Diving Deep Into the triple j Hottest 100 of the Decade

Back in the early days of triple j’s Hottest 100, all of their countdowns involved looking back into the musical past and determining which songs had helped soundtrack the lives of listeners.

“Back at that time people were asking questions like ‘what’s the greatest rock song of all time?’ but I thought it would be more interesting to find out what people’s favourite songs of all time were,” recalled Hottest 100 ‘founder’ Lawrie Zion many years later.

“The idea was that we’d ask people to send in their top ten songs of all time, and we had to sit and count all the votes!”

Holding their first countdown back in March of 1989, triple j debuted their “Hot 100” – as it was then called – to much acclaim, with Sydney radio listeners voting for Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” as their most beloved song. While a similar result followed in 1990, the station’s third countdown saw Nirvana storm the poll with the recently-released “Smells Like Teen Spirit”.

Undoubtedly, the writing was on the wall that there really wouldn’t be a whole lot of difference if this approach was kept up, so after a year off, the triple j Hottest 100 returned in early 1994, counting down listeners’ favourite songs from the previous calendar year.

Since then, these annual polls have become a ubiquitous part of Australian music and are renowned as being the largest publicly-voted music poll in the world. In fact, the 2019 countdown attracted a record-breaking 3,211,596 million votes – a far cry from the 50,000 votes in the 1993 poll.

However, very rarely has the station taken a look back at the past. While a pair of “All Time” countdowns took place in 1998 and 2009 (with Nirvana taking out number one each time), triple j has occasionally held slightly different polls as well. 2011 saw Powderfinger’s Odyssey Number Five voted as the Hottest Australian Album of All Time, while 2013 saw Oasis’ “Wonderwall” deemed the top track of the last 20 years.

Since then though, questions had been raised about whether another retrospective poll could even be held in this day and age. After all, with the history of the Hottest 100 spanning over 30 years, fans of triple j’s older sound might worry that the station’s current fanbase would flood the poll with contemporary songs if it were held on its traditional home, while younger fans may worry their taste won’t be accurately represented if the countdown was held on sister station Double J.

Thankfully, this stalemate was somewhat overcome earlier this year when triple j revealed that a secondary countdown would be taking place in March with only songs released throughout the 2010s eligible for voting.

With the first-ever Hottest 100 of the Decade countdown recently taking place on March 14th, we’re taking a deeper look at the poll that stops the world now that the dust has settled.

The Also-Rans

Since the 2007 countdown, triple j have been providing its listeners with a little bit of info about the songs that didn’t quite make the cut. While 2007 saw the revelation that Kate Nash’s “Foundations” stalled at #101, the following year saw the entire list of songs between #101 and #200 being unveiled.

By 2012, the appetite for the “second 100” had grown to the point where the station held an extra countdown, revealing the songs that didn’t make it in. Though the 2013 retrospective poll serves as the only absence of this secondary countdown since then, the Hottest 100 of the Decade provided listeners with the chance to hear the additional century prior to the regular countdown for the first time.

Taking place between March 10th and March 13th in small segments, the Hottest 200 gave music fans a chance to preview the direction that the poll just might take. Kicking things off with The Naked And Famous’ “Young Blood”, the full list was slowly played across four days, eventually revealing that Methyl Ethel’s “Ubu” (#4 in 2017) was the unlucky track to have just missed out on some retrospective accolades.

The Big Winner

It’s no secret by now that the mighty Kevin Parker took out the Hottest 100 of the Decade with a little song called “The Less I Know the Better”. The fourth and final single from 2015’s Currents, the track was a modest mainstream success (hitting #66 on the ARIA charts), but managed hit #4 on the Hottest 100 countdown for that year.

Fast forward a few years, and triple j listeners ensured that their votes – 1.8 million of them – were instrumental in ensuring the success of Parker’s classic song.

