Chart Beat
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Beyoncé claims the year’s top-grossing tour, according to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore. Between May 10 and Oct. 1, the Renaissance World Tour grossed $579.8 million and sold 2.8 million tickets. With a tracking period of Nov. 1, 2022 – Sept. 30, all but one of those shows powers her record-breaking finish at No. 1 on Billboard’s year-end Top Tours chart.
Last year marked the first full year-end tracking period after the pandemic forced venues to close. In 2022, Bad Bunny ruled the annual recap with $373 million, on his way to a record-breaking $434 million during the ’22 calendar year. This year, that record washes away, as Queen Bey returns with her first solo headline tour in seven years.
The Renaissance World Tour earned $570.5 million and sold 2.7 million tickets during the 2023 tracking period, plus another $9.3 million and 53,200 tickets in Kansas City on Oct. 1. That makes it the biggest one-year sum for an artist in Boxscore history, dating back to the mid-1980s. Both Bad Bunny and Ed Sheeran grossed more than $434 million in 2022 and 2018, respectively.
Click here to see the full year-end 2023 Boxscore charts.
The tour’s $580 million is a towering total, but even more impressive when achieved in less than five months. Beyoncé topped four of Boxscore’s monthly recaps this year, including a record-setting three-peat where she grossed more than $100 million in July, August and September. Her August haul of $179 million is the largest reported monthly gross since the charts launched in February 2019.
The Renaissance World Tour is the seventh highest grossing tour in the Boxscore archives. Based on Billboard’s projections, official reports for The Eras Tour would give Beyoncé some company, with Swift joining her as the only two women and only American soloists in the top 10. Beyoncé is also the only Black artist on the all-time ranking.
The well-documented combined domination of Beyoncé and Swift breaks up the boy’s club that has ruled the last handful of year-end Boxscore recaps. Bad Bunny, The Rolling Stones, Elton John, Ed Sheeran (twice) and U2 have topped the last six annual Top Tours charts. The last times that women presided were in 2015 and 2016, topped by – who else – Taylor Swift and Beyoncé, respectively. Before that, women only led the year-end list three times: Tina Turner in 2000, and Madonna in 2004 and 2012.
The year-end Top Tours chart breaks ground even beyond Queen Bey’s contributions, and without the official help of Swift. There have never been as many tours above $300 million (three), $200 million (seven) or $100 million (17). Harry Styles, Morgan Wallen, BLACKPINK help lead one of the youngest and most genre-diverse annual recaps, while being the highest-grossing year ever for Billboard Boxscore. Despite the 11-month tracking period marking the shortest year-end window ever, 2023’s top 100 tours grossed a combined $7.5 billion, up 17% from last year, and up 53% from the pre-pandemic total in 2019.
Dating back almost 40 years, all Boxscore rankings are based on figures reported to Billboard. Data is reported from a variety of official industry sources, from artist managers and agents to promoters and venue executives.
Reporting is and has always been voluntary, and some artists, venues, and promoters opt to withhold data from representation on our charts. Notably, figures for Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour have not yet been reported to Boxscore. While that disqualifies her from appearing on year-end charts, the tour’s widely recognized ubiquity is acknowledged throughout Billboard’s year-in-touring coverage. Click here to read more.
All reported shows, worldwide, between Nov. 1, 2022 – Sept. 30, 2023 are eligible for year-end 2023 consideration.
For a seventh straight decade, Cher has earned a new No. 1 on a Billboard songs chart, as her latest hit, “DJ Play a Christmas Song,” jingles 3-1 on the Dec. 2-dated Dance/Electronic Song Sales survey. The track is the lead single from the pop diva’s first holiday album, Christmas.
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Cher joins the Rolling Stones with at least one new No. 1 on a Billboard songs chart in each of the seven decades from the 1960s through the 2020s (excluding any Bubbling Under rankings).
Cher scored her first No. 1 as half of Sonny & Cher, when “I Got You Babe” topped the Billboard Hot 100 dated Aug. 14, 1965.
In the 1970s, she logged a trio of Hot 100 No. 1s of her own: “Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves” in 1971, “Half-Breed” in 1973 and “Dark Lady” in 1974. She also claimed another No. 1 with Sonny, “All I Ever Need Is You,” on the Adult Contemporary airplay chart in 1971.
In the 1980s, Cher landed a pair of No. 1s on the Adult Contemporary chart in 1989 with “After All,” with Peter Cetera, and “If I Could Turn Back Time.” In the next decade, Cher returned to No. 1 on the Hot 100 with “Believe” in 1999, and it also crowned the Dance Club Songs tally. She notched two more No. 1s on the Dance Club Songs list that decade: “Strong Enough” and “All or Nothing.” (Cher additionally topped other Billboard rankings that decade, such as the now-defunct Hot Singles Sales and Dance Singles Sales charts.)
