overproduced mess. Anyone who’s seen a tribute band bomb harder than a dropped iPhone knows this feeling.
Picture yourself at a club where the DJ drops this hoping for a floor-filler, and the crowd just stares blankly, suddenly fascinated by the emergency exit signs. Even Stevie Wonder got a writing credit because of the sample chain, but sometimes the best alibi is pretending this track never happened.
2. Beautiful Things by Benson Boon
Stadium-ready angst designed by committee, perfected by algorithms.
Despite racking up massive streaming numbers, Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” is less a chart-topper and more a study in melodramatic overreach. Sure, the guy can belt, but the track’s screeching chorus and overwrought production feel like a rejected demo from a 2010s Disney flick. Even if you’re all in on the emotional rollercoaster, the verses offer little more than uninspired filler.
You’re stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, windows down, and this comes on the radio: annoying vocal delivery and try-hard screams aren’t exactly the soundtrack you need. Boone’s ballad could have been raw and honest, but instead it’s a cacophony of overproduced angst that proves even platinum songs can leave you feeling like you survived an explosion at Hot Topic.
1. Woman’s World by Katy Perry
A comeback that face-planted harder than a drunk influencer on roller skates.
“Worst songs of 2024” lists are dragging Katy Perry’s “Woman’s World” for sounding like a mashup of Lady Gaga and Kelly Clarkson—a real Frankenstein’s monster of pop. Released in July 2024, this track stirred up immediate drama by reuniting Perry with Dr. Luke, who co-wrote and produced it, which sparked backlash following Kesha’s allegations against him.
Critics singled it out for trivializing feminism and sounding like a cheap mash-up of older hits, arguing that it feels dated and cynical as a supposed comeback single. The track feels like finding a forgotten CD in your glove compartment—technically music, but disappointingly stale. Maybe next time, Perry should ditch the recycled beats and dig a little deeper, because this track is flatter than day-old soda.
