Music

20 Dec 2022

SZA Debuts 20 Songs From ‘SOS’ on Hot 100, Rules Artist 100 for First Time

SZA debuts a whopping 20 songs from her sophomore LP SOS, on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (dated Dec. 24), including two in the top 10. The set launches at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, marking her first leader and sparking her first week atop the Billboard Artist 100 ranking.

SOS arrives at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 318,000 equivalent album units earned, according to Luminate. That’s the seventh-largest one-week total of the year and the second-biggest among R&B albums, after only the first week of Beyonce’s Renaissance (332,000, Aug. 13).

SZA scores her third Billboard 200 entry, after her debut LP Ctrl reached No. 3 in 2017 and EP Z peaked at No. 39 in 2014.

Of the 23 tracks on SOS, 20 debut on the Hot 100, including two in the top 10: “Kill Bill” (No. 3) and “Nobody Gets Me” (No. 10). Meanwhile “Shirt” jumps from No. 62 to No. 18 after reaching No. 11 in November. The two other songs on the album, “I Hate U” and “Good Days,” peaked at Nos. 7 and 9, respectively, in 2021.

Here’s a recap of SZA’s songs on the latest Hot 100 (all of which are debuts except where noted):

Hot 100 Rank, Title

  • No. 3, “Kill Bill”
  • No. 10, “Nobody Gets Me”
  • No. 12, “Blind”
  • No. 18, “Shirt” (up from No. 62; reached No. 11 in November)
  • No. 21, “Love Language”
  • No. 24, “Seek & Destroy”
  • No. 29, “Snooze”
  • No. 30, “Used,” feat. Don Toliver
  • No. 32, “SOS”
  • No. 37, “Special”
  • No. 40, “Ghost in the Machine,” feat. Phoebe Bridgers
  • No. 43, “Gone Girl”
  • No. 44, “Notice Me”
  • No. 52, “Smoking on My Ex Pack”
  • No. 54, “Open Arms,” feat. Travis Scott
  • No. 55, “F2F”
  • No. 58, “Conceited”
  • No. 61, “Far”
  • No. 62, “Too Late”
  • No. 76, “Forgiveless,” feat. Ol’ Dirty Bastard

“Kill Bill” and “Nobody Gets Me” earn SZA her sixth and seventh Hot 100 top 10s. She also ups her career totals to 23 top 40 hits and 37 overall entries. She first charted in July 2017 with “Love Galore,” featuring Travis Scott (No. 32 peak).

Among the new album’s featured artists, Phoebe Bridgers notches her first top 40 Hot 100 hit, after reaching No. 43 in 2021 as featured on Taylor Swift’s “Nothing New (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” and No. 57 in 2020 with Maggie Rogers on their cover of Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris.” Plus, Ol’ Dirty Bastard returns to the Hot 100 for the first time since 2004, adding his eighth solo entry in a history on the chart (he earned two additional chart hits as a member of Wu Tang Clan — “Method Man” in 1993 and “C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me)” in 1994).

Meanwhile, SOS spurs SZA’s 42-1 vault on the Artist 100, as she rules as the top musical act in the U.S. for the first time. Also contributing to her reign is Ctrl, which rises 35-28 on the Billboard 200 (23,000 units, up 17%). With 288 weeks to-date, it’s the second-longest-charting R&B album by a woman in the list’s history, after Rihanna’s ANTI (346 weeks and counting).

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.

20 Dec 2022

Martin Duffy, Primal Scream Keyboardist, Dies at 55

Martin Duffy, the keyboardist for iconic Scottish alt-rock band Primal Scream, has died. He was 55.

Primal Scream frontman Bobby Gillespie announced his bandmate’s death in a lengthy social media tribute on Tuesday (Dec. 20), revealing that Duffy had died from a brain injury after falling at his home on Sunday (Dec. 18) in Brighton, England.

