11 Terrible Songs That Are Still Really Catchy

10. Owl City- Fireflies

In terms of the awfulness that encapsulates some of the other songs on this list, “Fireflies” might not seem like a fair pick for this list but at the same time the sheer amount it was overplayed instantly launches it into one of those songs that you wish you could escape, but can’t. The problem with this song was that it was emo-meets-pop and it was just sappy and ridiculous and playing every time you went near a radio. Add to the fact it was remixed to feature Carly Rae Jepsen, and it’s not only annoying but annoyingly catchy.

9. James Blunt-You’re Beautiful 

Much like “Fireflies”, James Blunt’s “You’re Beautiful” fell victim to the curse of the overplay. It’s a tolerable song until you hear it too much, but at that point you know every word and are without a doubt screaming “She could see on my face that I was f–king high” over the radio edit. You might be thinking, sure it was overplayed but it’s not THAT bad, well it was bad enough that in 2014 Blunt apologized for the song, and has conspicuously stepped back from mainstream music since its release in 2005. “It was force fed down people’s throats. And it became annoying, and then people start to associate the artist with the same word.”

8. Soulja Boy- Crank That

To this date you probably still haven’t mastered the Soulja Boy dance, but we know you tried. Believe it or not “Crank That” was released in 2007 and while there have been many songs that have a dance go along with it, this one in no way helps you figure it out. The lyrics are impossible to decipher except for the one line where we all jump back and forth yelling, “Soulja boy off in this h-e/watch me crank it/watch me roll/watch me crank that soulja boy/then superman that h-e.” Not only should we not have been singing this, we never got the dance down anyway even though it was on all the time.

7. Aqua- Barbie Girl

This is a classic example of where you roll your eyes when you hear it come on but without even blinking continue to belt out the words, because it may be a horribly ridiculous song but it is just so catchy. At first it’s just fun singing along to “I’m a barbie girl in a barbie world” and then you start thinking about the lyrics and then you get creeped out and realize you have no idea how this song got made let alone made it on to the airwaves as everyone bops around to it. Even though it is from 1997, it may be the poster-child for horrible songs that are just too catchy, forever giving it a spot on this list.

6. Miley Cyrus- 23

“23” was just an excuse to put Miley on this list, as we will see with most of the recent pop stars mentioned not only did they have one terrible but catchy song, they made whole albums of them. Everyone else before Miley on this list seemed to know when to give up and not torture us further, now megastars are being made out of it. Miley Cyrus’ earlier hit song “Party in the USA” was bad enough but then it got worse; “Wrecking Ball” and “23” are now hits even though Cyrus still has not developed any talent, yet she has a good deal of people hooked on the lines. Her music may not be very good but it easily gets stuck in your head, making it so hard not to sing/dance along to no matter how much your eardrums are hurting.

5. Justin Bieber- Baby

Same deal with the Biebs, “Baby” is only a blimp on the radar of horrible Justin songs. While none of his songs scream lyrical masterpieces they are put together well enough to garner millions of fans and catch even the least likely Bieber fans unawares. Given the fact that his song titles are all along the same lines of “Baby”, “Boyfriend” and “Beauty and a Beat” the content never varies but that hasn’t stopped him from becoming a multimillionaire by the age of 21, so love him or hate him his songs are going to be around, you might as well sing along.

4. Meghan Trainor- All About That Bass

Horrible and catchy are the two definitive words for this recent chart-topper. Trainor tries to send a good message about body image to young girls but then body shames others and with no actual identifiable talent, Trainor is just another example that with the rise of social media, anyone can become a star. After “All About That Bass,” Trainor has continued with annoying yet catchy hits including “Lips Are Movin” and “Dear Future Husband” that people claim to hate yet somehow the songs move to the tops of charts. The beat and the chorus are just too catchy for you to claim you aren’t all about that bass.

3. Taylor Swift-Shake It Off

At first Taylor Swift was criticized for her sappy love/breakup country songs and after quickly becoming the Queen of Country she took her annoying hits to the pop world. “Shake It Off” has over 755 million views on YouTube and while you may claim you hate her she doesn’t care because you’re probably still singing “haters gonna hate, hate, hate” right along with her as she cashes in on single after single off unbelievably annoying, earworm songs. It seems none of her songs have flopped and that’s because even the most surprising people will admit her tunes are really catchy.

2. Rebecca Black-Friday

It was a joke that became a hit. A song so terrible it is considered a joke, yet it is still a hit! Why, just why? While absolutely no one actually liked this song, it went viral and even though you didn’t want to, you would be humming along at your desk as Friday came to an end.

1. Carly Rae Jepsen- Call Me Maybe

In 2011 this song was everywhere and we mean everywhere. If the song itself wasn’t playing, then someone had posted a brand new team cover of the it, and regardless you weren’t getting away from it. Everybody, everywhere knew the lines and it was a pretty good pick-up opportunity at the bar, and it seemed after the song faded away after a couple of months Carly Rae Jepsen had left us alone. However in 2015 she is back with another catchy hook with her song, “I Really Like You.”

Telisa Carter