Chart Beat
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Maisie Peters casts a spell on her countrymen and women as The Good Witch (via Atlantic/Gingerbread Man) debuts at No. 1 on the U.K. chart.
At just 23, Peters becomes the youngest British female solo artist to lead survey in almost a decade, the Official Charts Company reports.
You’d have to go back to Ella Henderson and her debut LP, Chapter One, which hit the top back in 2014 when Henderson was just 18 years of age, to find a younger female Brit to hit the summit.
The leader at the midweek stage, The Good Witch goes one better than its predecessor, Peters’ debut album You Signed Up for This, which peaked at No. 2 in 2021.
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“It’s just the craziest and coolest thing! I’m so happy for myself, my fans and everyone I work with; my band, crew, manager and label,” Peters tells the OCC.
“All of the fans, we’ve been on this journey together for the longest time and this album really felt like an album for all of us. This No. 1 is for all of us, too, so thank you so much.”
Further down the Official U.K. Albums Chart, published June 30, Young Thug bags his third U.K. top 40 with Business is Business (300 Entertainment), new at No. 15. The Atlanta rapper, singer and songwriter previously cracked the list with 2019’s So Much Fun (peaking at No. 9) and 2021’s Punk (No. 22).
Also fresh on the chart is Kelly Clarkson’s Chemistry (Atlantic), new at No. 22. It’s the U.S. pop and country star’s eighth U.K. top 40 LP, and first in six years, the most recent with 2017’s Meaning of Life (peaking at No. 11).
Finally, Glastonbury Festival is in the books, and a string of performers at this year’s edition are flying up the chart. They include Elton John, Lewis Capaldi, Arctic Monkeys and Lana Del Rey, all of whom enjoy top 10 spikes.
Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time logs a 15th nonconsecutive and total week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated July 8), as it earned 110,500 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending June 29 (up less than 1%), according to Luminate.
One Thing at a Time, released via Big Loud/Mercury/Republic Records, continues to have the most weeks at No. 1 among all albums since Adele’s 21 logged 24 nonconsecutive weeks atop the list in 2011-12.
The Republic label has topped the chart for the last 17 weeks in a row, since the March 18-dated tally, when One Thing at a Time debuted at No. 1. That album spent 12 consecutive weeks at No. 1, and then stepped aside on the June 10 and 17 charts when Taylor Swift’s Midnights (on Republic) returned to the top and Stray Kids’ 5-STAR (JYP/Imperial/Republic) debuted at No. 1, respectively. One Thing at a Time then returned to No. 1 for the last three weeks (June 24-July 8 charts).
With Republic’s 17th straight week at No. 1, the label has the longest streak for any label atop the chart since 1992, when Mercury ruled for 17 consecutive frames with Billy Ray Cyrus’ Some Gave All.
Also in the top 10 of the new Billboard 200 albums chart, Young Thug scores his eighth top 10-charting effort with Business Is Business debuting at No. 2, Peso Pluma captures his first top 10 and the highest charting album ever for a regional Mexican release as Génesis launches at No. 3, and Kelly Clarkson nabs her ninth top 10 with the No. 6 arrival of Chemistry.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. 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. The new July 8, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on July 5, one day later than usual due to the Independence Day holiday in the U.S. on Tuesday, July 4. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Of One Thing at a Time’s 110,500 equivalent album units earned in the week ending June 29, SEA units comprise 104,000 (up less than 1%, equaling 139.68 million on-demand official streams of the set’s 36 songs), album sales comprise 4,500 (down 6%) and TEA units comprise 2,000 (up 5%).
One Thing at a Time has earned in excess of 100,000 equivalent album units in all 17 of its chart weeks – the most weeks any album has exceeded 100,000 units since the Billboard 200 began ranking titles by units in December of 2014. It surpasses the 16 frames logged by Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti in 2022.
Young Thug clocks his eighth top 10-charting album on the Billboard 200 as Business Is Business bows at No. 2 with 89,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, SEA units comprise 80,000 (equaling 106.32 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks), album sales comprise 8,500 and TEA units comprise 500. The album’s release came while the rapper is incarcerated, awaiting trial on racketeering charges.