“We in Primal Scream are all so sad,” Gillespie wrote on Instagram, noting that he had known Duffy since he was a teenager in the indie band Felt. “He played keyboards on every album of ours from the first to the last. Finally joining the band in 1991. Martin was a very special character. He had a love and understanding of music on a deep spiritual level. Music meant everything to him.”

Duffy was born on May 18, 1967, in Birmingham, England. He joined Felt at the age of 16 in the mid-1980s before the group signed with Creation Records. Duffy was a member of the band until its split in 1989.

During his time in Felt, Duffy also joined recording sessions for Primal Scream’s first two albums, Sonic Flower Groove (1987) and Primal Scream (1989). He was a full-time member of the U.K. rock outfit by the release of its critically acclaimed 1991 album, Screamadelica. Decades later, Duffy contributed to frontman Gillespie’s 2021 collaborative album, Utopian Ashes, with Savages singer Jehnny Beth.

Following the death of The Charlatans‘ founding member Rob Collins in 1996, Duffy stepped in to perform with the veteran groove-rockers when the band supported Oasis at a concert in Knebworth that summer. He also contributed to the Charlatans’ 1997 album, Tellin’ Stories.

“Another tragic loss of a beautiful soul,” Charlatans frontman Tim Burgess wrote on Twitter. “Martin Duffy stepped in to save The Charlatans when we lost Rob – he played with us at Knebworth and was a true friend. He toured with me in my solo band too – he was a pleasure to spend time with. Safe travels Duffy.”

Duffy collaborated with numerous other musicians during his career, including Beth Orton, Chemical Brothers, Paul Weller and Jessie Buckley. He also released a solo album, Assorted Promenades, in 2014.

“Martin was the most musically talented of all of us,” Gillespie wrote. “His style combined elements of country, blues and soul, all of which he had a God given natural feel for. He never played the same thing twice, ever. He was all about ‘the moment’, better have that ‘record’ button on when Duffy was on fire. His timing was unique, funky and ALWAYS behind the beat.”

See Primal Scream’s full tribute below.

20 Dec 2022

Shania Twain Excited About ‘Queen of Me’ Ushering in ‘Renaissance’ Period: ‘I Feel a Renewed Confidence’

Shania Twain‘s been knocked down, several times, but she’s gotten up again. And as she prepares to release her first album in more than five years, Queen of Me (Feb. 3), the queen of country pop is feeling like her old self. After an extended break in the early and mid 2000s due to battles with Lyme disease and dysphonia that nearly robbed the singer of her voice — as well as a break-up with her producer/husband Robert John “Mutt” Lange — Twain told People that she’s found love, and her signature shimmering vocals, again.

“I really found such a wonderful life,” Twain told the magazine about her loving relationship with second husband Frédéric Thiébaud, whom she married after learning that husband of 14 years Lange was having an affair with her close friend, Thiébaud’s ex-wife, Marie-Anne. “It’s like a renaissance period for me. To be experiencing it as a relevant artist still, that’s rewarding,” added the singer who is also preparing to launch a global tour in April 2023. “I feel a renewed confidence. I don’t have anything to prove anymore, and I feel freedom in that.”

Twain, 57, the best-selling female country artist of all time with record sales of more than 100 million worldwide thanks to such indelible hits as “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!,” “That Don’t Impress Me Much” and “You’re Still the One” hasn’t released a full-length album since 2017’s Now. After taking an extended break from music for nearly 15 years due to the devastating effects of Lyme disease on her voice, Twain started re-emerging with her “Let’s Go” Las Vegas residency (Dec. 2019-Sept. 2022) and now the first album since her 1993 debut that was not co-written or produced by ex Lange.

“I may not be able to [sing] forever, but right now I’m just enjoying where I am,” said Twain, who was told by doctors that a 2004 tick bite may have led to the Lyme disease that damaged nerves in her vocal cords. After re-learning how to sing and adding in extensive warm-ups and physical therapy, Twain had open-throat surgery in 2018 to strengthen the damaged nerves and the results are an album People said is a testament to her newfound happiness and comfort.

