REVIEW OF THE YEAR: Most Played Songs of 2012

2012 has been another prolific year in the music industry, with tracks from all around the world hitting the coveted #1 spot and entertaining us through the radio waves every day. However, there have been 6 songs in particular that have been played to exhaustion, with the first notes of their introduction resulting in a nationwide sigh when they are heard on the radio.

In January, who would have thought that the most successful song of the year would have come from South-Korea?

1. Psy – Gangnam Style

Without a mention of his name or even the song title, you know exactly who I’m talking about. Of course, it is 34-year-old Psy, whose song ‘Gangnam Style’ has inspired us all at our Christmas parties to take up that horse-like dance craze that has become a universal phenomenon. Just last week on December 21^st, Gangnam Style became the first video ever to hit 1 billion views on YouTube, but why? Despite being immensely catchy, with the phrase ‘Opa Gangnam Style’ sparking a dance-uprising whenever it is heard, we have absolutely no idea what it means! Even Psy himself in an interview said “It doesn’t have any meaning actually. I’m just saying Gangnam Style, Gangnam Style.” Nevertheless, 1 billion of us worldwide have sat and watched that video; plus, people are still buying it! After reaching the UK Number One spot in September, it still hasn’t left the Top 10, even eighteen weeks after its release.

2. Gotye – Somebody That I Used To Know

Gotye may not have a renowned dance routine or even a particularly catchy dance beat, but is still responsible for undoubtedly one of the most successful songs of 2012. If asked if you had heard of Wouter De Backer, I’m quite confident you would have no clue who he was, but once hearing the xylophone introduction of his universally popular song, his identity would soon become clear. After its release in January, Gotye spent 5 weeks at #1 and a sensational 18 weeks in the Top 10. His success was worldwide, particularly in his homeland of Belgium, where it became the most downloaded song of all time.

3. Carly Rae Jepsen – Call Me Maybe

We have Justin Bieber to thank for this one. After hearing the song and tweeting about it, the power of Bieber was truly reflected as the song began to spread. By April, the song reached the UK #1 spot where it remained for four weeks. With an incredibly memorable chorus, you will find the lyrics haunting you all day. Whether you like the song or not (although I imagine most people fall into the first category), you will have found yourself humming to its upbeat and cheery tune at some point. Just like Psy, Carly Rae Jepsen has inspired us all to take up a dance routine, although inadvertently, to sing and dance along holding our thumb and little finger in the typical telephone manner as the title ‘Call Me Maybe’ is sung and repeated.

Carly Rae Jepsen & Katy Perry

4. Fun. – We Are Young

Spending 14 weeks in the UK Top 10, this indie power ballad deserves its place on this list. After its release in April, there came a time when you couldn’t go a day without hearing ‘We Are Young’ playing somewhere. It has been said by many critics that the success of the song was propelled by hit US TV show ‘Glee’, where it was first brought to attention commercially. As the success of the band has spread, this debut #1 single and the accompanying debut album ‘Some Nights’ have both been nominated for the a notorious Grammy Award.

5. Maroon 5 – Payphone

Following on from the success of their hit single ‘Moves Like Jagger’ in 2011, Maroon 5 returned in 2012 with yet another ultimate track that remains stamped in your memory. Unlike the other tracks on this list, whose musical introductions immediately gain your attention, ‘Payphone’ is even more overt, pumping out its initial lyrics through your stereo, instantaneously launching your vocal participation!

6. Emeli Sandé – Read All About It (Pt III)

In this ultimate sporting year for Britain, this song quickly became the unofficial soundtrack to everything Olympics-themed. Opening Ceremony, Closing Ceremony and even BBC Sports Personality of the Year – Emeli Sandé was everywhere. Part One of the song, a collaboration with rapper Professor Green, was already a successful hit in 2011; Emeli reintroduced her part of the song as a solo track in 2012 and was clearly a favourite of director Danny Boyle, as well as the BBC who quickly pressed the ‘Play’ button on the track whenever a musical interlude was required on any Olympics coverage.

Running Joke: a worker on the underground reflects the repetition of Emeli Sande's appearances at the Olympics

Words are continuously being coined and added to the English Dictionary and so it seems only suitable that the term ‘earworm’ was created in 2012. As stated in the Oxford Dictionary, an earworm is ‘a catchy song or tune that runs continually through someone’s mind’; a term that can easily sit alongside these 6 most heard songs of the year. No matter how irritating they may become after a sustained period of time, it is without doubt, however, that these six songs deserve their success as the year’s greatest earworms.

