The Top 10 Tracks of 2024 | WEA I


Welcome to the 2024 year-end review, celebrating a year of great EDM and music. Here we will be counting down the TOP 10 TRACKS of the year!!!! I have decided to brand it as "WEA = Wizwilzo's EDM Awards" and I'm not sure if it has aura but it is short so that works.

Now yes it is March, and I hold myself to high standards on my music reviews, however it kinda got the best of me because I was trying to be a perfectionist for this year-end reviews and I ended up procrastinating so much because I was scared to approach everything. However it's spring break now and I have time so let's do it.

What makes a "Top 10" track?

What is a good track to me and what is good music to me. It's simple: A great progression. A progression of a song from section to section, from movement to movement, how the drop shapes the character of a song, and how the verses and prechorus compliment and setup what follows. There's something so beautiful when everything just comes together in a final grand chorus, or emerging themes and verses are supported so well in the drops. 

Then more specifically, what drew me towards EDM in the first place is synths. I love a good synth solo, good synth runs, and a really addicting synth melody. Giorgio miordor said it best in his Daft Punk thing that the synthesizer is the sound of the future, and there's something so compelling about that digital/analog sound to me that's drew me to where I am today. A great synth lead does so much to a track and adds so much, then there's synth pads, vocal chops, color bass, more, and that's what EDM is. 

So the #1 thing for me is progressions, then particularly, I love synths, I love honestly any melody that hits, I love vocal chops, I love vocal chop midsections, I love electric guitar solos, I love drum solos or a fancy drum pattern, I love strings (when done right), I love key changes, I love vocal contrasts (boy + girl on/off vocals), I love hearing raw piano amongst synth pads and chaos, I love 2nd-verse variations, I love octave jumps, I love bass solos, I love jazz fusion and keyboard solo-ing, I honestly love solo-ing in general.

Honorable Mentions

2024 was full of so many great releases, artists exploring new genres, big collaborations. With this dedicated WEA Top 10 Tracks post, it's disrespectful not to have a space where I shout out 9 more songs because 10 is just so little. 

