The Best Australian & New Zealand Songs of the 21st Century So Far

When BARKAA steps up to the mic, the energy is electric, and “For My Titta” is a perfect showcase of her sheer force.

The song vibrates with defiance and confidence, setting her sharp, charismatic flow against an aggressive, captivating production.

It’s a statement of lineage, love, and unwavering strength that solidified her place as one of the most exciting, politically crucial, and necessary voices in the Australian hip-hop scene this decade. —Jade Kennedy

This song is the sound of Britpop being reborn under the harsh light of the Australian sun.

“Delete” perfectly channels the nostalgic euphoria of bands like Oasis and The Stone Roses but grounds it with a modern, emotional urgency.

Its infectious, sweeping chorus and impeccable guitar work ensured its global success, positioning DMA’s at the forefront of the indie rock revival and proving their ability to write songs built for massive, unifying singalongs. —Jade Kennedy

This song is pure, sophisticated Australian R&B. “Therapy” is built on a tight, contemporary beat and layers of warm, intricate production that perfectly frame Budjerah’s soaring, nuanced vocal performance.

The song’s massive success and airplay proved that thoughtful, soulful songwriting could dominate the charts, and affirmed his multi-award-winning reputation for crafting polished, heartfelt anthems. —Jade Kennedy

Lime Cordiale’s signature charm and eccentric energy are perfectly distilled in “Robbery”.

Lyrically, the song tackles momentary connection with wit and high-stakes drama, comparing emotional theft to a heist.

The production is pristine, blending playful rhythms, layered vocals, and sophisticated instrumental textures that make it irresistible. It’s an essential, feel-good anthem that affirmed their place as one of Australia’s most beloved and unique acts. —Jade Kennedy

One of a number of Unknown Mortal Orchestra songs that could have made our list.

Ruban Nielson conjures a typically memorable hook on “So Good at Being in Trouble”, almost adopting a falsetto for its catchy choral refrain. A blissed-out, trippy delight. —Conor Lochrie

Angie McMahon is a the type of songwriter who makes listeners feel less alone in the world.

The Melbourne artist’s latest album, Light, Dark, Light Again, contained some of the most profoundly moving lyricism of the decade so far, especially on “Letting Go”.

McMahon fills the cathartic song with mantras that urge both her and her listeners to relinquish, breathe, and find light through the darkness. —Conor Lochrie

Taken from their ARIA-chart-topping album Harlequin Dream, “Southern Sun” is the definitive folk-rock anthem of the 2010s.

The song is a soaring, expansive piece of artistry inspired by the band’s recent love of all things Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon, and Fleetwood Mac.

Built on a driving, complex rhythm section and Dave Hosking’s warm, charismatic vocal delivery, the song became a ubiquitous hit, solidifying Boy & Bear’s status as kings of the modern Australian indie scene. —Jade Kennedy

The song that signalled Amyl and the Sniffers were entering a major new era with their second album, Comfort to Me (2021).

The driving punk rock anthem is mantra-like, Amy Taylor passionately shouting out cathartic, chanting vocals. A song that sounded like nothing else Amyl had produced before when it came out, which is what they wanted. —Conor Lochrie

Masked Wolf achieved a level of organic, global success few Australian artists ever reach with this massive hit.

Driven by a relentless trap beat and a haunting lyrical theme about anxiety, depression, and the feeling of isolation, “Astronaut in the Ocean” went hyper-viral on TikTok, leading to a massive commercial breakthrough in 2021.

The song dominated international charts — including the US Billboard Hot 100 — proving that a deeply personal Australian hip-hop anthem could become an unstoppable cultural force worldwide. —Jade Kennedy

While “Zebra” possesses an undeniable, soulful chorus, its true genius lies in its iconic guitar work.

This song is the definitive showcase for John Butler’s virtuosic, percussive fingerstyle playing — a technique that became a global phenomenon and defined the band’s sound.

The song builds from a sparse, mesmerising intro to a full-throttle roots-rock explosion, seamlessly blending blues, folk, and funk. —Jade Kennedy

When it arrived in 2008, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds’ 14th album, Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!, was a bold reminder that the band weren’t content to simply coast on past glories.

