Even though these songs topped the summer charts, excessive radio play proved that they may not have had staying power

The Billboard Music Charts labeled “That’s What I Like” by Bruno Mars, “I’m the One” by DJ Khaled featuring Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance The Rapper & Lil Wayne, and “Despacito” by Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber as the top three songs of the summer. Students and staff had a different opinion on the likability of these hits.

BRUNO MARS

“That’s What I Like” 

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Although senior Allison Csont has heard “That’s What I Like” countless times on the radio and may prefer to listen to Jason Derulo’s music instead, she still described the song as “great,” “upbeat,” and “jumpy,” making her “want to dance.” Csont said that she enjoyed the beat in the background and Mars’s “smooth” voice, though she may not want to listen to it again “because it’s so overplayed.” The song remained near the top of the Billboard Summer Song Chart for fourteen weeks.

Allison Csont’s Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Two members of the science department staff, Adrienne Hoffman and Russell Murphy sat down together to listen to “That’s What I Like,” already fearing that the pop song would be the opposite of the “80’s/90’s grunge music” that both usually listened to; Murphy even questioned if he would be able to “survive two minutes.” In typical Murphy-fashion, he joked that the song was “what he liked,” even though he and Hoffman agreed that it was not something that they would willingly listen to again unless in the background “at the dentist.”

“I mean it’s got a good beat, so you do want to move a little bit, but then you realize you can’t move, so then you stop, or maybe that’s just me,” said Murphy. “You could replace a lot of the lyrics with just describing making tacos and people would probably actually sing along because they would know what to expect.”

Russell Murphy’s Ratings: 2.5 out of 5 stars 

Adrienne Hoffman’s Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

DJ KHALED

“I’m the One”

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Calling out DJ Khaled, saying, “DJ Khaled always just, in any song he sings, seems to be yelling like incomprehensible words,” said freshman Cyrus Mason. “I don’t think that I would ever want to listen to it again.” He also summarized the song as “kind of captivating because it was pretty weird,” and explained that he was not a fan of Justin Bieber because “his old music traumatized [him].”

Cyrus Mason’s Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Admitting that even though she frequently listens to current pop music on the radio, Jennifer Bridges, English teacher, said that “I’m the One” was “definitely overplayed.” “I guess the chorus is good; it gets stuck in my head,” said Bridges.“It had a decent message which is kind of surprising for Justin Bieber.” She said she thought it interesting that DJ Khaled was put as the main artist of the song even though “he basically says nothing except ‘Another one’,” and when asked about the other top songs of the summer per Billboard, she said that if she hears “’Despacito” one more time [she] will cry.” Bridges said, “When I heard it, it was good, I could sing along, but if I didn’t ever hear it again that’d be okay too.”

Jennifer Bridges’ Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

LUIS FONSI & DADDY YANKEE ft JUSTIN BIEBER

“Despacito”

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Wishing that she had never listened to “Despacito”, senior Nabeeha Emran described the song as “very very annoying.” Emran found it funny that the song is titled “Despacito” which translates to “slowly” because the song is very fast-spoken. “I do not speak Spanish even though I’ve been taking it for three years. I don’t understand any of the words that they are saying except the word despacito.” She was also puzzled by the message of the song, explaining that it seemed like a “game of twenty questions” but guessed that it was about dancing, “as songs typically are in the summertime.” Overall, Emran was done with the song. “I think it’s time for us to move on as a society. We just need to move on from that song.”

Nabeeha Emran’s Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

“Unfortunately, I have,” said Lynn Ewald, history teacher, on whether he had heard the song.  “I’m not a fan [of Justin Bieber], and I don’t understand the appeal, but some of his songs are very catchy,” said Ewald. “Sometimes I don’t like myself when I find myself singing along to them.” He said the songs that he typically listens to are princess songs and Kidz Bop because of his children.

Overall it seemed that students and teachers alike thought that the songs of summer should stay back in that season because of the amount of times each song has been played on the radio; though in a few years there’s no doubt that they will be looked back upon fondly.

Lynn Ewald’s Rating: 1 out of 5 stars