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The Hot 100 is pretty much static this week. Nothing very interesting going on. No new entries in the top 15. No big exciting debuts elsewhere in the chart as well.
Maybe we can talk about the return to popularity of the teenage pop boy band.
First, those who play their own instruments. Not much had been heard from this genre since the heyday of Hanson in the late 90s. But now, there are two entries in the Top 10 recently that fit exactly that description.
The bigger band nowadays is of course the Jonas Brothers. These three brothers from New Jersey were born between 1987 to 1992. They hit the big time in 2007 with heavy support from the Disney Channel and their single "S.O.S." went top 20 in the Hot 100. Now their career goes into higher gear with their inclusion in the new hit Disney Channel Original Movie "Camp Rock" and the release of their third album. Last week, their newest single "Burnin' Up" debuted at # 5. Here is the video of "Burnin' Up":
The second band is Metro Station. When they hit the Top 10 a few weeks back, I have not heard of them at all. I thought they were another rap group. Their song "Shake It" is not being played on local radio. Then I learned that their vocalist and guitarist Trace Cyrus is the half brother of Miley. The song is actually very good pop, very catchy. Here is a lyrics video of "Shake It":
Of course, there are also the boybands who are just purely a vocal group. At the turn of the century, that was when BAckstreet Boys and N'Sync ruled the airwaves and video channels. However, that trend sort of petered itself out for the rest of the decade.
We have already talked about the comeback of the New Kids On the Block a few weeks back. Of course they are not teenage anymore, although based on their latest output, they still target the teenage girls market. Their song "Summertime" is still in the Top 40 Stateside, although we have not heard this song locally at all. Here is the video:
And do you know that the latest incarnation of that 80s "sensation" Menudo is also about to break into the chart limelight again? They are expected to hit the mainstream again with the hit "Lost". Also very juvenile and catchy. Here is the video:
I don't know about the teenage girls who will read this, but I think these songs all sound the same to me. Interchangeable even. Well, that said, this is still the current pop trend, and we can't argue with the charts. LOL!
Only 3 out of the 11 songs of David Cook remain in the Hot 100 this week. These are: "Time of My Life" (# 9), "Dream Big" (# 81, biggest dropper of week from # 15) and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" (# 85). The rest drop out, so with all of the David Archuleta songs. I do hope "Time" gains in airplay some more, but realistically it seems it will dall out of the Top 10 next week.
Lil Wayne's "Lollipop" is really doing very strong, both in airplay and download sales, well and above "Bleeding Love." Aside from # 1, Lil Wayne also gets the Hot Shot Debut of the week with "Got Money" at # 13. This one features T-Pain. It seems we will be seeing "Lollipop" stay on top for some time.
The first main contender is "Viva La Vida" from Coldplay, which this week reaches the Top 3. While this makes "Viva" the highest ranked Coldplay single ever, poor airplay stats may not propel it all the way to the top.
The second main contender is "I Kissed A Girl" from 23 year old American singer Katy Perry. I found this jaunty tune very good pop music. Title reminds me of a Jill Sobule song, but this one is different. This goes up big, from #21 all the way to # 5. Further gains in airplay will push it higher up.
The Greatest Gainer honor goes to "Teenage Love Affair" by Alicia Keys. This track was the one which got my immediate attention when I first heard her excellent "As I Am" album last year. I love the passion in her voice as she sings about "a matter of extreme importance." This song goes up 89 to 66 on its 4th week in this chart.
In my sneak preview a couple of days ago, you already know that David Cook has set a new record for the most number of titles for a single artist in the Nielsen SoundScan era (beginning Dec 1991). These are the David Cook hits that set the new record:
3 The Time Of My Life 15 Dream Big 22 I Still Haven't Found What I Am Looking For 28 The World I Know 42 I Don't Want To Miss A Thing 47 Billie Jean 67 Always Be My Baby 73 Hello 77 The Music Of The Night 92 Eleanor Rigby 99 I'm Alive
Reportedly bubbling under the Hot 100 are the following:
101 Little Sparrow 103 Hungry Like The Wolf 104 Innocent 114 Day Tripper 118 All Right Now 125 Happy Together
That is 4 new titles within the Top 30! Of these, it is clarified that the only official single release is "The Time of My Life." We know that only handful will remain next week, since these are basically fueled by digital downloads and not by airplay.
