Chart Beat
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Though it never produced a chart crown, The Killers’ “Mr Brightside” is a record-breaker in the U.K.
Two decades after release, the U.S. alternative rock act’s signature song is anointed as the biggest-ever single which didn’t snag a U.K. No. 1.
The Killers were originally discovered by and signed to U.K. independent Lizard King, and were embraced by Brits as one of their own. “Mr Brightside” was initially released in 2003 with a limited-edition 500 CD run, and was reissued in May 2004, peaking at No. 10.
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The track failed to set the charts on fire but has proven a slow burner, notching 408 weeks on the Official U.K. Singles Chart – almost eight full years.
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Since its release, “Mr Brightside” has accumulated 5.57 million combined units, including 1.066m sales and 530,340,000 streams, the Official Charts Company reports, good enough for third place on the all-time list of biggest songs, behind Elton John’s “Something About the Way You Look Tonight”/”Candle in the Wind 1997.” That streaming tally sends it to No. 5 in the list of most-streamed songs of all time in the U.K.
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The biggest week (across all formats) for “Mr Brightside” in the U.K. was July 2019, when it amassed 17,700 chart units following the Las Vegas act’s headline set at Glastonbury Festival, while its biggest week of sales was registered in 2012, when the single was bought and downloaded 125,200 times.
On its 20th anniversary, “Mr Brightside” eclipses Oasis’ 1995 ballad “Wonderwall” for the unusual honor. “Wonderwall,” lifted from the Manchester rock band’s sophomore album (What’s the Story) Morning Glory), peaked at No. 2.
The OCC crunched the numbers and declared “Mr Brightside” is actually gathering pace. Last year saw the track generate its biggest volume of streams, with 79.97 million plays, the OCC reports, and in 2024, combined weekly sales and streams are up 23% year-on-year.
The Killers will dish out the hits for the Rebel Diamonds Tour of the U.K. and Ireland this summer, which includes 16 arena shows.
Marc Anthony adds a 15th top 10 to his Billboard Tropical Albums chart career as Muevense, his 11th studio album, starts at No. 4 on the ranking dated May 11. The 10-track set, released April 24 via Sony Music Latin, enters with 3,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending May 2, according to Luminate.
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Sales and streaming activity contribute to Muevense’s first week sum: albums sales comprise 1,500 units, while 1,500 units derive from streams, equaling 2.2 million official on-demand streams of the album’s songs. Track-equivalent album units comprise a negligible sum of the album’s first week.
On the Tropical Latin Albums chart units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album.
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May is a month for celebration for Marc Anthony, who in addition to banking his 15th top 10 on Tropical Albums, launched his new Sirius XM channel, Muevense Radio, on May 1. Running for a limited time, through May 31, the channel features a best-of-playlist, plus music from his influences and favorite artists, and stories surrounding the breadth of his over three-decade tenure.
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Muevense arrives on Tropical Albums two years and two months after Marc’s previous album Pa’lla Voy reached No. 3 in March 2022. Plus, the new album extends his span of 15 top 10s to 31 years, dating to his first week in the top 10 on Feb. 17, 1993, when Otra Nota debuted and peaked at No. 2.
Further, Muevense joins two other Marc Anthony albums on Tropical Albums: 3.0 and Sigo Siendo Yo. While the latter claims its 280th week on the tally, 3.0 banks its 509th week and extends its record for the set with the most weeks overall since Tropical Albums began in 1985.
Beyond its Tropical Albums arrival, Muevense, encompassing eight salsa tracks, one bachata, and one regional Mexican ballad with Pepe Aguilar, also opens at No. 50 on Top Latin Albums.
The set was preceded by three songs. “Ale Ale” flies 16-3 on Tropical Airplay with a robust 227% gain in audience impressions, to 4 million, earned in the U.S. during the same tracking week. The song likewise opens at No. 22 on Latin Airplay as the Hot Shot debut of the week. The song was premiered live at the Latin American Music Awards on April 25.
Back on Tropical Airplay, with the new visit to the upper tier, Marc collects his 57th top 10 entry, and extends second-most record among all acts behind Victor Manuelle who continues to lead with 65 top 10 career hits. The bachata “Punta Cana,” meanwhile, dips 4-6 due to a 34% dip in audience, to 2 million.
Lastly, over on Regional Mexican Airplay, thanks to his co-billed “Ojala Te Duela,” with Pepe Aguilar, the Puerto Rican scored his first entry ever on a regional Mexican chart in Nov. 2023.
