Zach Bryan Charts 3 Albums On Billboard’s Baffling Year-End Top Rock & Alternative Albums Chart

A genuinely baffling list.

Somehow, some way, it’s already December 1st. With 2025 on its final month, you’ll be seeing plenty of year-end lists from a wide array of publications, streaming services and charts such as Billboard.

While a majority of the public is still waiting on the ever-popular Spotify Wrapped to drop, Billboard has decided to begin slowly rolling out their year-end charts. Though their year-end country charts have yet to be released, they kicked things off this morning with the announcement of their 2025 Top Rock & Alternative Albums and Songs chart… and it’s nothing short of head-scratching.

Leading the way on both the Albums and Songs chart is none other than international pop superstar, Billie Eilish, taking home the top spot on both charts with her smash 2024 hit, “BIRDS OF A FEATHER,” and her 2x platinum album, Hit Me Hard and Soft. Other entries on the Songs chart include the likes of Jelly Roll’s “Liar,” (for some reason), Hozier’s smash hit, “Too Sweet,” Lola Young’s “Messy” and The María’s “No One Noticed.”

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Obviously, Eilish has yet to actually produce an actual rock album, frequently leaning into a clear-cut modern pop style throughout her career, borrowing some elements from alternative and emo/punk throughout. With that being said, if you think the “WILDFLOWER” singer topping the list is bad, just wait until you see the entirety of the Top Rock & Alternative Albums list.

Though Eilish tops the chart with Hit Me Hard And Soft, it’s none other than country music’s very own Zach Bryan who scored the most entries on the year-end list, charting his past three albums, American Heartbreak, Zach Bryan and The Great American Bar Scene, at #4, #7 and #8 respectively.

For whatever reason, Bryan has consistently been grouped in the Rock & Alternative category, along with Country, by Billboard for years at this point. Though it’s pretty clear that the “Something in the Orange” singer exists somewhere between country, folk and heartland rock throughout most of his career, it hasn’t stopped Billboard from allowing all the aforementioned albums, along with nearly each single he’s released since “Heading South” in 2019 to simultaneously chart on both their Hot Country and Hot Rock & Alternative charts.

Of course, Bryan has made it clear that he doesn’t want to be labeled as a genre artist in the past, most famously telling Bruce Springsteen in an interview with Rolling Stone that he doesn’t want to be labeled a country artist but rather a songwriter.

“I don’t want to be a country musician. Everyone calls me it. I want to be a songwriter, and you’re quintessentially a songwriter. No one calls Bruce Springsteen – [I] hate to use your name in front of you — but no one calls Bruce Springsteen a freaking rock musician, which you are one, but you’re also an indie musician, you’re also a country musician. You’re all these things encapsulated in one man. And that’s what songwriting is.”

With all of that being said, Bryan’s placement on Billboard’s year-end rock chart isn’t even the most mind-boggling.

Along with Eilish topping the chart, Taylor Swift’s five-year-old folk album, folklore, Noah Kahan’s three-year-old folk album, Stick Season, Olivia Rodrigo’s two-year-old pop album, GUTS, Hozier’s 11-year-old alternative album, Hozier, Elton John’s eight-year-old pop-rock album, Diamonds and Fleetwood Mac’s legendary 1977 album, Rumors, all make appearances in the Top 10 chart for 2025.

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I don’t think I need to point out the absurd nature of this chart.

You can argue that there’s maybe three albums (Hozier, Fleetwood Mac and Elton John) that can even be on the list, but with that being said, the albums themselves are old… so old, in fact, that they range from being eight to a whopping 48-years-old as of December 1st, 2025.

It shouldn’t be a controversial statement to say that modern rock has been pretty dead for awhile. While of course, there are some exceptions with quality bands such as Greta Van Fleet, Kaleo, The Backseat Lovers, Black Pumas, Florence + The Machine and more, there’s been a serious lack of mainstream attention for the genre, and this chart, filled with pop and folk albums, just solidifies it. It should go without saying that Billboard seriously needs to re-evaluate their criteria for their Rock & Alternative charts, especially for all the die hard fans of the genre out there today. Honestly, southern rock acts like Whiskey Myers, Blackberry Smoke, and Them Dirty Roses, among others, might be some of the best rock and roll bands we have right now.

Congratulations to Zach Bryan for his three entries, I guess… I doubt he cares either way.

Top 10 Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (2025)

1. “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” – Billie Eilish
2. “Too Sweet” – Hozier
3. “Stargazing” – Myles Smith
4. “WILDFLOWER” – Billie Eilish
5. “Messy” – Lola Young
6. “No One Noticed” – The Marías
7. “Sailor Song” – Gigi Perez
8. “Liar” – Jelly Roll
9. “Undressed” – sombr
10. “Back to Friends” – sombr

Top 10 Hot Rock & Alternative Albums (2025)

1. Hit Me Hard And Soft – Billie Eilish
2. Stick Season – Noah Kahan
3. Rumors – Fleetwood Mac
4. American Heartbreak – Zach Bryan
5. Diamonds – Elton John
6. folklore – Taylor Swift
7. Zach Bryan – Zach Bryan
8. The Great American Bar Scene – Zach Bryan
9. Hozier – Hozier
10. GUTS – Olivia Rodrigo