David Archuleta was also able to send 3 titles into this week's chart. These are: at # 36, "Imagine""Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" at # 58, and "In This Moment" at # 60.
Actually another song gained significantly because of its Idol association, and that is "Apologize" by Timbaland and One Republic. The latter guested on the Idol Finale and sang the song with Lil' David. It actually goes back up to # 18 from # 32, on its 43rd week.
Carrie Underwood's latest single "Last Name" also makes a big jump because of her performance in the Idol Finale. This song surges from # 37 up to # 19.
In non-Idol related chart news, Greatest Gainer this week goes to Coldplay. Their song "Viva La Vida" hits # 10 this week, after dropping to # 41 last week. Their other song "Violet Hill" drops slightly from # 61 to # 66.
The excitement generated by New Kids on the Block last week with their comeback hit "Summertime" seems to have been short-lived. They drop from # 57 last week to # 83 this week. Let's see if they can still turn it around. If we judge it from their contemporary Paula Abdul's experience earlier this year, her comeback "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" did not really catch fire, and that was despite Idol connections.
David Cook will set a record for debut entries on the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Digital Songs tomorrow as 11 titles enter the former, while 14 songs jump on the download tally. The onslaught is led by a No. 3 Hot 100 start for his original recording "The Time of My Life," (listen here) which shifts 236,000 downloads to easily take the No. 1 spot on Hot Digital Songs.
David Archuleta lands three songs on both charts, led by his cover of John Lennon's "Imagine" (No. 36 Hot 100, No. 16 on Hot Digital Songs, 71,000).
Cook's takeover of the Hot 100 shatters the mark for debuts set by Miley Cyrus (as Hannah Montana) in the Nov. 11, 2006, issue, when she placed six new titles on the list. The 11 songs on the chart are the most in a week by any artist in the Nielsen Music era, which began in December 1991 when the chart converted to Nielsen BDS and Nielsen SoundScan data.
His haul also marks the most placements on the list since the Beatles charted 14 songs on the Hot 100 in the week of April 11, 1964.
The 14 tracks on Hot Digital Songs also gives Cook a record for debuts and total songs on that three-year-old chart, besting Hannah Montana's total output (8) on the Nov. 11, 2006 chart, and Bon Jovi's six debuts in the May 19, 2007, issue.
This is the first week of the 2008 season that "American Idol" downloads counted toward Billboard's charts. In cooperation with the show's producers, Apple withheld reporting iTunes sales of those songs until the week of the final episode.
Cook's debut album for 19 Recordings/RCA is due in the fall.
"Lollipop" by Lil Wayne and Static Major returns to the Number 1 slot giving way to Leona Lewis and Rihanna for the past three weeks. I personally do not like this song, finding it too syncopated. It did not really catch fire on local radio so I barely hear it. But this feat of returning to the top after three weeks out is impressive. "U Got It Bad"by Usher had 4 weeks between its peaks at Number 1 back in 2002.
Talking about Usher though, while his song "Love In the Club" is still strong at # 4, his new song called "Love in This Club, Part II" featuring Beyonce and Lil Wayne (again). This song is a ballad this time, and quite good actually when I hear it on local radio. With his big move up from #63 up to #18 this week, it is strong contender for the top 10 next week.
The Greatest Gainer in Sales this week is earned by Welsh singer Duffy with "Mercy". This moves up fast from # 66 to #27. From what I hear in her Channel V ad spots, she exudes a Macy Gray vibe in her voice. Hope to hear her better soon.