Grupo Frontera and Christian Nodal‘s first collaboration, “Ya Pedo Quien Sabe,” glides 3-1 on Billboard‘s Regional Mexican Airplay chart (dated May 11). The new joint champ marks the eighth No. 1 for Grupo Frontera and 17th for Nodal. All eight of Grupo Frontera’s leaders are collaborations.
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The duet crowns Regional Mexican Airplay after a 17% gain in audience impressions, to 7.8 million, earned in the U.S. during the April 26-May 2 tracking week, according to Luminate. “Ya Pedo Quien Sabe” was released March 7 via the Grupo Frontera label. The song is the second cut from Frontera’s forthcoming album, Jugando A Que No Pada Nada (slated for May 10 release).
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“Ya Pedo” was composed by Edgar Barrera, Horacio Palencia, Nathan Galante and Diego Bollella and produced by Barrera.
As the dynamo collaboration takes the lead on Regional Mexican Airplay, it becomes the fourth team-up by a group and a soloist in 2024 to top the list. Here’s the recap:
Chart Date, Title, Artist, Weeks at No. 1Feb. 3, “Harley Quinn,” Fuerza Regida & Marshmello, oneMarch 2, “Alch Si,” Carín León + Grupo Frontera, oneApril 13, “La Cumbia Triste,” Los Angeles Azules y Alejandro Fernández, oneMay 11, “Ya Pedo Quien Sabe,” Grupo Frontera & Christian Nodal
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With “Ya Pedo,” Nodal extends his record for the most No. 1s among soloists, with 17 champs in his account since the chart’s inception in November 1994. Plus, he enters a tie with La Arrolladora Banda el Limón de René Camacho for the fifth-most rulers in the Regional Mexican Airplay’s chart’s nearly 30-year history. They trail Calibre 50 who remains at the lead, way ahead of its next competitor, with 25 No. 1s, Banda MS de Sergio Lizárraga with 20, Intocable (19) and Banda El Recodo de Cruz Lizárraga (18).
Grupo Frontera picks-up its eighth No. 1; a collection that began a little over a year ago, when “Que Vuelvas,” with Carín León, topped the Regional Mexican radio ranking for six weeks starting the Jan. 28, 2023-dated list.
Further, “Ya Pedo” takes the crown from Calibre 50’s “Días Buenos, Días Malos” after the latter’s one week in charge. The song drops to No. 14, marking the biggest fall from No. 1 since Los Temerarios’ “Sin Que Lo Sepas Tú” equally tumbled 1-14 in 2007.
With the Regional Mexican Airplay locked, “Ya Pedo” next looks to give each act a new No. 1 on the overall Latin Airplay chart, where it climbs 10-5 with a 16% gain, and adds 8 million in audience.
Welcome to Billboard Pro‘s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
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This week: Drake and Kendrick Lamar see the catalog side effects of their recent beefing, a couple new hit movies impact streaming with their very different soundtracks, the calendar turns to *NSYNC season and more.
Kendrick Lamar’s Diss-Track Parade is Lifting His Entire Catalog – Drake’s, Not So Much
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“At least your fans are getting some raps out of you / I’m happy I could motivate you,” Drake declares near the end of “The Heart Part 6,” the most recent volley in his genre-consuming feud with Kendrick Lamar. Indeed, one of the by-products of this ongoing back-and-forth has been a new spate of material from a superstar who’s notoriously been stingy with his releases in between album cycles, as Lamar has already more than doubled his 2023 output with 2024 diss tracks alone. And while those shots at Drake have been doing boffo business on streaming services, Lamar’s entire catalog — even outside of his recent diss tracks — is up as well, as rap fans return to K. Dot’s discography for general appreciation (or to parse through subtle attacks against Aubrey Graham).
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“Euphoria,” the first of Lamar’s recent diss tracks, debuted at No. 11 on this week’s Hot 100 chart and could move up next week, as the song earned a whopping 27.6 million official U.S. on-demand streams from May 3-6, according to Luminate. “Not Like Us,” the most club-friendly diss track which dropped late on May 4, could debut even higher, with 21.1 million streams in its first three days of release, while the vicious “Meet the Grahams” earned 8.8 million streams from May 3-6. (“6:16 in LA,” another Lamar diss track, has yet to arrive on streaming services.)
