Chart Beat
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Welcome to The Contenders, 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 200 albums chart dated Jan. 14): SZA’s SOS continues to dominate, while YoungBoy Never Broke Again makes a quick return after a busy 2022 and a half-decade-old BTS album debuts on vinyl.
YoungBoy Never Broke Again, I Rest My Case (Motown/Never Broke Again): After an absurdly prolific 2022 that included seven full-length releases – two collaborative albums, four mixtapes and one official album – star rapper YoungBoy Never Broke Again returns, just two weeks into 2023, with his fifth solo studio album, I Rest My Case. The 19-track set is his first release on his new Motown label, after completing his deal with Atlantic in 2022.
From the early returns, YoungBoy’s previous productivity may be working against him, since the album’s tracks have not taken over the daily DSP charts like past YoungBoy solo albums, the last three of which hit the Billboard 200’s top two. Case will also not be helped by any big-name guests, since the album has no features on its 11 tracks. It will have its work cut out for it getting YoungBoy back to the chart’s top five, let alone threatening the four-week reign of SZA’s SOS blockbuster, which shows little sign of slowing down in its fifth week.
BTS, Love Yourself: Her (Big Hit/Universal): The Love Yourself: Her EP release marked a big U.S. breakthrough for K-Pop superstars BTS back in 2017, reaching the Billboard 200’s top 10 and spawning their first two Billboard Hot 100 hits in “DNA” and “Mic Drop.” The EP is likely to return to the chart’s top tier after making its physical debut on vinyl — the septet’s first-ever release on the format — along with a package that includes seven photo cards (one for each member), two posters, a sticker and a bookmark.
French Montana & DJ Drama, Coke Boys 6 (Coke Boys): Outside of YoungBoy, few hip-hop artists were as prolific on the 2022 charts as DJ Drama, who notched hit albums alongside Jeezy, Snoop Dogg and several other big-name rappers. He’s back this week with veteran New York hitmaker French Montana, for the latest installment in the latter’s signature Coke Boys series. CB6 boasts 20 tracks and a wide variety of big-name guests, including fellow rap stars Kodak Black, Nav and A$AP Rocky, and the set already has its own Money Heist Edition deluxe reissue, adding an extra nine tracks to the total.
Houston-based duo Hotel Ugly scores its first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (dated Jan. 14), as the act’s breakthrough hit “Shut Up My Moms Calling” debuts at No. 96.
The duo comprises brothers Chris and Mike Fiscella.
The song, which the pair released independently, debuts on the strength of 5.7 million official U.S. streams (up 11%) in the Dec. 30-Jan. 5 tracking week, according to Luminate. It also re-enters the Hot R&B Songs chart at No. 23 (after reaching No. 11 in November) and rises 44-40 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (after climbing to No. 39 in December).
“Shut Up My Moms Calling” is also scoring success around the world, as it jumps 167-93 on the Billboard Global 200 and re-enters the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart at No. 136, with both placements marking new peaks. The track drew 14.9 million streams worldwide in the tracking week, a boost of 8%.
TikTok has been a big factor in the song’s growing popularity, as the cut has been used in more than 66,000 videos on the platform to date. (TikTok does not presently contribute directly to Billboard‘s charts.)
Hotel Ugly is a newcomer to Billboard’s listings, as the song marks the duo’s first chart appearance.
The act currently reaches the top 20 of the Emerging Artists chart for the first time, jumping 27-19 in its 14th week on the survey.
The song is slated to appear on the group’s upcoming LP, due later this year.
Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti wrapped 2022 as the most popular album of the year in the U.S., according to music data tracking firm Luminate. Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow’s “Industry Baby” was the year’s top song by on-demand streams, while Harry Styles’ “As It Was” ruled as both the top-streamed song by on-demand audio streams and the most-heard song on the radio. Meanwhile, total music consumption in the U.S. — as measured in equivalent album units — grew by 9.2% in 2022. (View the U.S. 2022 Luminate Year-End Music Report.)
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See the year’s top 10 albums chart, along with other year-end rankings and overall volume numbers, below.
But first, the fine print:
Equivalent album units – for album titles and chart rankings cited below (but not industry volume numbers) – comprise traditional 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 on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album, or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. Album titles and album chart rankings by equivalent album units do not include user-generated content (UGC) streams, but UGC streams are included in Luminate’s industry volume numbers. (UGC streams are not factored into any of Billboard’s weekly charts.)
For the sake of clarity, equivalent album units do not include listening to music on broadcast radio or digital radio broadcasts. All numbers cited in this story are rounded, and for the U.S. only.
Luminate’s equivalent album unit totals include SEA and TEA for an album’s songs registered before an album’s release, but during the tracking period. For example, Harry Styles’ Harry’s House album unit total includes SEA and TEA for its song “As It Was” from April 1, 2022 (its release day) through May 19, 2022, before the album was released on May 20, 2022.
Luminate began tracking music sales in 1991 when the company was known as SoundScan. Luminate’s sales, streaming and airplay data is used to compile Billboard’s weekly charts. Luminate’s 2022 tracking year ran from Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Luminate is an independently operated company owned by PME TopCo, a PMC subsidiary and joint venture between Penske Media Corporation and Eldridge. Billboard is an independently operated company owned by PME Holdings, a subsidiary of PME TopCo.
Highlights from Luminate’s 2022 year-end data:
Music consumption in the U.S., as measured by equivalent album units, grew by 9.2%
Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti is the first Latin album, all-Spanish-language title, and non-English-language effort to be Luminate’s year-end No. 1 album, since the firm began tracking data in 1991.
Children’s music and Latin music had the largest growth among Luminate’s core genres in the U.S., rising 30% and 28.2%, respectively.
Overall U.S. on-demand song streams (audio and video combined) increased 12.2% to 1.268 trillion.
Yearly U.S. on-demand audio streams surpassed 1 trillion for the first time.
29% of all on-demand audio streams in the U.S. in 2022 were R&B/hip-hop songs.
U.S. vinyl album sales outsold CDs for the second year in a row & vinyl sales grew for a 17th consecutive year.
43% of all albums sold in 2022 in the U.S. – across all formats, physical & digital combined – were vinyl LPs.
Taylor Swift sold more vinyl albums than any act in 2022 in the U.S., accounting for 1 of every 25 vinyl LPs sold nationwide.
Total U.S. album sales for the year (physical and digital download purchases combined) fell by 8.2%
Swift’s latest album Midnights sold 1.8 million in traditional album sales in the U.S. in 2022 – the biggest-selling album of any year since 2017, when Swift’s Reputation sold 1.9 million. Further, an album by Swift has been the year’s top seller in three of the last four years: Midnights in 2022, Folklore in 2020 and Lover in 2019.