Yes, believe your eyes, that picture above is really Jonathan, Joey, Danny, Donnie and Jordan -- The New Kids on the Block! They are actually on this week's Hot 100. In fact, these guys (hardly new and hardly kids now, all pushing age 40) are even the Hot Shot Debut with their new song "Summertime" which debuts at # 57 this week. I had not heard from since the early 90s. Who would have thought they could stage a comeback after 15 years or so??? It would be interesting to track the chart fortune of this song.
As you can see, the obvious big news of the Hot 100 chart this week is the huge jump of Rihanna from # 53 all the way up to # 1. This is second only to the very big 64-1 jump by Maroon 5 with "Makes Me Wonder" last year. The new hit is her ballad about infidelity "Take A Bow", which is basically arranged very similarly her other big ballad hit about infidelity, "Unfaithful". One distinct touch with this new one are some interspersed spoken words like "Please!". Rihanna is certainly no stanger to big jumps to the top. Last year, "Umbrella" jumped from # 41 to # 1. In 2006, "S.O.S." jumped from # 34 to # 1. This "Take A Bow" is of course not the same song as Madonna's # 1 back in 1994 also entitled "Take A Bow". The second big news this week is the double debut of Coldplay, both incredibly within the Top 40. You see on the list above the hot shot debut of "Vida La Vida" at # 15. At # 40, their song is "Violet Hill." These are both from their new album "Viva La Vida or Death And All His Friends," due out in June.
On the Billboard 200 Album Chart, another artist get a big boost by appearing on American Idol. Senior star Neil Diamond, who was mentor during the Top 5 round of AI, gains his first Number 1 album after 41 years in his career with "Home Before Dark."
This week's singles chart is basically static from last week's chart, with Leona Lewis's "Bleeding Love" still holding sway on top. I'm just wondering why her second single "Better in Time" has disappeared from the Hot 100. That second song is already doing well here locally.
The big news this week is the big jump of Natasha Bedingfield and her "Pocketful of Sunshine" from #19 all the way to #8. This was of course spurred by her appearance on American Idol recently singing this song. This really shows that American Idol is still a very good stage to promote your material, as what also happened to Leona Lewis and Mariah Carey's songs. The irony is that Idol's own Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson's project "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" did not show the same chart progress.
The really significant chart news is on the Billboard 200 album chart where Madonna's latest CD "Hard Candy" debuts at Number 1. This is her 7th Number 1 album, which puts her in 2nd place among solo female artists. The topnotcher in this area is diva Barbra Streisand who has 8 Number 1 albums. Madonna's previous Number 1 albums were: "Like a Virgin,"three weeks (1985), "True Blue," five weeks (1986), "Like a Prayer," six weeks (1989), "Music," one week (2000), "American Life," one week (2003), "Confessions on a Dance Floor," one week (2005).
Madonna also has some news on the Hot 100 as her latest release "Give It 2 Me" is the Hot Shot Debut this week at #57.
Always exciting to see a new Number One song. This song "Lollipop" by Little Wayne ftrg. Static Major, however, I have not heard yet. So I can't judge yet if it is a worthy one. But being another rap number, the hook has got to be extra-catchy for me to like it, such as "In Da Club" or "Hot In Herre". A point of interest here is the featured artist Static Major, who just passed away just this February from what seems to be complications of a neurosurgical procedure at the age of 33. This makes him the 7th artist to have a post-humous Number 1 song.
Teen superstar Miley Cyrus finally steps into the Top 10 with "See You Again" after lingering just below it in the past few weeks. Her newest album also gained much from its general release and rises to #3 in the album chart.
A song I wrote about in connection with Oscar song nominee hopefuls previously (link), now makes a prominent move up the chart. "Say" by John Mayer (from the movie "Bucket List") makes a big move up to #12 from #35. This was due to a digital download blitz triggered by the song's use in an episode of "Dancing with the Stars".