Speaking to triple j hosts Sally & Erica after the big announcement, Parker – who has headlined the likes of Coachella, performed on Saturday Night Live, and worked with Kanye West, Alex Turner, and countless others – called it the “most important thing to happen” to Tame Impala.

“I can’t describe how much of a big thing that is to me,” he explained. “More than anything else that other people talk about being a huge deal. You know, like headlining festivals or Grammys or whatever. Like the Hottest 100 is the closest thing to my heart of all that kind of stuff. So that’s unbelievable.”

The First-Timers

An interesting aspect of these retrospective countdowns is the amount of songs that manage to make their first-ever appearance. In the 2013 “20 Years” poll, a total of five overlooked songs finally received the far-too late honour. While Jeff Buckley’s cover of “Halluleujah”, Bloc Party’s “Banquet”, and Daft Punk’s “Around The World” had previously snuck into the 2009 All Time poll, The Temper Trap’s “Sweet Disposition” had just missed out on the 2008 countdown. Notably though, The Kooks’ “Naïve” had never even flirted with the Hottest 100, meaning their placing at #87 was well overdue.

Fast forward to March of 2020, and history again repeated itself. This time around, 17 songs that never made a Hottest 100 countdown managed to pop into the 200 list, and nine in the top 100. While two of these tracks had previously made the #101-200 positions, 15 finally received the recognition that was deserving of them.

Notably, Middle Kids’ “Edge of Town” hit #195 after Paul Dempsey’s cover made it into 2017, while the late Juice WRLD managed to hit #174 with his breakthrough track “Lucid Dreams”. Fans of Robyn felt vindicated when “Dancing On My Own” reached #74, while the controversial Azealia Banks was recognised for her 2011 classic “212”, which hit #68. Meanwhile, J. Cole appeared twice, with both “No Role Modelz” and “Wet Dreemz” making the full list, despite neither song appearing beforehand.

However, the biggest achievement for a track that had never made it into a countdown undoubtedly belonged to RÜFÜS DU SOL, whose 2015 epic “Innerbloom” made it in at #5, having stalled at #103 in the year of its release. In fact, with its jump of 98 positions, “Innerbloom” also achieved the biggest change in positions for a song…

The Changes

While RÜFÜS DU SOL easily impressed everyone with a massive leap of 98 positions to its newest home at #5, they weren’t the only ones to have some big improvements. All told, 21 songs managed to better their original positions, including Jay-Z & Kanye West’s “Niggas In Paris”, which hit #24 at charting at #98 in 2011, and Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own”, which originally placed at #142 in 2010, and managed to reach #74 in the Hottest 100 of the Decade.

However, it wasn’t all major jumps though. In fact, Arctic Monkeys’ “Do I Wanna Know?” only climbed one position to hit #3 this time, while Kanye West’s “Power” looks set to always remain out of the top 100, hitting #102 in favour of its original #105 placing. Kanye also managed to hold his own this time, with his lengthy 2010 anthem “Runaway” remaining at #14, nine years after it first charted at the same spot.

On the other end of things though, a number of songs also slipped from their original positions. All told, a massive 163 songs fell from their initial glory, with Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” retaining the most staying power, hitting #2 after an initial overall victory back in 2011.

When it comes to the overall biggest negative change, it’s a tie, with both Bluejuice’s “Act Yr Age” and Tones And I’s “Dance Monkey” falling 178 positions from a #20 placing in 2011, and a #4 placing in 2019, respectively.

The Number Ones

While plenty of attention was placed upon which song might just make it to #1, the focus quickly fell away from the songs that had previously topped a Hottest 100 in the past. Once the positions were revealed and the dust was settled, it was revealed that every single song to have topped the countdown throughout the period of eligibility had managed to chart in this year’s Hottest 100 of the Decade.

Though Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” stood its ground pretty well to hit #2 this year, it seems Billie Eilish’s “bad guy” was the worst performer, finding its way all the way down to #71.

Interestingly, almost every single track to have made a top five across the last decade also found its way into the countdown in some way or another. The only song not to have charted anywhere was Amy Shark’s “I Said Hi”, which placed at #5 in 2018, but didn’t make either the Hottest 100 or 200.