In the 2000s, Cher achieved three more No. 1s on the Dance Club Songs chart with “Song for the Lonely” (it also topped the Dance Singles Sales list) and “A Different Kind of Love Song” in 2002, and “When the Money’s Gone” in 2003. The following decade, she racked up further No. 1s on Dance Club Songs with “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” in 2011 and “Woman’s World” in 2013.
The Rolling Stones, meanwhile, began their streak of No. 1 songs in seven straight decades just a month before Cher, when “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” hit No. 1 on the Hot 100 dated July 10, 1965. They most recently led a songs survey with “Living in a Ghost Town,” which ruled the Rock Digital Song Sales chart dated May 9, 2020.
Ado’s “Show” continues to rule the Billboard Japan Hot 100, now in its ninth week at No. 1 on the chart dated Nov. 29.
Although overall points are down by about 0.9 percent from the week before, the USJ Halloween event theme continues to dominate downloads (9,361 units), streaming (11,335,147 streams), and video views. The song is also enjoying popularity on social media, returning to No. 1 on the TikTok Weekly Top 20 ranking this week.
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YOASOBI “Idol” rises to No. 2 for the first time in three weeks, with points increasing by about 4.5 percent. The record-holder for most weeks at No. 1 on the Japan Hot 100 (21 weeks) is currently at No. 2 for streaming (8,610,371 streams, up 2 percent), No. 10 for downloads (3,551 units, up 9 percent), and No. 2 for video (up 3 percent). Meanwhile, the pair’s latest release called “Biri-Biri,” a song inspired by the Pokémon Scarlet & Violet video games, jumps 85-14 on the Japan Hot 100 this week, while “The Brave” extends its stay in the top 10 to 9 weeks (No. 4).
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The finalists and winners of the 65th Japan Record Award 2023 were announced on Nov. 22 and Ayase, YOASOBI’s songwriter and producer, is set to receive the Best Composition Award for “Idol” and the duo will be honored with the Special International Music Award.
NEWS’s “Gifted” debuts at No. 3, hitting No. 1 for sales with 130,866 copies sold. The boy band’s 30th single is being featured as the theme song for a drama series by the same name starring member Takahisa Masuda.
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Kep1er’s “Grand Prix” bows at No. 6, coming in at No. 2 for sales with 86,273 copies sold.
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AKB48 returns to the top 10 for the first time in eight weeks, as “Idol nanka janakattara” hits No. 10. The girl group’s 62nd single peaked at No. 4 on the chart dated Oct. 4, and after selling 58,173 copies during this chart week, the single has sold an estimated 677,371 copies total and is currently at No. 3 for sales.
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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 Nov. 20 to 26, here. For more on Japanese music and charts, visit Billboard Japan’s English Twitter account.
Gerardo Coronel “El Jerry” crosses off a new Billboard chart milestone, scoring his first No. 1 without any other acts on the Regional Mexican Airplay chart as “Se Buscan Borrachos” ascends to the top of the Dec. 2-dated ranking.
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Coronel’s second No. 1 overall takes the lead with 8.7 million audience impressions in the U.S. Nov. 17-23, according to Luminate.
The song, whose title roughly translates in English to “drunks wanted,” is a “journey alongside my great team,” Coronel tells Billboard. “It invites us all to get drunk, cure the hangover and become an expert at the subject, because if we were looking for drunks, it was to make them sing about what’s coming next year!”
“Se Buscan Borrachos” was composed by Salvador Aponte and Meño Segovia and is on Coronel’s album CHSM el Hígado!
The track arrives at the Regional Mexican Airplay summit after Coronel notched his first leader on any Billboard chart with “Que Onda Perdida,” with Grupo Firme, for three weeks in July.
The corrido singer-songwriter has since debuted two other tracks on the ranking: “Alguien De Aquí,” with Nathan Galante, up to No. 19 on the latest list, and “Al Menos Indicado,” with Cuisillos, concurrently new at No. 40.
Further, Coronel claims the sixth Regional Mexican Airplay No. 1 of 2023 by a soloist with no billed collaborators. Seven such songs led in 2022, after four did in 2021 and three reigned in 2020, with the genre largely the domain of groups historically.
Here’s the list of such leaders this year:
Artist, Title, Date Song Reached No. 1:Gerardo Coronel “El Jerry,” “Se Buscan Borrachos,” Dec. 2, 2023Alejandro Fernández, “Difícil Tu Caso,” Nov. 18, 2023El Fantasma, “La Vida Cara,” Sept. 9, 2023Carin León, “Indispensable,” Aug. 19, 2023Alejandro Fernández, “No Es Que Me Quiera Ir,” Aug. 5, 2023Christian Nodal, “Un Cumbión Dolido,” June 3, 2023
Beyond its Regional Mexican Airplay coronation, “Borrachos” makes progress on the overall Latin Airplay chart, bounding 10-4, having become Coronel’s third top 10 on the tally.
