Chart Beat

Wayne Osmond, the second-oldest of the legendary Osmonds, died on Jan. 1. He was 73 years old.

Wayne, one of nine Osmond siblings, started a barbershop quartet in 1958 alongside his brothers Alan, Merrill and Jay. After getting discovered from a Disneyland performance, the boys were cast over a seven-year period on NBC’s The Andy Williams Show beginning in 1962. When brothers Jimmy and Donny joined the group, they became known as the Osmonds and were standout teen idols throughout the ‘70s.

The Osmonds formed in their hometown of Ogden, Utah. Their mother, Olive, reflected on their origin, born of their Mormon faith, in a 1976 interview, as recounted in Fred Bronson’s The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. “The church encourages talent, beginning with such things as singing, sports and speeches when the children are small,” she mused. “That’s how the four boys started singing together.”

The Osmonds charted four top 10s, among 10 top 40 hits, on the Billboard Hot 100, including the 1971 No. 1 “One Bad Apple.” Alan and Merrill Osmond co-wrote “Down by the Lazy River” (No. 4, 1972), the group’s biggest self-penned hit. The act achieved its top-charting album on the Billboard 200 with Phase-III, which reached No. 10 in 1972. The Osmonds tallied 13 titles on the tally through 2008.

Following 13 Hot 100 hits in 1971-76, the Osmonds disbanded in the summer of 1980. They reformed in 1982, minus Donny, and logged 11 entries on the Hot Country Songs chart, through 1986, led by their introductory hit at the format, the top 20-peaking “I Think About Your Lovin’.”

Amid the Osmonds’ chart dominance as a group, Donny scored solo success, earning five Hot 100 top 10s in 1971-73, including the three-week No. 1 “Go Away Little Girl,” which led seven months after “One Bad Apple.” After a 13-year-break from the chart, he returned and marched to No. 2 in 1989 with “Soldier of Love.”

Plus, Donny and sister Marie Osmond notched seven Hot 100 hits in 1974-78, including two top 10s. Marie forged her own successful career in country, running up four Hot Country Songs No. 1s in 1973-86.

On Jan. 2, Donny shared a heartfelt tribute on X, writing, “Wayne brought so much light, laughter and love to everyone who knew him, especially me. He was the ultimate optimist and was loved by everyone. I’m sure I speak on behalf of every one of us siblings when I state that we were fortunate to have Wayne as a brother.”

Below, browse the Osmonds’ 10 biggest career hits as a group on the Hot 100.

The Osmonds’ Biggest Billboard Hits chart is based on actual performance on the weekly Hot 100 chart from its Aug. 4, 1958, inception, through Jan. 4, 2025. Songs are ranked based on an inverse point system, with weeks at No. 1 earning the greatest value and weeks at No. 100 earning the least. Due to changes in chart methodology over the years, eras are weighted to account for different chart turnover rates over various periods.

“Goin’ Home”

In the 2024 calendar year, 761 songs by a total of 404 different artists appeared on the Billboard Hot 100.

Of those 404 artists, 120 appeared on the chart for the first time in 2024. Billboard has been celebrating these Hot 100 first-timers throughout the year, highlighting their first chart appearances and sharing their reactions to the news. As 2024 draws to a close, let’s look back at each act to debut on the ranking for the first time and the songs that helped them become Hot 100-charting hitmakers.

Notably, of the eight acts nominated for best new artist at the upcoming 67th Grammy Awards in February, two hit the Hot 100 for the first time this year: Chappell Roan with “Good Luck, Babe!” in April, and Shaboozey with his featured turns on Beyoncé’s “Spaghettii” and “Sweet * Honey * Buckiin” from her album Cowboy Carter, also in April. “Good Luck, Babe!” reached No. 4 on the chart in September, and Roan landed six additional songs on the chart this year: “Red Wine Supernova,” “Hot to Go!,” “Pink Pony Club,” “Casual,” “Femininomenon” and “My Kink Is Karma.” Shaboozey, of course, later charted with his breakthrough smash “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” which spent a record-tying 19 weeks at No. 1, and then with “Good News.”

As for the other best new artist nominees: Benson Boone first charted in 2021 with “Ghost Town,” but his song “Beautiful Things” became his biggest hit to date this year, reaching No. 2; Sabrina Carpenter first charted in 2021 with “Skin,” but earned her first three top 10s this year with “Espresso,” “Please Please Please” and “Taste”; Doechii arrived on the Hot 100 in 2023 with “What It Is (Block Boy)”; Raye debuted in December 2022 with “Escapism”; and Teddy Swims arrived in August 2023 with “Lose Control,” which topped the chart this March and finished as Billboard’s No. 1 Hot 100 song of the year. (Khruangbin hasn’t yet appeared on the Hot 100.)

Tommy Richman made a historic first entry on the chart this year with “Million Dollar Baby” when it debuted at No. 2. Since the Hot 100 began in 1958, only five other acts have debuted in the top two with no prior history on the chart: Lauryn Hill, Fantasia, Baauer, Zayn and Oliver Anthony Music. (Hill and Zayn previously charted with Fugees and One Direction, respectively. Fantasia won Season 3 of American Idol. So only Richman, Baauer and Oliver Anthony Music debuted in the top two with no significant previous audience awareness.)

Other notable artists who first reached the Hot 100 this year include Djo, aka actor Joe Keery of Stranger Things, who debuted with his viral hit “End of Beginning”; Sophie Ellis-Bextor, whose 2001 song “Murder on the Dancefloor” received newfound popularity after its appearance in the film Saltburn; YG Marley, who debuted with “Praise Jah in the Moonlight” helping him become the sixth member of the legendary Marley family to chart a song on the Hot 100; and Pabllo Vittar, who joined RuPaul as the only drag queens to ever to debut on the chart.

Proving that age is just a number, two artists over the age of 80 earned their first Hot 100 entries this year. Ariana Grande’s grandmother, Marjorie Grande, was credited as a featured act on her granddaughter’s song “Ordinary Things” (under the name Nonna). At 98 years old, she became the senior-most artist ever to appear on the Hot 100. She surpassed Fred Stobaugh, who charted at 96 years old with “Oh Sweet Lorraine” in 2013. Plus, Linda Martell charted for the first time at age 82 thanks to her guest appearance on Beyoncé’s “Spaghettii.” In 1969, the country music pioneer became the first Black woman to ever play the Grand Ole Opry.

Plus, the children of two superstars also charted on the Hot 100 for the first time this year: North West, the eldest child of Ye (formerly Kanye West) and Kim Kardashian, charted her first song in February at age 10, with her featured appearance on Ye and Ty Dolla $ign’s “Talking.” Two months later, Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s daughter Rumi became the youngest female artist to ever chart on the Hot 100, at just 6 years old. She debuted with her guest appearance on Beyoncé’s “Protector.” She surpassed her sister, Blue Ivy Carter, who was 7 years old when she first charted in 2019 (on “Brown Skin Girl”).

In chronological order below is a roundup of every artist who earned a first Hot 100 hit in 2024, encompassing the charts dated Jan. 6-Dec. 28.

Chayce Beckham