Plus, listeners have been interested in perusing the classic songs that have served as samples in Lamar’s diss tracks. Teddy Pendergrass’ “You’re My Latest, My Greatest Inspiration” was up 76% in streams from Apr. 26-29 (76,000) to May 3-6 (134,000) after being sampled at the beginning of “Euphoria,” while Al Green’s “What a Wonderful Thing Love Is” shot up 283% over the same time period once it was used on “6:16 in LA.” And “BBL Drizzy,” the King Willonius song that Metro Boomin sampled for his anti-Drake beat challenge, is naturally way up in streams, from a negligible amount at the end of April to 185,000 from May 5-6.
Even if you remove all of the diss tracks from Lamar’s overall catalog, however, the rapper’s streams have still significantly increased since the simmering feud reached its recent boiling point. From May 3-6, Lamar’s discography earned 50.62 million streams — up 49% from the previous Friday-to-Monday tracking period (33.98 million from Apr. 26-29). Meanwhile, Drake’s overall catalog is actually down when you similarly compare his streams from that weekend (105.86 million from Apr. 26-29) to last weekend (100.69 million from May 3-6) and remove his two streaming-available response tracks, “Push Ups” and “Family Matters.” Of course, even with that 4.9% dip in catalog plays, Drake’s streaming numbers remain roughly twice as many as Lamar’s, which can be a minor source of comfort as his adversary’s diss tracks make the bigger splash on the charts. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
New Anne Hathaway Rom-Com Has the Right ‘Idea’ With Maggie Rogers, St. Vincent & More on Soundtrack
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The much-anticipated film adaptation of Robinne Lee’s hit novel The Idea of You made its Amazon Prime debut over the weekend – starring Anne Hathaway as a divorcee who takes her daughter to Coachella and ends up in an unlikely romance with the younger Hayes Campbell (Nicholas Galitzine), singer from the One Direction-ish fictional boy band August Moon. Unsurprisingly for a movie where music plays such a big part, the well-received film has a number of prominent synchs – more from the alternative end of the dial than the top 40 one – which have led to big streaming gains for those songs.
Singer-songwriter Maggie Rogers (who did play Coachella in 2019 and 2022) gets the movie’s opening credits song – also repeated in a flash-forward towards the end of the film – with her Heard It in a Past Life single “Light On.” The rousing song collected 354,000 official on-demand U.S. streams for the first four days of the film’s release (May 3-6), up 71% from the equivalent period the prior week, according to Luminate. Veteran art-rock star St. Vincent (a Coachella four-timer, most recently in 2018) also has three different songs appear in the movie, the most prominent being her Daddy’s Home highlight “Pay Your Way in Pain,” which plays on the radio (and is sung along to by Hathaway and her daughter, played by Ella Rubin) during a car ride. “Pain” racked up 32,000 streams from May 3-6, a 124% gain over the same period the week before.
And of course, you can’t have a movie about a fictional band without some fictional songs – and August Moon has a half-dozen of ‘em, appropriately co-penned/produced by go-to One Direction collaborator Savan Kotecha, most of which were released before the film. Those songs racked up a combined 1.3 million streams over May 3-6, led by “Dance Before We Walk,” which Campbell writes and records over the course of the movie. (And perhaps at least a couple viewers were also inspired to revisit the real thing over the weekend, as 1D’s U.S. on-demand audio streams were also up 5% over May 3-5 from the same three-day period the week before.) – ANDREW UNTERBERGER
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross’ Challengers Score Is An Ace on Streaming
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Two weekends ago (April 26), Challengers, Luca Guadagnino’s acclaimed romantic tennis drama, hit theaters, bringing the electric throuple of Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist to the silver screen. To soundtrack the stylish, sexy film, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross provided a hypnotic techno-rooted score to track the intertwined fates of the film’s three characters.
According to Luminate, the Challengers score soundtrack collected 1.09 million official on-demand U.S. streams during the film’s opening weekend (April 26-28). In the following three-day period (April 29-May 1), streaming activity jumped 66% to 1.83 million streams. In its first week of release, (April 26-May 2), Challengers (Original Score) pulled 3.44 million streams.
While original songs remain big draws for tentpole movies – who can forget the multi-format dominance of last year’s Barbie soundtrack – score soundtracks tend to cater to markedly smaller audiences. With the danceable score and the star power of the film’s cast, younger artists have been particularly drawn to the Challengers score, which they’ve continuously expressed on TikTok. (The score also appeared in a Challengers-inspired SNL skit over the weekend.)