U.S. digital track sales declined for the 10th consecutive year, falling 25% in 2022. And for the first time since 2004, no song sold more than 500,000 downloads in a calendar year. From 2005-21, there was at least one song that sold a million downloads in each year, and from 2006-21, at least one song sold 1 million each year.
Un Verano Sin Ti debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated May 21, 2022, and spent 13 nonconsecutive weeks atop the list. That marked the most weeks at No. 1 for any album since Drake’s Views also logged 13 frames at No. 1 in 2016. All 22 new songs on Bad Bunny’s album charted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart simultaneously, with the set launching four top 10-charting hits.
Un Verano Sin Ti was a streaming powerhouse, with 97% of its total activity in 2022 coming from on-demand streams of its 23 songs. Its tracks generated 4.649 billion on-demand streams in the U.S. in 2022 – easily making it the most-streamed album of the year (equaling 3.314 million in SEA units). The album sold just 70,000 in traditional album sales (CD and digital album download purchases – it was not available in any other format at retail). In terms of straight album sales – Un Verano Sin Ti was the No. 121st biggest-selling album of the year. And, Un Verano Sin Ti’s tracks sold just 148,000 downloads in 2022 – equaling 15,000 in TEA units.
Un Verano Sin Ti is the first Latin album, all-Spanish-language title, and non-English-language effort to be Luminate’s year-end No. 1 album, since the firm began tracking data in 1991.
2022 is the seventh consecutive year a solo male artist has Luminate’s top album by equivalent album units, following Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album (2021), Lil Baby’s My Turn (2020), Post Malone’s Hollywood’s Bleeding (2019), Drake’s Scorpion (2018), Ed Sheeran’s ÷ (Divide) (2017) and Drake’s Views (2016). The last time an album not by a solo male was tops for the year was in 2015, when Adele’s 25 ruled.
TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S., BY TOTAL EQUIVALENT ALBUM UNITS1. Bad Bunny, Un Verano Sin Ti (3.400 million)2. Taylor Swift, Midnights (3.294 million)3. Morgan Wallen, Dangerous: The Double Album (2.405 million)4. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (2.204 million)5. The Weeknd, The Highlights (1.879 million)6. Soundtrack, Encanto (1.839 million)7. Future, I Never Liked You (1.460 million)8. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour (1.438 million)9. Lil Durk, 7220 (1.357 million)10. Drake, Certified Lover Boy (1.317 million)
Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022. UGC streams are not included in this chart, but are included in Luminate’s on-demand streaming charts (below).
The second-biggest album of 2022 by equivalent album units is Taylor Swift’s Midnights, with 3.294 million units earned in just 10 weeks (the album was released on Oct. 21, 2022). Unlike the streaming-powered Un Verano Sin Ti, the Midnights album saw its success distributed more evenly across streaming, album purchases and track sales.
Midnights was by far the top-selling album of 2022, with 1.818 million copies sold – the biggest-selling album of a calendar year since 2017, when Swift’s own Reputation was tops (1.903 million). Midnights’ songs generated 1.854 million on-demand official streams last year, equating to 1.407 million SEA units. And, in terms of tracks sold from the album, Midnights’ collected songs sold 680,000 – resulting in 68,000 TEA units for the set. The album’s “Anti-Hero” is also 2022’s top-selling digital song, with 436,000 sold.
Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album is 2022’s No. 3-biggest album by units (2.405 million). It was 2021’s top album. Harry Styles’ Harry’s House (2.203 million) and The Weeknd’s hits compilation The Highlights (1.879 million) round out Luminate’s top five albums of 2022.
TOTAL ALBUM CONSUMPTION INCREASES 9.2%: Equivalent album units increased by 9.2% in 2022, to 974.9 million (up from 893.1 million in 2021). There were 19 albums that earned at least 1 million equivalent album units in 2022 – down from 26 in 2021.
R&B/HIP-HOP LEADS, LATIN & CHILDRENS MUSIC GAINS: R&B/hip-hop music continues to have the largest share of total album consumption, with 261.7 million units earned in 2022 – accounting for 26.8% of total volume (973.9) last year across all of Luminate’s core genres measured. R&B/hip-hop consumption increased 5.7% in 2022 over its volume in 2021 (247.5 million). (R&B/hip-hop is an umbrella genre for Luminate that contains most titles categorized as either R&B and/or rap.)
2022’s second-largest genre, by total album consumption, was rock with 194.7 million units (up 9% from 178.7 million in 2021). Pop music was third, with 123.7 million (up 6.2% from 116.5 million) and country music was fourth, with 75.7 million (up 4.8% from 72.2 million). The Latin genre rounded out the top five with 61.7 million units (up 28.2%) from 48.2 million in 2021.
Latin music had the second-largest percentage gain among Luminate’s core genres, in terms of total album consumption in 2022, rising 28.2%. Notably, Bad Bunny holds the top four Latin albums of 2022 by units earned: Un Verano Sin Ti (3.398 million units), YHLQMDLG (802,000), El Ultimo Tour del Mundo (577,000) and X 100PRE (386,000). Rauw Alejandro’s Vice Versa is 2022’s No. 5 biggest Latin album, with 375,000 units. (Those five albums, in order, are also the five total Latin albums among the year-end all-genre top 200 albums, ranking at Nos. 1, 40, 83, 179 and 186, respectively.)
2022’s second-largest gain among Luminate’s core genres was children’s music, which increased 30% to 13.4 million units in 2022 (up from 10.3 million in 2021). The genre was got a big boost from the massive success of the soundtrack to the Disney animated film Encanto, which finished the year as the No. 6 album overall with 1.839 million units. The set topped the weekly Billboard 200 chart for nine nonconsecutive weeks – the most weeks at No. 1 for any soundtrack since Disney’s own Frozen ruled for 13 nonconsecutive frames in 2014. The Encanto album – which boasts the No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” – also racked up 24 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Kid Albums chart (which ranks the most popular children’s albums of the week).
TAYLOR SWIFT’S ‘MIDNIGHTS’ IS 2022’s TOP-SELLING ALBUM: Taylor Swift’s latest studio album Midnights was a monster sales success in the U.S., closing 2022 as the top-selling album of the year with 1.818 million copies sold across all formats (physical and digital combined: CD, vinyl LP, cassette, digital download album). (See the top 10-selling albums of 2022, below.)
