Like every other warm-blooded mortal, I am anxiously awaiting Rihannaâs return to musicâalthough I maintain that it should be on her own timeline!âso my heart leapt when I read on Wednesday that the Caribbean Queen would be releasing a new song called âFriend of Mineââ¦only to then return to Earth with the news that said song would be on the Smurfs movie soundtrack. (No shade to Smurf Village, but am I the only one who canât help thinking of Seth Rogenâs character on The Studio trying desperately to make a live-action Kool-Aid movie when this particular franchise expansion is brought up?)
Rihannaâs new song will blessedly drop on Friday, May 16, months before the film is due out, and while I canât wait to throw ass in the club (okay, dance for 10 minutes and be in bed by 11 pm) to a banger originally recorded for a film intended to suitably distract feral toddlers on a long Sunday afternoon, I canât help wondering: why is all the good pop music confined to childrenâs films now? Okay, not all of it, but below, please find my power ranking of hit pop songs originally recorded for the soundtracks of kidsâ movies. (There are more than youâd think!)