Fifty Fifty’s ‘Cupid’ Flies to No. 1 on Billboard Global Excl. U.S. Chart
Written by djfrosty on May 22, 2023
Fifty Fifty’s “Cupid” shoots to No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart (dated May 27), marking the first leader on the list for the South Korean pop quartet.
Notably, the act is the first K-pop group, or all-female group of any genre, to reign with a debut entry on the chart, dating to the list’s 2020 inception.
Meanwhile, Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s “Ella Baila Sola” adds a third week atop the Billboard Global 200 survey.
Plus, two songs hit the respective charts’ top 10s: Loreen’s “Tattoo” soars from No. 146 to No. 7 on Global Excl. U.S., after the single won Sweden the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest, while Lil Durk’s “All My Life,” featuring J. Cole, debuts at No. 7 on the Global 200.
The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts, which began in September 2020, rank songs based on streaming and sales activity culled from more than 200 territories around the world, as compiled by Luminate. The Global 200 is inclusive of worldwide data and the Global Excl. U.S. chart comprises data from territories excluding the United States.
Chart ranks are based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of audio and video music services, as well as download sales, the latter of which reflect purchases from full-service digital music retailers from around the world, with sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites excluded from the charts’ calculations.
‘Cupid’ Feels the Love Atop Global Excl. U.S.
Fifty Fifty’s “Cupid” rises from No. 2 to No. 1 to rule the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart for the first time, despite dips of 2% in streams, to 65.1 million, and 9% in sales, to 2,000, outside the U.S. May 12-18.
The quartet – Aran, Keena, Saena and Sio – becomes the third K-pop group to have scaled the Global Excl. U.S. summit, joining BTS (six No. 1s) and BLACKPINK (three). Fifty Fifty is the first K-pop group, or all-female group of any genre, to reign with a debut entry on the chart, dating to the list’s September 2020 inception.
Contributing to the success of “Cupid” are its original recording, a “Twin” mix and an instrumental version, with TikTok having been a key factor in the single’s growth over its ascent.
Fifty Fifty was formed by South Korean entertainment agency ATTRAKT last year and the group debuted its first single, “Higher,” on its introductory four-track EP, The Fifty, released Nov. 18, 2022. A new partnership with Warner Records was announced in April.
Peso Pluma ranks in the next two spots on Global Excl. U.S., as “La Bebe,” with Yng Lvcas, returns to its No. 2 high, from No. 3, and “Ella Baila Sola,” with Eslabon Armado, rebounds 4-3, after reaching No. 2.
Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” lifts 5-4 on Global Excl. U.S., following a record-tying (with Harry Styles’ “As It Was”) 13 weeks at No. 1 beginning upon its debut in January; YOASOBI’s “Idol” rises 6-5, after reaching No. 4; and Grupo Frontera and Bad Bunny’s “Un x100to” falls to No. 6 from No. 1, after three weeks in the top spot.
Elsewhere in the Global Excl. U.S. top 10, Loreen’s “Tattoo” inks a 146-7 vault, after the song won the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest for Sweden May 13. It blasts to the tier with 30.7 million streams (up 247%) and 12,000 sold (up 756%) outside the U.S. May 12-18, marking the singer’s first top 10.
Loreen is the first woman to win Eurovision twice, having triumphed in 2012 with the song “Euphoria.” Meanwhile, Sweden has tied Ireland for the most victories – seven each – since the competition began in 1956. “The only thing I feel right now is so much love,” Loreen, from Stockholm, said upon the new coronation. “Not in my wildest dreams did I think this was going to happen.”
‘Ella Baila Sola’ Tops Global 200
Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s “Ella Baila Sola” leads the Billboard Global 200 for a third week, with 90.5 million streams (down 3%) and 2,000 sold (down 21%) worldwide May 12-18. The collab initially ruled four weeks earlier, becoming the chart’s first No. 1 for the regional Mexican genre.
Fifty Fifty’s “Cupid” climbs 3-2 on the Global 200 for a new high, with 81.7 million streams (down 3%) and 4,000 sold (down 15%) worldwide; Yng Lvcas and Peso Pluma’s “La Bebe” revisits its No. 3 best, from No. 4; Grupo Frontera and Bad Bunny’s “Un x100to” descends 2-4, following two weeks at the summit, as it became the second regional Mexican leader on the list; and Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” holds at No. 5, after 12 weeks on top in January-April.
Meanwhile, Lil Durk’s “All My Life,” featuring J. Cole, bounds in at No. 7 on the Global 200, with 48.8 million streams and 1,000 sold worldwide from its release May 12 through May 18.
Lil Durk tallies his third Global 200 top 10 – and first in a lead role – following his featured turns on Drake’s “Laugh Now Cry Later” (No. 5, 2020) and “In the Bible” (No. 9, 2021), the latter also featuring Giveon. J. Cole notches his fifth top 10 (and first as a featured artist).
The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated May 27, 2023) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (May 23). For both charts, the top 100 titles are available to all readers on Billboard.com, while the complete 200-title rankings are visible on Billboard Pro, Billboard’s subscription-based service. For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.