Britain vs Europe - The Battle of the Foreign Festivals

As 2012 draws to a close and we reflect on the year, it seems that the UK has really shined in terms of cultural events. It goes without saying that not only our nation, but nations across the world, have gathered to watch the UK this year more than ever – the Brits really know how to do it best.

The London 2012 Olympics have been acclaimed and praised, with many saying that it is the greatest Games ever. Not only was the organisation of the events at the Olympic Park a roaring success, but also that of our British Olympians, with a marvellous medal haul of 65 in the Olympics and a triumphant 120 in the Paralympics.

Shortly before this was of course the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Celebrations in June. As a country we were reminded of the prestigious British title that we all so proudly adorn, taking delight in the spectacle of the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant, whereby over 1000 boats assembled around the centrepiece of the Royal Barge, whilst the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh sat in their velvet red thrones. However, cast your mind back to this very day – whether you stood on the bank of the Thames or watched the BBC television coverage, one element that will certainly be remembered is the terrible, yet typical, British weather.

Of course, it was an extra-long Bank Holiday, and it would not have been the same without a downpour, but is it occasions like these that are transporting our British festival go-ers abroad?

Whether it’s Ibiza Rocks or Mallorca Rocks in their respective destinations, or perhaps Sonar or Benicassim in Spain, you can be guaranteed that the sun will be shining upon your weekend of live music, which of course seems much more desirable than a boggy, flooded field in Somerset.

Glastonbury Festival is renowned for the climate that seems to attack it year upon year. As the festival took a fallow year in 2012, the rotten weather had to be passed on to a festival peer, with the Isle of Wight Festival taking the brunt. Across the weekend of the 21^st to the 24^th of June, Seaclose Park in Newport became waterlogged with the torrential rain that had battered it, turning the park into what can only be described as a mudbath.

Isle of Wight campsite: Tents surrounded by thick mud

Isle of Wight Festival: Tents floating on flooded water

Some people may not be too fussy about rain hammering down whilst watching their favourite bands; after all, in a packed crowd only your head and the top of your shoulders will get wet! However, it is the camping element whereby the European climate can be a clincher. The photos from these flooded festivals show tents almost floating upon the surface of the water, with attendees waging through mud and knee-deep puddles to escape from the campsite. Travel to Spain or the Canary Islands and the weather is much more camper convivial.

Hannah Jacques, winner of BBC Radio 1’s Superstar DJ Competition 2012, won the chance to open up Radio 1’s legendary Ibiza Weekend at the iconic Ushuaia Beach Hotel, and therefore knows a lot about the attraction of foreign festivals. Hannah says the thought of the chance of rain nowadays is something that would put her off attending a British festival.

“I am not one who can sleep in a muddy tent, and if I am cold and wet I know I can’t enjoy myself no matter how drunk or how good the artist is!”

“The thought of going away to a summer festival abroad does really appeal to me. The fact that it would be guaranteed good weather takes away any worry.”

Hannah Jacques

Not only is the weather becoming an issue for British festivals, but also the price tag attached to their tickets. Glastonbury, V Festival, as well as Reading & Leeds have gradually increased their prices year upon year, with the 2013 Glastonbury tickets burning a gaping £213 hole in a visitor’s pocket. With that comes an expensive train ticket and even more extortionate food and drink prices.

Although not all work out as cost-effective, some European festivals can work out cheaper, allowing for the equivalent festival experience with a summer holiday abroad also included. Benicassim tickets for 2013 cost just £130, with the cheapest return flights for these dates from London to Barcelona costing just under £80 with EasyJet, leaving just enough money to spend on a pint in the park to equal out the cost you would have spent on your Glastonbury ticket alone!

For some, the pull may not be in the weather, nor in the price, but the line-up itself. Whether it’s your favourite British band, US band or perhaps a European group, the festival bill will always be the biggest confirmation on whether to buy tickets for that gig. However, if you are willing to travel abroad to see your favourite band, DJ Hannah Jacques warns that you have to be prepared for everything else that comes with it.

“Foreign festivals would have lots of local people as support acts, so you might have to listen to lots of artists you don't have a clue who they are!”

Despite having the ultimate weather conditions for a weekend outdoors, the hassle of going abroad is not for everybody. Plus if you can't afford a flight to Europe, don't be worried that you're missing out completely. The Brits still know how to throw a party, with our festivals being just as good as any others. Some of the biggest artists from all over the world come to the UK to perform to packed out crowds, with both the performers and the fans returning year upon year, so the organisers must be doing something right to battle with the uncontrollable climate that they face.