Most people are familiar and up-to-date on popular music today, especially millennials like you and me. We tend to keep a closed mind on our music preferences and strictly pick our playlists. But when we think about it, most of us are only traversing through a sliver of the music accessible to us. Sometimes it can be important to step out of our musical comfort zone and explore other tastes. To aid in this exploration of new music, I’ve crafted a list of the most popular songs from the year you were born.

2001– “Hanging By A Moment” By Lifehouse 

“Hanging By A Moment” is the most successful song from the band, Lifehouse. What’s intriguing however, is the fact that the song actually never made it to #1 on the charts and still managed to become the top song of 2001 due to its astounding amount of sales. The Post-Grunge single was written in just five minutes by lead singer Jason Wade. He stated, “I wrote the song in about five minutes without even thinking about what would happen to it.” He was blindsided by the recognition the song brought to Lifehouse.

2002 – “How You Remind Me” By Nickelback

First peaking at #1 in 2001, Nickelback’s’ “How You Remind Me” carried its success into 2002, becoming the best performing single of 2002. “How You Remind Me” is a post-grunge, alternative rock song written by the lead vocalist and guitarist Chad Kroeger. The song was written about Kroeger’s ex-girlfriend, Jody, as they had a rough relationship. This was the breakthrough single from Nickelback and paved the road for their successful musical journey.

2003 – “In Da Club” By 50 cent

“In Da Club” is a Hip-Hop party tune that has aged very well; if you go to a party, you’ll most likely hear this song. Arguably one of the greatest songs of the decade, “In Da Club” was released in January of 2003. It took little time for the song to peak as #1 on the charts. This was 50 Cent’s first #1 hit, and it received widespread recognition after it topped the charts. 

2004 – “Yeah!” By Usher

The most successful song of 2004 was once again another Hip-Hop song. Going platinum in six different countries, “Yeah!” is an exhilarating tune that makes you feel good. It topped the charts at #1 for twelve weeks, making it the longest running #1 single of 2004. Lil Jon, who is featured in the song, described it as an “R&B song that gets you crunk, makes you wanna wild out”. The classic upbeat melody truly does make you want to get up and dance.

  Whether you’re picky with your music selections or not, these are ideal songs for taking a trip down memory lane. Each of them carry unique characteristics that made them widely loved around the globe. To this day many of these songs are still played quite often, especially the Hip-Hop tunes. So if you’re ever searching for something refreshing, I recommend giving these timeless tunes a listen!