By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — What makes a great song of the summer? Is it an up-tempo pop banger? Something with an earworm chorus? Does it need to feature the words “summer,” “sunshine,” or another synonym — “California” — in the title? How could anyone attempt a song of the summer after the late, great Beach Boy Brian Wilson composed them so expertly, anyway?
It very well may be subject to the eye (well, ear) of the beholder, but The Associated Press views the song of the summer as the one that takes over those warm months between June and August, the kind that blasts out of car speakers and at beach barbecues in equal measure. And that means many different things for many kinds of listeners.
So here are AP’s 2025 song of the summer predictions across categories, with past victors for reference.
Find your song of the summer and then listen to our Spotify playlist, here.
Song of the summer that inexplicably came out in January: <a href=”“>“NUEVAYoL,” Bad Bunny
A song of the summer doesn’t actually have to arrive in summer, or even in spring. History has proved this time and time again, lest anyone forget Olivia Rodrigo’s “drivers license” hit at the top of the year in 2021. But this summer, like every summer, is about Bad Bunny. On his latest album, “Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio pulls from Puerto Rico’s rich musical history and hybridizes it. He does so from the very opener, “NUEVAYoL,” which samples the fittingly named 1975 salsa hit from El Gran Combo, “Un Verano en Nueva York” (“A Summer in New York”).
Past champion: “Boy’s a Liar PT. 2,” PinkPantheress, Ice Spice (2023)
Song of the summer for the chronically online: <a href=”“>“Tonight,” PinkPantheress
An internet hero releases another super hit: PinkPantheress’ “Tonight” is an undeniable good time; all bassline house meets hyperpop vocals with a naughty chorus. The 24-year-old British singer-songwriter has proved she’s got so much more to offer than a few viral hits — but her huge songs that blow up online? They tend to stay. That’s more than can be said about past winners in this category.
Past champion: “Million Dollar Baby,” Tommy Richman (2024)
Breakup song of the summer: <a href=”“>“What Was That,” Lorde
Lorde’s first new single in four years recalls the clever synth-pop of her 2017 album “Melodrama,” casting aside the folk detour of 2021’s “Solar Power.” “What Was That” is reserved revelation, introspective electropop that takes a measured look at a relationship’s dissolution. It feels good, and bad, which is the point.
Past champion: “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart,” Bee Gees (1971)
Song of the summer for the girls and all those who love them: <a href=”“>“Gnarly,” KATSEYE
KATSEYE, the global girl group born out of K-pop development techniques, are “Gnarly,” and they’d like you to be, too. The song is asymmetrical pop with a cheerleading cadence and extensive, expensive product placement. You’re here for the girls, or you’re not. Gnarly!
Past champion: “Bills, Bills, Bills,” Destiny’s Child (1999)
Song for singles ready to mingle this summer: <a href=”“>“WASSUP,” Young Miko
Flirting is central to these hot months; no other season has a fling named after it. Puerto Rican rapper Young Miko knows this better than most, and her track “WASSUP” is all about charisma — and it doesn’t hurt that it interpolates “Lollipop” by Lil Wayne featuring Static Major and “Chulin Culin Chunfly” by Voltio featuring Residente.
Past champion: “Buy U a Drank (Shawty Snappin’),” T-Pain featuring Yung Joc (2007)
Song of the summer for those who love British boy ballads performed by an American: <a href=”“>“Ordinary,” Alex Warren
Last year brought Benson Boone’s glossy soft pop-rock; this year, Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” is inescapable. A big, inoffensive ballad with loosely religious themes, it is meticulously designed to the pull at heartstrings. And it does — the song hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Past champion: “Beautiful Things,” Benson Boone (2024)
Song of the summer for when you lose the beef but still have fight left in ya: <a href=”“>“Nokia,” Drake
For the last year, Drake has mostly made headlines for his rivalry with Kendrick Lamar, one of the biggest beefs in modern rap music history. He was no victor, but on “Nokia,” he’s certainly a winner. The song is a return to what Drizzy knows best: a massive rap-R&B-pop song for the ages, one that will live inside the minds of listeners for the whole year. Just, you know, replete with the nostalgic sounds of a Nokia ringtone.