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The 2023 year-end Boxscore charts go live on Thursday (Nov. 30), but before reviewing the ranked lists of the biggest tours, venues and promoters in the world, Billboard is taking a zoomed-in look at the U.S., highlighting the highest-grossing concert engagements in each state.
The figures displayed here are based on figures officially reported to Billboard Boxscore, covering a tracking period of Nov. 1, 2022 – Sept. 30, 2023. That means that Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour is not included, as representatives for her tour did not report. Click to read more about Billboard’s Swiftian projections.
Beyoncé dominates the map, leading in 11 states. Major-market stadium shows on the Renaissance World Tour took top honors in California, Georgia, Illinois and New Jersey, while hometown shows in Houston add another ring for Texas.
Morgan Wallen follows, winning eight states. Also in stadiums, he takes the gold in country-minded Midwest and southern states like Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio. His March release One Thing at a Time finished at No. 1 on the year-end Billboard 200 albums chart, while its second track, “Last Night,” is No. 1 on the year-end Billboard Hot 100 songs ranking.
P!nk and Post Malone are two peas in a pod, both with three regions to their name. The former wins in the District of Columbia, Nebraska and North Dakota, while the latter is tops in Connecticut, New Mexico and Utah.
P!nk’s win in Washington D.C. comes from a Aug. 7 show at Nationals Stadium, with $7.2 million in the bank. Just five miles east, Beyoncé’s concert at FedEx Field in Landover, Md. cleared the path for P!nk to take D.C., though Beyoncé’s Maryland show generally served the same touring market.
Seven other artists doubled up, from Zach Bryan in Kansas and Oklahoma to Karol G in Florida and Puerto Rico. Another 12 acts appear on the map, ranging from comedians like Kevin Hart and Sebastian Maniscalco to rock veterans like Journey and Phish, and relative newcomers like Jelly Roll and Noah Kahan.
Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour is poised to become the highest-grossing global tour of all time, according to Billboard’s estimates.
While no official numbers have been reported yet, Swift’s tour should pass current record-holder Elton John’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour with more than $900 million in ticket sales so far.
On Sunday (Nov. 26), Swift played her last scheduled show of the year, wrapping an intense run of 66 concerts in the United States, Mexico and South America. Representatives for The Eras Tour have not yet reported official revenue or attendance figures to Billboard Boxscore or any other trade journal or news entity, but the enormity of The Eras Tour is impossible to ignore, with a total that amounts to a staggering average of nearly $14 million per show.
Dating back almost 40 years, all Boxscore rankings are based on figures reported to Billboard. Data is reported from a variety of official industry sources, from artist managers and agents to promoters and venue executives. Reporting has always been voluntary, and some artists, venues and promoters opt to withhold data from representation on our charts. It is not uncommon for artists to not report — or to wait until the end of a tour, which is still more than a year away in Swift’s case — though it’s rare that such a well-documented blockbuster tour, in contention for top year-end honors, is not submitted. Swift’s abstention disqualifies her from appearing on year-end Boxscore charts.
Swift kicked off The Eras Tour in Glendale, Ariz., on March 17, playing 53 domestic shows before wrapping at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., outside Los Angeles, on Aug. 9. She hit a total of 20 U.S. cities, and 11 of those venues have provided attendance figures to Billboard. Based on those numbers, as well as estimates based on aggressive scaling at the other nine stadiums, Swift likely sold 3.3 million tickets over 53 shows in the United States, or an average of 63,000 tickets per show.
Sources close to the tour point to an average domestic ticket price of around $252. This is in line with the prices for the summer’s other major concert event, Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour, which maintained a $135 ticket in Europe and a $253 ticket in North America. While ticket prices might dip in certain markets and bloom in others, using that number as an average puts the U.S. leg of The Eras Tour at $838.3 million. That total gross spreads out to $15.8 million per show, a staggering figure that exceeds recent tours by Bad Bunny, Beyoncé, and The Rolling Stones, each of which had giant totals of their own.
Taylor Swift performs onstage during Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour at Levi’s Stadium on July 28, 2023, in Santa Clara, Calif.
Jeff Kravitz/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management
That projected $838 million haul is more than enough to make Eras the highest-grossing U.S. and North American tour ever. John’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour holds the official Boxscore title, with $567.7 million in the United States and Canada. That total reflects 135 shows over a span of four years, compared to Swift’s 53 shows in less than six months.
Moreover, The Eras Tour’s U.S. gross would situate it as the second-highest grossing tour of all time based on global figures, before even crossing the border. John’s farewell tour remains the official record-holder with $939.1 million.
