Certain songs dominate the charts each year, but the artists don't always endure.
Some one-hit wonders show talent and skill, while others are one-off successes.
Sometimes, the artists behind one-hit wonders can find success with other musicians, but not always.
Every year, some songs become fast hits, but artists can't always replicate that popularity — and they end up becoming one-hit wonders.
And, while there are some really great one-hit wonders, others are just bad. In our opinion, Rebecca Black's "Friday" is annoying, and Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out?" is too repetitive.
However, even a mediocre one-hit wonder can pay the bills.
Vanilla Ice capitalized off the success of "Ice Ice Baby" for years, even without producing a song that reached that level of popularity ever again. He has become a successful host and played himself in many movies. He even had a nine-year reality show called "The Vanilla Ice Project." And according to the National Post, Ice is still making a sizable chunk of change from the song, as well.
Here are 48 of the worst one-hit wonders of all time, in chronological order.
Anjelica Oswald and Libby Torres contributed to an earlier version of this article.
"Kung Fu Fighting" by Carl Douglas (1974)
Carl Douglas became most famous for his song "Kung Fu Fighting."
The disco hit is also well-known for its use of an "East Asian riff," which is used by Western cultures as a stereotype or caricature of what they believe Asian music to sound like, according to NPR.
The song was never meant to be a hit, but the dance clubs at the time picked it up and launched it to the top of the charts.
"Turning Japanese" by The Vapors (1980)
British band The Vapors is best known for their song "Turning Japanese." The tune also uses the "East Asian" riff that "Kung-Fu Fighting" is best known for.
It's ultimately just dumb, though.
It was thought to be one large innuendo about pleasuring oneself, but the band said the song was about "all the clichés about angst and youth and turning into something you didn't expect to," according to a VH1 special.
"Funkytown" by Lipps Inc. (1980)
Disco group Lipps Inc.'s "Funkytown" does sound funky. It's got a good disco beat to get someone moving, but the song is a repetitive mess that's actually difficult to understand — though fans of "Shrek 2" might disagree.
"Puttin' on the Ritz" by Taco (1982)
Originally written by Irving Berlin, Taco put his own synth spin on the song, but he shouldn't have messed with it at all.
Plus, the original video featured people in blackface, leading to it getting banned and re-edited.
"The Safety Dance" by Men Without Hats (1982)
"The Safety Dance" has a joyous beat that is really fun to move to.
Despite that, Rolling Stone voters chose it as one of the top five worst songs from the 1980s.
"You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" by Dead or Alive (1984)
It's hard not to tap your foot to Dead or Alive's "You Spin Me Round," but the group doesn't sound good in it.
According to Newsweek, vocalist Pete Burns even admitted their record label didn't want the song made. In his autobiography, "Freak Unique," he wrote, "The record company said it was awful. It was unanimous — it was awful, it was rubbish."
"Almost Paradise" by Mike Reno and Ann Wilson (1984)
Otherwise known as the theme from "Footloose," "Almost Paradise" is supposed to be a romantic love ballad, but the pairing of Loverboy's Mike Reno and Heart's Ann Wilson just doesn't work as well as it could.
Now, the song is used as the theme music for "Bachelor in Paradise. "
"Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice (1990)
Vanilla Ice's most popular song took the bass line of David Bowie and Queen's "Under Pressure," which landed the rapper in hot water after the release.
When threatened with a lawsuit, Ice settled out of court, according to Rolling Stone. The song didn't establish Ice as a rapper, though. Even though the song topped the Billboard charts, he didn't manage to release another hit.
"Rico Suave" by Gerardo (1990)
"Rico Suave" peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard charts and earned the Ecuadorian rapper and singer two MTV Video Music Awards nominations.
The song has since been seen as a gimmick, along the same lines as "Ice Ice Baby."
"Unbelievable" by EMF (1990)
The psychedelic sound and the repetition of "You're unbelievable" are the most memorable parts of this song. But EMF's soft vocals and disinterested sound render the rest of the song forgettable.
"I'm Too Sexy" by Right Said Fred (1991)
"I'm Too Sexy" was the debut single from brothers Fred and Richard Fairbrass of Right Said Fred. The catchy song proved to be a hit, topping the charts in countries including Australia and the United States.
We still can't escape the song thanks to Taylor Swift using the same rhythmic pattern in her single "Look What You Made Me Do."
