5 First-Timers on Billboard’s Charts This Week: Vacations, Ryan Larkins, 4Batz & More

Billboard has more than 200 different weekly charts in its menu, encompassing numerous genres and formats.

While established artists often compete for a spot on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart and Billboard 200 albums ranking, which track the most popular songs and albums of the week, respectively, up-and-coming talents typically start off on genre-specific lists.

Hundreds of artists chart their songs and albums on Billboard’s rankings each week, but these five artists appear on surveys for the first time on the Jan. 13-dated charts.

Vacations

The Australian indie rock band has been releasing music since 2015, but as of this week, it’s officially a Billboard-charting act thanks to its single “Next Exit.” Released in April 2023 on No Fun Records/Nettwerk, the song debuts at No. 40 on Alternative Airplay (up 2% in spins, according to Luminate).

The song is the lead single off the group’s forthcoming third LP, No Place Like Home, due Friday (Jan. 12). The band released its first two albums, Changes and Forever in Bloom, in 2018 and 2020, respectively. Vacations, who is scheduled to perform at St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival in Melbourne next month, is comprised of Campbell Burns, Nate Delizzotti, Jake Johnson and Joseph Van Lier.

Ryan Larkins

The singer-songwriter arrives on Billboard’s charts with his breakthrough single “King of Country Music.” He released the track in October on his debut five-track EP Meet Ryan Larkins, on Red Street Records. The song debuts at No. 59 on Country Airplay (up 41% in audience).

Larkins, born and raised in Nashville, began his career as a songwriter. Before this week he’d written one Billboard-charting hit: Cody Johnson’s “The Painter,” which he co-penned with Benjy Davis and Kat Higgins, has so far reached No. 12 on both Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay. He has previously written with the likes of Rhett Akins, Ben Hayslip, Tom Douglas, Tony Lane, Lee Miller, Tim Nichols, Craig Wiseman and Country Music Hall of Fame member Bill Anderson.

In February, Larkins will hit the road as the opening act on Priscilla Block’s Hey Jack Tour, which runs through May.

4Batz

The up-and-coming R&B artist scored his first Billboard chart entry on the Jan. 6-dated charts thanks to his breakout viral song, “Act II: Date @ 8,” and now he lands his second with “Act I: Stickerz 99.”

“Date @ 8” debuted at No. 16 on Hot R&B Songs, and it jumps to No. 11 in its second week with 3.8 million official U.S. streams (up 59%). It also enters Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at No. 36. “Stickerz 99” starts at No. 25 on Hot R&B Songs with 1.7 million streams (up 30%). 4Batz concurrently arrives at No. 23 on Emerging Artists.

TikTok has been central to both songs’ gains. “Date @ 8” has soundtracked over 30,000 clips on the platform to date, while “Stickerz 99” has been used in over 3,000 videos. The songs are 4Batz’s only releases on streaming services so far.

Oscar Ortiz

The Mexican artist debuts on Billboard’s charts with his new collaboration with Edgardo Nuñez, “First Love.” Released Dec. 11 via Genesis/BadSin Records, the single debuts at No. 46 on Hot Latin Songs with 2 million streams.

Ortiz released his first song on streaming services, “Anillos” with Oscar Maydon, in April 2023. Since then, he’s released several other tracks, as well as the five-song EP 23/7 in August.

Ortiz’s brother, Gerardo Ortiz, has achieved numerous successes on Billboard’s charts, dating to his arrival in 2010: 30 hits on Hot Latin Songs and 33 on Regional Mexican Airplay — including 12 No. 1s on the latter. He has also logged 11 titles on Top Latin Albums, including six No. 1s.

In a 2021 interview with Billboard, Gerardo said that he often turns to Oscar as a springboard for new ideas. “I’m more in tune with my brothers who are musicians. I have a piano in my house, and [Oscar] will start playing his own stuff and I start singing some of my new stuff,” Gerardo said, adding that Oscar has also written some of his hits. “It’s great because they give me honest feedback. They’re not afraid to tell me how they really feel about something I’ve written.”

Princess Superstar

The New York City-based DJ/rapper notches her first chart appearance thanks to her 17-year-old collaboration with the Dutch DJ Mason, “Perfect (Exceeder).” The song, released in 2006 on Armada Music, debuts at No. 12 on Dance/Electronic Songs with 1.5 million streams (up 76%).

The song’s new buzz can be attributed to its inclusion in the film Saltburn. The track has also begun generating attention on TikTok, where it has been used in over 27,000 clips to date. A separate mix has soundtracked 10,000 videos. In total, 10 mixes of the song appear on streaming services.

While this marks the first U.S. chart entry for Princess Superstar, she reached No. 11 on the Official UK Singles Chart in 2002 with her song “Bad Babysitter.” She has released eight solo LPs in her career, dating to the mid-‘90s, most recently with These Are the Magic Days in 2018. She has also collaborated with Grandmaster Flash, Moby and The Prodigy, among others.

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