And who knows? Maybe the success of Challengers – in addition to her Labrinth-assisted Euphoria singles – could jumpstart Zendaya’s return to music. After all, she notched a Billboard Hot 100 top 40 hit with “Replay” (No. 40) 10 years ago! – KYLE DENIS
Online Edit Community Lifts Yëat to Another Viral Hit
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Whether you call them edits or fancams, you can always count on one of those video montages to catapult a song from obscurity to virality. While Yëat is no stranger to the Billboard charts — he’s already earned ten Hot 100 entries — “If We Bëing Real” could become his biggest solo hit yet.
Taken from 2093, his fourth studio album (which peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 in March), “If We Bëing Real” pulled over six million official on-demand U.S. streams during the period of April 26-May 2. That marks a whopping 214% increase in streaming activity from four weeks ago (March 29-April 4) when it earned 1.92 million streams.
Over the past month, streams for “If We Being Real” have increased at least 13% each week – thanks, in no small part, to its TikTok virality. An ominous, slowed-down version of “If We Bëing Real” has gained traction on the app as a soundtrack to edits of various fictional characters and real-life people, including Outer Banks’ Rafe Cameron (played by Drew Starkey), Kingdom of Heaven’s King Baldwin IV (played by Edward Norton) and Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard Anthony Edwards. There are several unofficial “If We Bëing Real” TikTok sounds with upwards of 20,000 posts, including one with nearly 100,000 clips.
After hitting No. 2 on the Hot 100 by way of Drake’s “IDGAF” last year, Yeat could soon be revisiting the chart’s upper regions if “If We Being Real” continues to grow at this rate. – KD
Q&A: Josh Norek and Ernesto Lechner, Co-Hosts of The Latin Alternative Radio Show & Podcast, on What’s Trending Up in Their World
The Latin Alternative recently celebrated its 15th anniversary. What has it been like witnessing the evolving size and makeup of Latin music during that time?
Norek: In some ways, the evolving popularity and demographics of Latin music consumption has mirrored the growth of our show The Latin Alternative over the years. When we launched the program in 2009, we were airing in one single market (our parent station WEXT in Albany, NY). Today we are in 55 markets, including obvious ones like Los Angeles, Dallas and Orlando but also places you wouldn’t expect like Tulsa and Duluth where public radio stations reached out and asked for the show because they had real listener interest for Latin rock, hip-hop and left of center sounds. Latin music’s various subgenres have far more mainstream acceptance in all markets than when our program started, and that’s largely due to the ease in accessing the music via streaming. When I was a teenager growing up in Upstate NY back in the day, it was not exactly easy to find a Los Fabulosos Cadillacs import CD at the local record store, but a kid living in the boonies today would have no such problem finding the musical equivalent.
What has been the most surprising aspect of Latin music’s expansion over the past few years to you?
Norek: What I find surprising and couldn’t have anticipated when we began the show 15 years ago is how digital music distribution has leveled geographic barriers. For example, Uruguay is a tiny middle class country with just three million people, and its music seldom traveled very far in the CD era. But today we play more Uruguayan music on the show than the country’s size would indicate because we have lots of Uruguayan artists submitting music to us.
Another surprise is how regional Mexican music is finally “cool” and accepted in places like Miami and Spain where there was a lot of hostility – and not-so-subtle racism – directed at the genre. That’s really great to see, especially when over seventy percent of the U.S. Latino population is of Mexican origin.
Which trend in current Latin music fascinates you the most?
Lechner: I’m particularly obsessed with the way in which young artists in the reggaetón and Latin trap genres are questioning the very essence of what a pop song is supposed to be – and sound like. Their constant desire to experiment with form and content reminds me of impressionism in 19th century Paris, when Monet, Sisley and Pissarro reinvented the rules of painting. Some of the neo-reggaetón songs ignore the basics of song structure, and instead create vivid impressions, cinematic moods in the shape of song. I’m fascinated by the collaboration between Colombian producer Ovy on the Drums and KAROL G, as well as the latest works by Ozuna, Bizarrap, Rosalía, Arcángel, Rafa Pabön and Young Miko.
Fill in the blank: the Latin artist that not enough people are talking about yet is _______.
