Chart Beat
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The numbers are in! Morgan Wallen is climbing back up our charts, Luke Combs continues his rise and SZA reaches a new high. This is the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 for the week dated October 7th. Dua is not done dancing at No. 10. Selena & Rema reappear with “Calm Down.” Gunna rises again […]
Doja Cat’s “Paint the Town Red” rebounds from No. 2 for its second week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart. The rapper/singer’s second career leader, which first led three weeks earlier, is her first to reign for multiple weeks, after her “Say So,” featuring Nicki Minaj, spent a week at No. 1 in May 2020.
Plus, Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer” rises 6-4 on the Hot 100 (after reaching No. 3) and ascends to the summit on the Radio Songs chart, becoming her eighth leader on the airplay ranking.
The Hot 100 blends all-genre U.S. streaming (official audio and official video), radio airplay and sales data, the lattermost metric reflecting purchases of physical singles and digital tracks from full-service digital music retailers; digital singles sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites are excluded from chart calculations. All charts (dated Oct. 7, 2023) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Oct. 3). For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
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“Paint the Town Red,” released on Kemosabe/RCA Records, drew 52.6 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 17%) and 27.5 million streams (up 3%) and sold 6,000 downloads (down 19%) in the Sept. 22-28 tracking week, according to Luminate. It wins the Hot 100’s top Airplay Gainer award for a second consecutive frame.
The single climbs 3-1 on the Streaming Songs chart – becoming Doja Cat’s first leader on the list; adds a second week at No. 1 on Digital Song Sales; and pushes 9-7 on Radio Songs. It concurrently tops the multi-metric Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts for a fifth and sixth week, respectively.
(As “Paint the Town Red” samples Dionne Warwick’s 1964 standard “Walk on By,” legendary late songwriters Burt Bacharach and Hal David are credited as writers on both songs. Doja Cat’s hit is Bacharach’s first multi-week leader, among eight total No. 1s, since “That’s What Friends Are For” by Warwick, Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder [four weeks in 1986]; David has his first multi-week No. 1, among five leaders, since the Carpenters’ “[They Long To Be] Close to You” [four weeks, 1970].)
SZA’s “Snooze” rises 3-2 for a new Hot 100 high, with 72.9 million in radio audience (up 4%), 17.5 million streams (down 18%) and 2,000 sold (down 35%); a week earlier, it jumped from No. 8 following the Sept. 15 release of its remix featuring Justin Bieber. It tops the multi-metric Hot R&B Songs chart for a 10th week.
The song becomes SZA’s third to reach the Hot 100’s top two – all this year – following her first two No. 1s: “Kill Bill,” which led for a week in April, and Drake’s “Slime You Out,” on which she’s featured; the latter debuted at No. 1 a week earlier and falls to No. 12.
Luke Combs’ cover of Tracy Chapman’s No. 6-peaking 1988 Hot 100 classic “Fast Car” rides 4-3, following eight weeks at its No. 2 high. It adds a second week at No. 1 on the multi-metric Hot Country Songs chart.
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Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer” advances 6-4 on the Hot 100, after hitting No. 3, and elevates 2-1 to crown the Radio Songs chart (76.1 million, up 2%). The song becomes Swift’s eighth Radio Songs leader, as she breaks out of a tie with Maroon 5, Katy Perry and Usher for the fourth-most since the chart began in December 1990; Rihanna leads with 13 Radio Songs No. 1s, followed by Mariah Carey (11) and Bruno Mars (nine).
Here’s an updated look at Swift’s Radio Songs No. 1s:
Title, Weeks at No. 1, Year(s):
“Cruel Summer,” one, to date, 2023
“Anti-Hero,” five, 2022-23
“Wildest Dreams,” two, 2015
“Bad Blood” (feat. Kendrick Lamar), five, 2015
“Blank Space,” six, 2014-15
“Shake It Off,” four, 2014
“I Knew You Were Trouble.,” four, 2013
“You Belong With Me,” two, 2009
As previously reported, “Cruel Summer” becomes Swift’s sole longest-leading No. 1 on Billboard’s Pop Airplay chart, where it leads for an eighth week, surpassing her seven-week reign with “I Knew You Were Trouble.”
