Ranked! The 21st century's best (and worst) songs of the summer
It happens every summer: One song, among an infinite jukebox of contenders, rises up to define the season, as heard over and over and over again at America's theme parks and pool parties, skate nights and barbecues.
But what turns a simple pop jam into the "song of the summer"? History tells us the tune can zip (think "Call Me Maybe") or swagger ("We Belong Together"); it can be comedic ("California Gurls") or sentimental ("In My Feelings"). Beyond those specifics, though, what it must be is inescapable.
With a new competition underway, allow us to present the definitive 2000s summer songs power rankings.
We used Billboard's statistics to determine each song of the summer since 2000 - and threw in Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber's new duet as a top candidate for 2019.