  • [October] Knock2, Sophia, Gripari - hold my hand
    • We have to start here with Knock2's second single of his nolimit record released in January 2025. This track is instantly so iconic and unique with that intro, just a raw, deep, soulful analog synth and acid bass. It's almost like a tribute to this idea of "nolimit" music, setting the stage and roots of all things electronic. It's so beautiful to me, you don't hear tracks and progressions that take this slow approach to delve into the drop, just a pure, slow-paced synth solo. So simple yet brings so much aura to this track. Then it takes the backseat as it guides the drop and we have such a euphoric, unified, melodic drop with countermelodies, vocals, the iconic Knock2 open hi-hat, and of course the iconic, dramatic dip into the 2nd verse. It's just such a pure Knock2 structure but in this new melodic-focused soundscape and it's so beautiful, Knock2 just embraces the character of this track so well.
    • This track just feels so euphoric through the swings of the verse vs. drop. The verses take their time and are more natural, minamilist, raw, and that midsection just serves such a Knock2 style of sound design. The drops are so unified, just pure chord stacks, counter melodies, and fills that bring everything together and make the whole track come together. It's really beautiful and I just love this style of track from Knock2, you usually hear these long, drawn out bass house drops from Knock2 but this melodic synth-run based approach just takes everything. And this isn't even the best single from the record, (foreshadow).
  • [July] M-Vantasy, dark cat, juu - I Like It
    • A pure earworm of a track comes M-Vantasy, dark cat, and juu's "I Like It." Whether it's the CAT Version or the Vocal Version, it's impossible not to absolutely jam out to that chorus, those vocal licks, and the aesthetic and atmosphere of this track. The vocals are so catchy and so melodic, the progression is great with the string sections and drop sections man it doesn't overdo anything. This track has been maxed out on replay it's so replayable I literally don't get sick of it and it's so catchy and I just straight up love listening to this track so much it really is just that simple. We have that outro that just rounds it out too with the syncopation too, seriously incredible track, this would probably be in the #11 slot, I really wanted to put it in the top 10 and it honestly might deserve to do so but I'm stubborn and don't know what to take out if I add this track there.
  • [April] niko rain, EJEAN - Stay A While
    • niko rain finally exploded onto the indie, electronic scene with "Stay A While" which just straight up went viral. Not just on instagram and tiktok but with over 10M+ spotify streams in like 10 months and still growing very strongly to this day. Two asian bay area, homegrown artists of niko rain and EJEAN collaborate for such a catchy tune that just makes you feel warm inside. I feel like I've been saying this towards every track but it's just so replayable too. The vocals are so authentic and the progression is so catchy, it's just a beautiful track with a perfect execution, like there's not a single section in there that you feel is drawn out or filler. The entire vocal progression just moves with a purpose and the instrumentation guides everything so well, the fills, adlibs add so much, the chemistry and contrast between the vocals add to the magic too, and man this track is so amazing I'm so happy of how successful this track is man like I've been listening to niko rain when he was at under 100k monthly listeners so to see this makes me feel so proud. It's impossible not to mention this song in a 2024 year-end review, what an inspirational success story of a track from niko rain and EJEAN. 
  • [August] Trivecta - Watch The Stars
    • This track is one of the most unique tracks of 2024, my favorite from Find My Way, and it all works so well it's unbelievable. 
    • Narration EDM, long wubstep sections, and a grand electric guitar finale. It's almost like it's 3 tracks in one, taking turns. The wubstep section is just a mastery, it is so replayable and catchy and the rhythm and syncopation is amazing, everytime I listen to this track I always tap my desk or do something to the rhythm of those wubstep hits, it's so addicting. But this track wouldn't be on here without that electric guitar solo, like if you know me you know how much I love electric guitars and the shredding in this track is so euphoric man it's actually crazy. Those runs and solo'ing above that instrumentation makes you feel like you can levitate, it's so incredible, I just love electric guitar solos and finishes so much and this track executes it so perfectly, really well done from Trivecta.
  • [November] Emei - SUGARCOAT
    • Emei's RABBITHOLE EP in November had some nice vocal-pop cuts and tunes, but among the 5 tracks stands out "SUGARCOAT" which is an addictive, catchy, and progressive track. The prechorus that just sets the stage and builds the tension into that "spluuurrge!" drop with those sweeping and fading synths everywhere, it's just such a fun atmosphere. Then there's that melodic B-section that finishes it off and we have a track that is so highly replayable. What a sweet and creative drop that never gets tiring, the progression is stellar too.
  • [March] Shakira, Cardi B - Puntería
    • Shakira and Cardi B team up on "Puntería," opening Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran. This track has absolutely been growing on me and it's just another fun, happy, carefree earworm of a track. I love that b-section with that synth solo like it's so catchy I love that section so much. And the verses and feature just flow really well, there's that variation in the 2nd verse and with that it just becomes such a beautifully executed track. The production is commercial which is totally fine, it really does it's job especially in those small pulsing sections in the 2nd verse and chorus. I totally expected my favorite track from the Shakira album to be the Bizarrap collab which is definitely fire, but Puntería is such a versatile banger of a track.