"Achy Breaky Heart" by Billy Ray Cyrus (1992)
It's hard to deny the impact Miley Cyrus' father had on country music in the '90s.
"Achy Breaky Heart" became a crossover hit on the radio and made line dancing popular briefly, but the craze and the song have since fizzled out.
"Informer" by Snow (1992)
According to Billboard, Canadian reggae artist Snow wrote "Informer" after spending a year in a detention center on charges of attempted murder, which were later changed to charges of aggravated assault.
The song somehow spent weeks at No. 1 in the US, but Snow could never match that success.
Jim Carrey later parodied Snow on the sketch show "In Living Color," with lyrics such as: "Imposter/I'm just a middle-class white guy from Toronto/Despite of how I sound."
"Whoomp! (There It Is)" by Tag Team (1993)
"Whoomp! (There It Is)" is a pop culture phenomenon. The song has been used in commercials and movies and at sporting events since Tag Team first came out with the song.
But its overuse makes it a little stale — and remember, it's "Whoomp," not "Whoot."
"Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm" by Crash Test Dummies (1993)
The Crash Test Dummies earned a Grammy nomination for "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm," and the song made it to No. 5 in the US, but one may ask "How?" and "Why?"
The song sounds like a serious cover of a parody song. And then there's the title itself, which makes it hard just to say what you're listening to: "Mmmmmmm."
"Cotton Eye Joe" by Rednex (1994)
The origins of a folk song called "Cotton-Eyed Joe" extend back to the 1880s, but the most popular version of the song is a remix from Swedish group Rednex.
The techno tune made people dance and it even hit No. 1 in a few countries, but it's fairly irritating after a few seconds. It really only hits at a sweet 16 or a bar mitzvah.
"Breakfast at Tiffany's" by Deep Blue Something (1995)
Deep Blue Something had their only hit in this humdrum song about a boy trying to hold onto a girl whom he has "nothing in common" with by bringing up the Audrey Hepburn movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's."
According to the girl, she remembers that, well, "they both kind of liked it." Somehow it peaked at No. 5 in the US.
"How Bizarre" by OMC (1995)
The thing about OMC's hit single is that the horns and the beat are wonderful.
But lead singer Pauly Fuemana just doesn't sound interested in what he's singing. It should be more fun.
"One of Us" by Joan Osborne (1995)
Osborne's song repeatedly asks the question, "What if God was one of us?"
It received four Grammy nominations and was also used as the theme song for Joan of Arcadia. It's got a good hook, but the simple guitar song's biggest crime is that it's boring.
"Pepper" by Butthole Surfers (1996)
Ah, yes, the Butthole Surfers. The rock band's song "Pepper" was a successful rock song of the '90s.
The song goes from spoken words into a sung chorus, but it's a strange sound, and the band was never able to replicate its success.
"Blue (Da Ba Dee)" by Eiffel 65 (1998)
To be blunt, this song is dumb. It's about a guy who lives in a blue world, in a blue house, drives a blue Corvette, has a blue girlfriend, and only sees blue.
Sure, this could be a metaphor for depression if you really think about it — but according to Eiffel 65, that was just a coincidence.
"They asked me to write the lyrics and I was thinking about how people are, their lifestyles, and I thought how could I describe this with one word? How about making it somebody's colour? And that's how 'Blue' got to be written," member Jeffrey Jey told Canoe.
"The Bad Touch" by Bloodhound Gang (1999)
Many of the Bloodhound Gang's songs are sexual in nature, and "The Bad Touch" is no exception.
Even though the lyrics are filled with bad sexual innuendos and puns, the song's catchy beat still ends up stuck in your head — but that doesn't mean we have to like it.
"Summer Girls" by LFO (1999)
There's a lot to process when going through the nonsensical lyrics to "Summer Girls."
There are pop culture references to "Home Alone," "Abercrombie and Fitch," and "New Kids on the Block"; there's a seemingly random line about Chinese food making them sick; and then there's "When you take a sip/You buzz like a hornet/Billy Shakespeare wrote/A whole bunch of sonnets."
We just have to ask: What?
"Butterfly" by Crazy Town (1999)
Crazy Town, a rap-rock group from the '90s, landed a No. 1 hit song with their single "Butterfly," which takes a sample from Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Pretty Little Ditty."
Crazy Town never replicated that amount of success again — which they knew would probably be the case when the song was released.