Described as “upbeat [and] empowering,” Queen of Me began as a project to escape the darkness of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was also the first part of a slow-rolling return to form that included a pop-up cameo with Harry Styles during his Coachella set in April and a summer Netflix documentary, Not Just a Girl, that shone a light on her history-making career.

“All these years later, I’m still here, almost in a bigger way,” said Twain, “and I’m embracing it.”

20 Dec 2022

Jennifer Lopez & Ben Affleck Sing a Romantic Duet at a Holiday Party

‘Tis the season of Bennifer. This year, celebrating their first ever Christmas as husband and wife, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez threw a huge Hollywood holiday bash Saturday (Dec. 17), at which they treated guests to a romantic duet of John Legend’s “By Christmas Eve.”

The adorable moment, captured on video by one of the partygoers, begins with the Gone Girl actor going at the song solo — and earning laughs from his guests when he, struggling slightly to keep up, instructs an accompanying pianist to “go slow.” That’s when J. Lo, dazzling in a sparkly dress, joins in.

“Make a wish, close your eyes and believe,” the pair sings into the same microphone, the final lines of Legend’s A Legendary Christmas track. “I’ll be home, home, home, home, home by Christmas Eve.”

Afterward, the Marry Me actress wraps Affleck in a tight hug and kisses him. In another video taken of the moment, she’s seen telling the other guests: “That’s my baby’s favorite Christmas song.”

A third video reveals that a group singalong of “Jingle Bells” also went down. And, per E! News, Lopez also sang her own hit song “On the Floor” as guests helped themselves to pizza, hot cocoa and a gingerbread replica of the couple’s house.

Everyone from Kim Kardashian to Billie Eilish to Doja Cat was in attendance at Bennifer’s big bash, according to People.

Affleck and Lopez’s first Christmas party as married couple has been long in the making. The two were originally engaged in 2002 before breaking up in 2004, only to get back together in 2021. They tied the knot in July of this year, and had a second wedding ceremony in Georgia the next month.

20 Dec 2022

The 25 Best Latin Songs of 2022: Staff Picks

Latin music experienced another incredible year, and to highlight the genre’s global appeal, Billboard compiled 25 of the best songs released this year, according to our Latin editors.

The coveted year-end list brings to the forefront how experimental some artists got in 2022, led by Bad Bunny with his eclectic dembow “Tití Me Preguntó.” Currently No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart, the MAG-produced combination of dembow and reggaetón perfectly embraces Dominican culture and the teteo lifestyle. Manuel Turizo matched him, though, showcasing how the Colombian pop-urban star dipped his toes in the bachata genre with his No. 1 Tropical Airplay hit “La Bachata,” helmed by Latin hitmaker Edgar Barrera.

Karol G and Rauw Alejandro are other great examples of artists who have stepped outside their comfort zones this year, and released bangers as a result — the former with her Ovy on the Drums-produced electronic track “Provenza,” and the latter with his alternative new-wave song “Dime Quien????” Música Mexicana is also well-represented on our list, including Camilo and Grupo Firme’s clever “Alaska,” Natanael Cano’s unapologetic “Que Me Importa” with newcomer Victor Cibrian, and Carin León’s heartfelt country-tinged track “ “No es por acá,” to name a few.

And of course, we couldn’t leave behind those certified hits that, fueled by their success on TikTok, have rocketed onto the Billboard charts this year, such as Lasso’s pop rock hit “Ojos Marrones,” Grupo Frontera’s norteño cover of Morat’s 2019 “No Se Va” and Yahritza y Su Esencia’s “Soy El Unico,” which earned the then 15-year-old lead vocalist, Yahritza Martinez, the title of the youngest Latin artist to have a Hot 100 hit.

Here are our 25 favorite Latin songs from this year, in alphabetical order.  

20 Dec 2022

Elton John’s ‘Yellow Brick Road’ Journey in Billboard’s Back Pages: From ‘Silly’ Upstart to Undeniable Icon

Sir Elton John, who recently performed at Dodger Stadium for the final U.S. show of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road trek, is now within striking distance of the Billboard Boxscore record for highest-grossing tour. He says it’s his last. Billboard has charted the Rocket Man’s ascent and journey through the pop culture firmament since his first Hot 100 top 10, “Your Song,” to his latest, “Hold Me Closer” with Britney Spears.