If Business Is Business goes no higher than No. 2, it will mark the 11th album that One Thing at a Time has blocked from the No. 1 position. The latter has stood at No. 1 while 11 albums have debuted at No. 2: TWICE’s Ready To Be (March 25 chart), Jimin’s FACE (April 8), Melanie Martinez’s Portals (April 15), NF’s Hope (April 22), Metallica’s 72 Seasons (April 29), Agust D’s D-Day (May 6), SEVENTEEN’s SEVENTEEN 10th Mini Album: FML (May 13), Ed Sheeran’s – (Subtract) (May 20), Niall Horan’s The Show (June 24), ATEEZ’s The World EP.2: Outlaw (July 1) and Business Is Business (July 8).
It’s not unusual for an album to spend a lengthy amount of time at No. 1 and end up keeping a number of albums from the top slot. Last year, eight different albums peaked at No. 2 behind Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti. In 2016, Drake’s Views also kept eight albums at No. 2 during its 13-week run at No. 1. In 2014, the Frozen soundtrack prevented 10 different No. 2-peaking albums from hitting No. 1 during the set’s 13-week run at the top. The last No. 1 album before One Thing at a Time to hold back at least 11 different albums from the top was Adele’s 21, which blocked 15 titles from the top over the course of its 24 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 in 2011-12.
Back on the new Billboard 200, Peso Pluma achieves the highest-charting regional Mexican album ever, as his debut album Génesis debuts at No. 3 with 73,000 equivalent album units earned. The set is only the third regional Mexican effort to reach the top 10 (following two titles from Eslabon Armado in only the past 14 months) and it bows with the biggest week, by units earned, for any regional Mexican title since the list began measuring by units in December of 2014. The previous highest-charting regional Mexican album, and biggest week by units for the genre, was tallied by Eslabon Armado’s Desvelado, which debuted and peaked at No. 6 on the May 13-dated list with 44,000 units.
Of Génesis’ 73,000 units, SEA units comprise 72,000 (equaling 101.18 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs – the largest streaming week ever for a regional Mexican album), album sales comprise just under 1,000 and TEA units comprise a negligible sum. (Génesis was released on an off-cycle Thursday, June 22, instead of the traditional Friday for most new albums. The tracking week ending June 29 is the set’s first full chart tracking week.)
Peso Pluma has been red-hot on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 songs chart in 2023, having charted 11 entries on the list, including the top five smash “Ella Baila Sola,” with Eslabon Armado (which is not included on the Génesis album).
Taylor Swift’s chart-topping Midnights is a non-mover at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 with 57,000 equivalent album units (down 6%), while Gunna’s A Gift & A Curse falls 3-5 in its second week with 55,000 (down 36%).
Kelly Clarkson claims her ninth top 10-charting effort on the Billboard 200 as her latest studio album Chemistry bows at No. 6. The set launches with 53,000 equivalent album units earned, of which album sales comprise 43,000 (making it the top-selling album of the week), SEA units account for 9,000 (equaling 11.25 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks) and TEA units comprise 1,000.
Chemistry is Clarkson’s first studio album of non-holiday material in over five years, since 2017’s Meaning of Life. Clarkson charted her first album on the Billboard 200 just over 20 years ago, when her debut release Thankful opened at No. 1 on the May 3, 2003-dated list.
A trio of former No. 1s is next on the Billboard 200, as Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album falls 6-7 (47,000 equivalent album units; up 3%), SZA’s SOS dips 5-8 (47,000; down 2%) and Swift’s Lover bumps 10-9 (43,000; up 9%). ATEEZ’s The World EP.2: Outlaw rounds out the top 10, falling 2-10 in its second week with 34,000 units (down 68%).
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.
Luke Combs notches his 16th No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart (dated July 8) as “Fast Car” pulls into the most coveted spot. In the tracking week ending June 29, it gained by 7% to 33.4 million audience impressions, according to Luminate.
The song is an update of Tracy Chapman’s 1988 classic, which hit No. 6 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100. Combs’ cover is the first take on a pop hit to top Country Airplay since Blake Shelton’s version of Michael Bublé’s “Home” led in 2008, after Bublé’s ruled Adult Contemporary in 2005.
Meanwhile, Combs’ “Fast Car” is the first remake of a Hot 100 top 10 to crown Country Airplay since Mark Chesnutt’s “I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing” led the latter list in 1999, after Aerosmith’s original topped the Hot 100 in 1998.
Plus, as Chapman solely-wrote “Fast Car,” it’s the first Country Airplay No. 1 authored by one writer since December 2017, when the Mitch Rossell-penned “Ask Me How I Know” became Garth Brooks’ 19th leader.
