The 25 Best Songs of Summer 2012

The conceit of The Summer Song has changed drastically in the past decade. It used to be fairly easy to determine which record was the season's most significant: whichever song got the most airplay. Now, with music being consumed in so many different ways, impressions are scattered, and our playlists are better off because of it.

This summer, there were good tunes everywhere you turned. After steadily raising his profile, 2 Chainz became a full-blown mainstream star. Kanye West got back to making solo songs, and still managed to kill a few guest verses in the process. Drake and Rick Ross maintained their status as hip-hop elite, and guys like Future and Juicy J experienced previously unexpected breakthroughs.

Rap certainly dominated the past few months, but there was great music from other genres, too. Three sisters from L.A. teamed up to form the most exciting indie band of the year, and no matter who you are, no one could escape that Carly Rae Jepsen song.

It's only mid-August, but for all intents and purposes, summer is over. You're already making Labor Day plans and there's a slim chance that any songs will come out in the next few weeks that trump the significance of the pack we've selected as this summer's greatest. The days are about to get shorter, and yes, it's depressing, but there isn't a better way to remember the past three months than with music. These are The 25 Best Songs of Summer 2012.

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Album: O.N.I.F.C.
Label: Rostrum/Atlantic
Producer: Benny Blanco/Stargate

On the first single from his upcoming sophomore (major label) album, we find Wiz following a familiar but successful formula. He starts the song with a hard, flashy verse and then transitions into singing mode for the hook. The record doesn't hide its pop ambitions, which is fine, considering Wiz has established himself as a borderline master of crossover appeal. The approach worked this time, too. "Work Hard, Play Hard" is certified gold and a remix with Lil Wayne and Drake is on the way.

Album: Curiosity
Label: 604/Schoolboy/Interscope
Producer: Josh Ramsay

This was the song that you could not escape this summer. Statistically, it's the most successful, with nine consecutive weeks spent at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The fanfare is more than justified. Jepsen's cute storytelling and innocent vocals are difficult to dislike (even after the 678th listen), and from a production standpoint, those strings are absolutely infectious. Thanks to both, 20 years from now, when we think of summer 2012, "Call Me Maybe" will still come to mind.

Album: Love IV MMXII
Label: Def Jam
Producer: The-Dream

Production and writing credits on recent hits like Rihanna's "Birthday Cake" and Beyoncé's "Run the World (Girls)" prove Terius Nash will always be player behind-the-scenes, but it was good to see him return with his first viable solo single in years this summer. Or, more accurately, it was G.O.O.D. Dream recruited Pusha T for a slick verse on this ode to his "favorite baby" and, per usual, he nailed it.

Album: The Yellow Album
Label: Other People's Money
Producer: DJ Dahi

Dom Kennedy's laid back, West Coast style has always felt most appropriate during the summer months, and "My Type of Party" is the latest example of that. Boasting that he hangs out with Dodger players and gangsters alike, Dom uses an insanely repetitive flow over a trippy, synth-heavy beat that is guaranteed to earworm the fuck out of you after just a listen or two.

Album: Based on a T.R.U Story
Label: Def Jam
Producer: Sonny Digital

We asked 2 Chainz about the mixed reaction to "Birthday Song." His response: "I know it’s getting 42 stations added this week, so I guess it's doing pretty good." That about sums up the conversation surrounding this record. A lot of people seem to be underwhelmed by the Yeezy collaboration, but trust, it will be a hit. 2 Chainz simply has too much momentum right now, and beyond hype, the song is better than it's getting credit for. The same critics tweeting about how much "Birthday Song" sucks are probably struggling to get it out of their heads at the same time. It's that catchy. If you're not incessantly yelling, "What I'm seeing from the back I can't front on!" from your cubical within a month, check back with us.

Album: N/A
Label: Bases Loaded/Epic Records
Producer: DJ Spinz

As soon as this beat begins tip-toeing through the speakers, that's your cue to go wild. Cash Out's sing-songy verses fit beautifully over the simple production beneath them. He may be headed towards one-hit wonder territory, but because of him, we'll never look at the names "Nina" and "Keisha" the same again. For that, we're thankful.