Lechner: I believe the prodigiously talented Chilean singer/songwriter Francisca Valenzuela should be an international superstar. – JL
Season’s Gainings: It’s Gonna Be *NSYNC Season
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Justin Timberlake might not have made quite the lasting impact on 2024 that he’d hoped to with his new Everything I Thought It Was album – and hey, it’s been a crowded year in pop, plenty hitmakers much younger and hipper than JT are struggling too – but at least one day out of the year is still guaranteed to be his. May 1 came and went a week ago, and with it, the biggest day for his old *NSYNC group’s lone Hot 100 No. 1 hit, “It’s Gonna Be Me” (with Timberlake of course delivering the last word of the title more like “May.”) The song first spiked 107% to 277,000 official on-demand U.S. streams on April 30, according to Luminate, and then another 60% the following day to 444,000 – before dropping 45% to 247,000 on May 2, as the song goes back into semi-hibernation for the next 363 days. – AU
Creepy Nuts’ “Bling-Bang-Bang-Born” returns to No. 1 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100, dated May 8, extending its record to 14 weeks atop the tally.
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The hip-hop hit dominated the chart for most of this year after it first hit No. 1 on the chart released Jan. 31 and stayed there for 13 straight weeks. The MASHLE Season 2 opener slipped to No. 2 last week (May 1) but returned to score its 14th week atop the list. The track has increased in all metrics of the chart’s methodology except streaming compared to the previous week. Downloads for the long-running hit are up by 117%, radio airplay and video views by 105%, and karaoke by 120%. And it’s far from doing poorly in streaming as well; weekly streams remain almost the same as the week before and the total has surpassed 300 million at the second fastest pace in Japan chart history.
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Moving 4-2 this week is Mrs. GREEN APPLE’s “Lilac.” The song gained 130% in downloads, 127% in karaoke, and notably, 425% in radio from the week before, hitting its highest position yet.
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Debuting at No. 3 is SixTONES’ 12th single “Neiro.” The theme song for the drama series Omukae Shibuya-kun starring member Taiga Kyomoto launched with 540,564 CDs sold, outselling the group’s previous single “CREAK” (471,285 first-week sales). The track tops sales and comes in at No. 9 for radio and No. 18 for video.
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In other chart moves, the theme song of a project by TOBE’s artists, called “Be on Your side,” re-enters the chart at No. 12 after selling 75,157 copies in its first week, and the first single “MORNING SUN” by EXILE B HAPPY — the new EXILE TRIBE music group led by EXILE TETSUYA — bows at No. 15.
The Billboard Japan Hot 100 combines physical and digital sales, audio streams, radio airplay, video views and karaoke data.
See the full Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart, tallying the week from Apr. 29 to May 5, here. For more on Japanese music and charts, visit Billboard Japan’s English Twitter account.
GloRilla’s anthem “Yeah Glo!” wins the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart as the single crowns the list dated May 11. It climbs from No. 2 after a 14% surge in plays made it the most-played song on U.S. monitored mainstream R&B/hip-hop radio stations in the April 26 – May 2 tracking week, according to Luminate.
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“Yeah Glo!,” promoted by CMG/Interscope Records/ICLG, gives rapper GloRilla, whose real name is Gloria Woods, her third No. 1 on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay. She previously reigned with her first two appearances: “FNF,” with producer Hitkidd, topped the list for one week in August 2022, while “Tomorrow 2,” with Cardi B, ruled for 10 nonconsecutive weeks in December 2022 – February 2023.
The “Yeah Glo!” radio rise parallels the song’s strong streams due to viral buzz on social media. It’s been especially prominent on TikTok, where users have used the song in clips in two common ways. In one version, two people rock side to side – one delivering the hook’s main lyrics, while the other acts as a hype act and lip syncs the “yeah, Glo!” ad-lib between lines. The song has also inspired a dance challenge, which GloRilla herself has noticed and participated in during her latest concerts. One video of the rapper from a stop at Louisiana State University, by user @amyroselin, has drawn 10.6 million views on the platform.
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In addition to its Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay triumph, “Yeah Glo!” drives 7-3 on the Rap Airplay chart through a 16% increase in weekly audience. It likewise cracks the top five on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, which ranks songs through combined audience totals from adult R&B and mainstream R&B/hip-hop stations. There, it pushes 6-5 and registers 12.6 million in audience, up 15% from the previous week. On Rhythmic Airplay, “Glo!” grows 22-21 thanks to an 18% boost in plays at the format in the tracking week. Combined, the mounting radio activity thrusts “Glo!” 37-27 on the all-genre Radio Songs chart, where it tallied 17.4 million in total audience, a 16% week-over-week gain.