With 1.818 million sold in 2022, Midnights is the biggest-selling album of any year since 2017, when Swift’s Reputation sold 1.903 million. Further, an album by Swift has been the year’s top-seller in three of the last four years: Midnights in 2022, Folklore in 2020 and Lover in 2019. (The top-selling album in 2021 was Adele’s 30, with 1.464 million sold.)
Midnights’ sales were bolstered by an array of available versions and variants of the album, including four standard CD editions (each with different cover art, both clean and explicit), four vinyl LP editions (each with a different cover and colored vinyl), a cassette tape and multiple digital iterations (including a “3am Edition” of the set with seven bonus tracks). Target stores also carried an exclusive “Lavender” edition of the album on CD and colored-vinyl, with the CD boasting three bonus tracks.
To further enhance sales, Swift’s official webstore sold signed copies of the four standard CD albums and vinyl LPs during a pre-order window before the album launched. As previously reported when the album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, some superfans may have been motivated to purchase all four variants of the album on either CD or vinyl, as the back covers of the albums fit together like a puzzle to display a clock face (a literal reference to Midnights). Swift shared the news through her social media in mid-September, saying: “If you put all the back covers together, she’s a clock. It’s a clock… It makes a clock.” (Swift’s official webstore previously sold hardware to hold the four CDs or the four vinyl LPs together as a wall clock.)
The idea of assembling multiple versions of an album’s back cover (or cover) together to reveal a larger complete image isn’t unique to Swift, as other acts (frequently in the K-pop world) have employed a similar marketing idea.
And, It’s not unusual for many artists to offer collectible variants of a physical album package – from multiple color vinyl editions to collectible CD editions and beyond. (Swift herself has done it for previous releases.) In 2022, acts ranging from Ghost, Ozzy Osbourne and Red Hot Chili Peppers to BLACKPINK, Madonna and Harry Styles all leaned in to the practice of offering multiple iterations of a physical album where usually the only difference is in packaging or the color of a vinyl LP.
Midnights was the only album to sell a million copies in the U.S. in 2022. It’s the fifth year in a row where just one album surpassed 1 million in U.S. sales. In 2021, Adele’s 30 was the only million-seller (1.464 million); in 2020, Swift’s Folklore was tops (1.276 million); in 2019, Swift’s Lover was the lone million-seller (1.085 million), and in 2018 the soundtrack to The Greatest Showman ruled with 1.489 million.
Swift is the only act to have the top-selling album of the year at least six times since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. (Swift also had the top-seller in 2020, 2019, 2017, 2014 and 2009.)
All but two of the year’s top 10-selling albums were aided by their availability on vinyl LP. Of the top 10, BTS’ Proof and TOMORROW X TOGETHER’s Minisode 2: Thursday’s Child were the only titles not available on vinyl (the two K-pop projects were only available as digital download albums and on CD). It’s typical for many K-pop albums to bypass a release on vinyl LP in the U.S.
TOP 10 SELLING ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S. (PHYSICAL & DIGITAL SALES COMBINED)1. Taylor Swift, Midnights (1.818 million)2. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (757,000)3. BTS, Proof (422,000)4. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour (354,000)5. Beyoncé, Renaissance (335,000)6. Fleetwood Mac, Rumours (310,000)7. Adele, 30 (296,000)8. Kendrick Lamar, good kid, m.A.A.d city (278,000)9. Michael Jackson, Thriller (236,000)10. TOMORROW X TOGETHER, Minisode 2: Thursday’s Child (229,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Taylor Swift sold the most albums in total among all artists in 2022, with 2.928 million sold across her entire catalog and via all formats (physical and digital combined). Harry Styles was the No. 2 biggest-seller with albums, as he sold 1.068 million in 2022.
U.S. ALBUM SALES DECLINE BY 8.2%: Total U.S. album sales fell by 8.2% in 2022 to 100.09 million (down from 108.98 million in 2021). In 2021, album sales posted their first yearly gain in a decade, when sales increased by 6.3%, thanks partly to the release of her hot-selling 30 in that year (2021’s top-selling album). Album sales have declined in every year from 2012-20, and again in 2022, as fans increasingly adopt streaming services as a means to consume music.
Physical album sales (CD, vinyl LP, cassette, etc.) declined by 3.5% to 79.89 million (down from 82.79 million in 2021).
VINYL CONTINUES TO OUTSELL CDS: For the second year in a row, and only the second year since Luminate began tracking music sales in 1991, vinyl albums outsold CD albums. Vinyl continues to be the leading format for album purchases for the second straight year.
Vinyl was the dominant format for album purchases in the U.S. up until the early 1980s. After that, cassettes took hold until the early 1990s, when the CD format blossomed and remained king until 2021.
43.46 million vinyl albums were sold in 2022 (up 4.2% from 41.72 million in 2021). 2022 was the 17th consecutive year vinyl album sales grew in the U.S., and the largest year for vinyl album sales since Luminate began tracking data in 1991. Plus, vinyl LP sales posted their single-largest sales week of the Luminate era when 2.232 million vinyl albums were sold in the week ending Dec. 22.
The top-selling vinyl album of 2022 is Swift’s Midnights, with 945,000 copies sold across all of its vinyl variants and editions (see top 10 list, below). Midnights has the largest yearly sales total for a vinyl album since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. The set also posted the single-largest sales week for a vinyl LP in Luminate history, when it launched with 575,000 copies in its first week.
Eight of the year-end top 10-selling vinyl albums saw their sales enhanced by their availability across multiple variants (including assorted color-vinyl editions). Among the top 10 vinyl sellers, just Tyler, the Creator’s Call Me If You Get Lost (No. 6) and Igor (No. 8) were only available in one iteration each.
TOP 10 SELLING VINYL ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S.1. Taylor Swift, Midnights (945,000)2. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (480,000)3. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour (263,000)4. Kendrick Lamar, good kid, m.A.A.d city (254,000)5. Fleetwood Mac, Rumours (243,000)6. Tyler, the Creator, Call Me If You Get Lost (211,000)7. Taylor Swift, Folklore (174,000)8. Tyler, the Creator, Igor (172,000)9. Michael Jackson, Thriller (168,000)10. The Beatles, Abbey Road (160,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Swift sold the most vinyl albums among all acts in 2022 in the U.S., with 1.695 million sold across her entire catalog. (She sold more vinyl LPs last year than the next two biggest-sellers on vinyl combined: Styles with 719,000 and The Beatles with 553,000.) Swift loomed so large on vinyl in 2022, one out of every 25 vinyl LPs sold last year in the U.S. was a Swift album (1.695 million of 43.46 million).