Additionally, Combs’ “Fast Car” completes an 11-week cruise to No. 1 on Country Airplay, marking his quickest, besting the 12-week climb for “Lovin’ on You” in 2020.
“Fast Car” follows Combs’ “Going, Going, Gone,” which ruled Country Airplay for two weeks in March. He owns another place in the top 10, as “Love You Anyway” rises to No. 9 (18.3 million, up 5%). Further, Riley Green’s “Different ‘Round Here,” on which he’s featured, holds at its No. 36 high (2.8 million, up 1%).
A crossover hit, “Fast Car” also hits the top 10 (12-10) on the Adult Pop Airplay chart, becoming Combs’ first song to reach the tier on the tally (in his first visit to the list).
‘Georgia’ Goes Top 10
Elsewhere, Kane Brown banks his 11th Country Airplay top 10 as “Bury Me in Georgia” lifts 11-10 (18.3 million, up 12%). It follows “Thank God,” with wife Katelyn Brown, which became his ninth No. 1 in February.
Hip-hop is bouncing on Australia’s charts as homegrown rapper Kerser lifts the albums chart crown for the first time, and Brits Dave and Central Cee retain the singles title.
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Kerser’s A Gift & A Kers (via ABK/ADA) debuts at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart, published Friday, June 30, for his eighth top 10 appearance.
The West Sydney artist (real name: Scott Froml) “is a phenomenal example of independent artist success in Australia and someone whose career path we need to celebrate at a time where we search for more ways for artists to connect with Australian listeners,” comments ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd.
“Huge congratulations are in order, especially as we hit two weeks in a row of Australian No. 1s.”
It’s the fourth Australian leader on the ARIA Albums Chart this year, and second straight following The Teskey Brothers’ The Winding Way (Liberation/Universal). The Teskeys’ latest album dips 1-33 on the latest survey.
Also new to the top 5 is Maisie Peters’ sophomore album The Good Witch (Atlantic/Warner), flying to No. 4. The English singer and songwriter performed to more than three-quarters-of-a-million Aussies earlier in the year when she opened for Ed Sheeran’s stadium tour of these parts. The Good Witch was the leader on the midweek U.K. chart and becomes Peters’ first LP to chart in Australia.
Further down the list, Trophy Eyes’ Suicide and Sunshine (HR/RKT) starts at No. 8 debut; Kelly Clarkson’s Chemistry (Atlantic/Warner) impacts at No. 31; Young Thug’s Business Is Business (Atlantic/Warner) bows at No. 36; and Lastlings’ Perfect World (Liberation/Universal) arrives at No. 39.
It’s been an exciting (and stressful) week for Swifties in Australia, as tickets were finally released for her two-city The Eras Tour shows. Taylor Swift will play seven dates across Sydney and Melbourne next year, the on-sale for which has broken records. As fans waited for the news, they tuned into Swift’s catalog, sending her classic albums back up the chart – including three in the top 5 and five in the top 10.
Leading the pack is her latest, Midnights, up 2-5; while Lover rises 11-3; 1989 climbs 9-5; Reputation improves 13-6, and Folklore vaults 16-10, all via Universal.
It’s a similar tale on the ARIA Singles Chart, as Swift’s 2019 song “Cruel Summer” from Lover roars 29-3, while “Anti-Hero” gains 9-7 and “Karma” is up 15-8.
At the top of the singles chart is Dave and Central Cee’s “Sprinter” (Virgin Music Australia/Universal), which wins the race for a fourth consecutive week.
The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts have been home to wide a variety of international hits, across many genres, cultures and languages. Dance music has been able to seamlessly float across cultural and geographic lines, including on the latest, July 1-dated rankings, as three artists, each from a different continent, debut with their own high-energy boosts.
Kylie Minogue, one of Australia’s most enduring stars, debuts on the Global 200 with “Padam Padam” at No. 190 while climbing to No. 169 on the Global Excl. U.S. list. Since its May 18 release, the thumping track has increased its weekly streams each week, culminating in a 17% bump to 9.6 million worldwide in the frame ending June 22, according to Luminate.
The song is Minogue’s first non-holiday entry on either global chart and continues to build months before the expected September release of parent album Tension; no tracks from her 2020 set Disco appeared on the surveys.
Elsewhere, South Korea-born, Germany-based singer, DJ and producer Peggy Gou makes her global chart debut, at No. 137 on Global Excl. U.S. with “(It Goes Like) Nanana.” The house single drew 9.6 million streams worldwide June 16-22, its first full week of release.