It’s a Little Bit Funny…

Before “Border Song” crossed over to the Hot 100, Billboard took in John’s career-making U.S. debut at the Los Angeles Troubadour for the Sept. 5, 1970, issue and remarked on his “Southern Comfort style” vocals. By the Nov. 28 issue, “Your Song” was climbing the Hot 100, but Billboard wasn’t fully on board. “Elton John faces a major decision in his short career. Does he abandon his valid musical skills in favor of being a ‘stage freak?’ ” sniped one writer, who sniffed at “cheap, silly” antics like “banging the keyboard with his boot.” We hope you don’t mind that we put this down in words, Sir Elton.

Bennie and the Jet Set

By the time the rocker appeared at the Hollywood Bowl in 1973 with “a torrent of homing pigeons” and “none other than Linda Lovelace of Deep Throat fame,” the Oct. 6 issue was more supportive of his “unusually flamboyant” and “high-energy piano-vocal stylings.” In the next issue, an MCA Records executive reported that the double album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was enjoying the label’s “biggest initial orders to date.”

Captain Fantastic

By 1976, John was omnipresent. “’Pinball Wizard’ by Elton John I can play once an hour, and half an hour later get four or five phone requests for it,” marveled a Philadelphia DJ in the June 12 issue. In the Aug. 7 issue, a survey of radio listeners who regularly bought records revealed John was “a clear favorite with 27.8% of the respondents.” In the July 31 Billboard, his name was used as shorthand for rock n’ roll itself: “Steve Ford, son of President Ford, is showing up at more rock shows than Elton John these days.”

Still Standing — And Thriving

By the mid-1990s, John had been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and won an Academy Award. And as reported in the Oct. 11, 1997, issue, John’s tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales, “Candle in the Wind 1997,” “blew away the previous record for largest SoundScan week” by selling “nearly 3.5 million singles its first week.” The following year, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

Can You Feel the Love Tonight?

In 1992, John started a pioneering HIV/ AIDS nonprofit. Sharing the Oct. 24, 2015, Billboard cover with his friend Lady Gaga, John wrote, “I believe with all my heart that in my lifetime I will have seen the very first day, and also the very last day, of the AIDS epidemic.” Gaga was inspired. “When I’m with him,” she told Billboard, “I just want to be a part of his genius plan to save the world.”

This story originally appeared in the Dec. 17, 2022, issue of Billboard.

20 Dec 2022

The 25 Best K-Pop Songs of 2022: Staff Picks

After a decade of counting down the year’s best K-pop songs at Billboard, 2022 brought refreshing and remarkable shifts in how these lists usually shape up.

Undeniably, this was the year of the girl group. More than half of 2022’s entries are from female troupes who now lead the scene in taste and trends. From established queens like Girls’ Generation and KARA celebrating milestone anniversaries to rising rookies including IVE, NewJeans, and LE SSERAFIM kicking in the industry door, the spectrum for excellence ran the gamut.

That’s not to say the boys weren’t bringing their best. In fact, cuts from BIGBANG, Zico, BTS, plus Ha Sung Woon and Jimin blew up big time without traditional music videos or typical promotional tactics. Even for those tracks riding on a viral trend, these were expressions of the artists that audiences won’t look back on as novelty tracks or cringey viral sensations best left as clips on TikTok.

Not to mention, K-pop has more eyes on it than ever worldwide, and it seemed like the artists delivered knowing the world was watching. Stray Kids and (G)I-DLE shared personal and powerful messages in their biggest singles yet, while BLACKPINK spotlighted how traditional Korean instruments fit inside their latest pop anthem.

2022 was the time for K-pop artists to express themselves vocally, thematically and artistically in ways previously seen, and it undoubtedly paid off in full. Read on to see who we think did it the best with Billboard‘s list of the 25 best K-pop songs of the year.