"We knew all along we didn't want to release 'Butterfly' first because we didn't want to be known as the band that does 'Butterfly.' We are looking at this like we want to have a career," Crazy Town guitarist Kraig "Squirrel" Tyler told Hip Hop Online.
"Who Let the Dogs Out" by Baha Men (2000)
"Who Let the Dogs Out" is repetitive to the point of being obnoxious and asks the same question repeatedly: "Who let the dogs out?" Well, we still don't know.
Baha Men members Dyson Knight and Isaiah Taylor spoke to Vice in 2015 about how their most famous song came to be, and it turns out even the group members didn't want to record it.
"Isaiah heard the song and said there was 'no way in hell we're recording that song,'" Knight said.
And yet, the group did record it and even won a Grammy Award for the annoying hit.
"Around the World (La La La La La)" by ATC (2000)
Dance group ATC became a surprise hit with their song "Around the World," but the "la-la-la's" are ultimately more annoying than they are entertaining.
And they're even more annoying when they've been stuck in your head for hours.
"I Wanna Be Bad" by Willa Ford (2001)
Willa Ford's "I Wanna Be Bad" was a pop jam that was featured in classic 2000s movies like "What a Girl Wants" and "Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star." But in retrospect, the dance song didn't have staying power, and neither did Ford as a musician.
Somehow, though, Ford has remained a celebrity, acting in movies, appearing on reality shows like "Dancing With the Stars" and "Flip It Like Disick," and modeling. At this point, you might forget she originally became famous for her music.
"My Neck, My Back (Lick It)" by Khia (2002)
When this salacious song took off, it needed to be heavily edited for radio and TV.
Khia was even surprised by the song's success, telling MTV at the time,"I guess the world is just nasty and freaky like that. It's not even my favorite song, and I was kind of surprised that's the song that everybody jumped on."
Now, when we have songs like "WAP" becoming huge hits, it's almost quaint that we thought this was so explicit.
"Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)" by JC Chasez (2002)
JC Chasez tried his hand at a solo career after NSYNC split, but it never took off.
His debut single, "Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)" from the "Drumline" soundtrack, was basically as good as it got, which wasn't very good at all. It's justsolong at 4:50.
It's unfortunate, since many of us know that Chasez was the best member of NSYNC.
"Move Your Feet" by Junior Senior (2002)
Danish group Junior Senior put this dance track on the map, and for a brief time, it was everywhere. It was in commercials, played in "One Tree Hill," and was even in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall."
But aside from the funky beat, it's forgettable. Don't let the nostalgia and the catchy pre-chorus hook trick you. It's not good.
"The Ketchup Song (Aserejé)" by Las Ketchup (2002)
Las Ketchup was a Spanish pop group that broke out with their song "Aserejé (The Ketchup Song)."
They came out with a Spanish version, a Spanglish version, and one with Portuguese verses. There was even a choreographed dance that people learned.
The song was addictive, but it's also weird, and that's OK. It doesn't mean we're ever queuing it up in 2024.
"Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)" by Lumidee (2003)
Despite making it to the top three on the Billboard charts, the song is most memorable for the "uh ohs." Other than that, Lumidee sounds off-key for most of the song.
"Axel F" by Crazy Frog (2005)
The Swedish computer-animated Crazy Frog character is literally known as "The Annoying Thing," mostly due to the songs Crazy Frog covered.
Despite how annoying "Axel F" was, the song somehow managed to find international success, peaking at No. 1 in countries including Australia, Spain, and Sweden. The song also spawned a meme when a video of two boys lip-syncing and dancing to it hit YouTube.
But "Axel F" only hit No. 50 in the US, and it was Crazy Frog's only song to chart in the country.
"Laffy Taffy" by D4L (2005)
D4L is best known for their song "Laffy Taffy," which refers to women's backsides as "Laffy Taffy" and then names a bunch of candy as sexual innuendos. Aside from the catchy beat, the song is fairly boring, yet it did hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts.
Shortly after, D4L disbanded, meaning we'll never know if they could top "Laffy Taffy."
"Lips of an Angel" by Hinder (2006)
Hinder managed to break through to the top of the US charts with their rock ballad. With lead singer Austin Winkler's recognizable rasp, emotive performance, and easy-to-memorize lyrics, it was hard not to sing along with the band.
But the song is about a guy wishing his current girlfriend was his ex-girlfriend, so it's sad and the opposite of romantic, even though some couples took it as such.
It took eight years, but it seems people are finally getting the hint — the song is currently a TikTok trend about "the one who got away" showing up at your wedding.
