As always, the Just Dance franchise gives fans a stupendous opening course of songs and promises even more as the year goes on. This will likely be the case for Just Dance 2023, though no fan is going to be disappointed in the initial playlist, there are some real bangers.
This list measures the best songs based on how fun they are, not their overall quality. There are some deep, meaningful, and well-written songs that did not make the cut because, while they are empowering, they lack the sheer fun factor. These are high-energy songs in Just Dance 2023 that even first-time listeners will want to jam out to right away.
10 Million Dollar Baby - Ava Max
Many dance tunes are defined by mere thudding on the bass, but Ava Max adds an inspiring vocal performance that does just as much as the beat to get dancers out of their seats with Million Dollar Baby.
The combination of these two elements keeps the listeners hyped up. Neither one ever takes time off. Million Dollar baby is as likely to inspire drummers and singers as it is dancers. This kind of excitement at both levels makes audiences move without question.
9 Disco Inferno - The Trammps
Dancers that remember the best songs in last year's edition shouldn't be surprised that the classics are what they are for a reason. The all-time record-shattering hits didn't get to the top of the mountain and survive decades because of sentimentality.
The Trammps brought deep funk, solid bass, and big band brass together to produce one of the most hip-shaking songs of all time. Disco doesn't just get toes tapping, it gets fingers pointing and hips dropping as well as any modern song.
8 Good Ones - Charli XCX
Some dancers have had their hearts broken and others are looking to do a little heartbreaking themselves. Some don't even do it on purpose and it's those people that inspired Good Ones by Charli XCX. It's a song in a game that gets people in shape and tells a story as well.
The light and airy lyrics are undercut by satisfactory pumps from the bass guaranteed to make everybody start dancing. Even if the participants haven't been in any romantic misfortunes lately, there is still a large range of emotions to explore in the music.
7 Can't Stop The Feeling - Justin Timberlake
As live service becomes the norm for the game, Rocksmith knows they still have to retain players who will only have the base game. If Can't Stop The Feeling by Justin Timberlake won't get the old guard signing on for a new round, then they're not worth keeping.
The chorus literally tells listeners to "dance, dance, dance," so the song knows exactly what its purpose is. It accomplishes this with an upbeat yet groovy beat that encourages both choreographed moves and playful jiving. It's what makes the game such a good workout to boot.
6 Dynamite - BTS
Some more localized listeners may not have heard of international sensation BTS before, however, they've likely heard Dynamite at some point, even if just passing other cars with it on or at the store shopping. It's a happy, snappy tune that has earned its recognition.
If for whatever reason the listener hasn't had a chance to get down to this tune, they're in for a treat. It's shocking how many moves work well with Dynamite as its personal expression among the singers is reflected in the style itself of the song.
5 Anything I Do - CLiQ, Ms Banks, & Alika
Prospective buyers of Just Dance 2023 will likely have been swayed to purchase the product after hearing Anything I Do by CLiQ (featuring Ms Banks and Alika) featured in the marketing.
This is a smart move by the team, leading with a song that demands listeners at least jiggle in their car seats. The song has a single heavy beat with popping drums and symbols forming the melody. Percussion at every level is hard to pull off but it works like a charm for this song jam-packed with personality.
4 Toxic - Britney Spears
Any doubters that one of pop's biggest stars could churn out a smash club hit got shut down when Britney Spears came out with Toxic, a song so popular that any club without it on the playlist should probably lose its license to operate.
The new game will be breaking traditions, but Toxic is a song that won't be going anywhere anytime soon. The beat is unorthodox, mixing deep beats in with high-pitched violins. T erratic melody encourages dancers to use different parts of their bodies as the notes hit each one differently.
3 Sissy That Walk - RuPaul
It's amazing that "musician" might be the fifth or sixth thing listed on RuPaul's resume because the man has two Billboard Music Awards and a Tony. And dancers worried that Sissy That Walk is just a gimmick to use RuPaul's personality are sorely mistaken, this is an all-timer.
The song has a tremendous build to the chorus which is surprising because it's got an established, jazzy tune right away. When the synth sounds start going amelodic, even spectators to the game will want to get in on the action.
2 ITZY - WANNABE
There were a lot of songs left off of this list due to a bridge that got too slow or a brief change in the melody that threw off the timing of the song. The genius of WANNABE is that each member of ITZY gets their own part of the song, there are multiple bridges, different languages, and yet every piece retains the in-your-face bold individualism dancers crave.
After dancing to this song, families and friends will be singing, "I wanna be me, me me" for days afterward. If they don't say it out loud, they'll be doing it with the bodies, dancing to a beat that invariably gets stuck in the listener's bones.
1 Telephone - Lady Gaga & Beyonce
When Lady Gaga released The Fame Monster, radio stations were trying to give proper airtime to her smash hits from The Fame one year earlier. Many stations got around to Bad Romance, Paker Face, and the song that inspired this very franchise, Just Dance. But it was her collaboration with Beyonce on Telephone that yielded one of the best songs to dance to in all of human history.
Finally getting its due, Telephone goes through low and gritty moments, carefree rhythms, and awe-inspiring vocals and clapping. The dynamic ups and downs encourage different styles of dance and are sure to be a smash hit by the artist the game owes its entire identity to.
Just Dance 2023 is available now on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.