20 Dec 2022

Terry Hall, Lead Singer of British Ska Revivalists The Specials, Dies at 63

Terry Hall, the charismatic lead vocalist of British ska revivalists The Specials has died at 63. The band announced Hall’s passing on Monday (Dec. 19), revealing that the singer passed after an undisclosed “brief illness.”

“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing, following a brief illness, of Terry, our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and lyricists this country has ever produced,” the band said in a statement.

“Terry was a wonderful husband and father and one of the kindest, funniest, and most genuine of souls. His music and his performances encapsulated the very essence of life… the joy, the pain, the humour, the fight for justice, but mostly the love. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him and leaves behind the gift of his remarkable music and profound humanity.”

One of the leading lights of the late ’70s British ska revival, the Specials (originally billed as Special AKA) formed in Coventry, England in 1977, with Hall replacing original singer Tim Strickland in the group notable for its multi-racial makeup. Coinciding with the burgeoning Rock Against Racism movement in the UK at the time, the band made a statement in their rude boy two-tone suits and porkpie hats and blasted out of the gate on their Elvis Costello-produced self-titled debut on their 2 Tone label, which featured their signature cover of Dandy Livingstone’s 1967 single “A Message To You Rudy.”

Terence Edward Hall was born on March 19, 1959 in Coventry and began his singing career in local punk bands as a teenager before joining the Specials and splitting vocal duties with the excitable Neville Staple.

On such pointedly political songs as “Concrete Jungle,” “Ghost Town and “Rat Race,” the band mixed Caribbean sway, ska horns, loungey grooves and Jamaican rhythms to form a uniquely uplifting, danceable sound while delivering sharp social critiques about the late 1970s political, racial and economic struggles in the UK. Go-Gos guitarist Jane Wiedlin — who sang backing vocals on the Specials’ 1980 album More Specials — paid tribute to her friend in a touching tweet.

“Gutted to hear of the passing of #terryhall. He was a lovely, sensitive, talented and unique person,” he wrote. “Our extremely brief romance resulted in the song ‘Our Lips Are Sealed,’ which will forever tie us together in music history. Terrible news to hear this.”

The group scored a string of UK top 10 singles in their short initial run (1979-1981), before Hall and co-vocalist Staple and guitarist Lynval Golding split to form the more pop-oriented group Fun Boy Three. Hall then formed the group the Coclourfield in 1984, releasing two albums with that project before pivoting to release an album with his trio featuring actress Blair Booth and jeweler Anouchka Grose: Terry, Blair & Anouchka. He also recorded an album of electro pop songs with Eurythmics co-founder Dave Stewart as Vegas in 1992 before releasing a pair of solo albums, Home (1994) and Laugh (1997).

Hall returned for a reunion in 2008 and performed on-and-off with the band until his death, appearing on their eight studio album, 2019’s Encore.

In the early 2000s Hall sang on the 2001 Gorillaz song “911” and sat in on the Toots and the Maytals 2004 Grammy-winning album True Love. Though the Specials formed and reformed a number of times over the years with a wide variety of lineups, Hall will be remembered for the indelible mark he left on their first two albums and the long tail of influence in the band’s music, message and style, which was carried on in spirit by everyone from Fishbone to the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, No Doubt, Blur, Sublime, and Operation Ivy/Rancid.

In a moving nod to the Specials’ message of unity, the band noted in its tribute that Hall often left the stage at the end of shows by uttering a signature affirming three-word mantra: “Love Love Love.”

Watch “A Message to You Rudy” and see some tributes to Hall below.

20 Dec 2022

Bollywood Ballads, Punjabi Hip-Hop & Cross-Border Pop: What India Listened to In 2022

MUMBAI — In a post-pandemic year when Hindi films finally returned to the cinemas in full force, their soundtracks were expected to claim back some of the audience they lost to “non-film” releases on Indian music streaming services. That didn’t happen. 