“Cruel Summer” was originally released on Swift’s 2019 album Lover. Republic Records began promoting it as a single in June, as Swift has performed it on her The Eras Tour, her first in which she’s been able to spotlight songs from Lover, which was released shortly before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Notably, the song is the second released in the 2010s to top Radio Songs this year; The Weeknd and Ariana Grande’s “Die for You” (also on Republic) dominated for two weeks in February, after it was originally released, by The Weeknd solo, in 2016.
Meanwhile, with Radio Songs No. 1s in the 2000s, ’10s and ’20s, Swift is the only artist with leaders on the chart in each of the three decades, as well as the only artist with No. 1s as a lead act in any three distinct decades, dating to the ‘90s.
Zach Bryan’s “I Remember Everything,” featuring Kacey Musgraves, holds at No. 5 on the Hot 100, four weeks after it debuted at No. 1. It leads the multi-metric Hot Rock & Alternative Songs and Hot Rock Songs charts for a fifth week each.
Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” rebounds 8-6 on the Hot 100, following 16 weeks at No. 1, the most ever for a non-collaboration; Olivia Rodrigo’s “Vampire” keeps at No. 7, following two nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1; and Gunna’s “Fukumean” rises 9-8, after hitting No. 4.
Rema and Selena Gomez’s “Calm Down” returns to the Hot 100’s top 10, lifting 11-9, after reaching No. 3. It rules the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart for a record-extending 57th week.
Rounding out the Hot 100’s top 10, Dua Lipa’s “Dance the Night” is steady at No. 10, after hitting No. 6.
Again, for all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram and all charts (dated Oct. 7), including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh on Billboard.com tomorrow (Oct. 3).
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.
Doja Cat completes a fourth consecutive week at No. 1 in the U.K. with “Paint the Town Red” (via Ministry of Sound).
The U.S. star’s hit is, once again, the most-streamed single in the U.K. with more than 6 million plays over the past seven-day cycle, the Official Charts Company reports.
The leader at the midweek stage, “Paint the Town Red” holds-off a fast-rising Kenya Grace, whose “Strangers” (FFRR) lifts 3-2, for a new peak.
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Also on the jump is Cassö, RAYE and D-Block Europe’s “Prada” (Ministry of Sound), up 4-3 for a new high.
Canadian singer and songwriter Tate McRae’s break-up anthem “Greedy” (Ministry of Sound) lifts 8-5 for a new peak position – giving venerated British dance label Ministry of Sound three of the top 5 singles. “Greedy” is closing in of McRae’s career best chart performance in the U.K., which she set in 2020 with “You Broke Me First,” which reached No. 3.
The top new entry on the latest chart, published Friday, Sept. 29, belongs to Nines as “Daily Duppy” (Zino) starts at No. 20. That’s the London rapper’s fifth top 40 entry.
Close behind is Tom Odell’s “Black Friday” (Urok) new at No. 21, for the British singer and songwriter’s fourth U.K. top 40 single.
Meanwhile, reunited pop-punk veterans Blink-182 land a 12th U.K. top 40 single with “One More Time” (Columbia), the title track from their forthcoming album. It’s new at No. 28 for the trio’s highest-charting U.K. single 2004’s “Down” hit No. 24. ONE MORE TIME is due out on Oct. 20 via Columbia Records.
Finally, Doja Cat’s Scarlet album cut “Agora Hills” bows at No. 29, while two tracks from Headie One and K-Trap impact the top 40. “Triple Threat” with Clavish debuts at No. 31, while “Park Chinois” improves 50-39. Both titles appear on the British hip-hop acts’ U.K. top 10 collaborative mixtape Strength To Strength.
Kylie Minogue can’t be stopped in the U.K. chart race, as Tension (via BMG) blasts to No. 1.
Australia’s “princess of pop” bags a ninth leader with Tension, which earns 53,000 chart sales in its first week (including market-leading vinyl sales), to outsell the rest of the top 5 combined, the Official Charts Company reports.
The runaway leader at the halfway stage, Tension features the U.K. top 10 single “Padam Padam” and is Kylie’s 16th studio album.
