Trending Up
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
This week: Fan support for a 2000s TV icon has resulted in her 15-year-old album likely recharting next week, while a soundtrack synch sets off a revival of a late-’80s pop classic and TikTok embraces a Rihanna hit that never was.
Heidi Montag’s ‘Superficial’ Goes Viral to Aid Recovery From Palisades Fire
Reality star Heidi Montag can now add pop star to her resume. Montag and husband Spencer Pratt, best known for their roles on hit reality TV show The Hills, lost their home in the Palisades wildfire last week. Pratt took to TikTok to share the devastating news, and to direct viewers to stream and purchase Montag’s 15-year-old album Superficial to help the family generate income in the wake of the disaster.
Trending on Billboard
Followers certainly showed up for the couple, pushing Superficial to No. 1 on the iTunes chart over the weekend and into this week with over 6,000 in album sales for the weekend of Jan. 10-12 (up from a negligible number of sales the weekend prior). It also picked up massively on streaming services, growing 740.6% in U.S. on-demand streams to over 800,000 from the first weekend of January to the second. If it maintains its performance, it could make a bow on the Billboard 200 next week — which would be Superficial‘s first appearance on the chart. — KRISTIN ROBINSON
‘Babygirl’ Milk Drinkers are Lapping Up George Michael’s ‘Father Figure,’ Too
Babygirl, Halina Reijn’s new erotic thriller/dark comedy starring Nicole Kidman as a powerful CEO who indulges in her sexual fantasies with her intern (played by Harris Dickinson), has not only served as Kidman’s latest bravura turn with Oscar buzz, but is also being meme’d ad nauseam by cinephiles who are sick of talking about the turtle in Conclave. One particular sequence that has been hoisted up by the Internet involves Dickinson dancing shirtless to “Father Figure,” the iconic No. 1 smash by George Michael, in a hotel room, while Kidman watches from afar.
Following the film’s wide release on Christmas Day, “Father Figure” has not only picked up steam on streaming services thanks to the Babygirl scene, but also with Michael’s 1987 smash soundtracking various TikTok mash-ups, from those trying to recreate Dickinson’s dance moves to others who want to anoint Pedro Pascal as the ultimate “father figure” (read: zaddy). In any event, “Father Figure” earned 358,000 U.S. on-demand streams during the week ending Dec. 26, according to Luminate, and that weekly streaming total had more than doubled two weeks later, to 984,000 streams in the week ending Jan. 9. Who knows? With the film’s pivotal scene of Kidman’s character drinking a glass of milk, maybe U.S. dairy sales are on the rise, too. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
Nearly 18 Years Later, Rihanna’s ‘Good Girl Gone Bad’ Is Still Churning Out Hits
Even though she’s popped up for a Black Panther song or two, it’s still been nearly nine years since Anti – Rihanna‘s last studio album. Like most Rihanna album’s, Anti produced a plethora of hits, and that’s a trend Riri began with 2007’s Good Girl Gone Bad. That album housed “Umbrella” (No. 1, seven weeks); “Shut Up And Drive” (No. 15); “Hate That I Love You” (No. 7); “Don’t Stop the Music” (No. 3); “Rehab” (No. 18); “Take A Bow” (No. 1) and “Disturbia” (No. 1). Now, nearly 18 years later, another Good Girl track is looking to join those ranks: the Christopher “Tricky” Stewart-produced, The-Dream-penned “Breakin’ Dishes.”
According to Luminate, “Breakin’ Dishes” has steadily risen in streams over the past month. In the week preceding Christmas (Dec. 13-19, 2024), the track pulled over 2.37 million official on-demand U.S. streams. Though streaming activity dipped during the holiday week (Dec. 20-26) — earning 2.25 million streams, down 5.2% — the following week produced its biggest week-over-week streaming increase of the month. During the week of Dec. 27-Jan. 2, streams for “Dishes” soared 22% to over 2.7 million streams. By the following week (Jan. 3-9), streams rose by a furter 5.7% to just over 2.9 million streams.