Vinyl album sales comprised 43.4% of all album sales in the U.S. in 2022 (43.46 million of 100.09 million). Vinyl LPs accounted for 54.4% of all physical album sold last year (43.46 million of 79.89 million). Both sums are Luminate-era records for vinyl’s share of the album sales market in the U.S.
In 2022 there were a total of 88 albums that sold at least 50,000 copies on vinyl – up from 87 in 2021. To compare, only 56 albums on the CD format sold at least 50,000 copies in 2022 (down from 67 in 2021).
CD SALES FALL, K-POP & COLLECTIBLE SETS BOLSTER TOP-SELLERS: 35.87 million CD albums were sold in 2022 (down 11.6% from 40.59 million in 2021), making it the second-most popular format among consumers who bought albums.
The top-selling album on the CD format in 2022 was Midnights with 640,000 copies sold. Swift sold the most CD albums last year, with 923,000 copies sold across her entire catalog of titles. BTS was the No. 2-seller on CD, with 917,000 copies sold.
Notably, of the year’s top 10-selling CD albums (see list, below), seven are K-pop titles (Nos. 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10). K-pop titles sell particularly well on the CD format, as many releases in the genre are issued in collectible CD editions, each usually housed in elaborate packaging with branded paper goods contained inside (sometimes with randomized elements).
There are three non-K-pop titles in the year-end top 10 CD albums ranking: Midnights (No. 1), Harry’s House (No. 4) and Beyoncé’s Renaissance (No. 9). Midnights’ CD sales were bolstered by its availability in multiple collectible editions with different cover art, while Harry’s House was issued in zine-CD and casebook CD editions. All three titles were also available in deluxe boxed sets containing branded T-shirts.
TOP 10 SELLING CD ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S.1. Taylor Swift, Midnights (640,000)2. BTS, Proof (413,000)3. TOMORROW X TOGETHER, Minisode 2: Thursday’s Child (227,000)4. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (219,000)5. Stray Kids, ODDINARY (204,000)6. TWICE, Between 1&2 (199,000)7. Stray Kids, MAXIDENT (177,000)8. ENHYPEN, Manifesto: Day 1 (173,000)9. Beyoncé, Renaissance (163,000)10. NCT 127, 2 Baddies (148,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Digital album sales were the third-most popular format in 2022 for album purchases, and the category declined by 22.9% in 2022 to 20.2 million (down from 26.17 million in 2021). The top-selling digital album of 2022 was Midnights, with 219,000 sold. Swift was also the top-selling act across digital albums in 2022, with 292,000 download albums sold across her catalog in total. Beyoncé was the second-best selling act in digital album sales in 2022, with 69,000 copies sold.
CASSETTE TAPES SPIN BIG GAIN: In 2022, sales of albums on cassette tape in the U.S. increased by 28% to 440,000 (up from 343,000 in 2021). That’s a robust figure for a format that was mostly non-existent a few years ago, when yearly cassette sales numbered just 74,000 in 2015. Now a niche offering marketed to superfans, cassettes were once the leading format for album purchases in the U.S., from the early 1980s until the early 1990s.
The top-selling album on cassette in 2022 was the soundtrack to Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2, with 17,000 copies sold. Two more Guardians-related titles dot the top 10 (at Nos. 3 and 6). As actual cassette mixtapes feature prominently in the Guardians’ storyline, it makes sense that a real-world cassette album offering, mirroring those seen in the films and series, could be a solid seller. (The three Guardians tapes that rank in the year-end top 10 have sold, combined, more than 238,000 since their release a number of years ago.)
TOP 10 SELLING CASSETTE ALBUMS OF 2022 IN U.S.1. Soundtrack, Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2: Awesome Mix Vol. 2 (17,000)2. Taylor Swift, Midnights (14,000)3. Soundtrack, Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 (13,000)4. Harry Styles, Harry’s House (11,000)5. Billie Eilish, Happier Than Ever (8,000)6. Soundtrack, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Mix, Vol. 1 (8,000)7. Nirvana, Bleach (7,000)8. Bo Burnham, Inside (The Songs) (5,000)9. Bad Bunny, YHLQMDLG (5,000)10. Ghost, Impera (5,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
TOTAL STREAMING INCREASES BY 12.2%: Total U.S. on-demand song streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC streams) grew 12.2% to 1.268 trillion in 2022 (up from 1.130 trillion in 2021). Yearly on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) bolted past the 1 trillion mark for the first time, rising 12.2% to 1.108 trillion in 2022 (up from 988.15 billion in 2021).
The R&B/hip-hop genre accounted for the most on-demand streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) in 2022, among Luminate’s core genres, with 28.6% of the year’s volume (362.77 billion of 1.268 trillion). In 2021, R&B/hip-hop represented a leading 30.1% of volume.
The rock genre had the second-largest share of on-demand song streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) in 2022, with 16.7% of the volume (210.71 billion of 1.268 trillion). Pop was third with 13.1% (166.65 billion of 1.268 trillion). Latin overtook country as the fourth-largest genre in on-demand streams, with 7.8% of the volume (99.08 billion of 1.268 trillion), while country was in fifth place with 7.3% (92.52 billion of 1.268 trillion). In 2021, Latin had 77.37 billion streams versus country’s 84.26 billion, when they were in fifth and fourth place, respectively.
In terms of year-over-year growth in total on-demand streams (audio and video combined, inclusive of UGC) among Luminate’s core genres, children’s music had the largest percentage increase in 2022, rising 35.5% (to 17.02 billion, up from 12.56 billion in 2021). World music (an umbrella genre which includes, among its many sounds and styles, most K-pop music), had the second-biggest percentage increase, climbing 28.5% (to 26.98 billion, up from 21.01 billion in 2021). Latin had the third-largest gain, spiking 28.1% (to 99.08 billion, up from 77.37 billion in 2021).
Looking just at on-demand audio streams for 2022 (inclusive of UGC), R&B/hip-hop led the way with 28.7% of volume (318.02 billion of 1.108 trillion). Rock (17.1%; 190.82 billion of 1.108 trillion), pop (12.5%; 138.97 billion of 1.108 trillion), country (7.8%; 85.91 billion of 1.108 trillion) and Latin (7.3%; 80.35 billion of 1.108 trillion) were Nos. 2-5 for the year, as they were in 2021.
The genres that saw the largest percentage growth in year-over-year on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) were Latin music (up 31.5% to 80.35 billion; up from 61.12 billion in 2021), children’s music (up 30.6% to 14.43 billion; up from 11.05 billion in 2021) and world music (up 27.5% to 21.8 billion; up from 17.09 billion in 2021).
