KROQ Inspired Top 106 Songs of 2020

In 2020, KROQ’s airwaves pulsed with a mix of introspective pop, gritty rock, and indie anthems, reflecting a world reshaped by the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread lockdowns. As listeners turned to music for solace during isolation, All Time Low’s anthemic “Monsters” and twenty one pilots’ upbeat “Level of Concern” led the charge, capturing the era’s emotional highs and lows. AJR’s catchy “Bang!,” Billie Eilish’s haunting “everything i wanted,” Tame Impala’s dreamy “Lost In Yesterday,” and Machine Gun Kelly’s punk-infused “bloody valentine” kept Southern California’s radio buzzing with raw energy and resilience. This curated list of 106 songs, compiled from various sources including Billboard airplay data, reflects KROQ’s eclectic playlist, ranked by 2020 alternative airplay.

Rank	Artist	Song	Album
1	All Time Low feat. blackbear	Monsters	Wake Up, Sunshine (2020)
2	twenty one pilots	Level of Concern	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Scaled And Icy (Livestream Version) (2021)]
3	AJR	Bang!	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on OK ORCHESTRA (2021)]
4	Absofacto	Dissolve	Thousand Peaces (2017)
5	Billie Eilish	everything i wanted	Non-album Single (2019) [Later on WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? (Deluxe Edition) (2020)]
6	Tame Impala	Lost In Yesterday	The Slow Rush (2020)
7	Matt Maeson	Hallucinogenics	Bank on the Funeral (2019)
8	Powfu feat. beabadoobee	death bed (coffee for your head)	poems of the past (2020)
9	twenty one pilots	The Hype	Trench (2018)
10	Cage the Elephant	Black Madonna	Social Cues (2019)
11	The Strokes	Bad Decisions	The New Abnormal (2020)
12	Meg Myers	Running Up That Hill	Thank U 4 Taking Me 2 The Disco (2020)
13	The Unlikely Candidates	Novocaine	Panther Island (2020)
14	Machine Gun Kelly	bloody valentine	Tickets to My Downfall (2020)
15	The Killers	Caution	Imploding the Mirage (2020)
16	The Head and the Heart	Honeybee	Living Mirage (2020)
17	Neon Trees	Used To Like	I Can Feel You Forgetting Me (2020)
18	Weezer	Hero	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Van Weezer (2021)]
19	Coldplay	Orphans	Everyday Life (2019)
20	The Lumineers	Life in the City	III (2019)
21	White Reaper	Might Be Right	You Deserve Love (2019)
22	AWOLNATION	The Best	Angel Miners & The Lightning Riders (2020)
23	Sub Urban	Cradles	Thrill Seeker (2020)
24	GROUPLOVE	Deleter	Healer (2020)
25	Dayglow	Can I Call You Tonight?	Fuzzybrain (2019)
26	Wallows feat. Clairo	Are You Bored Yet?	Nothing Happens (2019)
27	lovelytheband	loneliness for love	conversations with myself about you (2020)
28	Green Day	Oh Yeah!	Father of All Motherfuckers (2020)
29	The Black Keys	Shine A Little Light	Let’s Rock (2019)
30	Cannons	Fire for You	Shadows (2019)
31	Bakar	Hell N Back	Will You Be My Yellow? (2019)
32	Glass Animals	Your Love (Déjà Vu)	Dreamland (2020)
33	The Killers	My Own Soul’s Warning	Imploding the Mirage (2020)
34	KennyHoopla	how will i rest in peace if i’m buried by a highway?	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on ESTELLA// (2021)]
35	Blue October	Oh My My	This is What I Live For (2020)
36	SHAED	Trampoline	MELT (2018)
37	Billie Eilish	all the good girls go to hell	WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? (2019)
38	Catfish and the Bottlemen	2all	The Balance (2019)
39	Major Lazer feat. Marcus Mumford	Lay Your Head On Me	Music Is The Weapon (2020)
40	Weezer	The End of the Game	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Van Weezer (2021)]
41	Saint Motel	Van Horn	The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (2020)
42	blink-182	I Really Wish I Hated You	NINE (2019)
43	Local Natives	When Am I Gonna Lose You	Violet Street (2019)
44	Rezz & Grabbitz	Someone Else	Non-album Single (2020)
45	Of Monsters and Men	Wars	FEVER DREAM (2019)
46	Ashe	Moral of the Story	Non-album Single (2019) [From To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You Soundtrack (2020)]