Swelling radio activity, in turn, helps fuel “Yeah Glo!” on the multi-metric Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, which combines radio airplay results with streaming and sales data for its ranks. It climbs 13-11 on the list thanks to 17.4 million in airplay audience, 12.6 million official U.S. streams (up 7%) and 1,000 in sales (down 5%). The same statistics also spark its 59-38 swing on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100.
“Yeah Glo!” appears on GloRilla’s Ehhthang Ehhthang EP, released on April 5. The set debuted at No. 5 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and has remained in the top 10 for its first four weeks, sitting at No. 8 on the current edition.
The Contenders is a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. Next week (for the upcoming Billboard Hot 100 dated May 18), the Kendrick Lamar-Drake beef that’s dominated pop culture for the past month sets its sights on also taking over the Billboard charts.
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Kendrick Lamar, “Not Like Us” (pgLang/Interscope/ICLG): Though it arrived as the fourth diss track in Kendrick Lamar’s anti-Drake campaign – fifth if you count “Like That” — “Not Like Us” appears on its way to being the rapper’s biggest single since at least that initial Future and Metro Boomin collab, which topped the Hot 100 in its first three weeks on the chart in April. Since debuting on Saturday night (May 4), the Mustard-produced banger has simply swept through pop culture, being played on NBA on TNT broadcasts and as MLB walk-up music and inspiring mash-ups and club chants and general West Coast fan hysteria.
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The public response has been overwhelming enough that even with its late Saturday release – meaning it will only have a little over five days of consumption in its debut tracking week – “Not Like Us” should still be a strong contender for a No. 1 Hot 100 debut next week. The song shot to the top of essentially every relevant daily or real time chart (including Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Trending and iTunes) and is currently still gaining steam, with its eye-popping most recent Spotify U.S. total of over 6.8 million plays (for Tuesday, May 7) being its highest yet.
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Competition for the top spot will still be stiff in such a loaded period for new hits, including from other songs by Kendrick himself. But “Not Like Us” is outpacing the competition enough right now to likely be the frontrunner for next week’s chart – and regardless is certainly on pace to be one of the defining hits of this year, as well as one of the biggest songs of Lamar’s decade-plus hitmaking career.
Kendrick Lamar, “Euphoria” (pgLang/Interscope/ICLG): Before the arrival of “Not Like Us,” it still seemed like Lamar would have the inside track on the Hot 100 with the first shot from his recent attack wave, “Euphoria.” That track, a vicious six-minute assault on Drake’s character that also became a pop culture phenomenon upon its release two Tuesdays ago (April 30), managed to debut at No. 11 on this week’s Hot 100 (dated May 11) from just two and a half days of tracking.
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Following its first full week of release, “Euphoria” should also be a major contender for the top of the Hot 100, as it has been holding strong near the top of most daily DSP charts in the days since. (Both “Euphoria” and “Not Like Us” are just getting going on radio, each drawing a little over a million airplay impressions in the first four days of the tracking week, May 3-6, according to Luminate.) With “Not Like Us” lapping it basically across the board as the popular favorite from this back and forth, however, “Euphoria” might have missed its best shot at nabbing the No. 1 spot, and will likely have to settle for the silver or bronze on the chart next week.
Kendrick Lamar, “Meet the Grahams” (pgLang/Interscope/ICLG): Perhaps the nastiest of Lamar’s invectives against his rival, “Meet the Grahams” arrived on Friday night (May 3), a day before “Not Like Us.” The song doesn’t quite have the invigorating punchiness of “Euphoria” or the sheer club-readiness of “Us,” and so it hasn’t quite taken over the culture like those two certified hits. But its performance since arriving on all DSPs on Sunday (after a YouTube-only debut) has been notable enough – with the song currently ranking in the top 10 on both the Spotify and Apple Music updating charts, as well as on iTunes – that it should still be ticketed for a fairly high debut on next week’s Hot 100.
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There is of course a fourth Lamar song from song from the feud that was released the past weekend, in Friday morning’s “6:16 in L.A.” — but that song was an Instagram-only release, meaning its streams will not contribute to Billboard chart calculations, and it will not be eligible for the charts next week. However, “Like That” — the Future and Metro Boomin collab that kicked all of this off a month and a half ago — is also still hanging around the Hot 100’s top 10 (No. 8 this week, following its three-week reign), and is up in consumption following the brighter spotlight on the beef, so it will also certainly be in the mix for next week (if no longer a likely top-spot contender).
