The Five Most Famous Pop Songs of All Time

Let’s take a look at the five most famous pop songs of all time according to Billboard magazine.

“I Want It That Way” by the Backstreet Boys

“I Want It That Way” is a song by American boy band the Backstreet Boys. It was released on April 12, 1999 as the lead single from their third studio album, Millennium. The song was written by Max Martin and Herbie Crichlow, and produced by Martin. “I Want It That Way” is a mid-tempo pop ballad that talks about a relationship strained by matters of emotional or physical distance.

The single was released in the United States to radio stations on April 13, 1999, and it quickly became the most-played song on radio in the country. “I Want It That Way” peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks, giving the Backstreet Boys their first and only Hot 100 number-one hit in the United States to date. In terms of total certified media according to Recording Industry Association of America, it is the group’s best-selling digital single in the United States with sales of 3 million copies as of January 2010. Outside North America, “I Want It That Way” topped the charts in fifteen countries, including Australia and Germany; it also peaked at number two in United Kingdom, where it was held off the top spot by Cher’s “Believe”.

The music video for “I Want It That Way” was directed by Wayne Isham and filmed in Los Angeles from March 23–24, 1999. The video features close-up shots of band members faces and other fast edits; despite this being typical for many boy bands’ songs during that time period such as N*Sync’s “Bye Bye Bye”, some critics found this video to be radically different compared to others of its kind during that time. Backstreet Boys performed an acoustic guitar version at Teen Choice Awards in 2000, where they also won an award for Best Group Video. They performed an acoustic version again on September 10, 2001 during their AOL Sessions; this performance was included on their live album Aki tour DVD release Live in Tokyo 2001: The Aki basho show! (a Japanese bootleg). They have also performed an acoustic version can be found on certain versions Backstreet Boys: Show ‘Em What You’re Made Of documentary movie (2015).

“Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears

“Baby One More Time” is a pop song recorded by American singer Britney Spears. It was released on October 23, 1998, by Jive Records as the lead single from her debut studio album of the same name. The song was written by Max Martin and produced by Martin and Rami Yacoub. It is a pop song that refers to a girl’s feelings after a break-up and has achieved massive worldwide success, reaching the top of the charts in twenty-seven countries, including the United Kingdom, where it became Spears’ first number-one single, and the United States, where it peaked at number one for two weeks.

The song has been credited with Spear’s rise to prominence as a pop star and has been covered by many artists. It received a Grammy nomination for Record of the Year at the February 2000 awards show. iTunes named “Baby One More Time” as one of The 100 Greatest Songs of All Time in 2008. In 2010, Billboard ranked it as the 18th-biggest hit of all time. Billboard also ranked “Baby One More Time” as Spears’ biggest hit on their Hot 100 Decade End Chart (1990–1999), as well as her second biggest hit overall on their Hot 100 Songs of All-Time chart only behind “Satisfaction” by Madonna. VH1 placed it as the second greatest video ever in their Greatest Pop Culture Icons poll in 2010. On January 12, 2016, “Baby One More Time” was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame following its commercial success and influence on popular culture over the past two decades.

“Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana

“Smells Like Teen Spirit” is a song by American rock band Nirvana. It was released as the lead single from the band’s second album, Nevermind (1991), in September 1991. The surprise success of the song propelled Nevermind to the top of several charts at the start of 1992, as well as establishing “Smells Like Teen Spirit” as one of the most famous and recognizable songs in alternative rock. The music video for “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was directed by Samuel Bayer and features footage of a live Nirvana performance intercut with shots of teenage alienation and rebellion.

Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl said that the idea for the video came to him while he was watching television one day: “I saw all these kids in their suburban homes and thought, ‘ Why can’t we just play our instruments in front of them?’ That’s how we ended up in that high school gym.” The video was an instant hit, becoming one of the most requested videos on MTV and winning multiple awards, including four MTV Video Music Awards. In 2005, Rolling Stone ranked it No. 9 on its list of the 100 Greatest Music Videos Of All Time.

“Wannabe” by the Spice Girls

“Wannabe” is a song by English girl group the Spice Girls. It was written by the group members—Emma Bunton, Melanie Brown, Melanie Chisholm, Geri Halliwell, and Victoria Beckham—with Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard during the group’s first professional songwriting session. The song was produced by Rowe and Stannard at Heartbreak Hotel in London. Released as the group’s debut single in July 1996, “Wannabe” topped the charts in 37 countries and helped propel the group to international success. It remains one of the best-selling singles of all time with over seven million copies sold. The song’s accompanying music video was directed by Swedish director Johan Renck and features the group dancing around Piccadilly Circus and other landmarks in London.

“Wannabe” has been widely credited with helping to break down cultural barriers and bring pop music to a global audience. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked it No. 5 on their list of the “500 Greatest Songs of All Time”. In 2012, Slant Magazine placed it at No. 14 on their list of “The 100 Greatest Pop Songs of All Time”. In 2014, NME ranked it No. 17 on their list of “The 150 Greatest Tracks of All Time – The Ultimate Countdown”.

“Beat It” by Michael Jackson

“Beat It” is a song written and performed by American recording artist Michael Jackson from his 1982 album, Thriller. The song was produced by Quincy Jones and Jackson. An uptempo song, it features rock guitar riffs by Eddie Van Halen and a rhythm section. “Beat It” received positive reviews from music critics. One of the few songs on Thriller that was written by Jackson, it became the album’s second-best-selling single,predominantly due to its music video, which is credited with popularizing the use of music videos and breaking racial barriers in television and film. The single was certified platinum in the United States in 1989. Rolling Stone placed “Beat It” at number 374 on its list of “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time”, and at number 11 on its list of “The 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time”. In 2001, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.