"This Is Why I'm Hot" by Mims (2007)
Why does rapper Mims say he's hot? "Cause he's fly." And why are you not hot? "You ain't cause you not." That pretty much sums up Mims' hit No. 1 single.
Unsurprisingly, he could never top the lyrical genius of those lines.
"I Love College" by Asher Roth (2009)
"I Love College" was made during the MySpace area, which helped get this party anthem the attention it needed. The song itself doesn't even have the best dance rhythm, but it's all about drinking and smoking weed, so it works for what it is: a dumb song about being in college.
"Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People (2010)
In addition to being incredibly overplayed, the song's lyrics are pretty controversial, apparently focusing on a student planning to shoot up his school.
Even though front man Mark Foster has said the song was meant to be an anti-gun violence anthem, as reported by CNN, it's still not a good look to have "all the other kids with the pumped up kicks/ better run, better run, outrun my gun" as the main lyrics of your hit.
"Teach Me How to Dougie" by Cali Swag District (2010)
The song led to a lot of debate over what it actually meant to "dougie." In addition to its repetitive lyrics, "Teach Me How to Dougie" quickly becomes mind-numbing after a few listens. There are better dance-focused tracks, like "Wobble" by VIC.
"Billionaire" by Travie McCoy ft. Bruno Mars (2010)
The song is about rich men wanting to get even richer — something that's just as distasteful today as it was in 2010.
McCoy has had success with his band Gym Class Heroes, but this was supposed to jump-start his solo career, and it never did. Of course, Mars became a huge pop sensation.
"Friday" by Rebecca Black (2011)
From the poorly edited music video to the auto-tuned song itself, everything about Rebecca Black's "Friday" was made to go viral.
And, of course, it did.
But despite being panned by critics and regular people everywhere, people's hatred for the song propelled it to the Billboard charts. Once it's stuck in your head, it's hard to get it out.
Now, since we know Black is actually a talented singer who has put out music she's written herself, it's even tougher to think back on how she was blamed for this monstrosity.
"Tongue Tied" by Grouplove (2011)
The song relies heavily on the use of synthesizers and doesn't have the most profound lyrics, either. What does "Marmalade/We're making out" mean, exactly?
It reached peak popularity after it was featured in an iPod touch commercial, and went on to be one of the most overplayed songs of the early 2010s.
Grouplove has continued to put out music, but none of the singles have reached the ubiquity of "Tongue Tied."
"Harlem Shake" by Baauer (2012)
The lasting legacy of "Harlem Shake" isn't even the song itself, but the meme that took off from videos of people grooving to the dance track byproducer and DJ Baauer.
Sports teams, actors, and even TV shows like "Glee" got in on the meme. The song even hit No. 1 thanks to its brief bout of fan hysteria.
"Don't Drop That Thun Thun" by The Finatticz (2012)
"Don't Drop That Thun Thun" was a song that gained popularity thanks to social media, specifically Vine.
A year after The Finatticz released this song, a Vine of a team twerking went viral and spawned numerous other memes with the song.
The simple tune does have a knack for burrowing its way into your brain and staying there, even if the chorus is just the same five words over and over.
"Cheerleader" by Omi (2012)
Omi's reggae track went viral after Felix Jaehn put an EDM twist on it in 2014, and upon first listen, it's a pretty upbeat bop.
But it quickly becomes apparent it doesn't have much substance to it, since it focuses on a man who has been tempted to cheat on other women, but didn't because his girlfriend is his own personal cheerleader.
"The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)" by Ylvis (2013)
Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis found international success with their song of animal sounds, which asked the question: "What does the fox say?"
Their answer was an annoying series of sounds that overtook radio airwaves and landed at No. 6 on the US charts. According to Entertainment Weekly, the song wasn't meant to be a success, but its virality pushed it to the top.
"Rude" by Magic! (2013)
Canadian band Magic! found success with their reggae-sounding "Rude," which hit the top of the charts in multiple countries and was the ninth best-selling song of 2014.
Butthe question is why?
The song is about a dude asking his girlfriend's father if he can marry her, getting a no, and saying, "Why you gotta be so rude?" and "I'm going to marry her anyway."Time named it one of the top 10 worst songs of the year, and we have to agree.
"CoCo" by O.T. Genasis (2014)
This viral track is literally about loving cocaine. Just O.T. Genasis repeating that he's in love with the "coco." It still went platinum, somehow.
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