In recent years, oldies radio stations have inched further into the future - and have begun to focus on favorites from the '70s (and even '80s) rather than from the '50s and '60s. So we wondered, forty years from now - in 2052 - will songs of the '90s, '00s and '10s make it onto oldies radio? What will be in heavy rotation - and what will be left off of the playlist? We ask Chris Molanphy - author of the "100 & Single" Billboard charts column in the Village Voice – and we talk with Scott Shannon - who was, back in 2012, a WPLJ host and creator of the syndicated radio network The True Oldies Channel - about the state of oldies today. 

Check out Chris Molanphy's playlist (chronological listing):

Twenty songs we’ll still be hearing on oldies radio in 2052

by Chris Molanphy

(In chronological order by original release)

1. Sir Mix-a-Lot, “Baby Got Back” (1992) – This hit was underestimated by critics in ’92, compared with Arrested Development’s “Tennessee”

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 1)

2. Pearl Jam, “Yellow Ledbetter” (1992) – An example of how classic-rock acts are eventually remembered for a song that wasn’t their biggest radio hit.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 97)

3. Radiohead, “Creep” (1993) – Still their U.S. biggest hit, and though they’ve recorded greater albums this is still most likely to be in rotation decades from now.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 34)

4. Snoop (Doggy) Dogg, “Gin and Juice” (1994) – Because a great line is a great line, and “With my mind on my money and my money on my mind” is a great one.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 8)

5. Mariah Carey, “Always Be My Baby” (1996) – She was the biggest pop star of the ’90s, but a lot of her hits got burned out long ago; this one hasn’t.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 1)

6. Sublime, “What I Got” (1996) – Because bros and stoners, like it or not, are going to have a new “The Joker”/”Slow Ride.”

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: N/A—Airplay chart peak No. 29)

7. Blur, “Song 2” (1997) – Sports will still be the way we hear a lot of pop songs.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: N/A—Airplay chart peak No. 55)

8. Backstreet Boys, “I Want It That Way” (1999) – Great song; but also the Chinese brothers’ lip-dub (2005) was one of YouTube’s first viral videos—the future of hits.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 6)

9. Eminem, “Lose Yourself” (2002) – He won an Oscar for it, essentially because it’s this generation’s “Gonna Fly Now”/“Eye of the Tiger.”

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 1)

10. Coldplay, “Clocks” (2002) – Every generation has its easy-listening songs.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 29)

11. The White Stripes, “Seven Nation Army” (2003) – Because you can’t stop a good bassline, even when it’s actually played on a guitar.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 76)

12. The Postal Service, “Such Great Heights” or Yeah Yeah Yeahs, “Maps” (2003) – One of these will be the “Just Like Heaven” of our era—the hipster love song.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: N/A, No. 87)

13. OutKast, “Hey Ya!” (2003) – Burned out in its heyday but will probably never die.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 1)

14. Kelly Clarkson, “Since U Been Gone” (2005) – It will be the Millennial generation’s “sass anthem,” akin to “Respect” or “I Will Survive”

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 2)

15. Gnarls Barkley, “Crazy” (2006) – Because of its malleability as a song; decades hence it might be a folk classic.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 2)

16. Rihanna, “Umbrella” (2007) – It’s the lyrics: beneath its hip-hop exterior lie the bones of an old-time, sentimental love ballad.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 1)

17. Beyoncé, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” (2008) – Weddings alone guarantee this a permanent hit-parade spot.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 1)

18. Jay-Z, “Empire State of Mind” (2009) – Rap’s Frank Sinatra ensured himself decades of royalties with his own Yankee-game-worthy perennial.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 1)

19. Lady Gaga, “Bad Romance” (2009) – Its nonsense lyric is “wamp-baba-lula” worthy; its video is a classic.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 2)

20. Taio Cruz, “Dynamite” (2010) – I’ve never met a kid under 10 who doesn’t love it, and they will all be in their fifties in 2052.

(Peak on Billboard’s Hot 100: No. 2)