From their ‘Greatest Singers Ever‘ and ‘Top 200 Songs of the 80s‘ to the ‘Top 15 Rap Songs of 2023‘ and beyond, Rolling Stone is no stranger to getting collective side-eyes from music lovers for their polarizing rankings on “best-ever” tallies.
And, if the response to one of their latest lists is any indication, that criticism won’t be stopping any time soon.
Turning heads this week with the unveiling of the ‘100 Best R&B Songs of the 21st Century,’ the lineup featured some expected entries in unexpected positions alongside some snubs and downright shocking placements (e.g. Usher‘s ‘Confessions‘ at #1 and Beyonce‘s ‘Dangerously in Love’ at #3).
Among those surprising appearances was GRAMMY-winning diva SZA whose ‘SOS‘ 2022 hit ‘Snooze‘ awakened debate with its top 20 placement.
Despite barely being a year old, ‘Snooze’ is already penciled in history books for being one of the longest-charting solo female hits in the 65-year history of the Hot 100.
A critical darling, the Babyface-produced bop has had an even more impressive run on Billboard’s R&B hitlists having enjoyed a whopping 22 weeks atop Hot R&B Songs and 25 weeks atop the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay charts respectively.
For the latter tally it’s the lengthiest solo reign of any female act ever.
For those reasons and others, Rolling Stone placed ‘Snooze’ at #19 on its ‘100 Best R&B Songs of the 21st Century’ ranking – the highest of any song released this decade.
Among all 21st century hits, it’s listed ahead of megahits like Monica‘s ‘So Gone’ (#56), Tamia‘s ‘Stranger in My House’ (#54), Fantasia‘s ‘When I See U’ (#33), Amerie‘s ‘1 Thing‘ (#32), Destiny’s Child‘s ‘Cater 2 U’ (#21), Michael Jackson‘s ‘You Rock My World‘ (#20), and more.
Click here to see the full 100.