Note: UGC streams are included in Luminate’s industry streaming on-demand volume numbers and its year-end streaming song charts. UGC streams are not factored into any of Billboard’s weekly charts.
‘BABY’ & STYLES LEAD STREAMS: Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow’s co-billed smash “Industry Baby” was the most-streamed song of 2022 in the U.S., with 877.25 million on-demand audio and video streams combined (inclusive of UGC). “Industry Baby” garnered a sizable number of streams via user-generated video content. The most-streamed song by on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) was Harry Styles’ “As It Was,” with 609.67 million clicks.
The most-streamed song of 2021 was Dua Lipa’s “Levitating,” with 804.71 million on-demand audio and video streams (inclusive of UGC), and it was also the top song by on-demand audio streams (inclusive of UGC) with 626.56 million.
See the top 10 most-streamed songs, below.
TOP 10 MOST STREAMED SONGS OF 2022 IN U.S., ON-DEMAND (AUDIO & VIDEO COMBINED)1. Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow, “Industry Baby” (877.25 million)2. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (763.45 million)3. Glass Animals, “Heat Waves” (758.07 million)4. Carolina Gaitán, Mauro Castillo, Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz, Diane Guerrero, Stephanie Beatriz & Encanto Cast, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” (684.90 million)5. Imagine Dragons X JID, “Enemy” (627.61 million)6. The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber, “Stay” (622.39 million)7. Kodak Black, “Super Gremlin” (609.88 million)8. Future featuring Drake & Tems, “Wait for U” (602.69 million)9. Bad Bunny & Chencho Corleone, “Me Porto Bonito” (565.38 million)10. Bad Bunny, “Titi Me Pregunto” (551.57 million)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022. Includes UGC streams.
TOP 10 MOST STREAMED SONGS OF 2022 IN U.S., ON DEMAND AUDIO1. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (609.67 million)2. Glass Animals, “Heat Waves” (528.73 million)3. Future featuring Drake & Tems, “Wait for U” (507.89 million)4. Bad Bunny & Chencho Corleone, “Me Porto Bonito” (471.36 million)5. Kodak Black, “Super Gremlin” (471.15 million)6. Bad Bunny, “Titi Me Pregunto” (451.12 million)7. Jack Harlow, “First Class” (433.93 million)8. Carolina Gaitán, Mauro Castillo, Adassa, Rhenzy Feliz, Diane Guerrero, Stephanie Beatriz & Encanto Cast, “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” (421.80 million)9. Steve Lacy, “Bad Habit” (421.09 million)10. Zach Bryan, “Something In the Orange” (406.79 million)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022. Includes UGC streams.
DIGITAL TRACK SALES FALL 25%: For the first time since 2004, no song sold more than 500,000 downloads in a calendar year in the U.S. And, 2022 marked the first year since 2005 that no song sold 1 million.
Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” was the year’s top-selling digital song in 2022, with 436,000 paid downloads. And, total digital track sales declined for a 10th consecutive year, falling 25% in 2022 to 151.90 million sold (down from 202.92 million in 2021).
In 2021, the top-selling digital song was BTS’ “Butter,” with 1.89 million sold.
The last time a year closed without a million-selling digital song was 2005, when Weezer’s “Beverly Hills” was the top-seller with 962,000. The last year without a song surpassing 500,000 was 2004, when Hoobastank’s “The Reason” was the top-selling digital song, with 380,000 sold. (2004 was also the first full year of the iTunes Store, which launched mid-2003.)
TOP 10 SELLING DIGITAL SONGS OF 2022 IN U.S.1. Taylor Swift, “Anti-Hero” (436,000)2. Lizzo, “About Damn Time” (217,000)3. Latto, “Big Energy” (206,000)4. Elton John & Dua Lipa, “Cold Heart” (202,000)5. Kate Bush, “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” (188,000)6. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (183,000)7. Nicki Minaj, “Super Freaky Girl” (172,000)8. Cody Johnson, “Til You Can’t” (145,000)9. Walker Hayes, “AA” (144,000)10. Sia, “Unstoppable” (143,000)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021 through Dec. 29, 2022.
‘IT WAS’ BIG ON THE RADIO: Harry Styles’ “As It Was” rules 2022 as the biggest song on the radio, as it collected 3.001 billion audience impressions across all monitored radio stations. Audience impressions are measured by cross-referencing plays with Nielsen Audio audience data – i.e., a play of a song on a top-rated New York station at 8 a.m. on a Monday has more listeners (audience) than an overnight weekend play in a smaller city.
TOP 10 RADIO SONGS OF 2022 IN U.S. (BASED ON AUDIENCE IMPRESSIONS)1. Harry Styles, “As It Was” (3.001 billion)2. Glass Animals, “Heat Waves” (2.789 billion)3. The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber, “Stay” (2.779 billion)4. Lizzo, “About Damn Time” (2.344 billion)5. Justin Bieber, “Ghost” (2.325 billion)6. Latto, “Big Energy” (2.205 billion)7. Lil Nas X, “Thats What I Want” (2.064 billion)8. Ed Sheeran, “Bad Habits” (2.060 billion)9. Adele, “Easy On Me” (1.963 billion)10. Jack Harlow, “First Class” (1.859 billion)Source: Luminate, for the tracking period Dec. 31, 2021, through Dec. 29, 2022.
Luke Combs notches his 17th top 10 on Billboard’s streaming-, airplay- and sales-powered Hot Country Songs chart, as “Going, Going, Gone” surges from No. 12 to No. 6 on the Jan. 14-dated survey.
Combs co-authored the song with Ray Fulcher and James McNair.
On Country Airplay, “Going” ranks at its No. 11 high, as it increased by 13% to 15.8 million impressions in the tracking week ending Jan. 5, according to Luminate. It also attracted 10.1 million official streams (up 31%) and sold 2,000 downloads (up 6%) in the U.S. in the tracking week.
“Going” marks Combs’ 17th Hot Country Songs top 10 and his first since “The Kind of Love We Make,” which became his fifth No. 1 when it logged its first of four frames atop the list last July. On Country Airplay, “Love” reached No. 2 in September. Prior to that, Combs achieved a record run of 14 straight career-opening No. 1 singles, dating to his debut hit “Hurricane” in 2017.
“Going” is the third single from Combs’ album Growin’ Up, which opened at No. 1 on Top Country Albums in July.
On Jan. 4, Combs took to social media to announce that he’ll release a new (as yet untitled) LP, sporting 18 songs, March 24.