The title track pulls from some well-established Cave tropes — religious references, unhinged preacher vocals, and a dash of sleaze — but it marries them to a bouncy, sing-song track that could almost be described as jaunty.

The lyrics place raised-from-the-dead poster boy Lazarus in modern day New York City, pondering if he even wanted to be resurrected in the first place, climaxing in an inevitably seedy finale involving drugs, prison, and a lunatic asylum.

It’s a weird and wonderful journey that acts as a precursor to an exciting new phase of the band’s career, where experimentation and left-hand turns became their thrilling new direction of choice. —James Jennings

Brooke Fraser found something truly special with 2010’s “Something in the Water”.

The lead track on her third studio album, Flags, became her first chart-topper in New Zealand, and also became her breakout song overseas, charting well in several European countries. A lovely country-pop ode to falling head over heels in love with someone. —Conor Lochrie

Some would argue Madison Avenue’s “Who the Hell Are You” is Y2K perfection, designed to dominate club dancefloors.

Debuting at No. 1 on the ARIA Singles Chart in 2000, the song later became an international hit, reaching No. 10 in the UK and topping the US Billboard Dance Chart. —Lauren McNamara

This song’s genius lies in its sheer audacity: who knew a simple, repetitive trumpet blast could become the most recognisable sound in dance music?

“Freaks” captured a peak moment in EDM, blending hard electro house with a primal, irresistible rhythm. The song is pure, concentrated adrenaline, a high-energy statement of hedonism and chaos that defines the sound of massive, unifying dancefloor moments across the world.  —Jade Kennedy

The massive, heavy-hitting anthem that launched the Vulture Street era.

“(Baby I’ve Got You) On My Mind” is Powderfinger at their most potent, delivering raw intensity and one of the biggest, most undeniable choruses in modern Australian rock history. —Jade Kennedy

Whichever project he’s working on, Tom Scott can do no wrong. “Friday Night @ the Liquor Store” is his finest song as Avantdale Bowling Club, his confident flow sure to make any listening rapper envious. —Conor Lochrie

If you’re only going to have one hit in your career, best make it a big one.

“Sophie” is a Kiwi classic, still in regular rotation on radio stations around the country over two decades since its release. It’s impossible to not sing along to its anthemic chorus. —Conor Lochrie

It’s fair to say that the industry had cooled on Ben Lee at the start of the millennium. Then came the Awake Is the New Sleep album (2005) and its one-two punch singles, “Gamble Everything for Love” and “Catch My Disease”.

The latter’s handclap rhythm, piano tinkling, and memorable vocals resulted in a beguiling singalong anthem. —Andrew Mast

“Woke Up Late” fit nicely into the pop scene of the 2010s, but the song would become something of a repeat hit for Wellington’s Drax Project.

Over the years, the song has received multiple re-releases — starring artists like Hailee Steinfeld and Che’Nelle — as well as a retitled version for Māori Language Week in 2019, which featured reinterpreted lyrics in te reo Māori, which peaked at No. 6 on the New Zealand charts. Whatever form it took, Drax Project’s breakout song was always going to be a massive hit. —Alec Jones

Mallrat trades bedroom-pop intimacy for a sharp, confident snarl on “Teeth”, an instant highlight from her acclaimed debut album.

The track is built on some ‘90s alt-rock influence with fuzzy drum machines and gravelly, distorted guitars.

“When I wrote these lyrics I was playing with the idea that we talk about sex and prayer and violence and power with very similar language. I wanted to see if I could blur all of these things into one blurry ball of energy,” Mallrat said at the time. —Jade Kennedy

The Presets really can’t go wrong.

“Talk Like That” was the Sydney duo at their most playful, meshing calypso rhythms, cathedral organs, techno drums, and a filthy bassline into a confident electro-pop anthem.

The song won Best Dance Release at the ARIAs, while Julian Hamilton and Kim Moyes took home APRA’s Songwriter of the Year — just more proof of why they were named No. 3 in our list of the 50 Greatest Australian Electronic Acts of All Time. —Lauren McNamara

Ladi6’s The Liberation of… was one of the most acclaimed albums in New Zealand music in 2010, and its mesmerising centrepiece was “Like Water”.