In 2022, Bollywood lost some of its clout to movies from south India at the box-office — such as the Oscar-tipped Telugu blockbuster RRR. And on the audio-streaming charts, regional language and independent music proved that the growth of the non-film segment over the last two years wasn’t just a passing fad. 

The past 12 months have shown India’s music industry that a hit can come from just about anywhere, such as a TV series in Pakistan or a Punjabi rapper in Canada. Or even from a pathologist and part-time Hindi singer in Chandigarh like Aditya A., whose two-year-old song “Chaand Baaliyaan” went viral on Instagram Reels, reached No. 5 on Spotify for the year and landed him a deal with Sony Music India.

Billboard’s look at the most-played (and viewed) tracks of 2022 on Apple Music, Spotify and YouTube in India highlights the ways in which the country’s consumption patterns are evolving and how the nation, with its continent-like range of states and languages, is among the most dynamic music markets in the world.

International music’s share is shrinking

A sole English-language track, short format video sensation “Heat Waves” by Glass Animals, is on Spotify’s year-end top 10. None appear on Apple Music, on which “Heat Waves” was also the most-heard international song of 2022 (it’s in the top 15 on the platform). A year ago hits in non-Indian languages represented 40% of 2021’s top 10 tunes on both services. However, this doesn’t mean that listenership of international music is falling. As Spotify and Apple Music — global platforms whose early adopters were English-speaking users in large cities — expand their customer bases in India, consumption is increasing in absolute terms, even though the overall share of foreign tracks on the services is decreasing. Significantly, international hits account for nearly 30% of Spotify’s top 100 of 2022. Short format video fueled the streaming success of a majority of these songs, such as Ruth B.’s “Dandelions” from 2017 and Elley Duhé’s “Middle Of The Night” from 2020.

Bollywood isn’t as big as it used to be

Bollywood or Hindi film music’s share of overall listenership has been steadily falling over the last three years and this is reflected once again in 2022’s biggest hits. The percentage of Bollywood songs in Spotify’s year-end top 10 fell from 80% in 2020 to 30% this year, a proportion that includes two older tracks, “Raataan Lambiyan” and “Ranjha” from Shershaah, which were No. 1 and No. 2 for all of 2021. This time, the highest-ranked Hindi film hit is another ballad, “Kesariya” from Brahmastra, at No. 3. On Apple Music’s year-end top 10, the decline has been more gradual, from 50% in 2020 to 40% in 2021 and 30% in 2022, a share made up of the aforementioned “Ranjha” and “Kesariya” and “Doobey” from Gehraiyaan. Surprisingly, there’s not a single Bollywood smash in YouTube’s list of top 10 music videos, which only lists 2022 releases. There were two in 2020 and in 2021 when the No. 1 video of the year was “Lut Gaye” from the movie Mumbai Saga.

Regional language music rules YouTube

The consumption of music in Indian regional languages — songs in languages apart from Hindi, Urdu and English — has been increasing exponentially as internet penetration rises and streaming services gain users across the country’s smaller cities, towns and rural areas. Regional language music streamers’ first port of call is YouTube on which the 2022 top 10 includes tracks in Tamil (the official music and lyric videos of “Arabic Kuthu” from the film Beast), Haryanvi (“Kacha Badam”, a remake of a viral Bengali hit), Bhojpuri (“Le Le Aayi Coca Cola” and “Nathuyina”), Telugu (“Oo Antava Mawa Oo Oo Antava” from the movie Pushpa: The Rise) and Punjabi (“Pasoori” from the Pakistani version of music TV series Coke Studio). Notably, the three Hindi tracks that make up the rest of the chart — “Srivalli,” “Saami Saami” and “Oo Bolega Ya Oo Oo Bolega” — are dubbed versions of Telugu tunes from the soundtrack of Pushpa, an action drama that was also released in Kannada, Malayalam and Tamil.