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Tension joins Minogue’s previous U.K. leaders, which include 1988 debut Kylie, 1989’s Enjoy Yourself, 1992’s Greatest Hits, 2001’s Fever, 2010’s Aphrodite, 2018’s Golden, 2019’s Step Back in Time: The Definitive Collection and 2020’s Disco.
With that feat, Kylie levels-up with Bob Dylan and Coldplay on the list of acts with the most No. 1s albums on the Official Chart, with nine apiece.
The only female solo artists ahead of Kylie on the all-time list are Taylor Swift (with 10) and Madonna (12).
Meanwhile, Olivia Rodrigo’s former leader Guts (Geffen) holds at No. 2 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart, published Oct. 29, and the Weeknd’s career-retrospective Highlights (Republic Records/XOis unchanged at No. 3, in its 138ths week on the survey.
Homegrown hip-hop stars Headie One and K-Trap and K-Trap bow at No. 4 with their first collaborative album, Strength to Strength (via One Thousand8). It’s Headie One’s (real name: Irving Ampofo Adjei) third top 5 appearance following 2019’s Music x Road (No. 5 peak) and 2020 chart-topper EDNA; while K-Trap (real name Devonte Kasi Martin Perkins) scores a career peak, beating 2022’s The Last Whip II, which topped out at No. 12.
Doja Cat’s nabs her third top 40 appearance with Scarlet (Ministry of Sound), new at No. 5. Doja’s previous appearances on the national albums chart included 2021’s Planet Her (No. 3) and 2019’s Hot Pink (No. 38).
Finally, North London-born experimental artist Bakar (real name: Abubakar Baker Shariff-Farr) earns a career best with Nobody’s Home (Black Butter), new at No. 15, while Scottish alternative rock legends Teenage Fanclub bag a 10th top 40 album with Nothing Lasts Forever (Pema), new at No. 30.
The Who’s classic album Who’s Next returns to Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated Sept. 30) following its expanded deluxe reissue on Sept. 15 across an array of formats, many containing a hefty number of bonus tracks. The set re-enters the tally at No. 8. The album was first released in 1971 and reached No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and spun off two Billboard Hot 100-charting singles in “Won’t Get Fooled Again” (No. 15 peak) and “Behind Blue Eyes” (No. 34). The set also houses the rock radio staple “Baba O’Riley.”
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Also in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, new releases from Mitski, Demi Lovato, Dan + Shay, Thirty Seconds to Mars and Baroness debut.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
The sales of the Who’s Next reissue was bolstered by its availability in multiple configurations. On the low end is the base original nine-track album remastered on CD, vinyl and digital download, up through a lavish $300 Super Deluxe Edition boxed set with 10 CDs, a Blu-Ray Audio disc, a 100-page hard back book, posters and other merchandise.
All versions of the album, old and new, are combined for tracking and charting purposes. In the week ending Sept. 21 in the U.S., Who’s Next sold 9,500 copies – up from a negligible sum the previous week. Of its 9,500 sold, physical sales comprise 9,000 (6,000 on vinyl, 3,000 on CD) and digital downloads comprise 500.
At No. 1 on Top Album Sales, Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts notches a second week in the lead (44,000; down 71%) after debut atop the tally a week ago. V’s Layover is steady at No. 2 (21,000; down 76% in its second week).
Mitski’s The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We arrives at No. 3 with 20,000 copies sold. It’s the second top 10 for the artist, following the chart-toping debut of Laurel Hell in 2022. Demi Lovato’s Revamped – a collection of rock reinterpretations of her previously released songs – bows at No. 4 with 11,000 sold, giving the singer her ninth top 10 (the entirety of her charting efforts). Dan + Shay’s new studio album Bigger Houses moves in at No. 6 with nearly 11,000 sold, marking the fifth consecutive and total top 10 for the duo.
Thirty Seconds to Mars’ first studio album in over five years, It’s the End of the World But It’s a Beautiful Day, debuts at No. 6 with nearly 10,000 sold. It’s the third top 10 set for the rock act, who was last on the chart with the 2018 studio set America (No. 2 debut and peak).