Grimes Gallops to New Best
Luke Grimes, who stars on the popular Paramount TV series Yellowstone as Kayce Dutton, released his debut song, “No Horse to Ride,” Dec. 16. Grimes, who co-penned the track with Tony Lane and Jonathan Singleton, recently signed with Universal Music Group Nashville.
“Horse” was featured in the midseason finale of Yellowstone, which premiered Jan. 1, helping spark a 697% surge to 3,000 downloads sold in the week ending Jan. 5. The track re-enters Country Digital Song Sales at a new No. 7 high, after it debuted at No. 9 last month.
While the first new Billboard Hot 100 of 2023 was still overrun by holiday songs from Mariah Carey, Brenda Lee and many more, every one of them departs the listing for the chart dated Jan. 14 — giving us our first real look at the current landscape of pop hits as we get into the new year.
With “All I Want for Christmas Is You” vacating the top spot, the void is once again filled by Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero,” notching its seventh week at No. 1, followed by Sam Smith & Kim Petras’ “Unholy,” SZA’s “Kill Bill,” David Guetta & Bebe Rexha’s “I’m Good (Blue)” and Drake & 21 Savage’s “Rich Flex.” Slightly lower on the chart, two songs hit the top 10 for the first time: The Weeknd’s recently revived “Die for You” (No. 8) and Beyoncé’s slow-burning “Cuff It” (No. 10).
What’s the most telling thing about the Hot 100’s current top tier? And what might still be in store for chart watchers this month based on these early returns? Billboard staffers discuss these questions and more below.
1. With the holiday music cobwebs being swept away from the Hot 100, we’re back to the top of the chart being ruled by late last year’s hits. Is there anything about the top five as it currently stands that you find particularly interesting or surprising?
Katie Atkinson: The staying power of David Guetta and Bebe Rexha’s “I’m Good (Blue)” continues to surprise me – as I’m sure it does David and Bebe themselves. We’ve been talking about the unlikely global success of this song since September, and it just keeps getting unlikelier as it debuts in the top five this week (No. 4). This is only Rexha’s second top five hit on the Hot 100 (following her unstoppable country team-up with Florida Georgia Line “Meant to Be”) and Guetta’s fourth, with his most recent (“Turn Me On” with Nicki Minaj) peaking more than a decade ago now, in February 2012. It’s an eccentric ‘90s interpolation recorded by the duo years ago and then unearthed by eager fans on TikTok – and it’s not going anywhere.
Stephen Daw: David Guetta & Bebe Rexha’s “I’m Good (Blue)” launching from 19-4 isn’t necessarily shocking, but I certainly did not have that song breaking into the top five on my 2023 bingo card, let alone reaching that spot just two weeks into the year. Between the song’s aggressive marketing on TikTok and at radio and the typically slow start to the year, though, it makes sense why a slow-burning hit like this would be such a big draw for the post-holiday charts. But I was certainly surprised, considering that I had assumed that the song’s cultural capital was already on the decline.
Lyndsey Havens: The two things that surprise me are that “Anti-Hero” returned to the chart’s summit and the fact that David Guetta and Bebe Rexha’s “I’m Good (Blue)” has crept into the top five. Given the sustained success of SOS on the Billboard 200 albums chart, I would have guessed that SZA would also be able to score the No. 1 spot on the Hot 100 after the holiday fallout … but perhaps in good time. And by in good time, I mean by the time the anticipated music video for “Kill Bill” arrives.
Jason Lipshutz: I wrote about SZA’s “Kill Bill” in this space last week, but its return to its No. 3 peak this week underlines just how huge of a solo hit it’s becoming for an artist who’s not generally known for her solo hits. Although it’s sitting behind Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” and Sam Smith & Kim Petras’ “Unholy” — two singles with an enormous presence on top 40 radio — on this week’s chart, “Kill Bill” is likely going to receive more radio play soon, and if its streaming presence remains rock-solid, SZA’s highest-charting solo song to date could climb even higher in the coming weeks.
Andrew Unterberger: I think “Unholy” holding at No. 2 — higher than “Kill Bill,” which already feels like the first major pop hit of 2023 — is a little surprising, given that the cultural peak of that song seems a few months in the rearview already. That’ll probably even out in the weeks to come, but the song holding this strong shows how “Unholy” wasn’t just a TikTok moment, it’s legitimately one of the biggest pop hits of the decade so far.
2. At No. 8, a song hits the top 10 for the first time that makes all the other leftovers feel farm-to-table fresh by comparison: The Weeknd’s “Die for You,” a revived track off his 2016 album Starboy. Why do you think the song has proven to have such legs this late in its lifespan?
Katie Atkinson: I think pop radio fans had an insatiable appetite for The Weeknd that the release of his Dawn FM album a year ago this week didn’t quite feed. So as “Die for You” gained traction via TikTok concurrent to his new album’s release, The Weeknd benefited from music’s everything-old-is-new-again moment. Most casual pop radio listeners likely have no idea it’s a “deep cut” from 2016 and are just appreciating his latest hit.
Stephen Daw: TikTok works in mysterious ways, especially when it comes to deep cut, fan-favorite tracks from a pop megastar. “Die for You” has a universal appeal to its production and vocal, which is what helped it achieve cult-like fave status from The Weeknd’s fervid fans — so once fans begin posting about revisiting their favorite Weeknd songs on TikTok, a groovy earworm like “Die for You” is bound to catch fire.
Lyndsey Havens: Honestly, I forgot “Die for You” was years old — and I’m guessing I’m not the only one. While much of the Starboy era felt like a bit more of a mainstream grab compared to The Weeknd’s prior work, years later, “Die For You” sounds right at home with the artist he is today. Plus, with the rumors of his last two albums being part of a trilogy, perhaps fans just got impatient while waiting for the finale. If the song’s sudden rise is more strategic than that, though, as most things are today … I’m curious to know if “Die for You” is a teaser of what to expect from what’s still to come.
Jason Lipshutz: In my mind, the “Die for You” TikTok revival-turned-mainstream adoption is a cross between Taylor Swift’s “All Too Well” comeback, as a fan-favorite song from a superstar getting a long second look, and David Guetta & Bebe Rexha’s “I’m Good (Blue)” success, as a long-delayed explosion for a years-old song that still sounds current despite its release date. “Die for You” is another mid-tempo Weeknd sing-along with a catchy-as-hell chorus, and once fans — some of whom had been championing the song for years — started watching it flicker to life on social media, they raised it up with undeniable streaming numbers, radio took notice, and now it’s a top 10 hit.