Album: Kiss The Ring
Label: We The Best/Cash Money/Universal Republic
Producer: Hit-Boy

Like he did on "Go Hard," DJ Khaled brought Kanye West and Rick Ross together again for this single from his next album, and the results were fantastic. 'Ye offers riddles like, "We believe in God, but do God believe in us?" Rozay provides his signature bravado in return. These two already have a great track record with collabs, and that won't be changing on Kiss The Ring.

Album: Channel Orange
Label: Def Jam
Producer: Frank Ocean

In the ADHD-era, it's difficult to hold to a listener's attention for the entirety of a 10 minute song, but Frank Ocean succeeds in doing so on Channel Orange single, "Pyramids." His slow jam about a stripper named Cleopatra suddenly switches beats halfway through the song, and the seamless transition impresses each time. But beyond production, Ocean's intensely metaphorical lyrics establish him as one of the finest songwriters of our time. And no, it's not too early to declare him as such.

Album: Life Is Good
Label: Def Jam
Producer: No I.D.

Nas' Life Is Good single is an ode to parenthood and the challenges of raising his daughter, Destiny Jones. No I.D.'s instrumental hits you in the gut with emotion as soon as it kicks in. Nas comes off vulnerable as ever, addressing everything from his daughter posting inappropriate pictures online to mistakes he made as a father. There's an undeniably somber mood attached to the record, but in the end, Nasir's earnest transparency makes it more of celebration than anything.

Album: Pluto
Label: Epic Records
Producer: Sonny Digital

The original "Same Damn Time" was already a triumph in its own right, but when Diddy and Ludacris hopped on Future's anthem for a remix, it was taken to another level. An absurd film pitch for Spike Lee and claims of being on two planets at once still shine, but really, it's Diddy's $550 million revenue report and "y'all niggas can't multitask!" take-down that steals the show here.

Album: good kid, m.A.A.d city
Label: Top Dawg Entertainment
Producer: T-Minus

On the overwhelmingly dark second single from Kendrick Lamar's forthcoming good kid, m.A.A.d. city, the Compton MC speaks on the poisonous properties of alcohol and the negative effects it has on people. Weaving words like only he can, "Swimming Pools (Drank)" is Kendrick at his best. Consider Lady Gaga tweeting lyrics from the song the final stamp of approval.

Album: N/A
Label: Interscope/G.O.O.D. Music
Producer: Young Chop

After buzzing for months, "I Don't Like" made Chief Keef a certified star when it surfaced on YouTube back in March. Less than two months later, the biggest hip-hop artist on the planet reached out to the 17-year-old Chicago rapper for a remix. With numerous delays, there was a certain hysteria surrounding its release, and because of the insurmountable hype, the remix was met with mixed reactions when it finally did come out. However, removed from that context, the record has held up tremendously. Even if Chief Keef claims that the remix "ain't do shit" for his career, the reaction it elicits in clubs, today and all summer long, says otherwise.

Album: Dreamchasers 2
Label: Maybach Music Group/Warner Bros.
Producer: KeY Wayne

Call it blasphemous (and believe, some have), but Meek Mill's "Amen" takes us to church every time it comes on, in the best way possible. KeY Wayne takes traditional Sunday service organ chords and flips them into a contemporary rap banger. With the backdrop set, Meek lays on so many witty religious puns that it's impossible not to crack a grin. Drake takes aim at the complacent Twitter generation ("Worried 'bout your followers/You need to get your dollars up") to balance out the subject matter. We're left with one of the most addictive songs of either's career.

Album: Forever
Label: National Anthem
Producer: Haim & Ludwig Goransson

The video's current top YouTube comment describes "Forever" as "Wilson Philips meets early Michael Jackson and a bit of Pat Benatar." Those are some lofty comparisons for a band that doesn't even have a full-length album out, and the influence is more than apparent, but their style doesn't come off as anything close to a bite. Instead, the three sisters from L.A. keep their sound fresh with a welcome infusion of youthful transgressions in the lyrics and a vocal approach all their own.