Rounding out the debuts in the top 10 is Baroness’ latest album Stone, which starts at No. 7 with nearly 10,000 sold. It’s the second top 10-charting title for the act, following 2019’s Gold & Grey (No. 5 debut and peak).
Taylor Swift’s former No. 1 Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) falls 5-9 on Top Album Sales (9,000; down 4%) and NewJeans’ chart-topping 2nd EP ‘Get Up’ descends 6-10 (8,500; down 3%).
In the week ending Sept. 21, there were 1.670 million albums sold in the U.S. (down 5.4% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 1.336 million (down 7%) and digital albums comprised 334,000 (up 1.6%).
There were 574,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Sept. 21 (down 11.4% week-over-week) and 752,000 vinyl albums sold (down 3.4%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 25.049 million (up 0.9% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 33.412 million (up 19.9%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 72.266 million (up 6.4% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 58.848 million (up 10.9%) and digital album sales total 13.418 million (down 9.8%).
Doja Cat’s “Paint Town the Red” becomes her 10th No. 1 on Billboard’s Rhythmic Airplay chart, rising 2-1 on the survey dated Oct. 7.
The song is Doja Cat’s first No. 1 on Rhythmic Airplay since “Vegas,” which reigned for a week in November 2022.
Between “Vegas” and “Paint the Town Red,” she reached the tally with “Attention,” which peaked at No. 25 in July.
Doja Cat first ruled Rhythmic Airplay with “Say So” in 2020, meaning each of her 10 No. 1s has occurred in the 2020s (only Drake, with 12 in the ’20s, has more). She becomes one of just 11 acts to nab at least 10 No. 1s on Rhythmic Airplay in its 31-year history. Drake leads all acts with 38 toppers, while Rihanna rules all women with 17 leaders.
Concurrently, “Paint the Town Red” rises 9-7 on Pop Airplay and debuts at No. 38 on Adult Pop Airplay. It also appears at No. 3 on Rap Airplay, No. 15 on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, No. 16 on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay.
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On the most recent all-format Radio Songs chart (Sept. 30, reflecting the tracking week ending Sept. 21), “Paint the Town Red” vaulted 13-9 with 44.9 million radio audience impressions, up 19%, according to Luminate.
The song spent its first week at No. 1 on the multi-metric Billboard Hot 100 Sept. 16 and appears at No. 2 on the Sept. 30 tally as the chart’s greatest gainer in airplay. In addition to its radio airplay, the track earned 26.7 million official U.S. streams and 8,000 downloads Sept. 15-21.
“Paint the Town Red” is from Scarlet, Doja Cat’s fourth studio album. It was released Sept. 22 and is poised for a debut on the Billboard 200 dated Oct. 7, the top 10 of which will be announced on Sunday, Oct. 1 and updated online Tuesday, Oct. 3, alongside the rest of Billboard’s charts.
Asking Alexandria notches its second No. 1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart, as “Psycho” lifts to the top of the Oct. 7-dated survey.
The song follows the one-week reign of “Alone Again” in November 2021.
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In between “Alone Again” and “Psycho,” the band charted with three titles, all in 2022, with “Never Gonna Learn” (No. 6, May); “Faded Out,” featuring Within Temptation (No. 14, September); and as featured, with Motley Crue, Ice Nine Kills and From Ashes to New, on The Retaliators’ “The Retaliators Theme (21 Bullets)” (No. 15, November).
Asking Alexandria first reached the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart with “The Death of Me,” which peaked at No. 23 in November 2013. Prior to “Alone Again,” the band reached a No. 23 best with “Antisocialist” in July 2020, one of the act’s eight top 10s.
Concurrently, “Psycho” leaps 13-8 on the all-rock-format, audience-based Rock & Alternative Airplay chart with 2.5 million audience impressions, up 19%, Sept. 22-28, according to Luminate. It’s the band’s highest-ranking entry on the tally, surpassing the No. 10 peak of “Alone Again.”
“Psycho” placed at No. 20 on the most recently published, Sept. 30-dated, multi-metric Hot Hard Rock Songs ranking. In addition to its radio audience, the song earned 327,000 official U.S. streams Sept. 15-21.