The Popular Ones

In just about every countdown, it’s likely you’ll come across one or two artists who completely dominate thanks to a litany of tracks taken from a popular record. In fact, while Wolfmother appeared with six tracks in the 2005 countdown, artists like Dave Grohl and Billie Eilish have managed to come close to this record, appearing with five songs each across the 2002 and 2019 polls, respectively.

The overall record for any countdown though is nine, when The Cure managed to achieve the still-unmatched feat back in the 1991 All Time countdown. On the flipside though, the 1997 Hottest 100 managed to see no single artist dominate, with no one achieving more than two tracks in the entire list.

For the Hottest 100 of the Decade though, it’s impossible to sum it up without mentioning Flume, who was involved in a massive seven tracks across the poll. Between four tracks as a main artist, two as a remixer, and one alongside Chet Faker/Nick Murphy, there’s no denying the popularity of the former Hottest 100 winner. What’s more, if we expand this out to the full list of 200 songs, Flume manages to appear a mammoth nine times.

It wasn’t just Flume with a strong showing though, with Kanye West appearing five times in the top 100 (and twice more in the full 200), Kendrick Lamar appearing four times (three more in the second hundred), and Tame Impala managing four tracks overall.

The Tributes

Ever since the very first Hot 100 back in 1989, cover songs have been a defining feature of the poll. In fact, the 2019 countdown featured a huge amount of discussion about whether Denzel Curry’s Like a Version performance of Rage Against the Machine’s “Bulls on Parade” could in fact become the first-ever cover to top the chart.

In the end, the song reached #5, the highest-ever spot for a cover song in an annual countdown so far, and one reached by the likes of Björk, Spiderbait, and Boy & Bear over the years.

Amazingly though, throughout the entire history of the Hottest 100, only 2008 has never featured a cover song, with The Kook’s rendition of MGMT’s “Kids” hitting #161, and providing us with the only lack of musical tributes in a poll to date. While the 2000 and 2007 countdowns have only featured one cover version, a lack of covers is indeed a rarity, and the most recent Hottest 100 of the Decade is no exception.

While DMA’S version of Cher’s “Believe” managed to hit #41, it was the sole musical tribute to hit the 100. Of course, a further five covers – including songs by Lime Cordiale, Ocean Alley, Thundamentals, Denzel Curry, and Boy & Bear – did make it into the second hundred, though Boy & Bear were the only artists not to record their song in the triple j studios.

Seeing Double

The Hottest 100 of the Decade featured a surprisingly high amount of artists going back to back throughout the full list. While BENEE, Frank Ocean, and Ruel doubled up in the Hottest 200, Tame Impala and Childish Gambino managed to do the same in the top 100. However, this poll was notable for a couple of two-timing efforts of a different kind.

In the first quarter of the Hottest 100, listeners undoubtedly found themselves wondering which version of Matt Corby’s “Brother” made it in at #177. After the initial intro sample, it was revealed that it was Thundamentals’ Like a Version cover that placed first, with Corby’s original hitting #10 much later.

This isn’t the first time that two versions of the same song have charted though, with Jebediah and Something for Kate charting with “Harpoon” in 1998, Franz Ferdinand and Scissor Sisters bringing “Take Me Out” to the 2004 poll, and Daft Punk and San Cisco doing their best to “Get Lucky” in 2013.

However, the Hottest 100 of the Decade did feature a record-setting double-up, with it being the first time an original and a remix of the same song have charted in the same poll. While RÜFÜS DU SOL’s “Innerbloom” debuted with a #5 placing, the What So Not remix (which had hit #30 in 2016) managed to sneak in at #64, creating a bit of history in the process.

Of course, remixes of songs have appeared in different countdowns (including Coldplay’s “Clocks” in 2002 and the Röyksopp remix charting the following year), though this is the first time that a remix can be thanked for two appearances of the same song in the same poll.