Mariah Carey is also making major strides in the chart this week. She has three songs in there now. Previous #1"Touch My Body" stays put at #5. At #23 is "Bye Bye" which is this week's Hot Shot Debut, which she performed at the American Idol results show last week. And further down at #92, "Migrate" ftrg. T-Pain debuts as well. This is a very big week for Mariah as her latest album makes a very big splash atop the Billboard 200. "E=MC2" makes the biggest sales week of the year, and is also Mariah's biggest debuting album, with sales of 463,000 units.
Pretty exciting chart this week. A lot of movement within the Top 5, wow! Leona Lewis wrests the #1 slot away from Mariah Carey. Ms. Lewis does this feat as she also makes a splash on the Billboard 200 Album Chart with her debut album "Spirit" at #1. It was fascinating to learn that "Spirit" is only the third album by a solo British born woman to hit the top of the album chart. The previous two were by Olivia Newton-John, the last of which was way back in 1975. As a bonus, Leona also debuts on the Hot 100 with her second single, "Better in Time" at #62.
"No Air" by Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown hits another peak as it makes it to the #3 slot. It is the Greatest Gainer in Sales this week.
The big news this week is "Idol Gives Back" TV Special because it sends four songs performed on the show into the chart. The highest debut this week is Daughtry with "What About Now" which starts at a lofty #18. Carrie Underwood's version of "Praying For Time" comes in at #27. If you recall, in last year's Idol Gives Back, Carrie sang "I'll Stand By You" and sent it straight into the Top 10 on the very first week.
Of the three group songs sung by the American Idol Top 8 that episode, the one that hits the chart is the controversial "Shout To The Lord" number which closed the show. Just goes to show that Idols' foray into Christian music seems well-supported by the American majority.
The last hit from this TV special is "Many Rivers to Cross", a Jimmy Cliff song which was sung in a memorably emotional manner by Annie Lennox. This song is the first song by Ms. Lennox on this chart since "No More I Love You's" back in 1995. It comes in at #80.
Mariah Carey retains the top spot on the Hot 100 for the second week. Ms. Carey sang "Fly Like A Bird" in last night's "Idol Gives Back" and she is slated to be the guest mentor for next week's American Idol show. Can't imagine which Mariah hit David Cook would sing. (Too bad Michael Johns was eliminated tonight,as his choice of Mariah hit would also be interesting.) Mariah also has released her second single (!) off the still-unreleased E=mc2 album. You can listen to it here: http://www6.islandrecords.com/site/av.php?bcpid=1315753316&bclid=1295326835&bctid=1493152748
Leona Lewis muscles her way back up to number 2, as Madonna hold spot number three.
Although her song drops from 5 to 7, Jordin Spark's song with Chris Brown"No Air" is actually the Greatest Gainer in Airplay this week. No doubt the fortunes of this song will further improve after Jordin and Chris's appearance in tonight's AI results show:
The Hot Shot Debut this week is "Nude"by Radiohead at #37. Thier first top 40 hit "Creep" only reached #34 in 1993. The other new songs that debut are R.E.M. at #85 with "Supernatural Superserious" and Carrie Underwood at #86 with "Last Name." I will not be surprised if Carrie Underwood's beautiful version of "Praying For Time" in last night's Idol Gives Back special will also hit the Hot 100 in the coming weeks. You can watch the video of this special song in my previous post: http://3xhcch.multiply.com/journal/item/201
There is more exictement on the Hot 100 this week!
As predicted last week, Mariah Carey clinches her 18th Number 1 hit this week as digital downloads of "Touch My Body" become available. This actually surpasses the previous record of most number of Number 1 hits by a solo artist previously held by Elvis Presley. The most Number 1s overall is 20 by the Beatles. Quite breakable at the rate MC is going now. Its incredible sale of 286,000 downloads is also a new record.
