What is this year's song of the summer? Here are 13 contenders

We are well into this summer season and there doesn't yet seem to be a front-runner for song of the summer.

As CBC Music highlighted last year, this may become the new norm. Long gone are the days when a song becomes so ubiquitous that multiple generations know all the words, as music listening habits have become increasingly niche. Of course, there will always be a few juggernauts that break through, but more and more, songs can hit the top of the charts while a large number of people have no clue about them. It's possible that this actually makes the song of the summer conversation more fun.

Below, we make the case for 13 songs we believe deserve to be on your summer playlist: from songs with political messages to subdued sing-along break-up anthems; from viral hits that inspire dance challenges to dance-floor heaters that promise sweaty debauchery. 

The chart climbers 

Songs with viral momentum, catchy hooks and international success.  

Nuevayol, Bad Bunny

Bad Bunny's ode to summer in New York begins with a sample of the 1975 song Un Verano en Nueva York by legendary Puerto Rican salsa group El Gran Combo. It's a little dose of warm nostalgia that also works to perfectly transition one generational summer song to the next. When El Gran Combo sings, "Solo tienes que vivir/ un verano en Nueva York," which translates to "You just have to live/ a summer in New York," Bad Bunny's answer is to take it to the present over a thumping dembow beat that is sure to be heard blasting from car stereos all summer long. "4 de julio, 4th de July/ ando con mi primo, borracho, rulay" (4th of July, 4th of July/ I'm hanging out drunk with my cousin, feeling fly) he raps.

Fittingly, Bad Bunny released the music video, which lovingly portrays various aspects of Latin American life in New York, on July 4. In it, he also makes a mock radio address and, using a Donald Trump impression, voices what he wishes a president would say — "I want to say, this country is nothing without the immigrants" — painting the very opposite picture to what is happening in the U.S. now. It's an anthem for immigrants currently being targeted by ICE, but is also a song designed to be listened to outside and in large groups –– what more could you want for a song of this summer? As Bad Bunny told the New York Times: "You are in the street with that song." — Jesse Kinos-Goodin

Love Me Not, Ravyn Lenae

Sometimes a song of the summer arrives right in time for the warm weather, but sometimes, an anthem can creep up from months or even years ago. Ravyn Lanae's Love Me Not is one of those marathoners: released last May, it gained momentum near the end of 2024 and is now peaking over a year later. Much of this success, which culminated in Lenae's first appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 chart this April, comes from TikTok, where the song has soundtracked almost half-a-million videos. But beyond the screen, Love Me Not perfectly embodies the feverish and fickle romances that can arise in the most heated months, capturing dizzying feelings of desire and heartbreak in equal measure. — Melody Lau 

Nokia, Drake

Who is calling Drake's phone? On Nokia, it's the most pertinent question, which also serves as one of the hookiest parts of the infectious summer sizzler. Coming off his failed feud with Kendrick Lamar, Drake needed a song to show the world he had licked his wounds and was still capable of taking over the charts. He needed a hit, and Nokia proved he could still churn one out: the bass-bumping song took over TikTok and reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. By combining the delightfully nostalgic sample of a Nokia ringtone with quintessentially Canadian lyrics (the DVP and Wayne Gretzky are each mentioned), he concocted a swaggering, danceable bop that sounds like Nice For What meets Feel No Ways meets Rich Baby Daddy. As Drake ponders whether Stacy, Becky, Ellie, Keisha, Ashley, Dani or PartyNextDoor is giving him a ring, it ultimately doesn't matter: regardless of who's dialling, he's inviting anyone and everyone to pull up to the function and get down on the dance floor. — Natalie Harmsen

Illegal, PinkPantheress

If you've been scrolling through TikTok lately, chances are you've come across people shaking hands to U.K. producer PinkPantheress's latest track, Illegal. "My name is Pink and I'm really glad to meet you/ you're recommended to me by some people/ hey, ooh, is this illegal?" she sings off the top, her high-pitched, computerized vocals gliding over a repeating Underworld synth sample. It's a danceable, garage-y ode to weed ("I think I smoked enough loud to reach the both of us") that sees the drums crash in at the 14-second mark. From there, the beat continues to gallop, as PinkPantheress sings over a bass-heavy loop that is so deliciously sticky, it would be saccharine if not for her instinct to keep the track short and tight at two-and-a-half minutes. Illegal is a super-charged shot of Red Bull, designed to get your heart pumping. It's playful and lively, and also proof that PinkPantheress is incapable of tempering her charm on any song. — NH

Shake It to the Max (Fly), Moliy feat. Silent Addy, Shenseea and Skillibeng

Moliy's original version of Shake It to the Max inspired a dance challenge and hundreds of thousands of TikTok videos before it was even released in December 2024. By the time the remix featuring new school dancehall stars Shenseea and Skillibeng came out in February, the original already had immense momentum —  but their new verses added just the exact amount of grit and cockiness (two things my fellow Jamaicans possess in abundance) that the song needed to explode. The Ghanaian singer merged sounds from across the diaspora for her international hit, from West Africa to the Caribbean, and the result is a firecracker that's been steadily climbing the Billboard Hot 100. Sean Paul and Major Lazer have since released their own remixes, making it clear everyone wants a taste of Moliy, but as she cheekily puts in the pre-chorus: "Baby, you can't handle all the sauce." — Kelsey Adams

The party starters

Whether on a dance floor or at a late-night house party, these songs keep the energy high. 

