The Billboard charts are complete through August 2006. This is a tallying of the top hits for the months of June, July, and August 2006. These are the hottest songs of the summer.
1. Nelly Furtado featuring Timbaland - "Promiscuous"
Geffen Records.
When the summer of 2006 began, few would have predicted that Nelly Furtado would have the pop hit of the summer. She really had no serious competition. The gamble of remaking herself as a dance diva paid off handsomely with the biggest hit of her career so far.
2. Cassie - "Me & U"
Courtesy Bad Boy Entertainment
Model-turned-singer Cassie served as a statement that Diddy's Bad Boy Entertainment is back as a major player in pop music circles.
3. Shakira featuring Wyclef Jean - "Hips Don't Lie"
Courtesy Sony BMG
Now it seems that a megahit like this was inevitable from Shakira. This is one of the biggest international hits of the year.
4. Gnarls Barkley - "Crazy"
Courtesy Downtown Records.
Gnarls Barkley were the left-field act of the summer. "Crazy" is one of the biggest hits of all time in the UK.
5. Yung Joc - "It's Goin' Down"
Courtesy Atlantic
6. Chamillionaire featuring Krayzie Bone - "Ridin'"
Courtesy Universal
Every summer needs a big in-the-car hit, and in the summer of 2006 "Ridin'" by Chamillionaire with an assist from Krayzie Bone is it.
7. Rihanna - "Unfaithful"
Courtesy DefJam
Rihanna shrewdly shifted gears in the summer of 2006 to release one of the few ballad hits of the season.
8. The Fray - "Over My Head (Cable Car)"
Courtesy Epic Records
The Fray, out of Denver, Colorado, were this year's little pop band that could. Just try and not sing along with this tune.
9. Christina Aguilera - "Ain't No Other Man"
Courtesy Sony BMG
One lasting memory of the pop music world for the summer of 2006 will certainly be the triumphant return of Christina Aguilera. She closed out the summer releasing Back to Basics, one of the best pop albums of the year.
10. Pussycat Dolls featuring Snoop Dogg - "Buttons"
Courtesy A&M Records
The Pussycat Dolls were the big new act of the summer of 2005, and they were still going strong reeling off hits from their first album a year later.
