Beyond 'Trap Queen': Our Predictions for the Songs of the Summer

Maroon 5, “This Summer’s Gonna Hurt Like a Motherfucker”

As much as it pains me to do this, I’m nominating “This Summer’s Gonna Hurt Like a Motherfucker,” Maroon 5’s blatant summer-song pander. It’s got the type of hook douchebags can sing along to and that simple sway melody is made for drunken hot nights. Getting “Rude” vibes all over again. Plus, these dumb lyrics: “I check my phone when I am weak/She never posts anything deep.” —Clover Hope

Made in Heights, “Ghosts”

I am bordering on over-saturation on this song, but Made In Heights just released their debut album, Without My Enemy What Would I Do, this week, so maybe it will be brand new to you. “Ghosts” debuted last September, but really it’s a song for summer and bike rides and bopping your shoulders in the sun. Kelsey Bulkin floats over the drums, as she tends to do, with airy Janet sighs and asides. “Death” isn’t so bad, either. Listen to this album. —Emma Carmichael

Erik Hassle, “No Words”

This song is like a happy July breeze, an orchestral r&b dance jam with a vibe that feels fresh and bright and new—but not too edgy for the be-khaki’d bros. And god knows we need their blessing to make this happen. —Ellie Shechet

A$AP Rocky f. Rod Stewart, Miguel, & Mark Ronson, “Everyday”

This is the song I want to hear every day this summer. —Jane Marie

Amy Schumer, “Girl You Don’t Need Makeup”

It’s catchy, it’s funny, and it’s no worse than any of the other garbage on the radio. In a just world, this song would dominate the airwaves until it’s no longer fashionable to wear white. —Erin Gloria Ryan

Spice, “Back Bend”

“So Mi Like It” won last summer for Spice. While I don’t love “Back Bend” (or “Bend Ova”) as much, I fully anticipate losing my goddamn mind when any and every DJ drops this in a sweaty Brooklyn club or rooftop this summer. They better; if they don’t, I’m rioting with a crew of dancehall queens and signs that read “my pussy pretty when ti turn back wayyyyy” or maybe “fat clump, mi a wine pon the dick and it a thump.”—Julianne Escobedo Shepherd

Wiz Khalifa f. Charlie Puth, “See You Again”

Right now Fetty Wap’s “Trap Queen” is neck in neck with Wiz Khalifa’s “See You Again.” Julianne believes that “Trap Queen” will come out victorious, but I for one am not so optimistic. For starters, people love nostalgia and with “See You Again” basically being an ode to the late Paul Walker, it has the entire weight of the Fast and Furious franchise behind it. Also, I hate to admit it, but the song damn catchy. It’s one of those tracks where, intellectually, you know it’s not that good, but you let it play all the way through on the radio because it’s not that offensive.

However, much of the outcome hinges upon whether or not middle America ever finds out what a trap queen actually is and how they react to the news. I don’t want them to disappoint me, but they probably will. —Kara Brown

Kilo Kish, “Begin Route”

I mentioned before that I just uncovered the goodness that is Kilo Kish—her K+ mixtape has been on repeat on SoundCloud for the past few weeks—but it’s “Begin Route,” off of her more recent Across album, that’s setting the tone to my summer. I’m a beach person—more specifically, a water person (I love to swim)—and the whimsical, synth-y background of this track (which is just under a minute and a half long, merely an introduction) makes me think of being a mermaid. And for me, the start of summer feels like the start of a new year, full of potential and things waiting to be discovered. —Karyn Polewaczyk

Janelle Monáe f. Jidenna, “Yoga”

Janelle Monáe’s “Yoga” might not be the official song of the summer, but it will be my song of the summer. Or, at the very least, I will tell you to “get off my areola” enough for you to think that it’s my song of the summer. Get off my areola, please. —Madeleine Davies

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