When we remember 2021, few things will be more evocative than the music that provided the soundtrack to the world as we re-entered it after a long year filled with uncertainty and social distancing.

"Only here to sin." That admission from NPR Music's song of the year lies at the heart of many of the stories told across these 100 tracks. Perhaps the crowning of Cardi and Megan's "WAP" last year ...

If you look at the Top 10 songs on the Billboard charts, odds are you’ll find nary a love song. Tracks about heartbreak, friendship and self-empowerment abound, but straightforward ballads about ...