Plus, Germany’s Purple Disco Machine teamed with France’s Kungs on “Substitution,” new on Global Excl. U.S. at No. 199, up by 3% to 7.9 million streams around the world. Neither act has made the Global 200, but “Substitution” is the second entry for both on Global Excl. U.S., following the former’s “Hypnotized,” which hit No. 121 over a 23-week stay in 2020-21, and the latter’s “Never Going Home,” which reached No. 107 amid a 15-week run in 2021.
The burst of dance music on this week’s global charts is diverse, both geographically and stylistically. These tracks join others by chart mainstays including David Guetta and Calvin Harris, as well as such pop artists drawing from the dance world as Dua Lipa, whose “Dance the Night” holds in the Global 200’s top 40, and Jain, who jumps from 68-41 with 2016’s resurgent “Makeba” (which is now being promoted to pop radio).
Gunna bursts in at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart with fourth studio album A Gift & a Curse on the list dated July 1. The set, released June 16 on Gunna/Young Stoner Life/300/3EE, enters with 85,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending June 22, according to Luminate. […]
Well that was quick. Just two weeks ago, Billboard was lamenting the lack of women at the top of the midyear Boxscore report but looking forward to the slew of female acts slated to storm the rankings throughout the rest of the year. And now, Beyoncé becomes the first woman at No. 1 on Top Tours in almost four years.
According to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore, the first nine shows of the Renaissance World Tour — between May 10-30 — earned $67.5 million and sold 461,000 tickets. That makes Beyoncé the highest grossing act of the month.
The last time a woman-identifying act crowned the list, P!nk ever so narrowly edged out The Rolling Stones in July 2019 with a similar run of European stadiums. P!nk had previously topped the list in March of that year, with the Spice Girls sneaking in between in June. The four-year break between them includes the blackout period of COVID-19, but still marks a breathless stretch of 28 monthly reports dominated by male acts.
Further, Beyoncé is the first Black artist, regardless of gender, to hit the monthly summit since the charts launched in February 2019. Extending beyond the launch of these rankings, the last to do so was Queen Bey herself, co-headlining with Jay-Z on 2018’s On the Run II Tour. They earned $53.1 million and sold 404,000 tickets in September of that year.
The Renaissance World Tour’s $60 million-plus haul makes it the 10th tour to break that barrier. It’s the sixth biggest monthly gross since the charts premiered, only behind Bad Bunny (twice), The Rolling Stones, Def Leppard and Motley Crue, and The Weeknd.
Beyoncé’s nine shows in May were spread across seven markets in Europe. All seven reports appear on Top Boxscores, led by two dates at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Those shows earned $16.9 million and sold 96,000 tickets, enough to rank No. 3.
But the engagement’s bronze medal is more a quirk of timing than a failure to lead the list. She played five shows there, but three of them fell in June, and those will qualify for next month’s recap. In total, the quintet of concerts earned $42.2 million and sold 240,000 tickets. That makes it the seventh highest grossing reported Boxscore of all time, and the highest among women artists, passing the Spice Girls’ 17-show haul at London’s own O2 Arena ($33.8 million; 257,000 tickets) in 2007-08.
Elsewhere, Beyoncé posted eight-digit earnings in Solna, Sweden, grossing $10.7 million on the tour’s first two shows (May 10-11) and at Paris’ Stade de France with $10.1 million. Those follow at Nos. 11-12 on Top Boxscores, ahead of one-night-only concerts in Edinburgh, Scotland (No. 14); Cardiff, Wales (No. 21); Brussels, Belgium (No. 22); and Sunderland, England (No. 24).
Beyoncé’s omnipresence on the May report extends to Top Promoters, pushing Live Nation above $400 million and four million tickets. And three venues from her routing appear on the 10-position Top Stadiums chart, including Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at No. 7, powered solely by its two Renaissance shows.
Only halfway through her voyage through Europe, Renaissance’s $67.5 million from May fast approaches the continental totals from On the Run II and Beyoncé’s solo The Formation World Tour, each of which grossed $87 million across the pond. With more figures reported for June, she’s already blown past both of those tours with more than $150 million in the bank.
Coldplay follows at No. 2 on Top Tours, earning $54.8 million. That gross features its own monthly split, with one show at Manchester’s Etihad Stadium on May 31, leaving three others to chart on next month’s recap. Elsewhere, the band played four-show runs at Barcelona’s Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys and in Coimbra, Portugal, at Estadio Cidade de Coimbra. Those line up at Nos. 1-2 on Top Boxscores, with Barcelona topping out at $27.3 million.