IN THE MIX
Drake, “Family Matters” (OVO/Republic): Don’t forget about the other guy in the beef! Though Drake is obviously trailing both in terms of public opinion and in overall streams/sales count in this back-and-forth – as well as in terms of total songs, with just two this past weekend to Lamar’s stunning four – his “Family Matters” is still on pace for a very high bow on the Hot 100, as the Friday night-released diss track is still ranking in the top 10 on both Spotify and Apple Music. (Sunday night’s follow-up “The Heart Part 6” has only been released on YouTube so far.)
Tommy Richman, “Million Dollar Baby” (ISO Supermacy/Pulse): You gotta feel for Tommy Richman a little: If not for the Kendrick-Drake showdown generating more drama and attention than the entirety of the NBA playoffs, he’d very likely be the biggest story in the music world right now. The little-before-known Virginia singer-rapper debuts at No. 2 on the Hot 100 this week with his runaway breakthrough hit “Million Dollar Baby,” and the song has only been rising on streaming and in airplay and sales in its second week of release. But unless interest in the beef (or at least Kendrick’s musical part in it) tails off mightily in the last couple days of the tracking week, Richman’s likely gonna have to wait at least one more week to climb that last spot and take over the Hot 100’s apex.
Mark Ambor scores his first career entry on the Billboard Hot 100, thanks to his breakthrough viral hit “Belong Together.” The song, which he self-released Feb. 16 in partnership with Hundred Days Records and Virgin Music Group, debuts at No. 87 on the May 11-dated Hot 100 with 7 million official chart-eligible U.S. streams (up […]
One of the wildest weeks in hip-hop history is set to make a huge impact on next week’s Billboard charts (dated May 18) as several diss tracks from the ongoing Drake – Kendrick Lamar beef look prime to dot the Billboard Hot 100 and other charts.
The rappers’ feud dates back at least a decade, but the latest campaign ramped up in March with “Like That,” Lamar’s collaboration with Future and Metro Boomin, in which the Pulitzer Prize-winner’s verse contained alleged disses at Drake and J. Cole. Since then, Lamar, Drake, J. Cole and a heavyweight supporting roster – including The Weeknd, Rick Ross, Ye (formerly known as Kanye West), A$AP Rocky – have all been involved, either as targets or lobbing disses of their own.
While Cole bowed out and apologized after he released his “7 Minute Drill” rebuttal on April 5, Drake and Lamar have each released multiple tracks in just a few weeks, with personal attacks and serious allegations, including threats of violence and pedophilia within artists camps.
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Given the whirlwind of releases — some of which have been widely released on streaming services, others that were only available on social media and at least one that has been willingly removed from platforms — here’s a guide to how each track could factor onto the Hot 100.
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The Ones That Have Already Charted
“Like That” / “7 Minute Drill” / “Push Ups” / “Euphoria”
Four tracks have already appeared on the Hot 100, which includes streaming, radio airplay and sales data for its calculations. In chronological order, they are “Like That” (No. 1 for three weeks, beginning on the chart dated April 6), J. Cole’s “7 Minute Drill” (No. 7, April 20), Drake’s “Push Ups” (No. 17, May 11) and Lamar’s “Euphoria” (No. 11, May 11).
As J. Cole had “7 Minute Drill” pulled from streaming services and digital retailers one week after its release, the song has since fallen off the chart. Unless “7 Minute Drill” is once again made available to consumers, the only avenue for a Hot 100 return would be through radio airplay. But don’t expect it – “7 Minute Drill” has declined in radio play for the last two weeks, according to Luminate, before it was even able to make any Billboard radio chart.
In addition to continued availability on streaming services and digital retailers, “Like That,” “Push Ups” and “Euphoria” all sport an active radio presence. The foremost ranks at No. 4 on the latest R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart (dated May 11), the middle track rises 29-28 and while the lattermost does not appear on the chart, its 149,000 audience total, according to Luminate – in just three days of a seven-day, Friday-Thursday tracking week due to its Tuesday drop date – ranks just outside the 50-position cutoff, at 192,000 in audience for the week.