Although “Breakin’ Dishes” — like the bulk of RiRi’s catalog – isn’t available on TikTok as an official sound, fan uploads have kept the song in near-constant circulation on the platform. Across three different sounds ranging from 40,000 to 280,000 posts each, users have hopped on three distinct trends attached to “Dishes.” First, some users use the song’s “A man, a man, a ma-e-a-a-an” refrain to show off their boyfriends’ strength by having them lift them up on one shoulder. Another set of users have used the song to make edits of their favorite characters from media like Squid Game and various Disney films; other users have used “Dishes” sounds to explain that the song is about “female rage” and not love.
Regardless of how they found their way to “Breakin’ Dishes,” fans are discovering Rihanna’s deep cuts and falling in love with them as if they’re new singles. — KYLE DENIS
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
This week: Timothée Chalamet helps get Bob Dylan rolling on streaming, one of basketball’s Ball brothers goes supernova on social media, a late dance great sees streaming gains from a new documentary and more.
The Streams, They Are a-Boomin’: Bob Dylan’s Catalog Soars Thanks to ‘A Complete Unknown’
A Complete Unknown, James Mangold’s new Bob Dylan biopic starring Timothée Chalamet, has spent the past few weeks scoring raves from critics, posting top 10 box office receipts and earning Oscar buzz, with Chalamet zooming into the Best Actor race thanks to his portrayal of the music icon during the first half of the 1960s. With the film going into wide release on Dec. 25, Unknown has helped Dylan’s storied catalog receive a huge spike on streaming services since Christmas Day, with listeners putting away their holiday playlists and picking up Highway 61 Revisited.
Trending on Billboard
During the week ending Dec. 26, Dylan’s catalog earned 11.6 million U.S. on-demand streams, according to Luminate; that number leapt to 20.2 million streams the following week (ending Jan. 2), in the first full tracking week since the film’s wide release. Compared to Dylan’s streaming numbers from one month earlier, in which his catalog earned 8.1 million streams in the week ending Dec. 5, A Complete Unknown has helped the legend’s weekly streaming numbers grow by roughly 150%.
Meanwhile, some of Dylan’s early classic songs (which Chalamet sings himself in the film) have gotten replayed since its release, with listeners wanting to either revisit or discover the original versions. “Like a Rolling Stone” earned 1.64 million streams in the week ending Jan. 2, a 232% increase from its streaming total five weeks ago (494,000 during the week ending Nov. 28). Meanwhile, “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times They Are a-Changin’” posted streaming jumps of 215% and 174%, respectively, from their weekly totals during the last full tracking week of November. With the Academy Awards nominations being announced next Friday (Jan. 17) and the Oscars scheduled for Mar. 2, these streaming numbers may stay boosted — or keep climbing — for a few more months. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
G3 Gelo (aka LiAngelo Ball) Scores 2025’s First Viral Smash
There’s hitting the ground running, and then there’s scoring the first viral track of the year just three days in. G3 Gelo, aka LiAngelo Ball, knows a thing or two about the latter.
After a snippet of “Tweaker” went viral in late December, Gelo – the second of basketball’s three Ball Brothers, along with guards Lonzo and LaMelo of the Chicago Bulls and Charlotte Hornets, respectively — uploaded the full thing to WorldStarHipHop’s YouTube channel, with DSP uploads following soon after.
The early ’00s hip-hop-indebted track has increased in streams every day since its official release on Jan. 3. By its fourth day of release, streaming activity for “Tweaker” jumped a jaw-dropping 871% from where it was upon its debut. The song earned over 1.83 million official on-demand U.S. streams on Jan. 6 versus 188,000 streams on Jan. 3.
Already given the stamp of approval by sports teams across the country, a few hip-hop heavyweights are also co-signing G3 Gelo’s breakout hit; both Boosie Badazz and Moneybagg Yo have asked Gelo to send them an open verse. What’s more? A newscaster has already referenced “Tweaker” live on the air! With so much momentum and little competition from 2025 hip-hop releases at the moment, the coast is clear for “Tweaker” to reign in the coming weeks. – KYLE DENIS
Avicii’s Catalog Surges in Streams After New Documentary
The Avicii catalog experienced a significant streaming surge following the release of a new documentary about the late artist.
In the wake of the Dec. 31 release of I’m Tim on Netflix, global on-demand streams of the Swedish producer’s catalog increased by 63.9%, according to Luminate. The artist’s catalog had a total of 26.4 streams in the four days preceding the film’s release, Dec. 27-30, with this number rising to 43.3 million from Dec. 31-Jan. 3.