It peaked at No. 9 on the New Zealand charts but its influence was felt far beyond its chart performance. On “Like Water”, Ladi6 showed that she was just as good as the major male artists of Aotearoa R&B and hip-hop. —Conor Lochrie

“OUR PEOPLE” is a fierce, urgent, and deeply moving hip-hop anthem with an unshakeable message of Indigenous resilience and solidarity.

The song’s significance is immense, serving as a joyous yet defiant declaration of cultural strength and unity that resonates with unparalleled force across the nation. —Jade Kennedy

“Youth” established Troye Sivan as more than a YouTuber, launching him into global stardom.

The song embodies the wistful joy of being young and lost, holding onto naivety before life gets complicated.

It became Sivan’s first single to enter the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 23, and won him his first ARIA Awards (Best Video and Song of the Year), cementing his status as one of modern pop’s most important voices. —Lauren McNamara

What’s not to love about a song celebrating one of life’s greatest (and most Aussie) pleasures?

Released in 2019 as the second single from their debut album High Risk Behaviour, “Pub Feed” helped launch The Chats’ scrappy, working-class energy fans have come to know and love.

Polling at No. 21 on triple j’s Hottest 100 of 2019 and certified Gold in 2024, the rollicking punk-rock anthem struck a chord with hungry fans across the country. —Lauren McNamara

This song is the moment Australian hip-hop truly broke through to mass national consciousness.

Built around an irresistible, melancholy hook delivered by Gossling, “Boys Like You” sees 360 shed the bravado, offering a raw and unflinchingly vulnerable look at relationships, commitment, and self-doubt.

A triple j Hottest 100 top ten entry and four-times platinum song, it perfectly blends hip-hop honesty with pop sensibility, proving that introspection and accessibility are not mutually exclusive in the Australian music landscape.

Fazerdaze first broke out in the middle of the 2010s with “Lucky Girl”, a streaming sensation and hazy bedroom-pop anthem that was firmly of its time.

“Lucky Girl”, or even “Jennifer”, would perhaps have been more obvious choices for our list, but Fazerdaze has ogrown significantly as a songwriter and producer since that era.

After overcoming some tough obstacles in her private life, the Christchurch-based artist released the excellent comeback album, Soft Power, last year, which earned her the Album of the Year at the 2025 Aotearoa Music Awards.

Its most powerful moment is “Cherry Pie”, which was nominated for the Silver Scroll Award this year.

“Should we just talk all night and compare our minds / Do you feel the same thing? / Youth is running out / We finally feel it now / The years from here get faster / As the lights keep blurring past this car,” Fazerdaze sings amidst woozy dream-pop tones. The inescapable passing of time has never sounded this pleasant. —Conor Lochrie

There’s no denying the love for Spacey Jane’s “Booster Seat”, the standout track on their 2020 debut album Sunlight.

What starts as a gentle look at anxiety and losing control builds into an anthem about vulnerability that hits harder than expected.

The Perth band’s slow-burn indie rock anthem became their signature song, peaking at No. 8 on the ARIA charts, winning Song of the Year at the ARIAs, and landing second in triple j’s Hottest 100 of 2020.

Going 7x platinum, it proved that understated honesty can still dominate Australian airwaves. —Lauren McNamara

Boiled down to the basics, the plea communicated in “Carol” is a simple one: your ex is a dickhead, and I’m not, so why don’t we get together?

An absolute belter of a punk rock love song, “Carol” sticks in the brain not just because of its titanic riffs, but some truly wonderful turns of phrase.

The trio’s singer Blake Scott doesn’t want to be “a fuckin’ Christmas ham”; he doesn’t think “Trevor is good for you”; and Carol, who Scott’s been helping through a divorce, is the spade to his “bucket”.

