| 1 | Empire of the Sun | Walking on a Dream | Walking on a Dream (2008) |
| 2 | The Lumineers | Ophelia | Cleopatra (2016) |
| 3 | Coldplay | Adventure of a Lifetime | A Head Full of Dreams (2015) |
| 4 | twenty one pilots | Ride | Blurryface (2015) |
| 5 | Blink-182 | Bored to Death | California (2016) |
| 6 | Bishop Briggs | River | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 7 | The Strumbellas | Spirits | Hope (2016) |
| 8 | twenty one pilots | Heathens | Suicide Squad: The Album (2016) |
| 9 | Coldplay | Hymn for the Weekend | A Head Full of Dreams (2015) |
| 10 | Red Hot Chili Peppers | Dark Necessities | The Getaway (2016) |
| 11 | Death Cab for Cutie | The Ghosts of Beverly Drive | Kintsugi (2015) |
| 12 | Fitz and the Tantrums | HandClap | Fitz and the Tantrums (2016) |
| 13 | KALEO | Way Down We Go | A/B (2016) |
| 14 | X Ambassadors | Unsteady | VHS (2015) |
| 15 | Lukas Graham | 7 Years | Lukas Graham (2016) |
| 16 | Bastille | Good Grief | Wild World (2016) |
| 17 | Cage the Elephant | Trouble | Tell Me I’m Pretty (2015) |
| 18 | Kings of Leon | Waste a Moment | WALLS (2016) |
| 19 | The 1975 | Somebody Else | I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It (2016) |
| 20 | Weezer | King of the World | Weezer (White Album) (2016) |
| 21 | Blink-182 | She’s Out of Her Mind | California (2016) |
| 22 | Green Day | Bang Bang | Revolution Radio (2016) |
| 23 | The Head and the Heart | All We Ever Knew | Signs of Light (2016) |
| 24 | Panic! at the Disco | Victorious | Death of a Bachelor (2016) |
| 25 | Cage the Elephant | Mess Around | Tell Me I’m Pretty (2015) |
| 26 | Phantogram | You Don’t Get Me High Anymore | Three (2016) |
| 27 | Miike Snow | Genghis Khan | iii (2016) |
| 28 | Beck | Wow | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 29 | Foo Fighters | Saint Cecilia | Saint Cecilia EP (2015) |
| 30 | Green Day | Still Breathing | Revolution Radio (2016) |
| 31 | Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness | Fire Escape | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 32 | Jimmy Eat World | Sure and Certain | Integrity Blues (2016) |
| 33 | Grouplove | Welcome to Your Life | Big Mess (2016) |
| 34 | Foals | Mountain at My Gates | What Went Down (2015) |
| 35 | The Strumbellas | We Don’t Know | Hope (2016) |
| 36 | Panic! at the Disco | Bohemian Rhapsody | Suicide Squad: The Album (2016) |
| 37 | Nothing But Thieves | Trip Switch | Nothing But Thieves (2015) |
| 38 | The Dirty Heads | That’s All I Need | The Dirty Heads (2016) |
| 39 | Panic! at the Disco | Don’t Threaten Me with a Good Time | Death of a Bachelor (2016) |
| 40 | Kungs vs. Cookin’ on 3 Burners | This Girl | Layers (2016) |
| 41 | M83 | Go! [feat. Mai Lan] | Junk (2016) |
| 42 | The 1975 | The Sound | I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It (2016) |
| 43 | K.Flay | Blood in the Cut | Crush Me EP (2016) |
| 44 | Band of Horses | Casual Party | Why Are You OK (2016) |
| 45 | Alex da Kid | Not Easy [feat. X Ambassadors, Elle King & Wiz Khalifa] | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 46 | AFI | Snow Cats | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 47 | Empire of the Sun | High and Low | Two Vines (2016) |
| 48 | Nothing But Thieves | Wake Up Call | Nothing But Thieves (2015) |
| 49 | Glass Animals | Life Itself | How to Be a Human Being (2016) |
| 50 | Declan McKenna | Brazil | Non-album Single (2015) |
| 51 | The xx | On Hold | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 52 | Finish Ticket | Color | When Night Becomes Day EP (2015) |
| 53 | Death Cab for Cutie | Good Help (Is So Hard to Find) | Kintsugi (2015) |
| 54 | Bear Hands | 2AM | You’ll Pay for This (2016) |
| 55 | Weathers | Happy Pills | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 56 | BØRNS | American Money | Dopamine (2015) |
| 57 | Coldplay | Up&Up | A Head Full of Dreams (2015) |