The streaming surge has been especially pronounced for three of Avicii’s biggest songs: 2013’s “Wake Me Up” (featuring Aloe Blacc) has experienced a 47.1% increase in global on-demand streams; 2015’s “The Nights” has seen a 27.6% increase; and 2011’s “Levels” has had a 68.2% increase. – KATIE BAIN
Read more about the I’m Tim documentary and Avicii’s related streaming gains here.
‘Mufasa’ Soundtrack Roars Into the New Year with Multiple Streaming Hits
After losing out to Sonic 3 in its debut week at the domestic box office, Mufasa – the Barry Jenkins-helmed prequel to 2019’s Oscar-nominated photorealistic remake of the 1994 classic – climbed to the summit, becoming America’s first No. 1 movie of 2025. Helping Mufasa sustain its box office pull: the stunning streaming success of its soundtrack, led by Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr., who are in the midst of a viral press tour.
According to Luminate, the Mufasa soundtrack pulled 1.02 million official on-demand U.S. streams in its first week of release (ending Dec. 19). That figure jumped 224% the following week (Dec. 20-26) to over 3.33 million streams. By its third week of release – the same week the film topped the domestic box office – Mufasa’s streams jumped a further 137% to 7.92 million streams.
The breakout hit of the Lin-Manuel Miranda-penned soundtrack is the adorably protective “I Always Wanted a Brother,” performed by Pierre, Harrison, Jr., Theo Somolu and Braelyn Rankins. The Mufasa-Scar duet has consistently been the most-streamed song from the album, logging over 3.17 million streams last week (Dec. 27-Jan. 2). From family-centric TikTok trends to NOLA bounce “trip out” remixes and Pierre’s viral Jennifer Hudson Show spirit tunnel walk, “Brother” is quickly becoming a cultural phenomenon. Pierre also duets with Tiffany Boone on “Tell Me It’s You,” another breakout song from the soundtrack. Streaming activity for their duet has exploded 1,301% over the past two weeks, crossing 1.09 million official on-demand U.S. streams last week (Dec. 27-Jan. 2).
In addition to returning cast members from the 2019 film like Beyoncé and Donald Glover, Mufasa boasts some new additions, including Grammy winner Blue Ivy Carter and BAFTA-nominated actor Mads Mikkelsen. While Carter does not sing in Mufasa, Mikkelsen performs “Bye Bye,” yet another viral cut from the soundtrack, alongside Joanna Jones and Folake Olowofoyeku. “Bye Bye” has jumped over 120% in streaming activity for each of the past two weeks, earning over 1.25 million streams last week (Dec. 27-Jan. 2). – KD
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip. This week: Getting in some of the last viral hits of 2024 — from alt-pop dances to country grief — and a final goodbye to one of the biggest music-boosting melodramas of the last decade.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Lola Young’s ‘Messy’ Cleans Up Thanks to Viral ‘Dance’
Can a dance go viral if it’s barely a dance at all? That’s been the debate raging around Lola Young’s breakthrough single “Messy,” which is zooming up the Billboard Hot 100 thanks in part to a viral clip in which influencer Jake Shane and model/social media star Sofia Richie vibe out to the British singer-songwriter’s vulnerable soul-pop track.
Trending on Billboard
Posted on Nov. 28, the 14-second TikTok clip finds the pair performing some vaguely defined moves, including finger-guns and a half-shimmy, while facing the camera. The comments on the clip are lightly clowning their dance skills, but Young herself approved (“ly guys,” she wrote), and since it was posted, streams of “Messy” have skyrocketed: the song logged 3.9 million official on-demand streams U.S. during the week ending on Nov. 28, according to Luminate, and that numbers more than doubled to 9.1 million streams two weeks later.
While “Messy” moves up from No. 90 to No. 64 on this week’s Hot 100, Young also comes in a few spots higher on the chart with “Like Him,” her collaboration with Tyler, The Creator on his Chromakopia album. Both tracks have greatly expanded Young’s profile as the year comes to a close, and could set up a big 2025 for the South East London native. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
Sam Barber’s “Indigo” Streams Surge Thanks to Mournful TikTok Trend
After breaking through with 2022’s “Straight and Narrow,” Missouri-bred country musician Sam Barber has scored his first Billboard Hot 100 hit with his Avery Anna-assisted “Indigo” (No. 98, chart dated Dec. 21) — and the heart-wrenching duet could fly even higher.