The Nostalgia

When it comes to a countdown like the Hottest 100 of the Decade, it’s reasonable to assume there will be a recency bias. After all, music you’ve heard in the last year would be fresher in your mind than music you heard a decade ago. However, the stats for this year’s poll tell us that fans prefer to take a look back when it comes to their favourite music.

In the lead-up to the countdown, triple j revealed that 2012 was the year that was the best-represented, though they didn’t let slip just how many tracks from this year made it in. In the end, a total of 19 songs from 2012 charted in the top 100, while this year continued its dominance in the Hottest 200, where a further 34 songs appeared.

Interestingly though, when triple j held their 20 Years of the Hottest 100 poll (which allowed votes for songs released between 1993 and 2012), they noted that 1997 was the year with the most representation. While 1997 comes 25% of the way through the period of eligibility, 2012 comes 20% of the way through the most recent period of eligibility, meaning that voters appear to cast their minds back a lot further than one might expect, and let nostalgia heavily influence their choices.

The Sneaky Entrant

While listeners were indeed casting their minds back a bit, it seems that one song exploited a loophole to actually appear in the countdown. According to triple j’s voting guidelines, “an eligible song must have had its initial release (online or on-air) between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2019”, which is a fair rule to have. After all, it couldn’t be the Hottest 100 of the Decade if we were still jamming out to Mumford & Sons’ “Little Lion Man” from 2009, right?

Well, at #107, listeners managed to vote in “Dance the Way I Feel” by England’s tragically-disbanded Ou Est Le Swimming Pool. Appearing at #3 in the 2010 Hottest 100, it was clearly a song that resonated with listeners, but one that seemed to bend the rules a little bit.

Initially released in September of 2009, the track managed to get a sneaky preview on Richard Kingsmill’s “2009” program at the time. Just a few months later in November, the song was reworked and reissued as a single once again, with this version going on to be released on the band’s debut album in 2010.

Though the band’s record did in fact arrive in 2010, the single itself was released in late 2009, meaning that “Dance the Way I Feel” was actually released two months prior to the eligibility guidelines for the Hottest 1oo. Of course, considering the emotional and nostalgic impact this song has, is anyone really going to care that much?

The Unexpected Return

One of the most silently controversial moments across the entire countdown came by way of Sticky Fingers, whose first appearance a #140 with “Caress Your Soul” on March 14th; 712 days after they were last played on the station.

While Sticky Fingers were a staple of triple for many years, the group had faced much controversy following frontman Dylan Frost’s appearance on Hack in 2018, where the singer had used the phrase “boys will be boys” during discussions of alleged sexism and racial abuse.

Though the station never made an official statement on the matter, Sticky Fingers remained absent from the triple j playlist since April of 2018, causing bassist Paddy Cornwall to attack the station’s apparent blacklist just last year.

By the end of the countdown, Sticky Fingers appeared a total of five times across the top 200, with their highest-ranking song – “Australia Street” – reaching #15.

triple j’s Hottest 100 of the Decade

200. ‘Young Blood’ – The Naked And Famous (#38 in 2010)
199. ‘Pittsburgh’ – The Amity Affliction (#22 in 2014)
198. ‘Act Yr Age’ – Bluejuice (#20 in 2011)
197. ‘Bloodbuzz Ohio’ – The National (#31 in 2010)
196. ‘What You Know’ – Two Door Cinema Club (Debut)
195. ‘Edge Of Town’ – Middle Kids (Debut)
194. ‘See You Again (feat. Kali Uchis)’ – Tyler, The Creator (Debut)
193. ‘Ho Hey’ – The Lumineers (#43 in 2012)
192. ‘Truth Hurts’ – Lizzo (Debut)
191. ‘The Hills’ – The Weeknd (#19 in 2015)

