Beth’s March Top Artists
Happy April B&B readers. Here are March’s top artists and their top songs!
10. Solange
Song of the Month: Some Things Never Seem To Fucking Work
It was only a matter of time before Solange landed on this list, and it’s no surprise to me that she did in March, when we finally got some good weather. If I’m walking around the neighborhood on a nice day, you better believe I’m listening to Solange. If I’m on the metra looking longingly out the window, yeah, you guessed it, I’m listening to Solange. And I’m probably playing the same song over and over and over again until I decide to switch songs and play the next one over and over and over again.
9. Doechii
Song of the Month: Persuasive
Last month was my first time featuring Doechii on this list and I picked her song, BOILED PEANUTS as my SOTM, but what you didn’t know reading that article, is that my favorite Doechii song is, and always will be, Persuasive. The first time I heard this song it was an out-of-body experience. Persuasive hit me like a ton of feathers, because bricks just wouldn’t fit here. There is nothing better than dancing to this song alone in my bedroom, I feel like an ethereal princess goddess. If Doechii has no fans, I’m dead, she makes me so excited about music, specifically what the music industry could be with more artists like her in it. I admire the hell out of her.
8. Kaytranada
Song of the Month: Freefall (feat. Durand Bernarr)
As the weather starts to get better, we’re gonna be seeing a lot more Kaytranada on these lists. He’s my go-to Summer artist. March saw a major BUBBA resurgence for me, from Freefall, to Need It, to What You Need, I’ve been hardcore listening to the album all month. However, one stands taller than the rest, Freefall. I am obsessed with this song in every way. I love how upbeat it is, seamlessly coinciding with lyrics about letting go and trusting someone, hoping they’ll catch you. I love how these lyrics depict a part of life that can actually be quite scary, but the rhythm and tempo make it feel like the storyteller is more excited than anxious. “Catch me, baby, here I come!”
7. Beach Fossils
Song of the Month: Social Jetlag
Honorable Mention: Saint Ivy
I had to hand out my very first B&B SOTM Honorable Mention for this one because it was truly such a hard decision, I’ve been heavily listening to both songs all month. When it came down to it, I had to pick Social Jetlag because I adore the piano in this song. I love that it sounds like a little chime, it’s so perfect. Both Social Jetlag and Saint Ivy let the instruments speak for themselves, something that can be seen across the entirety of Beach Fossils’ Somersault album, my personal favorite.
6. STRFKR
Song of the Month: Carnival
Okay, my Summer go-to’s are really showing up and showing out for March. We saw a few sunny days here in Chicago which, clearly, altered my listening habits. One sunny day, and it’s officially Summer to Beth Xanthopoulos’s ears. I was, and still am, a major Being No One, Going Nowhere girl, and then right around this time last year, STRFKR released their Parallel Realms album. Brat Summer? No babes, we’re having a Parallel Realms Summer ‘round these parts, I’m so sorry. (I’m not.) My big three from the album are probably going to have to be Carnival, Feelings, and Holding On.
5. Rihanna
Song of the Month: James Joint
Just like Solange, it was truly only a matter of time before Rihanna landed on one of these lists. There is nothing quite like singing Rihanna in the shower, and this month, I really leaned into that fact. Specifically her ANTI album. Show me a skip. Show me a skip! You can’t. Every few months, I lock in on a random singular song from this album and cannot get it out of my head for weeks, this time it was James Joint. Last time it was Same Ol’ Mistakes, and the time before that it was Kiss It Better. I never know when it’s gonna hit me, I simply know, it is inevitable, and it won’t be Work.
4. The Marías
Song of the Month: Clueless
I love The Marías, and I loveeee Clueless. As I’m sure you’re starting to pick up on, I love a jazzy, psychedelic, indie, pop tune, and, most of all, I love a spacey female voice. I love how sultry this song feels while lyrically talking about feeling clueless in love. TO ME, the blend picks up on the naivety of being in love, feeling sexy and confused at the same time, feeling love and loved with a pause in your heart. It’s teetering the line between desire and detachment with no real conclusion.
3. Victoria Monét
Song of the Month: Moment
Victoria Monét let me tell you something, no one was fighting harder for you on the internet and in group chats than me when you won Best New Artist at the 2024 Grammys. “Who even is Victoria Monét?” Let me tell you something about Ms.Victoria Monét. She actually got her start in songwriting, even collaborating with Ariana Grande on Thank U, Next. Ariana (hi first name basis) describes her as a timeless writer and vocalist, and I couldn’t agree more. Moment has actual manifesting powers to me. The song is literally about someone manifesting Victoria Monét into their life, but also “fuck a fantasy, this your motherfuckin moment,” a sentiment I truly want to scream off a cliff. You can manifest something all you want, but it’s really about what you do when that fantasy is standing right in front of your face. What are you gonna do? You better make it your fuckin moment.
2. Sza
Song of the Month: Green Mile
Bury me with a Z vinyl in my clutches, I’m begging. No one does a breakup song like Sza, and, dare I say, Green Mile is her best. The way this song depicts the end of a traumatic, painful relationship is genius to me. “Killed a small boy once, never told no one. If it wasn’t for my shotgun, he’d be alive and I’d be halfway to heaven.” Yeah, so I’m gonna have to lay flat on my back on the floor in starfish position to unpack that one. The fake-out ending is absolute perfection, the last verse switching entirely perfectly closes the book. It serves as a glimpse into what you’re thinking about yourself after a fiery, intense breakup like that, you’re questioning everything.
1. Beyoncé
Song of the Month: 6 Inch
Before I start going off about Beyoncé as I always do- I would like it to be known that every month, I use Receiptify to see my top artists of the month. Every month so far, Beyoncé has been number one, but you’ll never guess who has been number two. The coveted number two spot on B&B monthly wrapped has always been White Noise Radiance. However, and sorry to white noise heads out there, I’m here to talk about music, and that is not music. So, number 11 always gets bumped up to number 10, and so on and so forth. Now that I’ve said that, it’s really important to me that you notice that even though I listen to white noise almost every night, it STILL comes second to Beyoncé because you really can’t outdo the doer. Okay, back to our regularly scheduled programming! Beyoncé! 6 Inch was almost immediately my favorite song off her Lemonade album, it has always ignited a fire in me that I never even knew existed. If I need to get myself hyped up, feeling like a bad bitch for anything, I’m playing 6 Inch. No doubt. When that “6-inch heeeeeeels” rings in my ears, I immediately snap back into who the eff I am.
Another month down, another wrapped down. I’m getting the feeling that Beyoncé will reign supreme as my artist of the year, anyone else? As always, I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing!
Write you soon!
Beth