Past champion: The difference here, of course, is that Drake won his beef with Meek Mill. But nonetheless: “Back to Back,” Drake (2015)
The TikTok-approved, blast-of-dopamine song of the summer: <a href=”“>“Boots on the Ground,” 803Fresh
Social media is the wild west and inevitably sources its own song of the summer. Usually, there’s an element of humor in the track — like 2023’s “The Margarita Song” by That Chick Angel, Casa Di & Steve Terrell. This year is a bit different: 803Fresh’s “Boots on the Ground” is an organic hit that centers a kind of soulful line dance — it’s country-pop with trap hi-hats and fun for the whole family.
Past champion: “The Spark,” Kabin Crew & Lisdoonvarna Crew (2024)
Song of the summer for it girls: <a href=”“>“Fame Is A Gun,” Addison Rae
Charli xcx fans, fear not. Addison Rae’s debut album is stuffed with bejeweled, hypnotic pop songs for the post-“BRAT” crowd. Best of all is the Grimes-esque “Fame Is a Gun,” a sunglasses-in-the-club banger with synthetic vocal textures and an unignorable chorus. For fashionable listeners, and those who aim to become more fabulous.
Past champion: “Bad Girls,” Donna Summer (1979)
Song of the summer of revenge: <a href=”“>“Manchild,” Sabrina Carpenter
Does it sound strikingly similar to “Please, Please, Please” at times? Sure. But has Sabrina Carpenter cornered the market on country-tinged, satirical pop songs about heterofatalism, an internet neologism for those who find heterosexuality embarrassing and hopeless? Also, yes. But you know, with a wink, vengeance and a danceable quality. Amen, hey men!
Past champion: “Before He Cheats,” Carrie Underwood (from her 2005 debut album, but released as a single in 2006)
Biggest song of the year, and therefore the default song of the summer: <a href=”“>“Luther,” Kendrick Lamar and SZA
Is a song released in November too dated to qualify for song of the summer? Perhaps. But here’s the rub: Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s “Luther” held the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for 13 weeks in 2025 — over half the year so far. Popularity makes the contender. It doesn’t hurt that “Luther” is also one of the best songs of both this year and last, a tender R&B ballad that samples Luther Vandross and Cheryl Lynn’s 1982 rendition of “If This World Were Mine.” “Luther” has since been dethroned on the charts, but no other song has come close to its run this year.
Past champion: “Last Night,” Morgan Wallen (2023)
Country crossover song of the summer: <a href=”“>“What I Want,” Morgan Wallen and Tate McRae
If terrestrial country radio is your leading metric for selecting the song of the summer, then Morgan Wallen’s “I’m The Problem” is likely your pick. But a catchier track with true country crossover appeal is “What I Want” with Wallen and pop singer Tate McRae. It is the first time Wallen has featured a female vocalist on one of his songs. It’s a rare embrace for the chart topper, who historically prefers to buck country duet tradition and double down on his vocal style — warm, muscular, masculine.
Past champion: “You’re Still the One,” Shania Twain (from her 1997 album, but released as a single in 1998)
Song of the summer released half a decade ago: <a href=”“>“party 4 you,” Charli xcx
The data doesn’t lie and what is old is new is old is new again. In the year after “BRAT” summer, desire for more Charli xcx is still strong. As a result, fans have dug up a cut from her 2020 album, “How I’m Feeling Now,” and turned it into their own summer anthem … five years later. So much so, in fact, that Charli released a music video for it in May.
Past champion: “Cruel Summer,” Taylor Swift (released in 2019, crowned song of the summer in 2023)
Song of the summer with a canine-themed title: <a href=”“>“Mutt,” Leon Thomas
Look, “Mutt” also arrived in 2024, but in 2025 — bolstered by a deluxe release and a recent Chris Brown remix — makes “Mutt” an easy song of the summer pick for some listeners. It’s difficult to hear that chorus and not sing along: “She said, ‘Take your time, what’s the rush?’ / I said, ‘Baby, I’m a dog, I’m a mutt.’”
Past champion: “Bird Dog,” The Everly Brothers (1958)