Mariah's 18 Number 1 hits on the Hot 100:
Touch My Body Don't Forget About Us We Belong Together Thank God I Found You Heartbreaker My All Honey Always Be My Baby One Sweet Day Fantasy Hero Dreamlover I'll Be There Emotions I Don't Wanna Cry Someday Love Takes Time Vision of Love
At Number 3, Madonna is catapulted all the way from #68 also because to digital downloads. Sadly for the King Elvis, Madonna also wrests from him the title of the most number of Top 10 hits in Hot 100 history! "4 Minutes" is now Madonna's 37th Top 10 hit, eclipsing Elvis' 36. Madonna's 37 Top 10 Hits on the Hot 100:
4 Minutes Hung Up (7) Die Another Day (8) Don’t Tell Me (4) Music (1) Ray of Light (5) Frozen (2) Don’t Cry for Me Argentina (8) You’ll See (6) Take A Bow (1) Secret (3) I’ll Remember (2) Deeper and Deeper (7) Erotica (3) This Used To Be My Playground (1) Rescue Me (9) Justify My Love (1) Hanky Panky (10) Vogue (1) Keep It Together (8) Cherish (2) Express Yourself (2) Like A Prayer (1) Causing a Commotion (2) Who’s That Girl (1) La Isla Bonita (4) Open Your Heart (1) True Blue (3) Papa Don’t Preach (1) Live To Tell (1) Dress You Up (5) Angel (5) Crazy For You (1) Material Girl (2) Like A Virgin (1) Lucky Star (4) Borderline (10)
The Hot Shot Debut this week is the remake of Michael Jackson's "Beat It" by Fall Out Boy, featuring John Mayer on guitar. This track is also quite popular on local radio. It debuts very strongly at #22.
This is the Billboard magazine review of this exciting new single from the Material Girl:
It doesn't take anywhere close to "4 Minutes" to realize that Madonna is poised to score her first top 10 hit since 2005's "Hung Up." The launch single from upcoming "Hard Candy"—her 11th and final studio album for Warner Bros.—co-stars Justin Timberlake, with production props from Timbaland. There's an awful lot going on in the busy dance track: sing-song verses, insistent foghorns, cowbells, chants of "tick-tock" and "Madonna, Madonna," and a rap from Timbaland—but the trade-off chorus between Madge and Justin of "We've only got four minutes to save the world" is hooky enough unto itself to sell the song. "4" qualifies as an event record between superpowers who not only share equal billing, but sound gangbusters together. Expect instantaneous penetration for this spring break '08 anthem. —Chuck Taylor
Not a very exciting week again on the Hot 100 as the Top 7 remains static from last week. Usher remains at the Number 1 slot for the 3rd week running.
The only big news on this chart is the 21-8 jump of Leona Lewis, with her debut hit "Bleeding Love." In the UK, Leona Lewis was very popular because of her winning the Simon Cowell talent show "The X Factor" over there. In the US however, she is carving her name the harder traditional way. Now her music is making it all over the world, as this song is also making waves here locally. Leona Lewis really reminds me of a young Mariah Carey. Even her vocal inflections and range are Mariah-esque.
Talking of Mariah, her current hit "Touch Your Body", which had been pacing "Bleeding Love" for the past weeks, now falls behind at #14 with a bullet.
While it hangs on to #26 on its 38th week in he Hot 100, Colbie Caillat's "Bubbly" (UniversalRepublic) deserves special mention by becoming the longest-running No. 1 debut single by a female artist on the Adult Contemporary chart since this was introduced in July 1961.
There were three debut singles by female artists that remained in the AC chart pole position for 11 weeks each that "Bubbly" overtook: "How Do I Live," LeAnn Rimes (1997), "I Hope You Dance," Lee Ann Womack (2001) and "Unwritten," Natasha Bedingfield (2006).
After 10 weeks of "Low", finally we get a new #1 song this week. And the manner it rockets to the top is grand, a spectacular 50 point jump from #51! The song is "Love In This Club" by Usher featuring Little Jeezy. It's 50 point jump is the 3rd biggest jump to the top in the history of the Hot 100. Only "Makes Me Wonder" by Maroon 5 (64-1 in 2007) and "A Moment Like This" by Kelly Clarkson (52-1 in 2002) made bigger jumps.