  • [October] Charli xcx, Bb trickz - Club Classics featuring bb trickz
    • You can't make this post and not talk about what Charli xcx did with BRAT, and for me, I didn't give it the respect until the remix collaborating album came out in October. The remixes just added so much flavor to the tracks, I talk about it a lot in my October new EDM post because that remix album just completely redefined what a remix means. Like they just took the vocals and remixed everything else completely and it was so unique.
    • So let's talk about Club Classics remixed with bb trickz which varies vastly from the original. This track is kind of on steroids and it's a deeper cut, not of the popularity caliber of "Guess featuring Billie Eilish" but this track stood out to me the most. There's these skrillex wubs that build the identity of the track and there's so much syncopation and aggressive vocal deliveries. Like that one fill that kinda transitions to the chorus is just so incredible it still gets me everytime and I can't help but sing along to it now. The spanish verse from Bb trickz is so incredible and it deviates the vocals just so well like I really like this song so much just because of how much of a mess it all is. Like these sections are so crazy and to round it off with that "3-6-5" background and "bumpin that, bumpin that" and those uneasy synths and just whatever this entire song is, i think it's supposed to mimic being on drugs, but this song works so well. It really speaks to the aesthetic of BRAT and yeah I can go over more about the track sonically but I think that's enough from me here I kinda said what I needed to say.
  • [April] Taylor Swift - I Can Do It With a Broken Heart
    • 2024 was also the year of Taylor Swift's 11th studio album, TTPD, and it was pretty underwhelming considering my standards for her. However, we did get this earworm of a track in "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" about the eras tour and how she "did it with a broken heart" and the dichotomy of that really upbeat, bright synths and vocals in the chorus compared to the slower, darker, drawn out verse. Also the juxtaposition of the lyrics with that cheerful, bouncy synths speaks to how she was hiding all the pain and everything and acting while on the eras tour. That eras tour was so big bruh ok this post is gonna be way too long if i start talking about the eras tour, but this track is really solid and that chorus is such a hit. I was actually glazing it like crazy in my first reactions to the album lmao. I do think that the verse is a little bit too drawn out and lacking depth/variation, it feels kinda like filler sometimes, there's room there to shift the production a bit or add in a unique midsection or something, idk I will say that tho. 
  • [April] The Chainsmokers, Fridayy - Friday
    • My favorite from The Chainsmokers' No Hard Feelings EP was in the form of single "Friday" which is very remniscent of the 2015 hit "Roses", so much to the point where some people say this track is a low-effort unmemorable money grab trying to replicate that 2015 vibe. However, I thought this track was a vocal standout, those low tones through the verse and runs in the prechorus just build such a unique atmosphere i love it so much, and then it's just straightup solidified as a top-tier track on that drop its so fire. Those digital synth pads and then those little whips in the fill, really great drop and the pace in the 2nd verse is really solid. What a versatile track here that I always love revisiting. The Chainsmokers is so hit or miss honestly, you'll have the most bland, plain production and then the next week you'll have the sensation of "Friday."
  • [December] Jaron, riza - STARS (feat. riza)
    • This 6-minute closing track from Jaron's LIGHTYEARS only has 28k streams in 3 months, yet it's one of the most drawn out emotional tracks I've ever heard. What a year for Jaron as he elevates his vocals in a new light, exploring this really powerful emotional, dirty, chaotic, and muddy sound design. This is all finalized and celebrated in "STARS" with such an emotional, grand drop that makes you feel like the world is ending, and when it does end, you hear this soulful, deep, drawn out, somber guitar solo. It sounds so soothing and I love it so much in the context of this track, what a beautiful finish to this album that carries just so much emotion with every note. Absolutely blew me away and definitely would've made the top 20 list. 

Top 10

10 - Virtual Riot - Stealing Fire [October]

    Virtual Riot finally released an album since 2021, Stealing Fire, and the title track is a plethora of just insane sound design, genre-bending drops, unpredictable progressions, and just a rollercoaster of sound scapes. I especially love listening to this track directly after the intro track "Embark" in the album. 
    What really rounds this out for me at the #10 spot is not only that 1st drop entrance just being absolutely sensational, but that transition into that future-house B-section like it literally feels like you're hovering on clouds and just all the intricacies, the fills, the vocal adlibs are done so meaningfully to create my favorite track off Stealing Fire. There's that glitch-hop 2nd drop with the blips and it just sets up the album so well and really the only way to describe this song is just mindblowing and insane. As the first drop goes, "Got this sh*t, going, insane!"


9 - Vylet Pony - Girls Who Are Wizards [July]

    Similarly, the #9 slot goes to Vylet Pony's title track and opener in Pony's big release of Girls Who Are Wizards. This album is all over the place, with some ginormous drops, progressions, and samplings. I was introduced to this album from Bowtied Media and figured to give it a try and that first listen and opening drop on "Girls Who Are Wizards" is INSANE, it's some old-school skrillex-inspired bro-step that reminded me of some sub.sound work too. I love the synths that expand on the drop and then it just pivots back to the gritty bro-step, and the rhythm of the bro-step and the pacing is very linear with the samplingn and everything. 