Since wrapping the Eras Tour’s U.S. leg, Swift played four shows at Mexico City’s Foro Sol (Aug. 24-27) and, more recently, nine South American shows, spread between Buenos Aires in Argentina and Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo. Those dates bring her much closer to John’s global record, even based on relatively conservative projections. But as we’ve seen with virtually every worldwide stadium tour in the last two years, the post-pandemic surge in ticket prices hasn’t been as severe outside the United States.
Further, these are Swift’s first shows in these Latin American markets. That means pent-up demand likely drove huge sales, though her base isn’t quite as explosive there as it is in the States.
Based on estimates considering the high end of grosses and ticket prices for each Latin American venue’s post-pandemic history, The Eras Tour likely earned another $60 million to $75 million and more than 750,000 tickets from those 13 shows.
In all, Billboard estimates that Swift has generated $906.1 million and sold 4.1 million tickets in 2023 across all shows in the United States, Mexico and South America. That would unofficially make The Eras Tour the biggest tour of 2023. And when considering Swift’s total revenue from the tour, it doesn’t even account for merchandise sales, sponsorships, music streaming and sales boosts, or her self-produced and released Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour concert film.
Swift is scheduled to resume The Eras Tour on Feb. 7 with four shows at the Tokyo Dome in Japan. Then, she’ll play seven shows in Australia and six in Singapore. In May, she kicks off a 50-date run in Europe before returning to North America for 18 shows in new markets, including the tour’s first entry into Canada. In all, that’s 85 shows to go, with the possibility of more to come, considering her recent concert additions to runs in London and Vancouver.
These upcoming international legs are already more ambitious than any previous Swift tour. While this year’s 53 U.S. shows are in line with what she did on 2018’s Reputation Stadium Tour and 2015’s The 1989 World Tour, those treks included just six and seven shows in Europe, respectively — a fraction of next year’s slate of 50.
If we use the comparison between Beyoncé’s recent European and North American grosses as a north star, in Europe, Swift could be looking at $8.5 million per show, or about $420 million over the entire leg. And even if next year’s North American shows dip from 2023’s record-breakers, the U.S. and Canada shows could add another $240 million to 260 million. Including the 17 shows in Asia and Australia, The Eras Tour is likely headed toward a total gross of $1.6 billion to $1.7 billion by the end of 2024. It will be the first in history to earn more than $1 billion in ticket sales and will set Swift far apart from her competitors. If figures skew toward the higher end of what’s possible, she could double John’s current record gross.
Representatives for Swift did not respond to a request for comment on Billboard‘s estimates at press time.
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up column, 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. This week: Thanksgiving songs quickly peek their heads onto streaming before making way for the Christmas avalanche — including a quickly growing new song from a pop icon — and a side-splitting viral trend brings a late-’00s pop-rock classic back to the mainstream.
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Thanksgiving Songs Beat the Holiday Rush on Streaming
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Yes, Thanksgiving is most notable in the Billboard world as the benchmark holiday after which Christmas music really starts to take off; see next week’s Hot 100 for a glimpse of just how dramatic the takeover will be. But before listeners fully ensconce themselves in Yuletide classics, some of them make sure to give some time — one day, at least — to the handful of enduring Thanksgiving perennials, many of which saw major boosts on streaming last week (particularly, of course, on Nov. 23, the final day of the tracking period).
Two unrelated staples simply titled “The Thanksgiving Song” — by pop/rock singer-songwriter Ben Rector and comedian Adam Sandler — both saw stratospheric gains, with the official on-demand U.S. streams for Rector’s song rising 473% to 803,000, while Sandler’s leapt 680% to 275,000, according to Luminate. (Sandler’s total came despite the song being unavailable on Spotify). Meanwhile, CCM singer-songwriter Matthew West’s singalong “Gobble Gobble” was up 218% to 1.2 million streams, and jazz outfit (and Christmastime regular) Vince Guaraldi Trio’s “Thanksgiving Theme” rose 248% to 1.1 million.
Then, of course, there’s the daddy of them all: Arlo Guthrie’s “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree,” the sung-spoken 1967 story song set at Thanksgiving that remains an annual listen in countless households nationwide. Boosted by some TikTok virality this year — largely of younger users sharing their confusion over their families’ continued observance of the “Alice’s” tradition — the once-a-year classic jumped a stunning 796% to 369,000 official on-demand U.S. streams for the week ending Nov. 23. Not quite Mariah Carey numbers, but pretty impressive endurance for an 18-plus-minute talking-blues number from over 55 years ago. — ANDREW UNTERBERGER
Colbie Caillat’s Breakthrough Hit “Bubbly” Rides Hilarious TikTok Meme to Streaming Revival
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16 years ago, a guitar-touting Malibu girl by the name of Colbie Caillat burst onto the scene with “Bubbly,” a heartwarming earworm that served as the lead single for debut studio album Coco and reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Today, that song is seeing a second life with Gen Z thanks to a hilarious TikTok trend that is resulting in substantial streaming gains across DSPs. According to Luminate, “Bubbly” has earned over 1.62 million on-demand U.S. streams during the period of Nov. 17-23. That marks a major 98.3% increase in streaming activity from just three weeks ago, when the song was pulling just north of 800,000 on-demand U.S. streams.