I haven't heard this yet since the Usher song playing on local radio is "That Girl Right There" featuring Ludacris. Great comeback for Usher. And certainly, more good reasons to catch his upcoming concert here later this year.
The other piece of good news this week is the jump of "No Air" up to #6 from #13 last week. This is the highest ranking song of Jordin Sparks so far, and I am still pulling for it to go higher. With the help of Chris Brown's present popularity, this should be a cinch.
Elsewhere down the chart, big moves were made by "Elevator" by Flo Rida (#16 from #28); "Feedback" by Janet (celebrating the #1 debut of her current album Discipline, #19 from #51); "Touch My Body" by Mariah Carey (#24 from #34); "Bleeding Love" by Leona Lewis (#41 from #62); and "Whatever It Takes" by Lifehouse (#50 from #68).
A further piece of good news is the hot shot debut of "Falling Slowly" by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova at #61. This of course comes at the heels of its win as Best Original Song at the Oscars in the previous week, as the theme from the movie "Once". Here is the video.
Yes, "Low" by Flo Rida remains at Number 1 for an unbelievable 9 weeks. I just think that is too long for a song with lyrics as inane as:
Apple Bottom Jeans [Jeans] Boots with the fur [With the fur] The whole club was lookin at her She hit the flo [She hit the flo] Next thing you know Shawty got low low low low low low low low.
Yikes. Funny and cheesy, hahaha! At the other end of the chart, Flo Rida debuts with his follow up "Elevator" featuring Timbaland this time, at #100.
Anyway, elsewhere on the chart, we have many other notable debuts:
Mariah Carey (photo, with her naked body only covered by a hat!) is back on the chart after being absent from the Hot 100 for the whole 2007, with her new song "Touch My Body", debuting at #54. Well not bad, but for me it is just a continuation of her "We Belong Together" success couple of years back. This song could have been part of that older album. But still, we would be eager to hear how the other tracks of her new album, interestingly titled "e=mc2".
UK X-Factor winner Leona Lewis, who looks and sounds very much like Mariah Carey to me, finally debuts on the US Hot 100 with "Bleeding Love" at #85. This very song has already landed Lewis at #1 in the UK and other European charts.
Also, Usher makes it back to the chart after a long absence. "Love In This Club" featuring Young Jeezy debuts at #834. Locally, the new Usher song being played on the radio is "That Girl Right There" featuring Ludacris.
On the Billboard 200 album chart, Amy Winehouse and Herbie Hancock rocket literally into the Top 5 after their Grammy wins. Amy's "Back In Black" jumps back up from #24 to #2 on its 49th week on the chart. Hancock's Album of the Year winner "River: The Joni Letters" shoots up to #5 from a lowly #154 on only its 4th week on the chart. Withstanding these big moves is Jack Johnson's "Sleep Through the Static" which remains at #1 after debuting there last week.
Another interesting piece of news this week was the decision of Billboard to put Michael Jackson's "Thriller 25" in the Pop Catalog Album chart instead of the Billboard 200 big chart. Billboard explains its decision by saying that "The overwhelming consensus at leading retailers was that despite the new material added to "Thriller 25," this essentially represents a re-issue of a 25 year old album and it thus belongs on the catalog charts." Of course, elsewhere in the world where there is no catalog chart, "Thriller 25" debuted in the Top 10.
I really cannot believe how strong this song "Low" is! Eight weeks at #1! All indications seem to point to a Chris Brown #1 next week. But did we not say that two weeks ago?
Glad to see the cool songs of Sara Bareilles and Yael Naim continue to gain in the Top 10. Multi-media sensation Miley Cyrus (aka Hannah Montana) is about to barge into the Top 10 with her strongest hit yet "See You Again". I must admit it is very catchy pop
