Uma lista elaborada por mais de 250 especialistas da indústria musical e críticos do The New York Times colocou alguns dos nomes mais influentes da música contemporânea entre os 30 maiores compositores americanos vivos. O ranking, divulgado hoje, reúne artistas de diferentes gerações e estilos e busca destacar quem ajudou a moldar a canção popular nas últimas décadas, mas causou polêmica entre os próprios organizadores sobre quem incluir ou deixar de fora.
Entre os nomes que aparecem na seleção estão Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, Taylor Swift, Bruce Springsteen, Kendrick Lamar e Dolly Parton, além de artistas ligados ao R&B, rap, folk e pop. A lista também chama atenção pela presença de nomes mais recentes, como Young Thug e Lana Del Rey, lado a lado com veteranos que marcaram a história da música popular.
Um dos pontos mais comentados do levantamento foi a presença de apenas dois representantes latinos: Bad Bunny e Romeo Santos. Segundo a publicação, ambos foram reconhecidos pela capacidade de expandir os limites da música em espanhol dentro do mercado global, conectando gêneros latinos ao pop internacional e influenciando uma nova geração de artistas.
Sem estabelecer uma ordem de classificação, o jornal reuniu 30 compositores e destacou, para cada um deles, cinco canções consideradas fundamentais em suas trajetórias, gravadas pelos próprios artistas ou por outros intérpretes.
Confira a lista:
Nile Rodgers
- “Good Times,” Chic
- “Le Freak,” Chic
- “I Want Your Love,” Chic
- “He’s the Greatest Dancer,” Sister Sledge
- “I’m Coming Out,” Diana Ross
Lucinda Williams
- “I Just Wanted to See You So Bad”
- “Hot Blood”
- “Metal Firecracker”
- “Fruits of My Labor”
- “Where Is My Love?”
Stevie Wonder
- “Girl Blue”
- “Jesus Children of America”
- “Heaven Is 10 Zillion Light Years Away”
- “They Won’t Go When I Go”
- “That Girl”
Jay-Z
- “Dead Presidents II”
- “Where I’m From”
- “U Don’t Know”
- “99 Problems”
- “Public Service Announcement (Interlude)”
Paul Simon
- “American Tune”
- “Rene and Georgette Magritte With Their Dog After the War”
- “Graceland”
- “Bernadette”
- “The Sacred Harp”
Taylor Swift
- “Our Song”
- “Fifteen”
- “Love Story”
- “Dear John”
- “Mirrorball”
Os irmãos Brian e Eddie Holland
- “(Love Is Like a) Heat Wave,” Martha and the Vandellas
- “Baby I Need Your Loving,” The Four Tops
- “You’re a Wonderful One,” Marvin Gaye
- “My World Is Empty Without You,” The Supremes
- “7 Rooms of Gloom,” The Four Tops
Missy Elliott
- “Get Ur Freak On”
- “Work It”
- “Gossip Folks”
- “Bomb Intro/Pass That Dutch”
- “On & On”
Lionel Richie
- “Easy,” the Commodores
- “Three Times a Lady,” the Commodores
- “Endless Love,” Lionel Richie and Diana Ross
- “Lady,” Kenny Rogers
- “Hello,” Lionel Richie
Dolly Parton
- “Jolene”
- “I Will Always Love You”
- “Coat of Many Colors”
- “9 to 5”
- “My Tennessee Mountain Home”
Young Thug
- “Stoner”
- “Best Friend”
- “Picacho,” featuring Maceo
- “Danny Glover”
- “Wyclef Jean”
Diane Warren
- “I Don’t Wanna Live Without Your Love,” Chicago
- “When I See You Smile,” Bad English
- “Just Like Jesse James,” Cher
- “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now,” by Starship