Coldplay edged out Beyoncé in terms of monthly attendance, but just barely. Chris Martin & Co. sold 482,000 tickets, 4% ahead of Bey’s 461,000.
Harry Styles and Elton John mix in the top five, at Nos. 3 and 5, respectively. Both Brits are scheduled to wrap their respective yearslong tours in July, clearing space for some of the summer’s biggest acts. Some of those make their Top Tours debuts, including Blink-182 at No. 4. The first batch of the pop-punk’s reunion tour grossed $37.1 million in North American arenas.
After popping in at No. 25 in December 2019, Shania Twain makes her post-pandemic return at No. 6, barely under $30 million with $29.7 million and 249,000 tickets. The Queen of Me Tour continues in North America through the end of July before shipping off to Europe in September.
Also hitting the top 10 for the first time are SUGA at No. 7 (previously listed as Agust D on the April report) and Janet Jackson at No. 10. Both acts blow past the $20 million mark with shows in arenas and amphitheaters.
Deeper on Top Tours, 24 acts grossed $10 million or more, eclipsing the 23 of last September. At the onset of the summer season, with stadiums and amphitheaters opening, expect grosses to continue to surge.
She make it look easy, ‘cause she got it. Earlier on Thursday (June 29), Billboard reported that the first nine shows of Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour made her the top-grossing touring act of May. But there’s more! She wrapped the European leg of the tour Wednesday night in Warsaw, posting career-high blockbuster numbers. According to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore, Beyoncé grossed $154.4 million and sold 1 million tickets across 21 shows.
Not only is that a huge number that resists qualification, it’s the biggest gross and attendance of any of Beyoncé’s previous European legs. On 2016’s The Formation World Tour and 2018’s On the Run II Tour (co-headlined with Jay-Z), she earned $87 million, marking a 77% bump on her recent stint.
The so-far $154 million-plus total from 21 shows over two months is more than any artist made in the six-month window that defined Billboard’s midyear report. Of course, Harry Styles, Elton John and other acts atop those charts continue to add to their hauls, but it bodes well that the Renaissance World Tour isn’t even half done, putting it in immediate contention for year-end honors.
The tour’s attendance of 1.05 million improves upon 871,000 in 2018 and 867,000 in 2016. It’s the first time that any leg of any solo Beyoncé tour broke the seven-digit milestone.
Of the 14 markets Beyoncé hit, 12 of them yielded local records. That includes the biggest gross in the history of London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Warsaw’s PGE Narodowy, plus the attendance record at Tottenham. Elsewhere, she set highs for single-night engagements and broke ground among women and Black artists throughout Europe.
The obvious standout of the European shows was a five-night run in London, earning $42.2 million from 240,000 tickets. It instantly blasts in to the all-time top 10 Boxscores, ranked seventh behind two engagements apiece from Harry Styles, Take That and Coldplay. That makes it the single biggest report by a woman, a Black artist, or by any act from the United States.
Further, Beyoncé broke the $10 million barrier with double-headers in Solna, Sweden; Amsterdam; and Warsaw. She scored one more eight-figure show with one night at Paris’ Stade de France. The $10.1 million is slightly off from the $10.9 million from On the Run II, but consider that the 2018 gross came from two shows, matching 92% of that gross with just one show in 2023.
These 21 shows push Beyoncé’s reported career gross to $921.7 million and attendance to 9.9 million. But she’s not done for the near future.
The Renaissance World Tour continues with 36 shows in the U.S. and Canada, kicking off on July 8-9 in Toronto. If Beyoncé continues at this pace, the North American leg would gross $264 million and sell 1.8 million tickets. That leg alone would pass the global total of The Formation World Tour to become the biggest of Beyoncé’s career, though it’d make for a worldwide total of about $415 million and 2.8 million tickets.
On that 2016 run, Beyoncé paced $5.3 million in North America, compared to $5.1 million in Europe, indicating that those estimates could be slightly low. Her Renaissance grosses leapt by 44% in Europe from her previous solo tour, but post-pandemic results across the industry have exacerbated an existing ticket-price gap between the continents. Despite typically smaller capacities, North American stadium grosses have ballooned in a more extreme way than in Europe, which could push Beyoncé’s totals even higher.
Final results will depend on final pricing via the dynamics of a post-pandemic ticketing ecosystem. But it is more than safe to say that Beyoncé will soar beyond $1 billion and 10 million tickets in career figures due to her biggest tour ever.
