It’s August, which means the Song of the Summer debate has once again descended upon Pitchfork.com.
And because it’s another year without a consensus favorite, here are 20 picks for Song of the Summer from our writers, scientifically parsed into three categories to provide the fullest picture of our annual discourse.
Bad Bunny: “Nuevayol”
Let’s be honest: Bad Bunny has claimed a song of the summer for most of the decade so far. But the radiant, speakers-cracking “NUEVAYoL,” from the Puerto Rican rapper’s hometown love letter DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, may just be his best. Looping in a sample from salsa legends El Gran Combo’s “Un Verano en Nueva York,” he unleashes an elastic, dembow floor-filler that seamlessly bridges past and present Boricua musical hallmarks. Here, Benito did better than just concoct an irresistible banger to quake out of every bodega and block party all summer; he rallied the Nuyorican diaspora for its new anthem.