The song is the lead single from Where Do We Go From Here?, Asking Alexandria’s eighth LP, which has earned 15,000 equivalent album units since its Aug. 25 release.
All Billboard charts dated Oct. 7 will update on Billboard.com Tuesday, Oct. 3.
In its eighth week on Billboard’s Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, Usher, Summer Walker and 21 Savage’s “Good Good” rises to No. 1, jumping 3-1 on the Oct. 7-dated list.
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“Good Good” is the second song to take eight weeks or fewer to rule Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay in 2023, following Lil Durk’s “All My Life,” featuring J. Cole, which also made it in eight weeks in July. “Good Good” is Usher’s first No. 1 on this tally since Oct. 2016, when “No Limit,” featuring Young Thug, spent two weeks on top.
It’s Usher’s quickest rise to the top since “Climax,” which reached No. 1 in seven weeks in April 2012. 21 Savage previously took eight weeks as a featured act on Post Malone’s “Rockstar” in December 2017, and “Good Good” marks Walker’s quickest rise to No. 1.
“Good Good” is also Walker’s first No. 1 in all on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, surpassing the No. 2 peak of “Karma” in June. It’s 21 Savage’s sixth, following the two-week reign of his co-billed-with-Drake “Spin Bout U” in May.
As for Usher, “Good Good” makes 17 No. 1s, a count that puts him fourth all time; Drake leads all acts with 45 rulers since the tally’s inception in 1993.
Most No. 1s, Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay45, Drake20, Lil Wayne18, Chris Brown17, Usher12, Beyonce11, Cardi B11, R. Kelly10, Jay-Z10, Rihanna
Usher first reigned on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay with “You Make Me Wanna…,” a nine-week topper beginning in September 1997.
Between “No Limit” and “Good Good,” Usher reached Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay eight times, paced by the No. 2 peak of Chris Brown’s “Party,” on which he was featured alongside Gucci Mane, in April 2017.
“Good Good” concurrently jumps 3-2 on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, 6-3 on Rhythmic Airplay, 13-11 on Adult R&B Airplay and 35-29 on Pop Airplay.
On the most recent, Sept. 30-dated, all-format Radio Songs list (which reflected the week ending Sept. 21), the track appeared at No. 17 with 30.9 million audience impressions, up 18%, according to Luminate.
The Sept. 30-dated, multi-metric Billboard Hot 100 found “Good Good” lifting 58-57. In addition to its radio airplay, the song earned 4.8 million official U.S. streams and 1,000 downloads.
“Good Good” is scheduled to be featured on Coming Home, Usher’s ninth studio album. It’s set for a Feb. 11 release alongside a performance at the Super Bowl halftime show.
All Billboard charts dated Oct. 7 will update on Billboard.com on Tuesday. Oct. 3.
For the first time in over two years, a woman with no accompanying artists leads Billboard’s Country Airplay chart. Lainey Wilson scores her third No. 1, as “Watermelon Moonshine” hits the summit on the chart dated Oct. 7. In the tracking week ending Sept. 28, the song advanced by 5% to 27.2 million audience impressions, […]
The growing popularity of Calle 24’s riveting corridos number “Qué Onda” with Chino Pacas and Fuerza Regida caught him by surprise — particularly because he didn’t initially intend for it to be his own track.
Born Diego Millán, he recalls that he wrote the foundation of the song for another group (who he declines to disclose), but when it ultimately didn’t work out for the band, he decided to keep the song for himself. He then showed the song to Fuerza Regida frontman Jesús Ortiz Paz (better known as JOP), and the two immediately decided to grow it even further with the addition of singer Chino Pacas.
The track’s horn-blaring, upbeat feel narrates a rendezvous both passionate and filled with debauchery, which has quickly resonated with listeners. Following its release on Aug. 30, “Qué Onda” has quickly become Calle 24’s biggest hit to date: it debuted at No. 61 on the Billboard Hot 100 dated Sept. 16, marking his first entry on the chart, and has reached a No. 8 high on Hot Latin Songs.