| 58 | Pierce the Veil | Circles | Misadventures (2016) |
| 59 | Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness | High Dive | Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness (2014) |
| 60 | Mondo Cozmo | Shine | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 61 | Radiohead | Burn the Witch | A Moon Shaped Pool (2016) |
| 62 | CHVRCHES | Bury It | Every Open Eye (2015) |
| 63 | Garbage | Empty | Strange Little Birds (2016) |
| 64 | Bob Moses | Tearing Me Up | Days Gone By (2015) |
| 65 | Tame Impala | The Less I Know the Better | Currents (2015) |
| 66 | Zipper Club | Going the Distance | Zipper Club EP (2016) |
| 67 | X Ambassadors | Low Life [feat. Jamie N Commons] | VHS (2015) |
| 68 | The Weeknd | Starboy [feat. Daft Punk] | Starboy (2016) |
| 69 | Young the Giant | Something to Believe In | Home of the Strange (2016) |
| 70 | Silversun Pickups | Circadian Rhythm (Last Dance) | Better Nature (2015) |
| 71 | Bishop Briggs | Wild Horses | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 72 | twenty one pilots | Car Radio | Vessel (2013) |
| 73 | alt-J | Left Hand Free | This Is All Yours (2014) |
| 74 | Saint Motel | Cold Cold Man | My Type EP (2014) |
| 75 | Mumford & Sons | Ditmas | Wilder Mind (2015) |
| 76 | Prophets of Rage | Prophets of Rage | The Party’s Over EP (2016) |
| 77 | Judah & the Lion | Take It All Back | Folk Hop n’ Roll (2016) |
| 78 | COIN | Talk Too Much | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 79 | The Griswolds | Beware the Dog | High Times for Low Lives (2016) |
| 80 | Catfish and the Bottlemen | Soundcheck | The Ride (2016) |
| 81 | KONGOS | Take It from Me | Egomaniac (2016) |
| 82 | AWOLNATION | Woman Woman | Run (2015) |
| 83 | JR JR | Gone | JR JR (2015) |
| 84 | Elle King | Under the Influence | Love Stuff (2015) |
| 85 | Barns Courtney | Fire | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 86 | Lewis Del Mar | Loud(y) | Lewis Del Mar (2016) |
| 87 | 888 | Critical Mistakes | Non-album Single (2016) |
| 88 | The Struts | Put Your Money on Me | Everybody Wants (2014) |
| 89 | Shinedown | State of My Head | Threat to Survival (2015) |
| 90 | Saint Motel | Move | saintmotelevision (2016) |
| 91 | BROODS | Free | Conscious (2016) |
| 92 | Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats | I Need Never Get Old | Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats (2015) |
| 93 | The Hunna | You & Me | 100 (2016) |
| 94 | Run River North | Run or Hide | Drinking from a Salt Pond (2016) |
| 95 | Lucius | Born Again Teen | Good Grief (2016) |
| 96 | Joywave | Destruction | How Do You Feel Now? (2015) |
| 97 | The Wombats | Give Me a Try | Glitterbug (2015) |
| 98 | BØRNS | 10,000 Emerald Pools | Dopamine (2015) |
| 99 | Chris Cornell | Nearly Forgot My Broken Heart | Higher Truth (2015) |
| 100 | The 1975 | Love Me | I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It (2016) |
| 101 | EL VY | Return to the Moon | Return to the Moon (2015) |
| 102 | Red Hot Chili Peppers | Go Robot | The Getaway (2016) |
| 103 | Catfish and the Bottlemen | 7 | The Ride (2016) |
| 104 | Disturbed | The Sound of Silence | Immortalized (2015) |
| 105 | Skillet | Feel Invincible | Unleashed (2016) |
| 106 | twenty one pilots | Cancer | Non-album Single (2016) |
About 2016
In 2016, KROQ’s airwaves pulsed with Empire of the Sun’s dreamy electro, The Lumineers’ rootsy anthems, and Coldplay’s pop-infused hooks. The expansive Top 76 list blended punk revival from Blink-182 and Green Day, genre-bending hits from twenty one pilots, and indie flair from The 1975 and CHVRCHES, while revisiting classics like Empire of the Sun’s 2008 gem, electrifying SoCal’s festivals, clubs, and radio dials. This curated list expands to 106 songs, starting with KROQ’s rankings and adding tracks likely played, sourced from Billboard and other airplay data, ordered by 2016 airplay.