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The Ones That Could Chart Next
“Family Matters” / “Meet the Grahams” / “Not Like Us” / “The Heart Part 6”
The heaviest barrage is likely to come on next week’s Hot 100 (dated May 18), with five songs released between Drake and Lamar since May 2, the start of the current Hot 100 tracking week.
Of the five, three – Drake’s “Family Matters” and Lamar’s “Meet the Grahams” and “Not Like Us” – are widely available across streaming serves and digital retailers, setting them up for the chance at huge consumption figures that would translate into strong Hot 100 arrivals. All three, though, will have shortened periods in the Friday-Thursday tracking window after they were released mid-week: “Family Matters” and “Meet the Grahams” both arrived on Saturday, May 3, while “Not Like Us” premiered on Sunday, May 4.
Despite the handicap, however, they seem to be making up ground — quickly. Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” for example, was the No. 1 streamed song in the U.S. on Spotify on Monday, May 6, (6.59 million clicks) and Tuesday, May 7, (6.81 million), clearing each day’s second-place title — his own “Euphoria” on Monday and Tommy Richman’s “Million Dollar Baby” on Tuesday — by more than 2 million plays.
Returning to the two remaining tracks released during the current tracking week, one — Drake’s “The Heart Part 6,” released on Sunday, May 4 — notably remains available only through YouTube.
As for the final track …
The Outliers
“6:16 in LA” / “Taylor Made Freestyle” / “Buried Alive Interlude, Pt. 2”
Lamar’s “6:16 in LA,” which arrived on Saturday, May 3, was released solely through the Compton rapper’s Instagram page. As it was not made available on streaming services or digital retailers that contribute to Billboard’s charts (and has received no registered radio play), it has no chance of appearing on the Hot 100 without an official release.
But all’s fair. Two more Drake tracks released in the beef — the “Taylor Made Freestyle” and “Buried Alive Interlude, Pt. 2” — were likewise social media exclusives, and, by the same token, would need an official release to streamers and digital stores or substantial radio activity for a Hot 100 debut. The former, notably, is unlikely to gain any traction after its use of artificial intelligence vocals imitating Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg prompted Shakur’s estate to threaten a lawsuit, and the song was removed the next day. The latter, meanwhile, appeared on an Instagram story and looks to only have been a teaser for “Family Matters.”
The top 10 of the Hot 100 dated May 18 is scheduled to be announced on Billboard’s website on Monday, May 13, with the full chart revealed on Tuesday, May 14.
Dua Lipa’s Radical Optimism will be hard to catch in the U.K. chart race.
Based on midweek sales and streaming data captured by the Official Charts Company, the British pop singer’s third studio album has a healthy lead.
Radical Optimism is outselling the next-best-placed LP, Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department, by 2 to 1, and should storm home for Lipa’s second leader.
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Assuming it continues on its path, Radical Optimism will become Lipa’s first album to debut at No. 1. Her self-titled 2017 debut Dua Lipa peaked at No. 3 and has logged 354 weeks on the frame, while her sophomore effort from 2020, Future Nostalgia, climbed to No. 1 in its second week. Future Nostalgia logged four weeks at No. 1, and has now clocked 203 weeks on the Official Chart – and counting.
Radical Optimism is already a U.K. hit, yielding three top 10 singles chart entries: “Houdini (No. 2 peak), “Training Season” (No. 4) and “Illusion” (No. 9).
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With Dua Lipa’s latest effort flying high, Swift’s Tortured Poets looks set to dip 1-2 after two weeks at the chart penthouse. It’s TayTay’s 12th U.K. No. 1 album.
Meanwhile, Hampshire, England rock artist Frank Turner is on track for a podium finish with Undefeated. It’s new at No. 3 on the Official Chart Update, and is set to become Turner’s sixth U.K. top 10 appearance.
Kelly Jones, frontman of Welsh indie-rock favorites Stereophonics, could nab his solo career best with Inevitable Incredible, his second LP. Inevitable Incredible is on course for a No. 4 start, well ahead of the No. 8 best for his debut solo effort Don’t Let The Devil Take Another Day from 2020. As a member of Stereophonics, Jones has eight U.K. No. 1s.
Finally, Scottish indie-pop act Camera Obscura is peering in on a first-ever U.K. top 10 appearance with Look To The East, Look To The West, their first studio album in over a decade. It bows at No. 10 on the chart blast, and should give Camera Obscura a third U.K. top 40.
All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Albums Chart is published late Friday, May 10.