Punjabi music has crossed over into the mainstream

Out of all of India’s regional languages, Punjabi music has the largest listenership, thanks partly to its similarity to Hindi. Over the last two decades, it’s become increasingly common for Hindi film songs to have Punjabi lyrics. Punjabi’s music popularity has even spread to parts of the country where it isn’t widely spoken. Evidence of this is seen on Apple Music’s top 10 for 2022 on which Punjabi hits comprise the top eight. Five of them feature Canadian hip-hop artist A. P. Dhillon whose breakthrough smash “Brown Munde” was No. 1 for 2021 and whose “Excuses” was No. 1 all this year. “Excuses” tops Spotify’s list too. But the Punjabi music party is not limited to one act. “No Love” by Canadian rapper and singer Shubh is No. 4 on Spotify and “Bijlee Bijlee” by pop singer and actor Harrdy Sandhu is No. 7 on Apple Music.   

“Pasoori” proves a cross-border sensation

Strained relations between India and Pakistan have led to a ban on Indian films in Pakistan and a similar restriction on the hiring of Pakistani actors and singers in India. But when it comes to the charts, both nations love thy neighbor. The only hit to feature across the year-end top 10s of Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube is “Pasoori” by singer-composer Ali Sethi, vocalist Shae Gill and producer Zulfiqar ‘Xulfi’ Jabbar Khan. The song, created for the fourteenth season of Coke Studio Pakistan. “Pasoori,” was the third highest streamed track on Indian streaming platform Wynk Music after “Kesariya” and “Arabic Kuthu.” It was also the most-played tune on Amazon Music in India, which is currently available only to subscribers of its Prime service. Conversely, Indian hip-hop stars A. P. Dhillon, Shubh and King feature in the top 10 of 2022 on Spotify in Pakistan.

Top 10 Songs of 2022 on Spotify in India

1. “Excuses”, A. P. Dhillon, Gurinder Gill and Intense, Run-Up Records

2. “Pasoori” (from Coke Studio Pakistan 14), Shae Gill and Ali Sethi, Giraffe Pakistan

3. “Kesariya” (from Brahmastra), Pritam, Arijit Singh and Amitabh Bhattacharya, Sony Music

4. “No Love,” Shubh

5. “Chaand Baaliyan,” Aditya A., Sony Music

6. “Raataan Lambiyan” (from Shershaah), Tanishk Bagchi, Jubin Nautiyal and Asees Kaur, Sony Music

7. “Heat Waves,” Glass Animals, Polydor

8. “Tu Aake Dekhle,” King, Kingsclan Records

9. “Arabic Kuthu – Halamithi Habibo” (from Beast), Anirudh Ravichander, Jonita Gandhi and Sivakarthikeyan, Sun Pictures

10. “Ranjha” (from Shershaah), Jasleen Royal and B. Praak, Sony Music

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Top 10 Songs of 2022 on Apple Music in India

1. “Excuses,” A. P. Dhillon, Gurinder Gill and Intense, Run-Up Records

2. “Desires,” A. P. Dhillon and Gurinder Gill, Run-Up Records

3. “Pasoori” (from Coke Studio Pakistan 14), Shae Gill and Ali Sethi, Giraffe Pakistan

4. “Insane,” A. P. Dhillon, Shinda Kahlon, Gurinder Gill and Gminxr, Run-Up Records

5. “Ranjha” (from Shershaah), Jasleen Royal and B. Praak, Sony Music

6. “Spaceship,” A. P. Dhillon, Shinda Kahlon and Gminxr, Run-Up Records

7. “Bijlee Bijlee,” Harrdy Sandhu, B. Praak and Jaani, Desi Melodies/Universal Music

8. “Tere Te,” A. P. Dhillon and Gurinder Gill, Run-Up Records 

9. “Kesariya” (from Brahmastra), Pritam, Arijit Singh and Amitabh Bhattacharya, Sony Music

10. “Doobey” (from Gehraiyaan), OAFF, Savera, Lothika and Kausar Munir, Sony Music

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Top 10 Music Videos of 2022 on YouTube in India

1. “Srivalli” (from Pushpa: The Rise), Devi Sri Prasad, Javed Ali and Raqueeb Alam, T-Series