Originally released on Oct. 31, “Indigo” collected over 1.16 million official on-demand U.S. streams during the period of Nov. 29-Dec. 5, according to Luminate. That number jumped nearly 400% to over 5.7 million streams the following week (Dec. 6-12). Over the past week, TikTok users have latched onto the following lyric from the song’s chorus: “I used to shine bright like gold, now I’m all indigo.” Generally about losing your spark, the lyrics have now come to soundtrack grieving parents and partners. On TikTok, the official “Indigo” sound has amassed nearly 95,000 posts.
With strong streaming momentum and an official music video still on the way (as well as a Shaboozey co-sign), “Indigo” could very well grow into one of 2025’s earliest hits once the holiday season passes. – KYLE DENIS
‘Yellowstone’ Finale Offers Closing Bumps for Lainey Wilson Hit and Willie Nelson Classic
It’s a wrap on the second half of Season Five of Yellowstone, with its season finale attracting over 11 million viewers – a record for the show in what is most likely its last-ever episode. No spoilers here for the Paramount Western drama, but as the show has done throughout its five and a half seasons, the finale was heavily stocked with emotional country anthems – including multiple performed within the show by recurring cast members and real-life modern country artists Ryan Bingham (Walker) and Lainey Wilson (Abby).
Wilson took the stage on the Yellowstone finale to perform her 2024 hit “Hang Tight Honey,” which reached No. 61 on the Hot 100 earlier this year, while Bingham performed his Friday-released “A Song for the Stone.” Wilson’s hit saw a major bump following its use in the finale, with the song notching 86,000 official on-demand streams and over 700 digital sales on Monday (Dec. 16), gains of 47% and 2,669% from the prior Monday, according to Lumiante. (As a just-released song, Bingham’s numbers were up a more marginal amount.)
But Yellowstone has never just been for the kids, and the finale also featured prominent usage of Willie Nelson’s 1980 ballad “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys” in its closing. Consequently, the classic was up 162% on Monday from the week before in streams, to just over 35,000. – ANDREW UNTERBERGER
Ceechynaa Spins Streaming Hit Out of Shock-Rap
From Central Cee to Little Simz, the MCs on the other side of pond have been putting in work throughout the year. In the last few weeks of 2024, Ceechynaa made sure that she wasn’t left out of that conversation.
The 20-year-old South London drill rapper made waves in 2023 with “Last Laugh” — which eventually got an NLE Choppa remix – but her new single has already made an even bigger impact. On Dec. 5, she dropped “Peggy” — a jaw-dropping drill track begins with her “peggin’ that man at the back of the bus” and ends with her proclaiming, “They said I’m a masculine bitch ’cause these little n—as ain’t really a man.” Our favorite American female rappers have been proudly waving the sexual liberation flag for decades now, but few go as far as Ceechynaa does on “Peggy.” During the four-day period of Dec. 6-9, “Peggy” earned over 888,000 official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate. By the period of Dec. 13-16, that figure leapt 95% to over 1.7 million streams. In its first week of release, “Peggy” claimed over 1.92 million streams. On YouTube, the track’s official music video has earned over 1.5 million views in just a week and a half – that’s more hits than the music video for the NLE Choppa “Last Laugh” remix earned in 11 months!
Building on her already-solidified online fandom, the official “Peggy” sound plays in over 97,000 TikTok posts, the bulk of which follow children having their parents blindly react to the song’s outrageous lyrics. Already her very first UK Singles Chart entry (No. 79), “Peggy” could help Ceechynaa make her Billboard U.S. chart debut should its streams continue to rise. – KD
Additional reporting by Hannah Dailey.
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip. This week: A number of up-and-coming rappers featured on the late year’s biggest rap release get bumps for their own catalogs, an old emo song becomes a seasonal-sadness singalong and much more.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
L.A. Rappers’ Catalogs Rise Following Major Looks on Kendrick Lamar’s ‘GNX’
Kendrick Lamar’s GNX has already collected impressive wins on the Billboard 200 and Hot 100, but the Compton MC’s surprise album is also helping boost the catalog of its featured L.A. rappers.