Oh Lala, Justine Skye and Kaytranada 

A summer playlist isn't complete without a Kaytranada song. And there are a few options to choose from this year: his long-anticipated collaboration with British trio Flo; his high-profile remixes of songs by Mariah Carey and JT; and our pick, Oh Lala, featuring Justine Skye. Skye's R&B vocals and Kaytranada's signature dance production are a match made in heaven here: her slinky delivery (let her repeated refrain of "If you bring that ooh, I'll la-la-la-la" sink in like an intoxicating cocktail) is punctuated by his pulsating beats. It even builds to a thrilling bridge where Skye speeds her cadence up into a chant ("Tell him, charge that card, Imma beat the case!") that we can't wait to shout along on a sweaty dance floor. — ML 

Last Girls at the Party, the Beaches

Immediately after taking home the Juno for best group of the year in March, the Beaches released Last Girls at the Party and cemented their run for song of the summer. (It's always best to allow at least one season for a song to percolate.) The single, with production and writing from Australian artist G Flip, is a scream-along fun time that endlessly repeats the title — which is, to be clear, not a complaint. Blistering guitars and drums keep your feet moving toward a revved-up group countdown to sunrise, after which you'll be hitting replay to relive those two-and-a-half minutes immediately. — Holly Gordon

The Days, Chrystal (Notion remix)

If you like your party songs with a side of nostalgia, The Days will hit the spot. Before Bristol, U.K., producer Notion put his bassline spin on it, Chrystal's original was a peppy house track. Like many great producers, Notion has roots as a DJ, meaning he knows the moments when a crowd is looking for release, and his version builds and builds up to a scintillatingly satisfying drop. The Days harkens back to a simpler time in life, where hot days melt into sweaty nights and the buzz of possibility itches at your fingertips, with the feeling that anything could become your next great adventure. — KA

Remember, Bambii feat. Ravyn Lenae and Scrufizzer

Bambii's new EP, Infinity Club II, is full of summertime heaters but Remember featuring Ravyn Lenae (who also appears further up this list) and Scrufizzer is the perfect song to dance to while commiserating about your seasonal situationship. "I don't want to play your game/ no, it always ends the same," Lenae sings plaintively on the chorus. Scrufizzer's dancehall-inflected verses add a sharp juxtaposition to Lenae's serene R&B vocals, and Bambii's production work is as tight as ever, flitting between multiple BPMs without getting lost in the chaos. — KA

The understated bangers

Left-field picks that still pack an emotional punch. 

Pool Party, Penny & the Pits

It is impossible to hit play on Pool Party and not immediately feel like you're having a swimmably good time. These surf-rock riffs come courtesy of Penny & the Pits, the new offshoot from Penelope Stevens, one-third of New Brunswick avant-rock trio Motherhood. "Pool Party is a surf song about a very hot and exclusive g*rl gang that also kidnaps evil men and feeds them to a sentient underwater machine (in their spare time)," reads the song's description, and there's nothing we love better than a single with fun, shiny wrapping around a delightfully dark centre. Hit up Stevens's debut album, Liquid Compactor, for a tracklist of songs vibrating with similar energy. — HG

What Was That, Lorde

The lead single from Lorde's fourth album, Virgin, arrived like a hurricane. During a listening party in New York City, she premiered the song to a fervent mass of fans who danced in Washington Square Park to celebrate her comeback, signalling that one of pop music's most interesting stars had returned to the genre in full force following the quieter, folkier turn of Solar Power.

On the surface, the shimmering synths and mechanical drums make What Was That feel like an upbeat, dizzy dream in the vein of Melodrama. The chorus is a sparkling, euphoric retelling of a movie-made romance before things soured: "MDMA in the back garden, blow our pupils up/ we kissed for hours straight, well, baby, what was that?" she sings. However, the rest of the lyrics detail Lorde's struggles with both the breakup and her body image. She sings evocatively, reminding listeners that although she's a Grammy-winning star, she's also been through fame's ringer ("I wear smoke like a wedding veil/ make a meal I won't eat"). It's that candour that makes What Was That the perfect anthem for all those who bear the burden of summertime sadness. — NH

Love Me Alive, the Knocks and Dragonette

If your summer plans include escaping to an alternate reality, jump timelines with the latest collab from New York City's the Knocks (Ben "B-Roc" Ruttner and James "JPatt" Patterson) and Toronto's Dragonette (Martina Sorbara). Love Me Alive, the hottest track off the trio's new project, Revelation, dropped just as the summer hit and served up what we were looking for: a poppy summer cocktail. The track is bouncy and nostalgic, leaning heavily into retrowave '80s sounds and lo-fi, high-glam visuals that feature American drag queen Aquaria. Dragonette's bright, soulful vocals set against an underlying pulse and heavy synths will not only entice you to dance, but feel a thing or two. Believe me, they don't miss with this one. — Ashley Catania

All I Ever Asked, Rachel Chinouriri

Rachel Chinouriri's 2022 track All I Ever Asked saw a resurgence after she opened for Sabrina Carpenter, during the U.K. and Europe leg of the American pop star's tour earlier this year. Chinouriri's song paints evocative images, zeroing in on the immensity of youthful heartbreak: "Just a little more time, was it really that hard to do?/ It was all I ever asked of you … nothing compares to the trouble that I've been through." In the music video, the rising British indie-pop artist frolics around scenic vistas and palm-lined streets as she tries to make the best of a bad situation. Summer often feels like a time of year to be happy 24/7, but heartache and yearning don't care what season it is — so let Chinouriri's delicate voice be a soothing balm. — KA