190. ‘Baby Come Back’ – Ocean Alley (#16 in 2018)
189. ‘Marinade’ – DOPE LEMON (#62 in 2016)
188. ‘Praise The Lord (Da Shine) (feat. Skepta)’ – A$AP Rocky (#13 in 2018)
187. ‘Genghis Khan’ – Miike Snow (#15 in 2016)
186. ‘Soaked’ – BENEE (#58 in 2018)
185. ‘Glitter’ – BENEE (#19 in 2019)
184. ‘Punching In A Dream’ – The Naked And Famous (#34 in 2010)
183. ‘goosebumps (feat. Kendrick Lamar)’ – Travis Scott (#188 in 2016)
182. ‘Dance Monkey’ – Tones And I (#4 in 2019)
181. ‘Papercuts (feat. Vera Blue)’ – Illy (#7 in 2016)

180. ‘Laps Around The Sun’ – Ziggy Alberts (#42 in 2018)
179. ‘Smiles Don’t Lie’ – Thundamentals (#32 in 2013)
178. ‘Spectrum (Say My Name) (Calvin Harris Remix)’ – Florence + The Machine (#32 in 2012)
177. ‘Brother’ – Thundamentals (#49 in 2012)
176. ‘Rapunzel’ – Drapht (#12 in 2010)
175. ‘Fred Astaire’ – San Cisco (#48 in 2012)
174. ‘Lucid Dreams’ – Juice WRLD (Debut)
173. ‘Up In The Clouds’ – Skegss (#11 in 2018)
172. ‘Feeding Line’ – Boy & Bear (#4 in 2011)
171. ‘Super Rich Kids (feat. Earl Sweatshirt)’ – Frank Ocean (#80 in 2012)

170. ‘Pyramids’ – Frank Ocean (Debut)
169. ‘Witchcraft’ – Pendulum (#48 in 2010)
168. ‘The Suburbs’ – Arcade Fire (#58 in 2010)
167. ‘Alive’ – Empire Of The Sun (#30 in 2013)
166. ‘Drink Too Much’ – G Flip (#6 in 2019)
165. ‘Feel The Way I Do’ – The Jungle Giants (#16 in 2017)
164. ‘Yonkers’ – Tyler, The Creator (#131 in 2011)
163. ‘Love$ick (feat. A$AP Rocky)’ – Mura Masa (#13 in 2016)
162. ‘True Lovers’ – Holy Holy (#40 in 2017)
161. ‘Sweet Nothing (feat. Florence Welch)’ – Calvin Harris (#11 in 2012)

160. ‘The Heart Is A Muscle’ – Gang Of Youths (#126 in 2017)
159. ‘Tennis Court’ – Lorde (#12 in 2013)
158. ‘Uptown Funk (feat. Bruno Mars)’ – Mark Ronson (#6 in 2014)
157. ‘The Wire’ – HAIM (#11 in 2013)
156. ‘Join The Club’ – Hockey Dad (#18 in 2018)
155. ‘Arabella’ – Arctic Monkeys (#18 in 2013)
154. ‘Spring Has Sprung’ – Skegss (#170 in 2016)
153. ‘Groceries’ – Mallrat (#7 in 2018)
152. ‘Rushing Back (feat. Vera Blue)’ – Flume (#2 in 2019)
151. ‘I Touch Myself’ – Lime Cordiale (#17 in 2019)

150. ‘Scary Monsters And Nice Sprites’ – Skrillex (#21 in 2011)
149. ‘Chameleon’ – Pnau (#11 in 2016)
148. ‘when the party’s over’ – Billie Eilish (#8 in 2018)
147. ‘Better In Blak’ – Thelma Plum (#9 in 2019)
146. ‘Lanterns’ – Birds Of Tokyo (#22 in 2013)
145. ‘Nights’ – Frank Ocean (Debut)
144. ‘Bulls On Parade’ – Denzel Curry (#5 in 2019)
143. ‘Born To Die’ – Lana Del Rey (#34 in 2012)
142. ‘My Number’ – Foals (#29 in 2013)
141. ‘Dang! (feat. Anderson .Paak)’ – Mac Miller (#46 in 2016)