But what really blew my mind was the vocal entrance in the midsection, like that just straightup blew me out of the water as I was wondering why this track is so long. The sheer aura in that setup and entrance is so good and the production and chords behind it that guides the vocals man it's so good AND IT ONLY GETS BETTER WITH THAT VOCAL CHOP MIDSECTION. If you know me you know how much I love vocal chop midsections I have a whole playlist for them and this trope just hits so different it feels like I'm bouncing on a bright sunny day, it's so quality it's so gold, absolute beauty. So that is why it lands at this #9 slot and as my favorite track of the album, that midsection progression just absolutely takes me home like that is PURE EDM in its BEST FORM and it's so innovative and so authentic. There's many other candidates that I was considering, such as "Facing Oblivion to Become the Lode Star" and "Sacred Dragon". This track and the album in its entirety too is also just so genuine in its songwriting and production, like it just feels like Vylet Pony's full potential is unlocked and Pony just does what she wants and chooses the transitions she wants and these tracks are so unique. It feels like Pony's just by herself in the studio so into it, so addicted, losing track of time, cooking these tracks up, at her best, and Pony really loves every minute of the process.


    Easily the standout track of Zedd's 9-year comeback, grammy-nominated, Telos. Descensus takes us on a mind-warping journey across beautiful strings, creeping harps/production, an elite, top-tier, constructed progression and drop. It's the classic Zedd sound and Zedd synths but in this 2025 modern, dark, creative soundscape of strings, guitars, tension, and digital synths. I love those synth glides in the drop that just guide the main plot of the progression and all those fills in between whether it's the breath inhale samples, drum breaks, or sweeps. I instantly knew on my first listen of this track that it woudl land in the top 10 and be the standout track of the album. Most importantly, I remember listening to this album for the first time that when I heard this track, I just told myself, "YES! this is it, Zedd's done it" like this album was just missing that standout sensational track and I knew I found it with "Descensus". Moreover this track was so unique and you can tell that Zedd actually cares so much more about the artistry behind his music more than chasing numbers and commercial success. This is his recipe to success.


7 - Knock2 - feel U luv Me [September]

    Knock2 has the entire EDM community and world in a chokehold, as "feel U luv Me" to me is THE success story of 2025. Knock2 just absolutely embraces who Knock2 is and what the Knock2 sound is, and most importantly what "nolimit" music means. When I think of Knock2 tracks structurally, it's a ride. Big A-B sections in the drop with the B-sections absolutely going haywire and expanding, and then it dips back to a filler, somber midsection that's relaly all meant to setup the final drop that celebrates the track. "feel U luv Me" is no different, and it captures this just addicting, captivating vocal hook and executes the drops so well for such a versatile track. I do feel that the ending is kinda abrupt and could support a proper outro whether it's just hedging towards the instrumentals or creating a separate hook that kinda resolves the story. That's my one suggestion to make, as I love those legato sections in the drop as it adds so much character to the melody. The B-sections are incredible with the grittiness and vocal chops. This track doesn't do too much either, and it really leans into this Knock2 sound and aura so well. 


        Porter Robinson and his 3rd era in Smile :D has arrived, and although this album is well-defined by lead single "Cheerleader", I chose "Is There Really No Happiness" to represent this album in the rankings because it just resonates so much harder with me. It has this deep nostalgic, Nurture side to it and I love the synths and vocal chops in it. It's leaning more on the electronic side compared to the rest of the tracks in the album, and that sample in the final chorus is so beautiful, it's such a nostalgic, sentimental feeling and it sums up the songwriting of this track so well. Now some people even chose "Russian Roulette" as their top track from Smile :D, but I still think that ITRNH has more versatility, better songwriting, a great drop, and just more memorable and connecting to me.


    Latin artists in producer Bizarrap and singer/rapper Young Miko team up to make such a catchy, captivating, and unique track, ultimately easily becoming my favorite in Bizarrap's stacked discography. The vocals are so incredible especially with this lucid, empty atmosphere in the production. The chorus and transitiosnn are so crispy and the production is just so minimal yet so incredible just all the little effects and placements are so intentional, and that midtempo midsection just ABSOLUTELY takes me away. This midtempo is absolutely SENSATIONAL. The stretched out, pitch-bending, vocal chops. The fills, the drums, MAN no one asked Bizarrap to make a midtempo midsection and this is why this track is so sensational, it's so innovative it feels so ahead of its time like Bizarrap is really pushing boundaries by all the genre-mixing hes doing and experimenting with, I need him to release more in 2025. 