47	Juice WRLD with Marshmello	Come & Go	Legends Never Die (2020)
48	Bastille feat. Graham Coxon	WHAT YOU GONNA DO???	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Give Me The Future (2022)]
49	The 1975	If You’re Too Shy (Let Me Know)	Notes On A Conditional Form (2020)
50	Judah & the Lion	Beautiful Anyway	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Pep Talks (Deluxe Edition) (2021)]
51	Mumford & Sons	Blind Leading The Blind	Non-album Single (2019)
52	Peach Tree Rascals	Mariposa	I Can’t Wait for You to Come My Way (2020)
53	24kGoldn	CITY OF ANGELS	DROPPED OUTTA COLLEGE (2019)
54	Coldplay	Champion Of The World	Everyday Life (2019)
55	The Airborne Toxic Event	Come On Out	Hollywood Park (2020)
56	The Smashing Pumpkins	Cyr	CYR (2020)
57	Of Monsters and Men	Visitor	Tíu (2020)
58	Joji	Run	Nectar (2020)
59	Flume feat. Toro y Moi	The Difference	Non-album Single (2020)
60	CHVRCHES	Forever	Love Is Dead (2018)
61	almost monday	broken people	don’t say you’re ordinary (2020)
62	lovelytheband	buzz cut	conversations with myself about you (2020)
63	Bleeker	Give A Little Bit More (Disaster)	Self-Made (2020)
64	GROUPLOVE	Inside Out	Healer (2020)
65	AJR	Bummerland	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on OK ORCHESTRA (2021)]
66	guardin	alive	creature pt. 2 (2020)
67	The Blue Stones	Shakin’ Off The Rust	Shakin’ Off The Rust (2019)
68	SHAED	No Other Way	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on High Dive (2021)]
69	Cheap Cuts feat. Pete Wentz	Check Your Phone	Non-album Single (2020)
70	grandson	Dirty	Death Of An Optimist (2020)
71	Nothing But Thieves	Real Love Song	Moral Panic (2020)
72	The Head and the Heart	See You Through My Eyes	Living Mirage (2020)
73	Dominic Fike	Chicken Tenders	What Could Possibly Go Wrong (2020)
74	Bastille	survivin’	Goosebumps EP (2020)
75	The Federal Empire	I Never Liked Your Friends	Road Through Hell (2020)
76	The Black Keys	Go	Let’s Rock (2019)
77	Machine Gun Kelly feat. YUNGBLUD & Travis Barker	I Think I’m OKAY	Hotel Diablo (2019)
78	Machine Gun Kelly with blackbear	my ex’s best friend	Tickets to My Downfall (2020)
79	Joji	Daylight	Nectar (2020)
80	boy pablo	hey girl	Wachito Rico (2020)
81	Clairo	Sofia	Immunity (2019)
82	Machine Gun Kelly	why are you here	Non-album Single (2019) [Later on Mainstream Sellout (Life in Pink Deluxe) (2022)]
83	UPSAHL	Smile For The Camera	Young Life Crisis (2020)
84	flora cash	Missing Home	Baby, It’s Okay (2020)
85	Tool	Fear Inoculum	Fear Inoculum (2019)
86	The Backseat Lovers	Kilby Girl	When We Were Friends (2019)
87	Mallrat	Charlie	Driving Music (2019)
88	Biffy Clyro	Instant History	A Celebration Of Endings (2020)
89	Highly Suspect	These Days	MCID (2019)
90	Glass Animals	Heat Waves	Dreamland (2020)
91	Angels & Airwaves	Rebel Girl	Non-album Single (2019) [Later on Lifeforms (2021)]
92	Meg Myers	Any Way You Wanna Love	Thank U 4 Taking Me 2 The Disco (2020)
93	The Lumineers	Salt And The Sea	III (2019)
94	Tones And I	Ur So F**kInG cOoL	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Welcome to the Madhouse (2021)]
95	HOKO	OK OK	Non-album Single (2020)
96	Dylan Cartlidge	Yellow Brick Road	Hope Above Adversity (2020)
97	Ritt Momney	Put Your Records On	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Sunny Boy (2021)]
98	Incubus	Our Love	Trust Fall (Side B) (2020)
99	EOB	Shangri-La	Earth (2020)
100	Bakar	1st Time	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Nobody’s Home (2022)]
101	Romy	Lifetime	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Mid Air (2023)]
102	Ashnikko	Daisy	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on DEMIDEVIL (2021)]
103	Cold Hart feat. Lil Peep	Me and You	Non-album Single (2020)
104	jxdn	ANGELS & DEMONS	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Tell Me About Tomorrow (2021)]
105	Deftones	Ohms	Ohms (2020)
106	Little Hurt	Alaska	Non-album Single (2020) [Later on Every Second (2021)]

KROQ Inspired Top 106 Songs of 2020

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