What Are the Most Popular Rock Songs of 2022?

2022 is more than halfway over, and we’ve had a lot of great music come out almost every week! If you’re a fan of rock, you should definitely have added a lot of this year’s releases to your playlist. But if you’ve been living under a rock, what are the popular rock songs of 2022 that everyone has been listening to?

We researched famous and popular music enthusiast sites, and asked around the cafe to make a list of popular rock songs you should give a listen to. If you’re wondering what all the good songs are, we got you covered!

The Popular Rock Songs of 2022

The popular rock songs of the year include singles produced by musicians who have been recording music for years, if not decades, new up-and-comers, and everything in between. If you’re lucky, you’ll be able to grab a ticket to a show at the River Street Jazz Cafe that features one of these songs!

“Black Summer” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers

The Red Hot Chili Peppers will celebrate their 40th anniversary next year, and this year they showed that they haven’t lost their touch. With the release of “Black Summer,” the lead single from their album, Unlimited Love, they top the charts like few have done before. 

First, it debuted at number three on Billboard’s Rock & Alternative Airplay. This is considered a career-best start for this historic and long-lived band. This song also comes off the return of guitarist John Frusciante to the band, which surely played a part in the band’s performance.

When the single was released back in February of this year, we all just knew that the full album was something to get excited about. Listen to it now if you’re looking for a new song from a classic band that just won’t quit!

“Won’t Stand Down” by Muse

Let’s cross over the Atlantic Ocean to listen to a popular British rock band that released their new single back in January of 2022. Muse’s heavy metal song uses electronic sounds and mixing to create a rock song that stands apart from most. “Won’t Stand Down” is a single you’ll definitely bang your head to, so it’s no surprise that many have called this song Muse’s “heaviest material yet.”

In Muse’s home country, “Won’t Stand Down” was released as a single and topped the UK Rock & metal charts, reaching the 56th spot among UK singles. In the United States, it was more of a sleeper hit, slowly crawling its way to the #1 spot on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart. When this happened in May of this year, “Won’t Stand Down” became the first Muse song to do so!

“The Steeple” by Haelstorm

Haelstorm has always been a band of artists who look to push buttons and use the imagery in their lyrics and music videos to reach the hearts and minds of their fans. With “The Steeple,” they took the feelings they had while in lockdown from COVID–band member Izzy Hale in particular–to write a song about “navigating mental health, debauchery, survival, redemption, rediscovery, and still maintaining faith in humanity.”

You can hear the emotion and faith in the dramatic high point of the song, where Hale sings, “This is my kingdom / this is my cathedral / this is my castle / these are people.” It’s the perfect song for hard rock fans looking for something that sounds harsh but is actually incredibly hopeful. 

“Fire Escape” by Beach Bunny

If you’re looking for a single that sounds a little more upbeat and a bit less intense, we have one for you. “Fire Escape” may be about how love sucks but it also fills you with emotion to remind you that it can also be the best thing in the world. Released with their album, Emotional Creature, it’s one of the most popular songs on the album. 

Described by Far Out Magazine to be “peppy pop punk guitar rock,” we can’t help but agree. The song, like the album, has been praised for how it “utilizes cymbal crashes, fuzzy power chords, and sunny melodies,” that all come together to create a song that speaks to the heart without tearing it apart.

“Planet Zero” by Shinedown

Shinedown has been producing rock songs since the band formed in 2001 and has so much success that it’s tied with Three Days Grace for having the most #1 singles on the Billboard Mainstream Rock charts. Currently, they have 17, and to this day, they haven’t released a single that hasn’t been in the top 5.

“Planet Zero” is the titular track of the new album, and the album had the #1 spot on the all-genre Top Albums Sales chart when it was released. This album and this song are perfect for being something both new and familiar for long-time and new fans of Shinedown. It’s the perfect song to feel comfortable with.

Check Out Our Upcoming Shows After Listening to the Most Popular Rock Songs of 2022

The most popular rock songs of 2022 are all great and amazing to listen to, but there’s nothing quite like a live performance. If you’re looking to hear live music instead of listening to music on your headphones, check out the upcoming schedule of performances that the River Street Jazz Cafe has for August and the months afterward. Our next show is Flatfoot 56 and Blanks 77 on August 12, get your tickets now before they’re sold out!