It’s as twisted and off-kilter as love songs get but also enormously catchy and cathartic. It’s no surprise “Carol” was shortlisted for Song of the Year at the 2015 APRA Awards, cementing Melbourne’s The Peep Tempel as one of Australia’s best punk bands.  —James Jennings

Marlon Williams wrestles with modern masculinity in this deceptively breezy song. The best moment on his 2022 album of the same name. —Conor Lochrie

A song so rich in metaphor and mood that it demands close listening, “One Crowded Hour”,  taken from Augie March’s brilliant third album, Moo, You Bloody Choir, stands as a testament to the power of literary rock.

The track uses sweeping chamber-pop elements to create a grand, cinematic feeling that elevates its intensely personal themes of longing and regret.

It’s proof that challenging, deeply intellectual songwriting can still connect with the masses, forging a lasting bond with the Australian public. —Jade Kennedy

This song operates on a cinematic scale, fusing the epic rock scope of Bruce Springsteen with the raw, emotional urgency of indie music.

“The Deepest Sighs…” is a showcase of Dave Le’aupepe’s unparalleled lyricism and dynamic musicianship, moving from a vulnerable opening to a towering, euphoric stadium chorus.

It’s a song that demands to be heard live, encapsulating the band’s ambition and their profound ability to turn complex philosophy into accessible, life-affirming rock ’n’ roll. —Jade Kennedy

When Missy Higgins released “Ten Days”, she introduced a raw, honest voice that instantly captured the Australian zeitgeist.

The song, taken from her blockbuster debut album, The Sound of White, is a gorgeous, piano-driven ballad that turns the emotional aftermath of a breakup into a journey of self-discovery and distance.

Its huge success cemented her status as the definitive Australian singer-songwriter of the era, proving that introspective, emotionally candid folk-pop could dominate the charts and resonate universally. —Jade Kennedy

Any number of Walker’s first career hits could have made our list, but “Take It Easy” is the peak of that early period.

“Take It Easy” doesn’t try to be anything it’s not; Walker revels in soul-meets-reggae sounds, imploring listeners to “take it easy, easy / Live your life.” 

“Take It Easy” was recorded by Walker for the 2013 New Zealand film Mt. Zion, an early showcase of his talent for soundtrack work. —Conor Lochrie

“Talk Is Cheap” is a deeply smooth, downtempo slice of indie electronic soul that captures the disillusionment of finding action lacking behind a partner’s words.

Its power lies in its intimacy and its minimalist production (along with some sexy sax samples), proving that silence, space, and a world-class vocal performance can be far more powerful than noise. —Jade Kennedy

When Flume drops a single it shifts the entire electronic landscape, and “Say Nothing” is a perfect example.

The lead single from his ARIA-winning album Palaces, the song blends his signature futuristic, hyper-digital production with a deep, emotional core.

Featuring the sublime, vulnerable vocals of rising star MAY-A, the song instantly became a global smash, proving that boundary-pushing sound design could be fused with a massive, undeniable pop hook. —Jade Kennedy

“STAY” with Justin Bieber is a classic pop song, the kind designed to soundtrack summer heartbreak.

Pairing anxiety with an irresistible beat, the collaboration solidified the Sydney-born Kamilaroi artist as one of Australia’s biggest exports.

The song debuted at No. 1 on the ARIA Singles Chart for 14 consecutive weeks, before becoming a global phenomenon and topping the Billboard Hot 100. —Lauren McNamara

It feels like a little secret that one of the Beths’ best songs is on their weakest album (which is still better than most other bands’ best album). A song that still goes down well with fans at gigs. —Conor Lochrie

As far as first tracks go, “The Opener”, from Camp Cope’s second album How to Socialise & Make Friends, is as direct and searing an opening statement as you can get.

A giant “fuck you” to all the sexist men in and around the rock scene, singer and guitarist Georgia Maq’s scathing lyrics play like a laundry list of all the bullshit she’s had to hear over the years: “It’s another all-male tour preaching equality / It’s another straight cis man who knows more about this than me… It’s another man telling us we can’t fill up the room / It’s another man telling us to book a smaller venue.” 

