Metro station is not a one-hit wonder
Plus a closer look at M*rg*n W*ll*n's charting songs + three songs I actually love
Hope you all had lovely Memorial Day weekends. I had a lot of nice friend time, remembered that “Down Bad” by Taylor Swift is an amazing song and stayed up ridiculously bingeing the new Netflix show “Sirens.”
If you’ve been following New Crush, you know that I hate ranked lists. So I opened Rolling Stone’s recent list of The 50 Best One-Hit Wonders of the 2000s with trepidation. And while the list includes some certified bangers for anyone who grew up in the early aughts (“Lips of an Angel,” “Tipsy,” “Bad Day”), it contained a few inaccuracies—namely, not all of these artists are one-hit wonders. Yes, some are two-hit wonders. But others are, in my opinion, wonders!
My complaints:
#47: Saving Jane, “Girl Next Door”
Saving Jane is a two-hit wonder. Three years after “Girl Next Door” came out, “SuperGirl” became her second entry into the Billboard Pop 100, peaking at No. 85 and staying there for 11 weeks. I could have sworn this song was in the soundtrack of a Disney Channel movie, but I think it just sounds like it should play as a bitchy high schooler struts past her crush’s locker on the way to P.E.
#37, Kat Deluna, “Whine Up”
“Whine Up” is obviously Kat Deluna’s biggest hit, but I recall hearing the song “Run the Show,” featuring Busta Rhymes, on the radio just as much. The repetition of the line, “Are you ready, ready, ready, ready? 100 percent-a,” is burned into my brain.
#34: Metro Station, “Shake It”
On “Shake It,” Trace Cyrus whispers simply—but seductively, “We’re on the bed, but your clothes are laying right there.” Well, I have something just as obvious to say to Rolling Stone. We have “Shake It” on Metro Station’s 2007 self-titled debut, but “Seventeen Forever,” “Kelsey” and “Control” are also RIGHT THERE.
#30: Hoku, “Another Dumb Blonde”
If you asked me if Hoku is a one-hit wonder, I’d say, yes, she is. The problem? THIS IS NOT THE HIT! “Perfect Day,” best known from the opening credits of Legally Blonde, is Hoku’s biggest hit. My proof: On Spotify, “Another Dumb Blonde” has around 2.3 million streams. Meanwhile, the regular version of “Perfect Day” has more than 30 million streams, and the mix made for Legally Blonde has more than 15 million.
#22: Lil Romeo, “My Baby”
Okay so… I cannot find proof that Lil Romeo has made hits beyond this one. HOWEVER, he had a whole Nickelodeon show. And he’s featured on Hilary Duff’s Christmas album, on which he crucially raps his own take on "The Night Before Christmas." Lil Romeo deserves more credit than this.
#12: Baha Men, “Who Let the Dogs Out?”
Rolling Stone cannot move it like this OR shake it like that. This is erasure of “Move It Like This” —and the “Big Fat Liar” soundtrack.
#10, The Click Five, “Just the Girl”
“Just the Girl” is certainly the Click Five’s greatest hit, but their second album, “Modern Minds and Pastimes,” had two songs that simply cannot be ignored, “Jenny” and “Empty.”
Separately, yesterday I watched a TikTok about “Just the Girl,” which was written by the late Adam Schlesinger, who’s best known for fronting Fountains of Wayne and writing music for “That Thing You Do” and “Crazy Ex Girlfriend.” The TikTok goes deep into why this song is so addictive and takes Adam’s musical choices really seriously, which I adore.
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💌 LOVE NOTES 💌
Quick beats from the week:
Pitchfork’s latest “zine” cover story is on Turnstile. Part of me wonders if I should try to attend the launch and talk they’re hosting next week. For research! However, is it worth the cost of the $31 “zine” required for guaranteed entry?
For anyone wondering, I’m always open to tips! Comment/reply/DM! Thank you FONC Annabel from my critically acclaimed group chat “yum alert” for this update.