140. ‘Caress Your Soul’ – Sticky Fingers (#61 in 2012)
139. ‘Scott Green’ – Dune Rats (#34 in 2016)
138. ‘Sally (feat. Mataya)’ – Thundamentals (#8 in 2017)
137. ‘Say It (feat. Tove Lo)’ – Flume (#8 in 2016)
136. ‘Lean On (feat. MØ & DJ Snake)’ – Major Lazer (#3 in 2015)
135. ‘Wet Dreemz’ – J. Cole (Debut)
134. ‘Same Love (feat. Mary Lambert)’ – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (#15 in 2012)
133. ‘SWEET’ – BROCKHAMPTON (#11 in 2017)
132. ‘Faded’ – Zhu (#11 in 2014)
131. ‘Fall At Your Feet’ – Boy & Bear (#5 in 2010)

130. ‘Ocean Drive’ – Duke Dumont (#13 in 2015)
129. ‘Robbery’ – Lime Cordiale (#7 in 2019)
128. ‘Money Trees (feat. Jay Rock)’ – Kendrick Lamar (Debut)
127. ‘Plans’ – Birds Of Tokyo (#4 in 2010)
126. ‘All Of The Lights’ – Kanye West (#138 in 2010)
125. ‘Can’t Hold Us (feat. Ray Dalton)’ – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (#181 in 2012)
124. ‘Fuckin’ Problems (feat. Drake, 2 Chainz & Kendrick Lamar)’ – A$AP Rocky (#79 in 2013)
123. ‘Summertime Sadness’ – Lana Del Rey (#86 in 2012)
122. ‘Magic Fountain’ – Art vs Science (#9 in 2010)
121. ‘Strong’ – London Grammar (#10 in 2013)

120. ‘Roll Up Your Sleeves’ – Meg Mac (#24 in 2014)
119. ‘She’s A Riot’ – The Jungle Giants (#83 in 2012)
118. ‘Free Time’ – Ruel (#49 in 2019)
117. ‘Face To Face’ – Ruel (#38 in 2019)
116. ‘She Only Loves Me When I’m There’ – Ball Park Music (#19 in 2014)
115. ‘On Melancholy Hill’ – Gorillaz (#42 in 2010)
114. ‘Young And Beautiful’ – Lana Del Rey (#7 in 2013)
113. ‘Rock It’ – Little Red (#2 in 2010)
112. ‘You Were Right’ – RÜFÜS DU SOL (#12 in 2015)
111. ‘Addicted’ – Bliss n Eso (#23 in 2010)

110. ‘Knees’ – Ocean Alley (#10 in 2018)
109. ‘Sweatpants’ – Childish Gambino (#60 in 2014)
108. ‘What Can I Do If The Fire Goes Out?’ – Gang Of Youths (#10 in 2017)
107. ‘Dance The Way I Feel’ – Ou Est Le Swimming Pool (#3 in 2010)
106. ‘Younger’ – Ruel (#87 in 2018)
105. ‘Take Me Over (feat. SAFIA)’ – Peking Duk (#5 in 2014)
104. ‘Cocoon’ – Catfish And The Bottlemen (#111 in 2014)
103. ‘Liquorlip Loaded Gun’ – Sticky Fingers (#94 in 2014)
102. ‘Power’ – Kanye West (#105 in 2010)
101. ‘Ubu’ – Methyl Ethel (#4 in 2017)

100. ‘Holocene’ – Bon Iver (#53 in 2011)
99. ‘Dazed & Confused’ – Ruel (#89 in 2018)
98. ‘You & Me (feat. Eliza Doolittle) (Flume Remix)’ – Disclosure (#63 in 2013)
97. ‘Rolling In The Deep’ – Adele (Debut)
96. ‘Get Free (feat. Amber Coffman)’ – Major Lazer (#6 in 2012)
95. ‘Losing It’ – FISHER (#2 in 2018)
94. ‘Is This How You Feel?’ – The Preatures (#9 in 2013)
93. ‘Sleepless (feat. Jezzabell Doran)’ – Flume (#12 in 2012)
92. ‘m.A.A.d city (feat. MC Eiht)’ – Kendrick Lamar (Debut)
91. ‘Loving Is Easy (feat. Benny Sings)’ – Rex Orange County (#107 in 2017)

