When you picture the backbone of the summer season, what comes to mind? Is it the beach, the pool, the summer sun or summer work? While all of these things follow the summer months, what truly ties the days together is a song: the song of the summer.
Students have quite different opinions on what the song of the summer was. In terms of genre, some have argued for hip-hop, others country, and still others pop. One could argue for Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” as, for a time, it seemed the only song the radio would play. Surprisingly, however, this was not among the songs suggested.
The first of the suggested songs was Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” This country song was suggested by Sixth Former Zac Fuscaldo. In this single, released on April 12, Shaboozey sings about Jack Daniels whiskey and the spirited atmosphere of the bar. At the number-one spot of Billboard’s Hot 100, this song is the most popular for the last week of August. The song has also spent an astonishing seven weeks in this spot.
That said, the song’s April 12th release date poses the question: must the song of the summer be released during summer? One could argue that yes, a song must be released during summer, but it seems unlikely that a song would be released after June 20th, the astronomical start of summer, and rise to the top of the charts quickly enough to be considered the most popular for the three or so months of the season.
Therefore, this article will not take said statistic into mind and will only consider: a) songs that have been suggested by a student, and b) how long said songs have been trending and where they lie on Billboard’s Hot 100.
The second of the suggested songs is a bit more niche. Third Former Greyson Heneks suggested “Wait For You” by Myles Smith. Having been released on August 23rd of this year, this song has a bit of a late start but that doesn’t mean we should dismiss it entirely. In fact, Heneks provides valuable insight on what he thinks makes a song “the song of the summer.” He stated that while he likes the song, “it can’t be the song of the summer because it’s depressing.” Unfortunately, the song has not yet made it on the Billboard Hot 100, so it will not be considered this year’s song of the summer.
Sixth Former Alex Rhodes claimed that Zach Bryan’s “28,” another country hit, is the song of the summer. This song from Bryan’s July 4th album has spent seven weeks on Billboard’s Hot 100, peaking at 14th and standing at 35th for the last week of August.
Shaboozey seems to have swept the competition, but we have a few more songs we must take into consideration.
Sixth Formers Aaron Bonaparte and Cameron Ward suggested GloRilla’s song “TGIF.” Adding rap to the mix, this June 20th single was released on the aforementioned astronomical beginning of summer!
“Of all the graduation parties and trunk parties I’ve been to, ‘TGIF’ has come on just about every single time,” Bonaparte said. “You could always bet that the old heads and the youngins would be up and dancing or bopping.”
Having charted for nine weeks, peaking at the 28th position and landing at the 44th, the song will not be dethroning “A Bar Song (Tipsy).”
Last but not least, Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” has had a chokehold on the radio stations this summer, so I only feel it’s right to add it to the list. This April 12th single served as a taste of Carpenter’s recently released album Short n’ Sweet. Upon the release of her June 6th single “Please Please Please,” Carpenter was able to secure spots one and two on the Global 200, something that wouldn’t have been possible without the exposure of opening for the Eras Tour. While I admit that I am biased toward Carpenter, the song has not made it past the number three position on Billboard’s Hot 100. The song has, however, spent a whopping nineteen weeks charting and currently sits in the number-seven spot.
Because the song has not made the number-one spot for even one week (let alone seven), the song cannot be considered the song of the summer, leaving that position to Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy).”