Andrew Unterberger: It seems like a “well, why not?” sort of hit to me: The song had been viral forever and top 40 programmers didn’t find anything they liked enough on Dawn FM to make an After Hours-sized hit out of, and so they decided to fill the Weeknd-sized void on their playlists with… more Weeknd. I’m surprised it’s gone this long and this strong, but the competition just isn’t that strong near the top of the charts right now, and hey, who doesn’t like “Die for You”?
3. Also new to the top 10 this week is Beyoncé’s “Cuff It,” which marks her second top 10 hit off Renaissance following the chart-topping “Break My Soul.” Is the second hit a big deal for the Queen and her latest album, or more of a pleasant New Year’s bonus?
Katie Atkinson: It’s definitely a big deal. It feels like fans have ordained this one the pop hit from the album, and I could see it marking the second No. 1 from Renaissance – especially if Queen B gifts fans with a music video. “Cuff It” has had a life of its own, starting with a dance challenge back in August and going strong into 2023 thanks to a crafty radio edit finally getting its airplay due.
Stephen Daw: It’s very much a big deal. Much like how “Break My Soul” was Beyoncé’s first solo No. 1 hit since “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)” in 2008, Renaissance now becomes the first Beyoncé album since I Am … Sasha Fierce (2008) to spawn at least two of her 21 top 10 hits. The fact that Bey can re-reach the heights of her cultural dominance more than a decade after the fact is a feat that very few pop stars could manage in their careers. Though the headliner of Renaissance will forever be “Break My Soul,” “Cuff It” deserves recognition for only further solidifying Queen Bey’s regal status.
Lyndsey Havens: I think it’s a big deal for one reason: Fans are begging for more content — aka music videos. To have “Cuff It” go top 10 without it, or without any push from Queen B herself, proves that whatever she does or wants to do going forward will always work.
Jason Lipshutz: I’m not sure how much it matters for an artist like Beyoncé if her widely beloved and commercially successful new album only had one top 10 hit instead of two… but now it doesn’t! So yes, more of a pleasant New Year’s bonus for Queen Bey than important milestone, but also, “Cuff It” rules, a killer dance track with tons of interesting sonic details and one of the cooler breakdowns in pop music last year. It’s a deserving top 10 hit, and I’m glad it finally got there.
Andrew Unterberger: It’s a big deal mostly because it’s good timing for the Queen. It keeps her in the mainstream while she preps whatever transmission is to come next from the Renaissanceverse, and also keeping her top of mind with Grammy voters as she gears up for perhaps the best opportunity of her career to finally grab the coveted album of the year trophy. Also worth noting that while “Cuff It” may not match the No. 1 Hot 100 peak of “Break My Soul,” it’s already passed it in terms of endurance — the song reaches the top 10 in its 21st week, while “Soul” was off the chart altogether by its 19th week.
4. Lower in the top 40, is there any song you’re looking to maybe make a jump into the top 10 in the weeks to come?
Katie Atkinson: This feels like a cop-out because it only has to climb one spot, but I think Zach Bryan peaking at No. 11 this week with “Something in the Orange” shows that his breakthrough hit still has legs and could definitely make it to the top 10. It’s been out since April, but it also just climbed to No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart last week.
Stephen Daw: I think these coming few weeks are Meghan Trainor’s chance to get the top 10 hit she’s looking for in “Made You Look.” You cannot open TikTok at this point without hearing about the singer having her Gucci on, and as longer-lasting hits like “Bad Habit” and “As It Was” begin to lose steam again, “Made You Look” could find its moment in the spotlight if it manages to keep its trajectory up on streaming and radio.
Lyndsey Havens: If by top 40 you mean top 100, then yes: I have my eye on the Lewis Capaldi slow-burner of a comeback, “Forget Me.” Having made the jump from No. 98 to No. 74 this week — and given his previous two top 10 hits, one of which went to No. 1 (who could forget “Someone You Loved”?) — I think he’s more than capable of making another big leap.
Jason Lipshutz: Now is the time for the “Just Wanna Rock” takeover: Lil Uzi Vert’s Jersey club riff jumps up to a new peak of No. 16 this week, its furious energy and frenzied yelps making its presence known in clubs and sports arenas this winter. After a relatively slow start, “Just Wanna Rock” feels primed to become one of the defining songs of the first few months of the year, and should be another top 10 entry for Uzi.
Andrew Unterberger: “Made You Look.” For better or worse, it’s all aboard the M-Train for the next couple months on radio and streaming.
5. While the Hot 100 being largely static and leftover-dominated is certainly nothing new for the month of January, the previous two years also saw the tedium cut into by fresher cultural phenoms like Olivia Rodrigo and the Encanto soundtrack. Do you think we’ll get something like that this January — and if so, might we have any clue of what it will be yet?
Katie Atkinson: I would love to see “Titanium (M3GAN’s Version)” be our next top 10 Hot 100 hit! In all seriousness, though, I don’t think a chart-smashing new artist or film soundtrack has arrived this year (yet). Maybe Rodrigo herself, who just teased that she’s working on music, could once again own January.
Stephen Daw: Look, I’m biased, but I’m rooting for Sam Smith to keep their momentum going well into January and beyond. They have a highly anticipated new album out at the end of the month, and a trop-house-infused new single with Jessie Reyez and Koffee, “Gimme,” dropping tomorrow. If they can continue their excellent work at promoting their material via TikTok, that song could sweep through the charts and make January Sam Smith’s best month yet.
Lyndsey Havens: Though it wouldn’t be as surprising as the sudden runaway success stories of Olivia and Encanto, I do think that Miss Miley may soon own the month of January — and maybe even the whole year. After kicking things off with another successful NYE show, during which she announced her upcoming single “Flowers,” and subsequently revealing her new album Endless Summer Vacation to be coming in March, Cyrus is poised to dominate early 2023.
Jason Lipshutz: It’s going to be interesting to see what Miley Cyrus, whose new single “Flowers” arrives this Friday, has in her holster this time around. Cyrus is a superstar with a track record of making hits and a ton of goodwill, who’s coming off of a great album, 2020’s Plastic Hearts, that didn’t really produce a smash. If “Flowers” delivers, though, Cyrus has a relatively clear lane to the first big new pop single of 2023.
Andrew Unterberger: I think we actually got the January phenom a couple weeks early this year, with SZA’s SOS album in mid-December. And based on the fact that the album is still No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in its fourth week — and still claiming a whopping 15 entries on the Hot 100 — it looks like the set may still carry the first month of 2023 anyway.
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Taeyang’s upcoming Jimin-featuring single “Vibe” debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Trending Songs chart dated Jan. 14.