2. “Arabic Kuthu – Halamithi Habibo – Lyric Video” (from Beast), Anirudh Ravichander, Jonita Gandhi and Sivakarthikeyan, Sun Pictures

3. “Saami Saami” (from Pushpa: The Rise), Devi Sri Prasad, Sunidhi Chauhan and Raqueeb Alam, T-Series

4. “Kacha Badam,” Bhuban Badyakar and Amit Dhull, Bajewala Records

5. “Le Le Aayi Coca Cola,” Khesari Lal Yadav, Shilpi Raj, Prakash Barud and Sarvind Malhar, Gannayak Films

6. “Oo Bolega Ya Oo Oo Bolega” (from Pushpa: The Rise), Devi Sri Prasad, Kanika Kapoor and Raqueeb Alam, T-Series

7. “Oo Antava Mawa Oo Oo Antava” (from Pushpa: The Rise), Devi Sri Prasad, Indravathi Chauhan and Chandrabose, Aditya Music

8. “Pasoori” (from Coke Studio Pakistan 14), Shae Gill and Ali Sethi, Giraffe Pakistan

9. “Arabic Kuthu – Halamithi Habibo” (from Beast), Anirudh Ravichander, Jonita Gandhi and Sivakarthikeyan, Sun Pictures

10. “Nathuyina,” Khesari Lal Yadav, Priyanka Singh, Krishna Bedardi, Laxmikant-Pyarelal and Majrooh Sultanpuri, Saregama

20 Dec 2022

Dave Grohl and P!nk Light Up Night Two of 2022 ‘Hanukkah Sessions’ With Rocking ‘Get the Party Started’

If night two is this rockin’, how are we even going to make it six more crazy nights? For the second installment of this holiday season’s “Hanukkah Sessions,” Foo Fighters boss Dave Grohl and producer Greg Kurstin roped in P!nk for a raucous run through the singer’s 2001 smash “Get the Party Started.”

“One of the music world’s biggest and brightest stars of David, P!nk shows a couple of schmendricks how it’s done by joining us for her very own Bat Mitzvah staple ‘Get The Party Started!,’” read the description of the clip.

P!nk, dressed down in ripped green pants and a blue denim shirt worked the tiny stage at L.A. club Largo backed by Grohl on drums and Kurstin on keys, hilariously flubbing a few lines from the single on her second album, Missundaztood, while getting a bit of forceful backup vocal assistance from one of the night’s other special guests, Jack Black.

This is Grohl and Kurstin’s third year posting eight nights of covers of songs made famous by Jewish musicians. In a twist, this year’s efforts were all recorded live at Los Angeles’ intimate Largo on Dec. 5 with a cast of all-star guests taking the stage at the 250-capacity club that also included the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Karen O and Grohl’s 16-year-old daughter, Violet. Night one featured beloved director Judd Apatow rocking through a cover of Blood, Sweat & Tears’ 1969 Grammy-nominated Billboard Hot 100 No. 2 hit “Spinning Wheel.”

Grohl and Kurstin released the first “Sessions” in Dec. 2020 in the midst of the first winter of the COVID-19 pandemic, dropping one new cover for each night of the holiday. In the midst of a concerning rise in antisemitic incidents and hate speech in the U.S., proceeds from the Largo night went to the Anti-Defamation League.

The inaugural 2020 “Sessions” featured covers of songs by he Beastie Boys, Drake, Mountain, Peaches, Bob Dylan, Elastica, The Knack and the Velvet Underground, while last year’s edition brought eight crazy nights of covers, including a black metal take on Lisa Loeb’s “Stay (I Missed You),” as well as the Ramones’ “Blitzkrieg Bop,” Barry Manilow’s “Copacabana (At the Copa),” the Clash’s “Train in Vain,” Kiss’ “Rock and Roll All Nite,” Van Halen’s “Jump,” Amy Winehouse’s “Take the Box” and Billy Joel’s “Big Shot.”

Watch P!nk get the party started below.