The song’s boost in streams is primarily due to a TikTok trend where users place “Bubbly” over raucous videos of other artists performing. Whether it’s Lil Uzi Vert rocking their hips or Tyler, the Creator banging his head, the goal is to play on humor sourced from the visual and sonic dissonance of Caillat’s tender hook and high-octane stage shows. Thanks to the trend, the official “Bubbly” sound has been used in over 50,700 videos. Caillat has played into the trend, duetting and stitching memes featuring KISS, Post Malone and Travis Scott. She also cheekily responded to a TikTok poking fun at her request to be counted in at the beginning of the track and released an acoustic “living room session” version of the song on her YouTube page.
“Bubbly” remains Caillat’s sole Hot 100 top 10 hit, and its recent rise and streams proves the song is still connecting with audiences over a decade and a half removed from its original release. — KYLE DENIS
Cher, Play a Christmas Song: Thanksgiving Parade Performance Boosts New Holiday Single
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Although the 2023 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade boasted a slew of music stars performing and popping by — from Beyoncé delivering a video message to The Roots playing a song with Jimmy Fallon to Chicago playing “You’re the Inspiration” atop a Wonder Bread float (!) — the climactic performance was saved until the end of the festivities. Cher arrived on 34th Street in Manhattan with a showcase of “DJ Play a Christmas Song,” her danceable pop single from her recently released holiday album Christmas, complete with choreography performed by dancers in heart costumes and dressed as little drummer boys and girls.
After Christmas debuted at No. 32 on the Billboard 200 chart last month, “DJ Play a Christmas Song” has naturally started to heat up as the holidays creep closer — although early returns suggest that the Thanksgiving Day performance provided the single with even more upward momentum. While the song’s weekly U.S. on-demand streaming totals jumped from 101,000 streams for the week ending Nov. 2 to 521,000 for the week ending Nov. 23, according to Luminate, “DJ Play a Christmas Song” earned 647,000 streams from Friday to Monday (Nov. 24-27) — surpassing its previous week’s streaming total in just four days.
With the Hot 100 in the process of being flooded by holiday music, we’ll see over the few weeks if “DJ Play a Christmas Song,” which has reached No. 3 on the Holiday Digital Song Sales chart, can keep climbing and reach the all-genre tally before the end of the season. If it does, the single would be Cher’s first Hot 100 entry since “Song for the Lonely” in 2002. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
The Contenders is a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. This week (for the upcoming Billboard Hot 100 dated Dec. 9), the now-annual holiday rush has begun on the Hot 100 – but for the first time, the usual pace-setter is in danger of being passed for the top spot.
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Mariah Carey, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” (Columbia): Since the chart dated Dec. 12, 2015, Mariah Carey’s signature Yuletide tune has reigned atop Billboard’s Holiday 100 listing — 43 consecutive weeks (of its total 58 weeks at No. 1 among the chart’s 63 weeks of existence, dating back to 2011). And every December since first reaching the Hot 100’s apex in 2019, “All I Want” has returned to the top of the chart, most recently spending four weeks at pole position, from the surveys dated Dec. 17, 2022, through to Jan. 7, 2023. In all, it has spent 12 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100, belatedly making the 1994 release the third-longest-reigning single of Carey’s storied career, and arguably her all-time signature hit.
Once again this year, Carey’s pop perennial begins the holiday season in the lead. It returns at No. 1 on the first Holiday 100 of the 2023 season (dated Dec. 2) and also zooms from 17-4 on the Hot 100, in its 60th total week on the listing. As per tradition, Mimi has come out in full force to re-promote the seasonal staple (and her own Queen of Christmas status) this month. That includes sharing a video of her being “defrosted” at midnight on Nov. 1, starring in a holiday-themed Victoria’s Secret campaign, debuting new themed merch, and of course performing “All I Want” on the Billboard Music Awards (while also accepting the Billboard Chart Achievement Award for the song’s longtime success).
“All I Want” returning to No. 1 on next week’s Hot 100 would be no surprise at all — the song has been one of the great inevitables on the Billboard charts for nearly a half-decade now. However, this year it might be neck-and-neck with another holiday fixture, one that’s been gaining on it in recent years and may finally be in position to pull ahead.
