The Best Songs of 2026 (So Far)

“‘The Cure’ marks a turning point in You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love because, similarly, it marks a turning point in a relationship. It captures the realization that you’re still unhappy, no matter how hard you and your partner try, and that maybe the problem isn’t the other person, but something else deep within you. (‘I got toxins in my bloodstream you tried so hard to suck out,’ Rodrigo sings.) The song progresses from a whisper to a cathartic belt, like the way you’d slowly admit a tough truth to yourself and then finally gain the confidence to say it out loud. The fact is hard to swallow, but this song is surely not.”—EG

“Gracie Abrams and Aaron Dessner are a match made in musical heaven. Their latest collaboration, ‘Hit the Wall,’ is a pulsating stream of consciousness that hasn’t left my head since its release. The track ebbs and flows like waves, bringing Abrams’s vulnerability into greater focus with each confessional lyric. And yes, there’s a killer bridge.”—Burake Teshome, senior social media editor

“From her latest album To Whom It May Concern, Scott offers a smooth and empowering anthem about knowing her worth. She remembers a former romantic partner who didn’t want to be seen with her, who only wanted to meet up at night but not in daylight. She felt ‘so much pressure to appear just like them,’ she sings of the other women she’d compare herself to. But in the end, she knows that man was in the wrong. She sings, ‘I found you so pathetic / I know you gon’ regret it.’ And I bet he does.”—EG

Read Jill Scott’s interview with ELLE

“Madonna is back, and we’re reliving the Confessions on a Dance Floor era with her upcoming album Confessions II. A classic for many gay men (myself included), the original served as an invitation to the dance floor, and the first single from the follow-up, ‘I Feel So Free,’ replicates that energy. Into the club we go.”—SM

“Raye is really showing off on her latest album, This Music May Contain Hope—as she should. Through four season-inspired acts, she shows off her songwriting and vocal range, especially on this song, which she says is ‘about the greatest heartbreak I have ever known.’ Though she has healed from it now, when she drives past the titular street, she remembers how someone once loved her, and how someone else will again. It’s beautifully written, and the outro is beautifully sung, with the kind of riffs and choir vocals that make you want to just lift your hands up and surrender.”—EG

Read Raye’s ELLE cover story

“If ‘Folded’ is about leaving the door open for a romance to possibly rekindle, ‘Shoulda Never’ is about knowing it’s done for sure and regretting it ever happened. Despite the bitter feelings in the lyrics, Kehlani keeps it smooth and classy, enlisting Usher for a track that oozes 2000s R&B-pop energy (likely thanks to Babyface’s production). This is on track to beat ‘Nights Like This’ as my most-played Kehlani song.”—EG

“Charli XCX knows pop music. As one of its hardest-working pioneers, she can alchemize a hook out of any emotion—a skill she wields to great effect on her companion album for Emerald Fennell’s cinematic adaptation of Wuthering Heights. On ‘Dying for You,’ she clearly understood her assignment, deploying frenzied strings and a bombastic chorus to capture the headlong rush of Cathy and Heathcliff’s onscreen relationship. It also wouldn’t sound out of place on The CW’s Gossip Girl, which makes it a perfect soundtrack song.”—Daniel Taroy, director, social and video

“You’re likely familiar with Ryan Beatty thanks to his work on Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter, but the singer’s own music is truly singular. Beatty’s always sung about love and loss, but ‘Secret Language’ feels more heartfelt and saccharine than his previous work. The back half of the track breaks open in a way that makes you want to run at full speed, straight to your lover—not unlike Beatty in the accompanying music video. It’s insecure, lovesick, and an incredible introduction to his latest album.”—BT

“Ellie Goulding is back and stronger than ever with ‘Black Prada Dress,’ the first serving from her upcoming album I Know Too Much. The song is classic Goulding, with a coming-of-age beat and electric synth, a great return to form. She also squelches the word ‘What’ during the first verse, which just tickles my brain.”—SM

“I have no doubt this song will be on my Spotify Wrapped, because I simply cannot get enough of it. Off her album Detour, ‘Need for Speed’ tells us that Petras isn’t looking to settle down; her life is too fast for that. Same, girl.”—SM

“This song joins the pantheon of Muna songs that make me feel like I’m transcending time and space. Their album’s title track is about struggling to break the ice with a potential partner, but the song itself, with its bouncy beat and ’80s feel, has no problem lodging itself deep inside your head.”—EG

Read Muna’s interview with ELLE

“Not to be dramatic, but this is a perfect album opener. Slayyyter slowly drags us into the dance-rock universe of Wor$t Girl in America with a buzzing bass line and clapping beats until it explodes into a full-blown rager. Yes, the TikTok trend it started is fun, but offline and in the club, it’s an anthem for dancing away your frustrations. ‘I kinda hate you, but it doesn’t matter, let me dance,’ she sings—we all know what that feels like.”—EG

“My standout track from Olivia Rodrigo’s excellent third album is ‘Expectations.’ The song felt like a natural progression for the pop star, leaning into a more classic rock space while staying true to her roots. It’s so catchy, and while she has winners all around on this project, this one has been on repeat for me ever since her new album dropped. Miss Rodrigo knows how to craft a tune.”—SM

“If you ask Taylor Swift—and much of the internet—2026 is the summer of Sombr. After a viral 2025, the 20-year-old singer’s momentum has only continued as he drops hit single after hit single, likely in the lead-up to his next album. ‘Potential’ is groovy and slick, with Daft Punk-esque backing vocals and disco sensibilities. It’s best played through your headphones at full volume as you strut through the streets of New York City on a hot summer day.”—BT

“I feel like I woke up one day and everyone was talking about Underscores. Although the artist has been releasing music on SoundCloud for years—and even toured with 100 Gecs—the release of her album U in March marked an exciting shift for the 26-year-old. This track (only one of nine on the short but sweet record) stopped me in my tracks right from its Imogen Heap-like intro. It begins with layered, staccato harmonies and grows fuller with each verse as she recounts a series of smoke breaks in the lyrics.”—EG

“Bring out the cowboy boots, my Sallys, because Role Model’s new track is a toe-tapper. Off his upcoming album Chuck Timely & The Hourglass, the song feels like the soundtrack to a perfect Sunday morning.”—SM

“This song by Japanese girl group XG lives up to its name. It kind of grabs hold of you unconsciously and, before you know it, you’re immersed in pure pop euphoria. For an extra treat: Watch Chase Infiniti dancing to the song here.”—EG

“The online whispers and surprise shows were all building toward something: Phoebe Bridgers is back with her first solo release in four years. Her latest single, ‘Lost Boys,’ written with her partner Bo Burnham, Alex G, and several of her longtime collaborators, feels lightly Kacey Musgraves-inspired, as a good friend of mine astutely observed. A ballad for anyone who’s ever dated a man with Peter Pan syndrome, Bridgers’s latest feels familiar yet expansive—a welcome introduction to her next musical era.”—BT