Still, the Melbourne trio, who broke up in 2023, had the last laugh, going on to headline the Sydney Opera House in 2018. “Now look how far we’ve come not listening to you.” Indeed. —James Jennings

Thelma Plum has a rare gift for turning profound introspection into universally relatable indie-pop, and “Backseat of My Mind” is a shining example.

Written during the early days of the pandemic, the song is a gorgeously melancholic reflection on the difficulty of escaping the past.

Built on a simple, atmospheric guitar melody and Plum’s signature crystalline vocals, the song became an instant favourite, proving that sometimes the most powerful songs are the ones that speak the quietest truths. —Jade Kennedy

The opener from 2018’s Solace, “Treat You Better” perfectly captures the desire to fix what’s broken before it’s too late.

Showcasing RÜFÜS DU SOL’s signature blend of house beats and emotionally vulnerable lyrics, the song led Solace to peak at No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Chart and earn a Grammy nomination, demonstrating exactly why we named them the second Greatest Australian Electronic Act of All Time. —Lauren McNamara

The song that first shot Good Morning to online renown.

The Melbourne indie-pop duo have improved as musicians since 2014 — “Queen of Comedy”, from last year’s Good Morning Seven, is imbued with a beautifully timeless pop sensibility — but to make a song as immense as “Warned You” at such an early stage? That’s something to be celebrated. —Conor Lochrie

A searing, utterly essential piece of modern Australian music, “Native Tongue” is Mo’Ju’s unflinching look at heritage and identity, turning the difficult task of self-discovery into a mesmerising, defiant anthem.

The song’s magnetic rhythm and the raw, undeniable power of their vocals ensure its place as a classic.

Cub Sport delivered the best album title of 2023 with Jesus at the Gay Bar. That album then delivered one of the greatest throwback piano house songs heard this side of the ‘90s.

Upon its release the band described this as their “euphoric new era” as the song celebrated those don’t-let-this-night-out-ever-end moments. Singer Tim Nelson nails another beautiful vocal as “Songs About It” builds and builds to its banging climax. Hit replay, this song isn’t going away any time soon. —Andrew Mast

Taken from their ARIA-winning album Down the Way, this song is a study in beautiful, minimalist songwriting.

“Big Jet Plane” uses sparse acoustic instrumentation and a subtle rhythm to create a sense of vast, open space, perfectly matching the theme of travel and emotional distance.

The song’s irresistible simplicity and melancholic sincerity ensured its endless rotation and confirmed the Stone siblings’ unique ability to turn quiet folk music into a massive, universally loved anthem. —Jade Kennedy

Melbourne four-piece Eddy Current Suppression Ring — drummer Daniel “Danny Current” Young, lead guitarist Mikey “Eddy Current” Young, vocalist Brendan “Brendan Suppression” Huntley, and bassist Brad “Rob Solid” Barry — are masters of boiling garage rock down to its most primal elements.

It makes the listener feel like they’re standing in the room while the music’s being recorded, particularly on second album Primary Colours, which was recorded on eight-track over a 24-hour period.

“Colour Television” is one of the subdued tracks, a paranoid guitar snaking over a buzzsaw bassline while Huntley, numbed by the idiot box, recounts the grim transmissions he’s been witnessing: “Another wheel of fortune / Another million tortured.” It’s a grim ode to the pacified masses that’s expertly spun into garage rock gold by one of the country’s finest — and coolest — bands. —James Jennings

Melbourne collective The Avalanches took a stack of cheap, unwanted vinyl — the tackier, the better — from op shops, a single turntable, and a primitive sampler and threw it all into a blender to create this giddy, glorious, crazy-in-the-coconut slice of sampled mayhem.

By taking snippets from the sketch “Frontier Psychiatrist” by Canadian comedy duo Wayne and Shuster and splicing it with orchestral music by Enoch Light Singers, random animal noises, and an array of other bonkers samples, The Avalanches created what sounds like an abstract stand-up routine stitched together by crafty hip hop scratches (provided by expert turntablist Dexter Fabay).

It may not be the best song the group ever made but it’s their most unique and identifiable, and a track that absolutely nobody else could’ve made. These boys need therapy. —James Jennings