Brenda Lee, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (Decca): While Brenda Lee’s Christmas classic is 36 years older than Carey’s, it has nonetheless been building steam over the past half-decade, firmly establishing itself as the perennial silver medalist of Yuletide pop. As “All I Want” has reached No. 1 on both the Holiday 100 and the Hot 100 every year since 2019, so has “Rockin’” climbed to No. 2 on both charts — returning to the runner-up spot on this week’s Holiday 100, while also re-entering the Hot 100 at No. 8, as the second-highest-ranking holiday title. And each of the last few years, the gap in performance between the two songs has shrunk, though Carey’s has thus far remained the decisive leader.
This year, however, the competition has gotten legitimately tight. While Carey remains the leader of the two in sales and official on-demand U.S. streams through four days of this tracking week, Lee is slightly ahead in official U.S. streams, per preliminary tracking data for next week’s charts, according to Luminate. Lee’s song is also growing in streaming at a faster rate than Carey’s — and does in fact lead it comfortably on Spotify’s Daily Top Songs USA chart.
With the distance between the two songs looking increasingly climbable, and with “Rockin’” celebrating its 65th anniversary this year, Lee and her UMG label family have increased their promotional efforts to get the song over the top. Earlier this month, a new music video for the song (with cameos from country stars Tanya Tucker and Trisha Yearwood) premiered on CMT, while Lee will perform the song on NBC’s Christmas at the Opry special on Dec. 7. Lee also released the five-track A Rockin’ Christmas With Brenda Lee EP, featuring a new remix of “Rockin’” by dance producer Filous, and — of course — recently joined TikTok, where she’s been sharing daily posts reminiscing about the song and her career, and sharing her reactions to some of the new feedback and acclaim the song has garnered. (Lee even hopped on the plane intercom on a recent flight to perform the song, as captured by video shared on TMZ.)
With this major promotional push and an increasing public sentimentality behind the 78-year-old Lee — who, as one of the biggest pop stars of the pre-British Invasion ’60s, did top the Hot 100 twice, with 1960’s “I’m Sorry” and “I Want to Be Wanted” — this year should mark her best chance yet of returning to the top spot. If “Rockin’” doesn’t get there this week, it should be a week-to-week battle with “All I Want” throughout the holiday season — one that Lee herself recognized in a recent New York Times profile, quipping, “Now I gotta worry about Mariah… Get outta here, girl!” (She also added: “Oh, there’s room for everybody. Her song’s good, too. I love her singing.”)
IN THE MIX
Jack Harlow, “Lovin on Me” (Generation Now/Atlantic): Back in the secular music world, the reigning Hot 100 topper should still be a force to be reckoned with. Harlow’s “Lovin on Me,” his third No. 1 on the chart in three years, remains atop both the Spotify Daily Top Songs USA listing and Apple Music’s real time charts, and it also debuts at No. 32 on Billboard’s Radio Songs rankings this week, as it continues to grow on the airwaves, claiming top Airplay Gainer status on the Dec. 2 Hot 100. It may soon be buried under the holiday music avalanche, but Harlow and “Lovin” won’t hand over the reins to the chart without at least a bit of a fight.
Wham!, “Last Christmas” (Epic/Columbia): It’s not quite as exciting as the Mariah/Brenda showdown, but there’s also a race for No. 3 on the Holiday 100. That’s between Bobby Helms’ country-rock classic “Jingle Bell Rock,” which has been the annual No. 3 on the holiday Hot 100 since the 2019-20 season, and Wham!’s synth-pop staple “Last Christmas.” Wham! has creeped closer to the Big Three each year since singer-songwriter George Michael‘s death in 2016, hitting a new peak last year of No. 4 on the Hot 100. This year, it’s nipping at the heels of “Jingle Bell Rock” — they’re Nos. 13 and No. 12 on this week’s Hot 100, respectively — as it narrowly trails Helms’ hit in streams, and also follows in airplay, while leading it in sales, so far this tracking week.
Billboard has more than 200 different weekly charts, 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.
Here’s a look at 10 titles by artists who appear on surveys for the first time on the Dec. 2-dated charts:
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Wyatt Flores
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The singer-songwriter from Stillwater, Okla., arrives on Billboard’s charts for the first time with his breakout single “Please Don’t Go,” and his two sets The Hutson Sessions and Life Lessons. The track, released in July 2022 via OEG Records, debuts at No. 43 on Hot Country Songs with 3.4 million U.S. streams (up 26%) Nov. 17-23, according to Luminate. TikTok has been a significant factor in the song’s growing profile, as a portion has been used in over 40,000 clips on the platform.