At just 20 years old, the Chihuahua, Mexico-born musician is signed to Street Mob Records — JOP’s record label (which recently inked a deal with Cinq Music) — and is now performing as a solo act, after Calle 24 first formed as a group of four. “The name stayed with me, but my friendship and camaraderie with the others continues,” he says. He’s also quickly becoming an extremely sought-after songwriter within the booming regional Mexican music scene, with credits on Fuerza Regida’s “Sabor Fresa” and “Igualito a Mi Apá,” featuring Peso Pluma. He’s involved in the San Bernardino band’s upcoming work as well.
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Below, Calle 24 tells Billboard about the success of “Qué Onda,” working as a solo artist, his relationship with JOP and more.
What’s your reaction to your first Hot 100 hit?
I’m very excited. I didn’t think this was going to happen to me, but thank God it did. I hope it’s not the [last] time.
How did the song come together?
[Another group] asked me to do the song. Me and my [writing] partner Miguel Armenta, who is also a co-writer for “Bebe Dame,” started working on the song about a month or so ago in California, and midway through it, we said, “It’s coming along very well.” That same day we recorded it, and it was something very impressive. Now that regional Mexican music is expanding, you know when songs are on another level — we thought this could go worldwide because of the lyrics, the rhythm, all of that.
So, the other project didn’t happen, and I was like, “Well, I’m going to take my song,” because I wrote it. [JOP] told me we should do it together, so we uploaded a Reel to Instagram, promoting the song. That day, we added the voices, and we did not imagine [the results]. That night it accumulated several million [streams]. It was something crazy.
Tell me about the other people that worked on the song.
Cristian Humberto, and Jonathan Caro, who is a co-writer on “Sabor Fresa.” JOP also participated a little bit in the lyrics. We are a team. We’d rather work together: they say that more heads think better than one, so we set out to do that. That’s how we come out with more quality work. We are like a family, really. It’s better when people get along well because things come out much better with more enthusiasm.
How did Calle 24 form?
I am now a solo artist. We used to be a group, but it disintegrated because I believe that my colleagues had their own visions and work plans — and it is understood. Calle 24 started here in Cuauhtémoc, where I live in Chihuahua, with me, Ezequiel Rodriguez, Santiago Castillo and Angel Rivera. When I started four years ago, I was a solo artist like now. But they knew how to record at home, and I was impressed because I had gone to record in a studio and my song sounded worse than theirs. I was one of the first ones who approached them, and we started working together. The name stayed with me [now that I’m a solo artist]. I am Calle 24. But my friendship and camaraderie with the others continues.
How did you meet JOP?
Me and Ezequiel were in Chihuahua, and [JOP] was looking for underground artists from California or Texas. He contacted a colleague called Güero X to do a song and we began talking. We didn’t know that Güero X had just signed with JOP, [but] we did the song we were going to release, and out of the blue Güero X said, “I just signed with Street Mob and Jesús wants to connect with you”. So I sent him a load of songs, and after a week, he said, “Sign them!” I was over the moon. That was in July 2020. Imagine, I was 17 years old at the time. It was this great opportunity. In January 2021, I wrote [Fuerza Regida’s] “¿Qué Está Pasando?”
Since 2021, you’ve done extremely well on streaming platforms.
The truth is that it has been very nice. It’s difficult, but little by little, people are accepting more of what we do. Since the first song we released, which was “¿Qué Está Pasando”, the reception has been very good and we try to improve every day. It has been an incredible process.
Did you always think you would do corridos or regional Mexican music?
Never. In my childhood, I never listened to corridos. My mom was more into country and pop, so I listened more to Luis Fonsi, Caballo Dorado, things like that. One day, when I was about 8 years old, a friend came and told me, “Check out this song,” and it was a corrido. I got that little itch for that music, and from then, I never let it go. I made my first song when I was 11 years old with the help of my parents. To this day, they still support me — that’s what motivated me the most. When I was 13, they bought me my first guitar on my birthday. I knew it was going to be something. The truth is that I always had that hunch. You have to believe in yourself. Now I see that it was not in vain.
A version of this story originally appeared in the Sept. 23, 2023, issue of Billboard.