90. ‘This Is America’ – Childish Gambino (#4 in 2018)
89. ‘Undercover Martyn’ – Two Door Cinema Club (#21 in 2010)
88. ‘Gooey’ – Glass Animals (#12 in 2014)
87. ‘Resolution’ – Matt Corby (#8 in 2013)
86. ‘Greek Tragedy’ – The Wombats (#29 in 2015)
85. ‘No Role Modelz’ – J. Cole (Debut)
84. ‘Dinosaurs’ – Ruby Fields (#9 in 2018)
83. ‘Painkiller’ – Ruel (#22 in 2019)
82. ‘On Top (feat. T.Shirt)’ – Flume (#67 in 2012)
81. ‘Come On Mess Me Up’ – Cub Sport (#24 in 2016)

80. ‘Ultralight Beam (feat. Chance The Rapper, The-Dream, Kelly Price & Kirk Franklin)’ – Kanye West (#22 in 2016)
79. ‘Charlie’ – Mallrat (#3 in 2019)
78. ‘Awkward’ – San Cisco (#7 in 2011)
77. ‘Black Skinhead’ – Kanye West (#20 in 2013)
76. ‘SICKO MODE’ – Travis Scott (#3 in 2018)
75. ‘Feel So Close’ – Calvin Harris (#11 in 2012)
74. ‘Dancing On My Own’ – Robyn (#142 in 2010)
73. ‘Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?’ – Arctic Monkeys (#6 in 2013)
72. ‘Monster (feat. Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj & Bon Iver)’ – Kanye West (#88 in 2010)
71. ‘bad guy’ – Billie Eilish (#1 in 2019)

70. ‘7’ – Catfish And The Bottlemen (#19 in 2016)
69. ‘Drop The Game’ – Flume & Chet Faker (#5 in 2013)
68. ‘212 (feat. Lazy Jay)’ – Azealia Banks (Debut)
67. ‘I Love It (feat. Sia)’ – Hilltop Hoods (#10 in 2011)
66. ‘Elephant’ – Tame Impala (#7 in 2012)
65. ‘Feels Like We Only Go Backwards’ – Tame Impala (#9 in 2012)
64. ‘Innerbloom (What So Not Remix)’ – RÜFÜS DU SOL (#30 in 2016)
63. ‘The Buzz (feat. Mataya & Young Tapz)’ – Hermitude (#8 in 2015)
62. ‘Thinkin Bout You’ – Frank Ocean (#56 in 2012)
61. ‘Green Light’ – Lorde (#6 in 2017)

60. ‘Swimming Pools (Drank)’ – Kendrick Lamar (#71 in 2012)
59. ‘Teenage Crime’ – Adrian Lux (#6 in 2010)
58. ‘Gold Snafu’ – Sticky Fingers (#20 in 2014)
57. ‘HUMBLE.’ – Kendrick Lamar (#1 in 2017)
56. ‘Thrift Shop (feat. Wanz)’ – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (#1 in 2012)
55. ‘Bangarang (feat. Sirah)’ – Skrillex (#25 in 2011)
54. ‘Tongue Tied’ – Grouplove (#16 in 2011)
53. ‘Chandelier’ – Sia (#9 in 2014)
52. ‘The Deepest Sighs, The Frankest Shadows’ – Gang Of Youths (#5 in 2017)
51. ‘Adore’ – Amy Shark (#2 in 2016)