    This is nostalgic NCS just fully embraced and reinvented by Skybreak and vocalist Keepsake. The verses are so versatile just with Keepsake's approachable core and the piano production that really let the vocals shine... and that's where it takes us to this drop that is just so beautiful and nostalgic it's got that iconic Skybreak twang in it and I love those repeated lines so much that transition into the B-section, absolute BEAUTY with the synth work. Then that final drop just absolutely takes me home man the variation and the synth run is so beautiful man it's exactly what we need in this track it does so much justice for the beauty of this track. I love grand finishes like this one with taht synth run it's so beautiful I love the reverb and the sound design so much man it just feels so freeing. So many commercial tracks are so cautious and lazy with their 2nd drops that it feels so disrespectful to the art of music like I really believe that. Like there's one thing to be a minimalist and keep things linear with the 2nd drops that sometimes it works, but there's another thing to just straight up be lazy and flat-out plain.


    This track really put Skybreak on the radar for me as one of those top-tier, elite artists. Skybreak absolutely KILLS IT in Sharks' final track before his hiatus from music to focus on his schoolwork and life stuff. This track's verse and the verse progression is solid, it's not spectacular. The vocalist is serviceable, and it's a nice verse but nothing insane. However, the drops are just so versatile and addicting, it's this Skybreak synth that absolutely shines I just love those high register runs and bends and the pacing of the melody and the pauses between runs is just so incredible and then the Sharks B-section with that gritty dubstep and screeches man it's so special this is such an elite track. Everytime man, those synth releases get me so hard. And then the Sharks sound design finish is just the perfect B-section it adds so much variance to the drop yet it fits in to the progression so well like this is the new generation melodic dubstep that focuses on these more innovative, colorful sounds and it's just a beauty to be living in this era. What a sensational drop man, words can't describe how incredible this drop structure and progression is and just everything in between. Nothing else I can say but bravo to Skybreak and Sharks. 

2 - Teminite - Yours [March]

    Teminite had a relatively quiet year, just releasing some singles here and there. However, we heard "Yours" in March, featuring a blending of smooth, gritty, keyboard solos, saxophone solos, vocal chops, and melodic dubstep. Pure production of its finest, pure electronic dance music and just such a raw and natural progression that flows so perfectly. This is what Teminite does best, reminiscent of the Unstoppable EP which put Teminite on legendary status for me. It's this new modern sound of EDM and Teminite, and the progression is so beautiful and iconic but with these new digital smooth sounds, and just pure production. No need for vocals to guide the story, it's all synth solo'ing and saxophone solo'ing for the midsection and finish. That's what makes this track so versatile landing at the #2 spot. The progression, the themes, the resolutions, and just the raw solo'ing to guide this track is one of one. 



The Track of the Year.

PIKASONIC - Factory [July]

    This wasn't a tough decision to make. "Factory" instantly grew on me, as I've simply never heard music like this before. The raw and pure simplicity of these sections in the progression of "Factory" is so beautiful that it just clicks so well. It's an upbeat, energetic, positive tune where the beat drop makes you feel like life makes sense finally. When I listen to these drops I'm in a reflective state, it makes me think of fireworks in the sky, nighttime emotions, and just those moments where you feel so happy and carefree. Japanese producer PIKASONIC creates such great nostalgic tunes and progressions, a lot of people connected with "Haruka" in March on the CHOMPO label which is similar in structure and composition to "Factory", but "Factory" is something of a different breed, as that drop is so special and everything surrounding it is so sensational. This track is easily in one of my top 10 or top 5 tracks of all time.
    The synth choice, drum kit, and intro instantly sets you in a nostalgic state. And then the buildups are so beautiful man it still gets me every time this is such a beauty of a track and the drops man it's so rare to hear a drop that gives you goose bumps like this and gets you in your feeling so hard. Some people may hear this as just another uplifting electronic tune but the drop just hits so hard and the melody is so beautiful and the fills just add everything to this song. And then the midsection pacing with the pianos, the strings, it's such a perfect track. The vulnerability and intimacy in that 2nd buildup before it picks its pace back up is so standard yet executed so well. Like the structure of this song is so blocky and so discrete, I think back to "Language" by Porter Robinson where every 4 bars is just well-defined and there's just simple transitions and fills within the sections and somehow that's all you need in a track sometimes.



Conclusion

And that takes us to the end of this post as we wrap up EDM in 2024. Be on the lookout for my top 5 albums in the coming months and potentially a top 5 artists. Wow, man does that track "Factory" feel like a once in a year type of track. How lucky we are to have that track in our 2024. It deserves all this glory and more. 




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