Album: Cruel Summer
Label: G.O.O.D. Music
Producer: Tapez and Boogz

'Ye and Pusha sound downright mean on this single likely slated for the Cruel Summer compilation. From Pusha's clever opening line ("I believe there's a God above me/I'm just the God of everything else") to Kanye spazzing with the help of arena-filling stomps on his closing verse, the track never lets up on its aggressiveness. The "Yeezys jumped over the Jumpman" line provoked a level of discussion rarely seen in today's disposable music climate. For that reason alone, "New God Flow" is one of the best and most relevant records of the season.

Album: Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded
Label: Young Money/Cash Money/Universal Republic
Producer: Kenoe

For all of its hit singles and impressive sales, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded will go down in history as a confused and extremely divisive effort, mostly because of its overbearing pop ambitions. The notion that Nicki Minaj "sold out" even caused her to cancel a headlining Summer Jam performance in June, and while you can argue that more artists should take the type of risks Nicki does on her sophomore album, purists aren't hearing that.

BUT, there is one song that no one could deny, and that's "Beez In The Trap." Nicki delivers the catchiest chorus on her LP, 2 Chainz knocks it out of the park with a scene-stealing guest verse, and Nicki makes listing off geographic locations more fun than it ever was in school. Wherever you stand on Nicki Minaj's recent career decisions, this is the record that everyone can agree on. Unity!

Album: N/A
Label: Taylor Gang
Producer: Mike Will

Nothing goes together better than Juicy J and strip clubs, and "Bands A Make Her Dance" was this summer's pole anthem. Mike Will crafted the backdrop, and Juicy J walks a polished line between his trap rap roots and mainstream pop appeal thanks to a wildly explicit, but insanely memorable, chorus. Hip-hop has more than enough odes to making it rain and sexing ratchet women, but Juicy J showed us that it won't feel like a tired subject if the song hits hard enough.

Album: Pluto
Label: A1/Free Bandz/Epic
Producer: Mike Will

Future might be typecast as a rapper, but he went to great lengths to let the world know about the range of his (Auto-Tuned) vocals on Pluto's sleeper hit. If it wasn't for Mike Will's signature thump, this record really wouldn't sound out of place on Lite FM radio. He sings his heart out in search of the perfect girl ("I'm looking for her") and in turn, it's might be the most surprisingly endearing song of the summer.

Album: God Forgives, I Don't
Label: Maybach Music Group/Warner Bros.
Producer: G5

It's funny to think that this song wasn't well-received the day it was released. People said it was too similar to the "B.M.F." formula that Ross has grown so comfortable with, but come on, what else do we really want from Rozay besides chant-based hooks and a polished, arrogant flow over aggressive beats? Ross raps about his rise from poverty to wealth with such valor, that you can't help but be compelled. On this record, "these niggas won't hold me back" is a mission statement, not an empty boast, and it excels because of that.

Album: LongLiveA$AP
Label: Polo Grounds Music/RCA Records
Producer: Hit-Boy

Before "Goldie" hit, A$AP Rocky had already established himself as rap's breakout star of the moment. What he needed was a certified hit that would mark him as a serious threat to hip-hop's status quo, and prove him as more than another fly-by-night Internet phenomenon. Hit-Boy gave Rocky a hard-hitting, uptempo beat to do just that, and the result was an excellent celebration of newfound fame and financial stability, with one-liners like, "I'm early to the party but my 'Rarri is the latest." The high fashion, Paris-set video was the icing on the cake, making it more than clear that Rocky and the A$AP Mob are here to stay.

Album: N/A
Label: G.O.O.D. Music/Def Jam
Producer: Hit-Boy

In three minutes, Kanye ethers Kris Humphries, pisses off PETA, and proclaims his love for Kim Kardashian (whom he's now dating) with impeccable style. In between designing full women's clothing collections, releasing the most-hyped sneaker of the decade, and directing films, sometimes we need a reminder that Yeezy is a rapper—more pointedly, one of the best in music today. "Cold," or "Theraflu" as it was originally titled, got the job done.