Flores’ 2022 debut four-track EP The Hutson Sessions (which includes “Please Don’t Go”) debuts at No. 19 on the Heatseekers Albums chart with 3,000 equivalent album units earned, and his new seven-track set Life Lessons enters at No. 24 (2,000 units). Flores released Life Lessons Nov. 17 on OEG/Island/Republic Records – his first release on a major label.
Flores is currently on the road on his Times Are Getting Hard Tour, which runs through mid-December. On Dec. 7 and 8, he’ll support recent Billboard first-timer Charles Wesley Godwin at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium.
Ye Vagabonds
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The Irish folk duo, comprising brothers Diarmuid and Brían Mac Gloinn, scores its first Billboard chart appearance, thanks to “The Parting Glass,” with boygenius. Released Nov. 17 on Interscope Records, the collaboration debuts at No. 10 on the Alternative Digital Song Sales chart with 1,000 sold.
“The Parting Glass” is a traditional Scottish folk ballad, also popular in Ireland. It’s often sung at the end of a gathering of friends, similar to “Auld Lang Syne.” On the new version, boygenius’ Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus trade vocals, while the Gloinn brothers provide instrumentation. The song was released as a tribute to the late Sinead O’Connor, who also recorded it for her 2002 album, Sean-Nos Nua. The cover art for the new song is a photo of O’Connor, with proceeds going towards the Aisling Project, an after-school initiative to help children growing up in disadvantaged areas of Dublin, Ireland.
Ye Vagabonds have released three LPs: Ye Vagabonds (2017), The Hare’s Lament (2019) and Nine Waves (2022).
Nicotine Dolls
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The New York City-based band lands on Billboard’s charts for the first time, thanks to its cover of Tina Turner’s classic hit “The Best.” The song, released Nov. 17 on Nettwerk Music Group, debuts at No. 9 on Rock Digital Song Sales with 1,000 sold. TikTok has been a key factor in the song’s rise, as the cover went viral on the platform leading up to its official release.
Nicotine Dolls are fronted by lead singer Sam Cieri and also comprises John Hays (guitar), John Merritt (bass) and Abel Tabares (drums). Cieri appeared on NBC’s America’s Got Talent in 2022 and was part of the second national tour of the musical Once (playing one of the leads, Guy) in 2016-17.
Turner’s original recording only reached No. 15 on the Hot 100 in 1989, but has since become one of her seminal songs. The track is her second-most-streamed song in the U.S. in her career (after “What’s Love Got To Do With It”), since Luminate began tracking music data in 1991.
Ocean Alley
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The Australian psychedelic rock band draws its first Billboard chart placement with its single “Confidence.” The song, released in 2018 on the act’s album Chiaroscuro, debuts at No. 27 on the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart with 2.6 million U.S. streams (up 35%), boosted by buzz on TikTok. It’s also new at No. 15 on Hot Alternative Songs and No. 21 on Hot Rock Songs.
Ocean Alley, from the Northern Beaches of New South Wales, Australia, has released four LPs: Lost Tropics (2016), Chiaroscuro (2018), Lonely Diamond (2020) and Low Altitude Living (2022). The latter two sets both reached No. 3 on the Australian Albums chart. The band comprises Nic Blom, Baden Donegal, Lach and Mitch Galbraith, Angus Goodwin and Tom O’Brien.
Sistek & Sadie Rose Van
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Both artists score their first Billboard chart entry, as their collaboration “Pull You Closer,” released Sept. 29 on Armada Music, begins at No. 36 on Dance/Mix Show Airplay (up 17% in plays). Sistek, a DJ and producer from Santiago, Chile, has been releasing music since 2017. He has also collaborated with Rosie Darling, Ethan Hodges and Mark Mendy, among others. Sadie Van Rose, from Southern California, has released over a dozen songs, all since 2019, including tracks with Ryan Ennis and Matoma.
Maxine Ashley
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The singer-songwriter reaches Billboard’s charts for the first time with her single “Somebody Else.” Released Oct. 13 on JBR, it debuts at No. 40 on Rhythmic Airplay (up 34% in plays). Ashley has been releasing music since 2014. She dropped her debut four-track EP Intuition in 2019 and collaborated with Black Coffee and Sun-El Musician on “You Need Me” in 2021. The song is from Black Coffee’s Subconsciously, which won for best dance/electronic music album at the Grammy Awards in 2022.
Saxl Rose
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The multi-instrumentalist, producer and touring musician earns his first-ever Billboard chart hit, thanks to his featured appearance on Jacob Webb’s “All In.” The song, released in August on Next Paradigm, debuts at No. 23 on Smooth Jazz Airplay (up 32% in spins).