Billboard’s Hot Trending charts, powered by Twitter, track global music-related trends and conversations in real-time across Twitter, viewable over either the last 24 hours or past seven days. A weekly, 20-position version of the chart, covering activity from Friday through Thursday of each week, posts alongside Billboard’s other weekly charts on Billboard.com each Tuesday, with the latest tracking period running Dec. 30-Jan. 5.
“Vibe” marks Taeyang’s first solo single since 2018’s “Louder,” recorded for the Winter Olympics. It’s his first release under THEBLACKLABEL.
BTS’ Jimin last appeared solo via the collaborative track “With You” with Ha Sung Woon, which topped Hot Trending Songs for seven weeks beginning in May 2022.
Though it’s scheduled for release Jan. 13, the announcement of the single on Jan. 4 via social media spurred enough online chatter to launch the song to No. 1 on Hot Trending Songs.
“Vibe” is followed by another song that hasn’t yet seen the light of day: Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers,” also scheduled for a Jan. 13 release. Cyrus announced the new single on Dec. 31 amid her hosting gig for Miley’s New Year’s Party on NBC.
“Flowers” precedes the release of Endless Summer Vacation, Cyrus’ eighth studio album, due March 10.
Keep visiting Billboard.com for the constantly evolving Hot Trending Songs rankings, and check in each Tuesday for the latest weekly chart.
Taylor Swift continues her record run at No. 1 on the Billboard Artist 100 chart (dated Jan. 14), as she becomes the first artist to spend 60 weeks at the summit.
Swift maintains her status as the top musical act in the U.S., thanks to the continued success of Midnights, as her latest album ranks at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 with 117,000 equivalent album units earned, according to Luminate, after spending five weeks at No. 1.
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Swift places nine albums on the latest Billboard 200, the most among all acts: Midnights, Lover (No. 27), Folklore (No. 31), Red (Taylor’s Version) (No. 40), 1989 (No. 42), Evermore (No. 60), Reputation (No. 62), Fearless (Taylor’s Version) (No. 126) and Speak Now (No. 163).
Swift also charts four songs from Midnights on the Billboard Hot 100: “Anti-Hero” returns to No. 1 for a seventh week on top, tying “Blank Space” as her longest-leading No. 1 hit, followed on the latest list by “Lavender Haze” (No. 37), “Bejeweled” (No. 81) and “Midnight Rain” (No. 97).
Rounding out the top five of the latest Artist 100, SZA holds at No. 2 as her new album, SOS, spends a fourth week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Morgan Wallen keeps at No. 3, The Weeknd climbs 5-4 and Harry Styles drops 4-5.
Among other Artist 100 chart moves, ATEEZ re-enters at No. 6, thanks to the K-pop group’s Spin Off : From the Witness. The set debuts at No. 7 on the Billboard 200, earning the group its second top 10, and at No. 1 on World Albums, where it’s the act’s fourth leader.
The Artist 100 measures artist activity across key metrics of music consumption, blending album and track sales, radio airplay and streaming to provide a weekly multi-dimensional ranking of artist popularity.
Intocable adds an 18th No. 1 to its career history on Billboard‘s Regional Mexican Airplay chart with the group’s latest single, “Un Poquito Tuyo.” The Texan band achieves the feat as the song advances from the runner-up slot to rule the list dated Jan. 14. With 18 champs on its ledger, the group ties for the second-most No. 1s among all acts.
“Un Poquito Tuyo,” released Oct. 18 via Good I Music, leads after two weeks at No. 2 with a 3% gain in audience impressions, to 8.5 million, earned during the Dec. 30-Jan. 5 tracking week, according to Luminate.
The band scored its first champ in 1996 with “No Te Vayas,” a little less than two years after Regional Mexican Airplay launched in Oct. 1994. Its longest-leading No. 1 is the 13-week ruler “Sueña” in 2002.
Further, with the new success, Intocable ties with Banda El Recodo de Cruz Lizárraga and Banda MS for the second-most No. 1s among all acts, all with 18, just behind Calibre 50’s 22 rulers. Here’s a look at the scoreboard:
22, Calibre 50
18, Banda El Recodo de Cruz Lizárraga
18, Banda MS
18, Intocable
17, La Arrolladora Banda el Limon de Rene Camacho
16, Conjunto Primavera
16, Los Tigres del Norte
“Un Poquito” arrives at No. 1 on Regional Mexican Airplay six months after “Si Me Duela Que Duela,” the two-week ruler in July 2022 which earned the sextet its first champ almost a decade after it landed at the penthouse in 2013 with “Te Amo (Para Siempre).”
“Un Poquito” and “Si Me Duela” will be included on Intocable’s forthcoming album slated for release later in the year.
Elsewhere, “Un Poquito” holds at its No. 3 high on the all-genre Latin Airplay and at No. 37 on the multi-metric Hot Latin Songs chart.
Taylor Swift’s Midnights (via EMI) is set to extend its reign in the U.K.
Based on midweek data published by the Official Charts Company, Swift’s tenth and latest studio album is on track for a fifth non-consecutive week at No. 1.
It’s already Swift’s longest-reigning album in the U.K., overtaking the three-week lead for 2020’s Folklore.
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Meanwhile, SZA holds at No. 2 on the midweek chart with SOS (RCA/Top Dawg), while The Weeknd’s The Highlights (Republic Records/XO) should complete the podium.
The highest debut on the next chart would appear to be Gabrielle Aplin’s Phosphorescent (Never Fade), the English singer-songwriter’s fourth LP. Phosphorescent lights up the Official Chart Update at No. 4, and should give Aplin her first top 10 since English Rain, her debut album which peaked at No. 2 back in 2013.
Also on the brink of a top 10 finish is punk legend Iggy Pop, whose 19th album Every Loser (Atlantic) is on track for a No. 9 start. If it holds its course, Iggy’s LP would be just his second top 10 appearance as a solo artist, after 2016’s Post Pop Depression peaked at No. 5.
Former The Maccabees frontman Orlando Weeks’ could nab a solo top 40 appearance with The Gritterman (Blood), the original soundtrack to his debut book of the same name. It’s at No. 36 on the midweek chart. The Maccabees landed four top 40 albums, including a No. 1 for 2015’s Marks To Prove It.
The Gritterman, first published as an ebook in 2017, and the following year in paperback, is described as “a song for the unsung hero” and “a bittersweet story about stoicism, dignity and a man leaving behind the work that he loves,” with illustrations by Weeks.
Over on the midweek singles chart, Lewis Capaldi’s “Pointless” (Vertigo) leapfrogs Raye’s current leader, “Escapsim” (Human Re Sources), in what’s shaping as a tight race.
All will be revealed when the Official Charts are published late Friday.