Album: Excuse My French
Label: Bad Boy/Interscope
Producer: Anthony Lee

French Montana recruited an all-star ensemble of rap buddies for the first single from Excuse My French, and it paid off. Anchored by a masterfully chopped 2 Live Crew sample, the track finds each MC bragging about their money and exploits with women, but with such excitement that there's never a dull moment. Lil Wayne's jarring finale verse is oft-criticized (even by us), but really, it's the perfect cap on a song that literally feels like it's exploding with energy. "Pop That" is the audible version of a long summer day at the amusement park. It's a little tiring by the end, but we'll damned if the rides weren't fun.

Album: Based on a T.R.U. Story
Label: Def Jam
Producer: Mike Will

"No Lie" is currently the No. 1 rap song in the country, and rightfully so. With Mike Will continuing his run as producer of the moment, 2 Chainz and Drake trade vicious verses—some of their best this year—and it's hard to say who came off nicer. 2 Chainz has hilarious imagery that finds him feeding "your girl" to his mattress and he also manages to turn fashion house YSL into an acronym for "Yall niggas Sure is Looking." Meanwhile, Drake elaborates on dating famous women who show up at his house with takeout food and why he only needs to have sex with them once. The entire ordeal makes for one of the best listens of the summer.

Album: Dreamchasers 2
Label: Maybach Music Group/Warner Bros.
Producer: Jahlil Beats

Big Sean and Meek Mill have both had massive solo singles before ("Dance (A$$)," "Ima Boss," respectively), but this is the year that they both truly stepped out from under the shadow of their very famous mentors. For Big Sean, that's meant undeniably great guest verses for artists like Lil Wayne, Wale, and Justin Bieber. For Meek Mill, that's meant spitting neck-and-neck with Rick Ross on MMG songs and handling the lead-up to his Dreams & Nightmares album with more hit singles of his own. It's only right, then, that the two would come together and turn out one of the hottest songs of the summer.

Jahlil's beat sounds like music that gets played at the entrance gates to hell, and fittingly, Meek and Sean rap like it's their last chance to make an impression before Judgment Day. With each starting a new verse every few bars, their back-and-forth is loaded with a clear desire to outshine the other, but also, chemistry. The high point is when Meek says, "Shorty give me all that brain and still ain't never learned shit" and Sean swoops in to add insult to injury: "Oh that's your girl? Damn nigga you ain't learn shit." The song is packed with brilliant exchanges of that sort, and neither MC lets up for its duration, easily making "Burn" a landmark moment in both of their discographies.

Album: Cruel Summer
Label: G.O.O.D. Music/Def Jam
Producer: Lifted, Kanye West, Mike Dean, Mike Will, Hudson Mohawke

The first taste of Cruel Summer was everything we expected it would be, and more. In an era where big name collaborations are impossibly hyped on social media and unfairly criticized for not living up to unrealistic standards, "Mercy" suffers none of that disappointment. Big Sean leads off with arguably the wittiest, most entertaining verse of the summer and introduces us to the words "assquake," "asstate," and "asstray." Pusha T fills his role as the the team's most consistent scorer with a verse that stands out, if only because it's so technically sound.

Kanye West shows up for what feels like a cameo, and it couldn't have been executed better. The beat switches to Scarface-esque synths, and with it, so does the record's general pace. Yeezy slows things down for a moment to talk about needing $50 million from his record label and how he gets "the most press" despite not doing any. It's all an elaborate build-up for G.O.O.D. affiliate, 2 Chainz, who closes the song in epic fashion, and shows why he can charge $100K for a guest verse.

In the end, the record feels like a legitimate hip-hop event. With (mostly) friendly competition from YMCMB and MMG looming, the implications of the G.O.O.D. Music crew coming together for the undisputed song of the summer are so much greater than simply getting a hot track some airplay. Kanye and his team set themselves apart from the pack with "Mercy." They succeeded in proving to often skeptical music consumers that sometimes hype is a good thing, and when it comes to posse cuts, we'll remember this one forever.