Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth. In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.
We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 2002, the year I celebrated my 28th birthday. Only 29 songs remain familiar to me today, with just 21 of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.
#96: Avril Lavigne – Sk8er Boi
iTunes stats: 29 plays
Peaking at #10, it gave Lavigne her second straight top ten hit and a Grammy nomination for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance.
#95: Alanis Morissette – Hands Clean
iTunes stats: 12 plays
The lead single from Morissette’s fifth studio album, it reached #23 and was her last single to crack the Top 40.
#87: Jewel – Standing Still
iTunes stats: 20 plays
Spending a total of 20 weeks on the Hot 100, it topped out at #25
#77: Ludacris – Rollout (My Business)
iTunes stats: 23 plays
Nominated for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Male Rap Solo Performance, it went to #17.
#71: No Doubt featuring Lady Saw – Underneath It All
iTunes stats: 12 plays
Spending two weeks at #3, it is the groups highest charting single.
#63: Eminem – Lose Yourself
iTunes stats: 55 plays
The track from the 8 Mile soundtrack spent 12 weeks at #1 across 2002 and 2003, becoming the rapper’s first chart topping single.
#59: No Doubt – Hella Good
iTunes stats: 26 plays
The second single from the group’s fifth studio album, it peaked at #13.
#56: LeAnn Rimes – Can’t Fight the Moonlight
iTunes stats: 12 plays
The theme song from Coyote Ugly, it stalled at #71 in 2000 but returned to the charts in late 2001, eventually rising to #11.
#54: Missy Elliot – Work It
iTunes stats: 21 plays
Elliot’s most successful single, it spent ten weeks at #2, tying Foreigner for the longest stint at that position.
#47: Eminem – Cleanin’ Out My Closet
iTunes stats: 31 plays
The second release from the rapper’s fourth studio album, it peaked at #4.
#46: Five for Fighting – Superman (It’s Not Easy)
iTunes stats: N/A
The first charting single for the band, it reached #14 while being used to honor the victims, survivors, police, and firefighters involved in the 9/11 attacks.
#45: Kylie Minogue – Can’t Get You Out of My Head
iTunes stats: N/A
Written and produced by former singer Cathy Dennis, it topped out at #7 and was her best-selling single in the US since 1987.
#43: Pink – Just Like a Pill
iTunes stats: 28 plays
Peaking at #8, it was written by Pink and Dallas Austin for her second studio album.
#36: Pink – Don’t Let Me Get Me
iTunes stats: 21 plays
The fifth top ten hit of Pink’s career, it reached #8.
#35: Sheryl Crow – Soak Up the Sun
iTunes stats: 15 plays
The lead single from her fourth studio album, it went to #17, becoming her sixth Top 40 hit.
#32: No Doubt – Hey Baby
iTunes stats: 27 plays
Earning the band the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, it spent two weeks at #5.
#28: Shakira – Whenever, Wherever
iTunes stats: 15 plays
The lead single from the Colombian singer’s English language debut, it peaked at #6.
#25: Chad Kroger featuring Josey Scott – Hero
iTunes stats: N/A
Recorded for the Spider-Man soundtrack, it topped the Modern Rock and Mainstream Rock charts while topping out at #3 on the Hot 100.
#24: Pink – Get the Party Started
iTunes stats: 26 plays
Originally written for Madonna, Pink took the party anthem to #4 in late December 2001.
#23: Michelle Branch – All You Wanted
iTunes stats: 16 plays
Reaching #6, this second single from her debut album was written by Branch.
#22: Enrique Iglesias – Hero
iTunes stats: N/A
Released eight days before the 9/11 attacks in 2001, it spent fifteen weeks at #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart while going to #3 on the Hot 100.
#21: Eminem – Without Me
iTunes stats: 25 plays
Earning two Grammy nominations, the lead single from Eminem’s fourth studio album peaked at #2.
#20: Creed – My Sacrifice
iTunes stats: N/A
Spending nine weeks atop the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, it reached #4 on the Hot 100.
#14: Jimmy Eat World – The Middle
iTunes stats: N/A
The band’s only Top 40 hit, it went all the way to #5.
#11: Avril Lavigne – Complicated
iTunes stats: 18 plays
The debut single from the Canadian singer-songwriter, it topped out at #2 while staying on the chart for 31 weeks.
#6: Vanessa Carlton – A Thousand Miles
iTunes stats: N/A
The singer’s debut single, it remains her biggest hit, reaching #5.
#5: The Calling – Wherever You Will Go
iTunes stats: 17 plays
The band’s only single to reach the Hot 100, it peaked at #5.
#3: Nelly – Hot in Herre
iTunes stats: 15 plays
The lead single from his second studio album, it spent seven weeks at #1 during the summer of 2002.
#1: Nickelback – How You Remind Me
iTunes stats: N/A
Spending four weeks atop the Hot 100 across 2001 and 2002, it was named the most played song of the decade on US radio stations.