Saxl Rose (real name: Antonio Hancock; his name is a play on his go-to instrument, the saxophone, and Guns N’ Roses’ Axl Rose) has performed onstage alongside many other artists, including Chris Brown, Paramore, The Used and Wiz Khalifa. Earlier this year, he collaborated with Motionless in White on a “synthwave” version of the group’s viral track “Werewolf.” He is also active on social media, where he posts videos of himself adding his signature saxophone solos to popular songs.
Cody Webb
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The singer lands his first Billboard-charting hit, thanks to “Out of This World.” The track, which he self-released in November 2018, debuts at No. 24 on the Holiday Digital Song Sales chart with 1,000 sold. Webb released his debut self-titled six-track set in 2016. He has served up a string of songs in 2023 alone, including “If Daddy Didn’t Have a Truck,” “Don’t Grow Up Too Fast” and “Peaches.” Outside of his own recorded music, he’s also written songs for other artists, including Luke Combs (“Memories Are Made Of”).
Riordan
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The DJ makes his Billboard chart debut with “Needle on the Record.” The song dropped Nov. 10 on REALM Records and debuts at No. 11 on Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales. Riordan, from the United Kingdom, has released eight house tracks on streaming services, all since 2020.
Melinda Lindner
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Lindner notches her first Billboard chart hit thanks to her new cover of “White Christmas.” The song, released Oct. 20 on her holiday album Melinda Lindner… At Christmas on Heaven Records, debuts at No. 25 on Adult Contemporary. Lindner has been releasing music, including other covers of popular hits, since 2020. She released her debut eight-track studio album It Only Happens With You in July.
Lindner’s new recording was produced by Michael Lloyd who, notably, hit the Hot 100 in 1975 as a member of the trio Cotton, Lloyd & Christian with its cover of Peter and Gordon’s “I Go to Pieces.” He also produced songs by Shaun Cassidy and the Osmonds in the ‘70s and Belinda Carlise’s No. 3-peaking 1986 hit “Mad About You.”
Irving Berlin wrote “White Christmas” for the 1942 film Holiday Inn, and it has since become a holiday standard. Bing Crosby’s recording, with Ken Darby Singers and John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra, debuted on the Hot 100 in 1958 (the chart’s inaugural year) and peaked at No. 12 in 1962. The song has re-entered the Hot 100 every year since 2018. Last season, it reached No. 16, its highest rank since its 1962 peak. One other version of “White Christmas” has charted on the Hot 100: The Drifters’ 1956 classic, featuring Clyde McPhatter and Bill Pinkney, reached No. 88 in 1962.
“It’s been a forever dream of mine to have my first Billboard hit,” Lindner tells Billboard. “‘White Christmas’ is one of my and my mom’s very favorite holiday songs. It has a very special place in my heart.”
Housefires and JWLKRS Worship rise to No. 1 on Billboard’s Christian Airplay chart dated Dec. 2 with “I Thank God,” featuring Blake Wiggins and Ryan Ellis.
The collaboration also reaches No. 1 on Christian AC Airplay.
During the Nov. 17-23 tracking week, the song drew 5.4 million audience impressions, according to Luminate.
“I Thank God” was written by Dante Bowe, Chuck Butler, Jesse Cline, Maryanne George, Enrique Holmes and Aaron Moses. It was produced by Tony Brown, Jonathan Jay and Aaron Robertson.
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The song is the first entry on both Christian Airplay and Christian AC Airplay for Atlanta-based worship collective Housefires, following four entries, including two top 10s, on Top Christian Albums: Housefires lll hit No. 3 in September 2016 and We Say Yes reached No. 6 in June 2017.
On the streaming-, airplay- and sales-based Hot Christian Songs survey, the act has logged five tracks. “I Thank God” lifts 14-13 on the latest list, a new career high for Housefires.
Orlando, Fla.-based JWLKRS Worship (the first word in their name is pronounced Jaywalkers) logged one prior Christian Airplay appearance as “Silence” reached No. 43 in August, as well as No. 31 on Hot Christian Songs in February.
“I Thank God” marks the first billed Christian Airplay and Christian AC Airplay entry for Wiggins, who is a member of Housefires. Ellis, meanwhile, has one additional top 10 on both lists: his own “Heart of the Father” hit No. 3 on the rankings in 2022.
Angel Taylor’s ‘Speak’ Now No. 1
Angel Taylor ascends to No. 1 on Gospel Airplay with her first solo entry on the chart, “Speak,” which increased by 13% in plays Nov. 17-23.
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Taylor is one of the founding members of Trin-I-Tee 5:7, which formed in New Orleans in 1997. The act has notched three No. 1s on Top Gospel Albums: its self-titled LP, in 1998; Spiritual Love (2000); and Angel & Chanelle (2011).
The outfit has earned three top 10s on Gospel Airplay: “Listen” (No. 9, 2008), “Over & Over” (No. 2, 2011) and “Spirit Break Out” (No. 3, 2016).