- “If You Asked Me To,” Patti LaBelle
O trio de compositores Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally e Josh Osborne
- “Merry Go ’Round,” Kacey Musgraves
- “Follow Your Arrow,” Kacey Musgraves
- “Liberty,” Sam Hunt
- “Maybe Love,” Brandy Clark & Shane McAnally
- “Drinkin’ Problem,” Midland
Fiona Apple
- “Sleep to Dream”
- “The Way Things Are”
- “Every Single Night”
- “Tymps (The Sick in the Head Song)”
- “Heavy Balloon”
Babyface
- “Whip Appeal”
- “Superwoman,” Karyn White
- “I’m Your Baby Tonight,” Whitney Houston
- “My, My, My,” Johnny Gill
- “Not Gon’ Cry,” Mary J. Blige
Stephin Merritt
- “Strange Powers,” the Magnetic Fields
- “It’s Only Time,” the Magnetic Fields
- “’01: “Have You Seen It in the Snow?” the Magnetic Fields
- “You You You You You,” the 6ths
- “The Book of Love,” Olivia Rodrigo
Romeo Santos
- “Obsesión,” Aventura, featuring Judy Santos
- “Un Beso,” Aventura
- “Ella y Yo,” Aventura, featuring Don Omar
- “Propuesta Indecente,” Romeo Santos
- “Odio,” Romeo Santos, featuring Drake
Carole King
- “One Fine Day”
- “Up on the Roof”
- “Way Over Yonder”
- “So Far Away”
- “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” Aretha Franklin
Outkast
- “Da Art of Storytellin’ (Pt. 1)”
- “Rosa Parks”
- “SpottieOttieDopaliscious”
- “B.O.B.”
- “Int’l Players Anthem (I Choose You),” UGK, featuring Outkast
Mariah Carey
- “We Belong Together”
- “#Beautiful,” featuring Miguel
- “Fantasy (Remix featuring O.D.B.)”
- “Touch My Body”
- “Whenever You Call”
Willie Nelson
- “Medley: Funny How Time Slips Away/Crazy/Night Life”
- “Me and Paul”
- “On the Road Again”
- “Who’ll Buy My Memories”
- “We Don’t Run”
Kendrick Lamar
- “Rigamortus”
- “Swimming Pools (Drank)”
- “Hood Politics”
- “Count Me Out”
- “Euphoria”
Valerie Simpson
- “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
- “Solid,” Ashford & Simpson
- “I’m Every Woman,” Chaka Khan
- “Is It Still Good to Ya,” Ashford & Simpson
- “California Soul,” Marlena Shaw
Bob Dylan
- “Like a Rolling Stone”
- “Tangled Up in Blue”
- “Isis”
- “Every Grain of Sand”
- “Nettie Moore”
Lana Del Rey
- “Video Games”
- “Cruel World”
- “The Greatest”
- “Hope Is a Dangerous Thing for a Woman Like Me to Have — but I Have It”
- “A&W”
The-Dream
- “1+1,” Beyoncé
- “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It),” Beyoncé
- “Umbrella,” Rihanna, feat. Jay-Z
- “Ride,” Ciara, featuring Ludacris
- “My Love,” featuring Mariah Carey
Jimmy Jam e Terry Lewis
- “Nasty,” Janet Jackson
- “All for You,” Janet Jackson
- “Saturday Love,” Cherrelle and Alexander O’Neal
- “Can You Stand the Rain,” New Edition
- “On Bended Knee,” Boyz II Men
Bad Bunny
- “Soy Peor”
- “MIA,” featuring Drake
- “Yo Perreo Sola”
- “Callaita,” featuring Tainy
- “Nuevayol”
Bruce Springsteen
- “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)”
- “Born to Run”
- “Nebraska”
- “Born in the U.S.A.”
- “American Skin (41 Shots)”
Smokey Robinson
- “My Girl,” the Temptations
- “The Tracks of My Tears,” Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
- “The Tears of a Clown,” Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
- “Happy (Love Theme From ‘Lady Sings the Blues’)”
- “Being With You”
