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Of course, we're starting with "Shake It Off." 2014's theme seemed to be self-empowerment. As we shook off the liars and the haters and the dirty, dirty cheats of the world, we found ourselves surrounded by optimism and joy at every turn. Thank you, Taylor Swift, for everything.
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You could tell that 2014 was going to be the year of positivity when it's first hit song was called "Happy." I almost didn't include this song since it's been overplayed. But then I remembered how happy I was when I first saw that 24-hour music video, and I knew it belonged.
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Shake it off. Be happy. Let it go. This playlist speaks for itself. (And no, I never got sick of this song because...well, I hadn't seen the movie yet, so it just seemed like a recurring taste of something grand.) And hey! When was the last time a Disney song was all the rage on the radio?!
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And once you let it go, you just get silly. It may be the stupidest song that came out last year, but sometimes we need that stupid.
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So, I was stuck at 12 songs for a long time. Nothing was really leaping at me for being absolutely necessary. And then I remembered that despite all its flaws, I thoroughly enjoyed "All About That Bass" the first time I heard it. It was (mostly) positive and progressive and it reminded me of my favorite musical Hairspray. All songs should aspire to do that.
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It's always great when songs are suddenly pulled out of years of obscurity and shared with the masses. This was one of the few alternative favorites of mine that managed to chart on the Hot 100.
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This isn't my favorite Lorde track of 2014 (come back tomorrow for that one) but it's refreshing to have someone like Lorde as a pop star. Hearing her voice and words on the radio always makes me feel content. Something about her perspective of the world just makes sense.
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Okay, we're getting into less positive territory now. But hey, being a teenager isn't always the most positive experience. What I like about this song is that everyone can relate to feeling this feeling at some point in their lives, so there is the implied message that it all gets better once we realize that being "cool" is all relative.
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Even if you're two poor citizens of a doomed city, at least you can have a great theme to score the surrounding destruction. Yes, this one has a more pessimistic vibe, but it also delights in irony and sarcasm, so if that isn't positivity in the face of adversity, I don't know what is.
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We shall finish off this mix by dealing with heartbreak because all years have heartbreak. Got to have some bad times in order to stay positive. One Direction takes a mature, refined look at an ending relationship, resulting in me putting One Direction on my Best of 2014 mix.
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For a more pained take on a crumbling relationship, A Great Big World presents this masterpiece. I originally opted to put just their solo version of it on the mix, but I realized that it needs Aguilera's voice to make it that much more powerful. Both versions are great, but this duet makes the heartache more brutal and universal.
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And once again, when you feel so much pain from what the world has dealt you, you just have to break free and let loose.
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We've had our heartbreak. We've run around and shouted and let it go! And now, we start anew. New life, new loves, and then we'll do it all over again. Apparently, this song was held back from being a single because it had no chorus/verse structure. Instead it just built in intensity repeatedly, over and over again. Um, that's how you make the best song of 2014!
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