Opinion / Pop queens of Covid-19, ranked: Blackpink, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga and 11 more divas who kept us dancing through the pandemic, making 2020 the best era of pop music in decades

Dec 18 , 2020

Dua Lipa, Lady Gaga, Blackpink and Miley Cyrus saved our 2020 with some of their best work yet. Photos: Handouts, @lalalalisa_m/Instagram

Taylor Swift outdid herself with not one but two great albums, Folklore and Evermore, Blackpink proved its mettle with The Album and Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga had us dancing around our living rooms to upbeat anthems from Chromatica

For many of us, 2020 has been a year we will remember forever for all the wrong reasons, but we also have a lot to be grateful for. Because in the worst year of our lifetime, our existences were somehow enriched with the best era of pop music.

When we think back on the year of the coronavirus, we will indeed remember the dreadful skin rashes from our masks, the endless Zoom calls and empty city streets, but we will also remember it as the year the world’s most talented female artists gave us their most iconic bodies of work yet. Yes, there were some great male releases, but 2020 was the year that girl power lifted our spirits and kept us dancing as the pandemic ripped our lives and worlds apart. It was like our brightest divas turned into a barrage of superheroes who collectively flew in to save the world from Covid-19 one banging tune after the other.

Not only did the goddesses of pop music continue to outdo themselves, they also tried new things (Taylor Swift went folk) and followed their hearts (Miley Cyrus finally did the rock album she craved). And in a time when we faced an uncertain future, it was a welcoming journey back to the 80s and 90s with the likes of Dua Lipa and Lady Gaga. Newbies like Blackpink showed us what they’re made of, and icons like Alanis Morissette reminded us of the reasons we fell in love with them in the first place. It was like quarantine gave the girls a much-needed creativity boost.

So without further ado, here are our 15 best albums of 2020 that made the pandemic a little easier to tolerate.

15. Haim’s “Women in Music Pt. III”

The Haim sisters aren’t impressed with the virus, like, at all. Photo: Handout

“Women in Music Pt. III” is the third studio album by American sisters Alana, Danielle and Este Haim, and third time has certainly been the charm.

Haim has been consistently good over the years, but 2020 was a highlight for the girls. They’re also up for Album of the Year at the 63rd Grammy Awards, in case you don’t believe this highly reputable list.

14. Ariana Grande’s “Positions”

Positions is classic Ariana, which is why we loved it. Photo: Handout