🚨 VIBE CHECK 🚨
What the people are actually listening to:
Unsurprisingly, Morgan Wallen took over the Billboard charts this week with his fourth album, “I’m the Problem” (we know) which contains 37 songs and spans almost 2 hours. It debuted at No. 1 on the albums chart and has 6 songs in the Hot 100’s top 10.
Reading the titles of some of these charting songs amuses me: “I Got Better” (did you?), “I Ain’t Coming Back” (awesome), “20 Cigarettes” (that’s a lot!), “Kick Myself” (please), “Eyes Are Closed” (mine too), “Skoal, Chevy, And Browning” (what?), “Where’d That Girl Go” (away), “Kiss Her In Front of You” (kinky), “I’m a Little Crazy” (no comment), “Come Back As a Redneck” (i’d rather not), “Leavin’s the Least I Could Do” (glad we agree on something), “Whiskey in Reverse” (yeksihw).
❤️ CURRENTLY CRUSHING ❤️
As a New Crush subscriber, you get EXCLUSIVE access to our Currently Crushing playlist, which I update monthly with my favorite new songs.
Here are three highlights from this month.
“Feisty” by Smerz
I can taste the tequila soda. “Feisty” contains the smokiness, sultriness and sleepiness of a girls night out—dancing in tall shoes, looking at your butt in the mirror and running into someone you *think* you matched with on Tinder, and then… “I'm feeling lucky 'cause he looks kinda cute, But then I freeze when I look down on his shoes, ew.”
“cry in the car” by Maren Morris
Maren Morris’s new album Dreamsicle covers self-preservation and keeping up appearances—which I’m sure Maren became all too familiar with after her divorce. This record grows on me with every listen, but its true highlights are the two MUNA-produced tracks, “push me over,” which came out last year, and “cry in the car.” I’m a city girl who’s afraid of driving on a highway, and even I know the canon event of sobbing behind the wheel. The best pop songs are the ones that contain the juxtaposition in “cry in the car”: Maren’s lyrics are about trying to get out of a place before anyone sees her cry, knowing she can bawl as much as she wants behind her ride’s tinted windows, but she’s singing over the most buoyant, jubilant, infectious melody. This is the kind of song that proves Maren was right to leave country music behind.
“Let Me Be Wrong” by Jensen Mcrae
What a relatable song that only a girl in her mid 20s could write—the realization that not only is she allowed to be “wrong” or “bad,” but she probably should allow herself to be those things. If you took all AP classes in high school, you need this song. “Something twisted in my chest says I’m good but not the best. When I was young that knocked me out, but nothing really shakes me now.”
😘 FRIDAY I’M IN LOVE 😘
If you can only listen to one new album this weekend, you should check out:
Something Beautiful by Miley Cyrus
I only recommend listening to this album because I think people will be talking about it. To be honest, none of the singles have hit for me. I thought “Flowers” was going to be the turning point for Miley’s career, but “End of the World” simply has not dominated like “Flowers” did. I haven’t heard the full record, so I’m interested to see if there’s anything that sticks to all of us enough to carry through summer.
More crushable albums out tomorrow:
Let All That We Imagine Be the Light by Garbage
Nickel on the Fountain Floor (EP) by illuminati hotties
Get Sunk by Matt Berninger
Pavements (from the new Pavement documentary, which I reeeeally wanna see!) by Pavement
I Got Too Sad for My Friends by Shura
Evangelic Girl Is a Gun by yeule
There are only two things you actually need to know about me. My name is Natalia and my favorite podcast is Las Culturistas. They end every episode with a song. I end every newsletter with a song.
Coincidentally my favorite Maren Morris song is also about driving. This song demonstrates that she’s always had pop-girl sensibilities. I’m a ‘90s baby in my ‘80s Mercedes!!!!!!!
The Hoku choice is WILD