50. ‘Get Lucky (feat. Pharrell Williams)’ – Daft Punk (#3 in 2013)
49. ‘Jungle’ – Tash Sultana (#3 in 2016)
48. ‘HyperParadise (Flume Remix)’ – Hermitude (#18 in 2012)
47. ‘I Will Wait’ – Mumford & Sons (#5 in 2012)
46. ‘Hoops’ – The Rubens (#1 in 2015)
45. ‘Lonely Boy’ – The Black Keys (#2 in 2011)
44. ‘Shake It Out’ – Florence + The Machine (#13 in 2011)
43. ‘Chateau’ – Angus & Julia Stone (#3 in 2017)
42. ‘R U Mine?’ – Arctic Monkeys (#40 in 2012)
41. ‘Believe’ – DMA’S (#6 in 2016)

40. ‘Latch (feat. Sam Smith)’ – Disclosure (#21 in 2012)
39. ‘Crave You (feat. Giselle)’ – Flight Facilities (#19 in 2010)
38. ‘Levels’ – Avicii (Debut)
37. ‘Stolen Dance’ – Milky Chance (#4 in 2013)
36. ‘1955 (feat. Montaigne & Tom Thum)’ – Hilltop Hoods (#4 in 2016)
35. ‘Confidence’ – Ocean Alley (#1 in 2018)
34. ‘Lost’ – Frank Ocean (#8 in 2012)
33. ‘Rum Rage’ – Sticky Fingers (Debut)
32. ‘High (feat. Nicole Millar)’ – Peking Duk (#2 in 2014)
31. ‘Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)’ – The Wombats (#8 in 2010)

30. ‘Little Talks’ – Of Monsters And Men (#2 in 2011)
29. ‘Video Games’ – Lana Del Rey (#6 in 2011)
28. ‘Redbone’ – Childish Gambino (#5 in 2016)
27. ‘3005’ – Childish Gambino (#43 in 2013)
26. ‘Let It Happen’ – Tame Impala (#5 in 2015)
25. ‘Clair De Lune (feat. Christine Hoberg)’ – Flight Facilities (#17 in 2012)
24. ‘Niggas In Paris’ – Jay-Z & Kanye West (#98 in 2011)
23. ‘King Kunta’ – Kendrick Lamar (#2 in 2015)
22. ‘Midnight City’ – M83 (#5 in 2011)
21. ‘Delete’ – DMA’S (#48 in 2014)

20. ‘Cosby Sweater’ – Hilltop Hoods (#3 in 2014)
19. ‘Let Me Down Easy’ – Gang Of Youths (#2 in 2017)
18. ‘Holdin On’ – Flume (#4 in 2012)
17. ‘It’s Nice To Be Alive’ – Ball Park Music (#31 in 2011)
16. ‘Royals’ – Lorde (#2 in 2013)
15. ‘Australia Street’ – Sticky Fingers (#70 in 2013)
14. ‘Runaway (feat. Pusha T)’ – Kanye West (#14 in 2010)
13. ‘Riptide’ – Vance Joy (#1 in 2013)
12. ‘Breezeblocks’ – alt-J (#3 in 2012)
11. ‘Talk Is Cheap’ – Chet Faker (#1 in 2014)

10. ‘Brother’ – Matt Corby (#3 in 2011)
9. ‘Big Jet Plane’ – Angus & Julia Stone (#1 in 2010)
8. ‘Never Be Like You (feat. Kai)’ – Flume (#1 in 2016)
7. ‘Pumped Up Kicks’ – Foster The People (#32 in 2010)
6. ‘Magnolia’ – Gang Of Youths (#21 in 2015)
5. ‘Innerbloom’ – RÜFÜS DU SOL (#103 in 2015)
4. ‘Covered In Chrome’ – Violent Soho (#14 in 2014)
3. ‘Do I Wanna Know?’ – Arctic Monkeys (#4 in 2013)
2. ‘Somebody That I Used To Know (feat. Kimbra)’ – Gotye (#1 in 2011)
1. ‘The Less I Know The Better’ – Tame Impala (#4 in 2015)