SONGS OF 2021: THE YEAR OF ITALY ON THE WORLD STAGE, FROM NEWCOMERS TO “OLD GLORIES”

Friends of DJ4 (DJ for parties, with sound and lighting equipment), this year is drawing to a close (or has only just begun… depending on when you’re reading this) and, as always, it’s time to take stock. And on this occasion, there are plenty of surprises. In particular, 2021 was a golden year for Italian music: starting with the Maneskin. Their song “Beggin” is among the top 10 most-streamed songs on Spotify worldwide, earning the title of the most-streamed Italian song of all time, with two billion plays. It must be said, however, that the Roman rock band has not enjoyed quite such a huge success when the analysis is limited to Italy: in first place among male artists, repeating their 2018 success, is in fact Sfera Ebbasta (in 2020, it was second) closely followed by its “colleagues” Blanco and Rkomi. It’s the summer hit Malibu The song by the very young, almost debutant Sangiovanni was the most streamed Italian song on Spotify in 2021; next came the track by Blanco (who is also not yet twenty and on his debut album) and Sfera Ebbasta, “Mi fai impazzire”.

These are tracks that get played a lot and are in huge demand at your birthday parties, especially 18th birthday parties; as for Maneskin, with their rock sound, it’s harder to find a place for them at a “mainstream” party, but at the right moment and in the right setting, they can really make a difference!

Turning back to the summer party hits, these have kept us company throughout 2021 Boomdabash featuring Mohicani (vocals by Baby K.) as well as Takagi and Ketra, alongside Giusy Ferreri, with the hit “Shimmy Shimmy”, as well as Colapesce and Dimartino with Very light music, which originated at the Sanremo Festival and which we’ve played in our DJ sets at your parties – mainly in remix form – by the legendary Cerrone: a vintage and infectious vibe for a party track!

We should also remember “Bongo Cha Cha Cha” by the Goodboys: a “flash in the pan”, but one that really got everyone dancing in the height of summer!

As for the female artists, we’d also like to highlight the fantastic work of Madame, whose remixed version of “Tu mi hai capito” (Dino Brown & Paky remix) kept us entertained on the dance floor too!

And what about Jovanotti? Well, his spectacular album *Il Boom* came out at the end of November, and as for the year-end chart… it was already too late… but we’ll definitely be talking about it in 12 months“ time!

LATIN MUSIC REMAINS STRONG IN 2021

Moving on to music  Internationally, a brief mention of Olivia Rodrigo’s “Driver License”, the most-streamed song on Spotify; in Italy, this young artist has not yet enjoyed the same level of success she is currently enjoying overseas in particular, and it is certainly not the sort of track we’d play at a party. It’s a completely different story for Bad Bunny (stage name of the  (a Puerto Rican rapper), who, as in 2020, was the most streamed artist in the world; his album *El último tour del mundo*, which has already gone gold in Italy, also features DÁKITI released at the end of 2020, which we danced to during the first half of the year just ended, sharing the spotlight with other Latin tracks, such as Montero (Call Me By Your Name), by the rapper Lil Nas X,  who, in his hit song, urges people to stand up for their identity and to be themselves, regardless of any prejudice.

Two more iconic artists in Latin music, Shakira e Camila Cabello, with “Don’t Wait Up” and “Don’t Go Yet” respectively”  They really got us going, and they’re still doing so right at the end of 2021!

Speaking of a “regular” among this year’s hits, Dua Lipa; although the album *Future Nostalgia* (released in March 2020!) is now a bit dated, with the 2021 summer single “Love Again”It went down a storm, and the track with Elton John, ”Cold Heart”, was also a huge hit.”.

The English singer, on the other hand, is back after a rather long break Ed Sheeran He’s back with three strong singles, including the most recent ones, “Shivers” and “Overpass Graffiti”; “Bad Habits” is the one we liked best, in the remix by the very Italian Meduza, which has also been a hit in the clubs.

And they’re no longer a revelation, the BTS, who were a huge hit with “Permission to Dance”.

AND SPEAKING OF DANCE… 2021 WAS THE YEAR OF PURPLE DISCO MACHINE

2021 was also a very prolific year for house music; this is confirmed by the Earone chart of the most-played songs on the radio in 2021: two out of three of the songs in heavy rotation are dance tracks: in second place Fireworks (Purple Disco Machine)  and the third  Never Going Home by the Kungs (for the record, Coldplay’s ‘Higher Power’ is at number one). The German DJ Purple Disco Machine, in addition to the aforementioned  Over the past 12 months, Fireworks has pulled off further masterstrokes, with Playbox e Dopamine (feat. Eyelar), whilst Kungs, following his summer track “Never Going Home” (whose video was filmed at the Cercle des Nageurs in Marseille), followed it up in the autumn with ‘Lipstick’.

Two more “killers” to dance to: Riton x Nightcrawlers – “Friday” and a hugely popular hit from the 1970s, “Rasputin”, originally by Boney M (a band with 150 million records to their name), and covered by DJ Majestic. Even the two “old hands” Calvin Harris e Bob Sinclar They got us dancing, but – it has to be said – not as much as in previous years… In any case, “By Your Side” and “We Could Be Dancing” have gone down in dance music history.

And finally… perhaps the biggest dance hit of the year: Pepas by Farruko: a real hit that we’ve been carrying with us since this summer and will carry through to the new year.

Which, of course, will feature great music to dance to at your parties, with DJ4 (a party DJ with a sound system and lighting)!