Sure, proper country songs had been absent from the top of the Hot 100 for quite sometime prior to Wallen’s reign, but that doesn’t mean the genre’s sound and aesthetics weren’t present in mainstream music and pop culture, especially when it comes to the work of Black and queer artists.
Obviously, “Old Town Road” is the lightning rod moment — its fusion of country and trap helped keep country sonic motifs present on top 40 radio, and the Billy Ray Cyrus remix gave it an extra dose of country legitimacy — but there were other moments and artists doing similar work. Megan Thee Stallion, a Houston, Texas native, has consistently employed Southern aesthetics in her artistry and music. The Grammy Award-winning rapper frequently sports cowboy hats, she teamed up with Fashion Nova for a 100-piece cowboy-themed collection, and she recently presented Shania Twain the Equal Pay Award at the 2023 CMT Music Awards.
Beyoncé, another Houston native, made a big splash at the 50th Annual Country Music Association Awards back in 2016 with the live performance of her The Chicks-assisted “Daddy Lessons” remix. Lizzo, a Detroit native who moved to Houston with her family when she was a child, similarly flaunts her Texas pride with tons of fringe and cowboy hats. She even gave her own spin on country-pop with “If You Love Me,” a deep cut from her Grammy-nominated Special album.
Just this year, the Broadway musical Shucked! — which features original music and lyrics from award-winning country music songwriters Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally — earned star Alex Newell a history-making Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical. Album cuts from R&B stars Chlöe (“Cheatback”) and 6LACK (“Testify”), two artists with roots in Atlanta, Georgia, feature obvious nods to the guitar-based production and narrative-centric songwriting of country music.
The past decade has also seen pop stars like Justin Timberlake, Kelly Clarkson, Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, and P!nk dip their toes into country music, as well as a handful of country songs (Sam Hunt’s “Body Like a Backroad,” Chris Stapleton’s “Tennessee Whiskey,” etc.) that proved to be sizable and enduring cultural moments. Nonetheless, the increased visibility of country music and Southern aesthetics across a diverse collection of Black and queer artists has helped mainstream ears and minds become a bit more open to the sounds and styles of country music, hence the genre’s recent rebound in popularity amongst a general public that might have been less tuned-in to Nashville happenings in decades prior.
Kanii’s Exiit arrives at No. 10 on Billboard’s Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart dated July 1. The eight-track set earned 4,000 equivalent album units in the June 16-22 tracking week, according to Luminate.
It’s the first appearance on any Billboard album chart for the TikTok-fueled Kanii, whose “Heart Racing” with Riovaz and Nimstarr, reached No. 13 in early June on the multimetric Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart.
Previously, Kanii’s “I Know” hit No. 19 on Hot Rap Songs, No. 29 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and No. 90 on the Billboard Hot 100 in April. Kanii hit a No. 15 high on the Emerging Artists chart the same month.
“This is truly insane,” the Washington, D.C.-based teen told Billboard upon learning of his recent Hot 100 bow. “To see my creation thrive and prosper this early in my career, I am forever grateful for this accomplishment.”
‘Smash’-ing Start
Pet Shop Boys also debut on Top Dance/Electronic Albums, as Smash: The Singles 1985-2020 opens at No. 14 (3,000 units). It’s the pair’s 16th appearance on the survey, tying for the sixth most dating to the chart’s 2001 inception; among duos or groups, the tandem trails only The Happy Boys (18).
The set – also new at No. 4 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart – expands Pet Shop Boys’ Billboard chart history to beyond 37 years, as the act first reached rankings in March 1986 with its eventual Hot 100 No. 1 classic, “West End Girls,” the first song on the new collection of remastered songs.
New Top 10s
Elsewhere, TELYkast and Georgia Ku’s “You Got Me” rises 11-8 on Dance/Mix Show Airplay. The fourth top 10 for each act is drawing core-dance airplay on Music Choice’s Dance/EDM channel, iHeartRadio’s Evolution network and SiriusXM’s BPM, among other outlets.
Plus, Sigala.’s “Feels This Good” featuring Mae Muller, Caity Baser and Stefflon Don pushes 12-9 on Dance/Mix Show Airplay. It’s the seventh top 10 for Sigala. and the first for each featured act. (The Dance/Mix Show Airplay chart measures radio airplay on a select group of full-time dance stations, along with plays during mix shows on around 60 top 40-formatted reporters.)