Trending on Billboard
“TV Off” blasted in at No. 2 on the Hot 100 (dated Dec. 7), making it the highest-ranking GNX collaboration. Baldwin Park emcee Lefty Gunplay is the guest on that track (“S–t get crazy, scary, spooky, hilarious!), and his own new project, Most Valuable Gangbanger (Nov. 22), ironically coincided with the GNX drop. Thanks to his own new release and the explosive immediate interest in “TV Off,” Lefty’s catalog has spiked 84% in official on-demand U.S. streams the week of GNX’s release (Nov. 22-28) versus the week prior (Nov. 15-21), according to Luminate. In the week following the release of Most Valuable Gangbanger and GNX, Lefty Gunplay’s catalog earned just over 468,000 streams.
The Dody6-assisted “Hey Now” (No. 5), is the other GNX Hot 100 top five hit to feature an L.A. rapper. His appearance on GNX follows a joint project with T.0wee called Make Vernon Great Again from earlier this year. In the week following GNX’s release, streaming activity for Dody’s catalog jumped over 110%, collecting over 336,000 official on-demand U.S. streams. AzChike, who guested on ScHoolboy Q’s Blue Lips back in March, lent his talents to “Peekaboo,” which debuted at No. 13 on the Hot 100. In the week following GNX’s release, AzChike’s catalog pulled in over 916,000 official on-demand U.S. streams, marking a 15% lift in streaming activity.
The GNX title track entered the Hot 100 at No. 24 and features Hitta J3, YoungThreat & Peysoh. Notably, Hitta J3 and Kendrick joined forces back in 2014 alongside YG and Problem (now known as JasonMartin) for the “Do Yo Gudda” remix. Following GNX’s release (Nov. 22-28), Hitta J3’s catalog earned just under 30,000 official on-demand U.S. streams – a whopping 149% increase from the 11,700 streams it collected the week prior. – KYLE DENIS
Mom Jeans Squeezes in a Sentimental Pre-Holidays Viral Hit
Everyone gets a little emotional around Thanksgiving time, right? There’s a lot of family, a lot of old memories, a lot of homesickness for those who can’t get away from their usual lives, maybe a reunion or two for those who can… Maybe that partly explains the timing of Midwest emo band Mom Jeans seeing its acoustic ballad “Scott Pilgrim vs. My GPA,” from 2016’s Best Buds, unexpectedly become one of the hottest songs on TikTok, for a section with the brutal lyrics, “Don’t go back to our old place/ It’s probably locked up anyway/ I bet it still looks the same as when I ran away that day.”
The sound has of course been used by any number of users for emotional lip synch moments over the past few weeks – but it’s also been adapted as a go-to soundtrack for popular nostalgic and/or tear-jerking edits of football and wrestling stars. Consequently, the song debuts at No. 46 on this week’s TikTok Top 50, and has been exploding on streaming services, with the song racking up 2.3 official on-demand U.S. streams for the tracking week ending Nov. 28, according to Luminate – a whopping 1,282% gain from the 165,000 streams it posted three weeks earlier. If TikTok users haven’t worked out their baggage by the holidays, look out – we could see “Scott Pilgrim” elbowing its way in there with all the Bing Crosby and Perry Como. – ANDREW UNTERBERGER
Twerking Trend Helps E.K.E. Earn Viral Hit
Ever the reliable needle-mover, a twerk-centric dance trend has helped an Akon-nodding track explode at streaming this month.
On Nov. 8, TikTok creator @mora2767 posted a dance sequence – featuring lots of twerking and trademark Cali moves – to the tune of E.K.E.’s “Ghetto,” which incorporated elements from the intro of Akon’s 2005 song of the same name. In the week following that video’s initial upload – it has since garnered over 2.4 million views – E.K.E.’s “Ghetto” earned 137,000 official on-demand U.S. streams. That figure leapt but an astounding 711% to over 1.11 million streams the following week since the trend took off on TikTok. The next week, streams increased a further 43% to over streams during Nov. 22-28. Over the past two weeks, streams for “Ghetto” have risen over 1,065%.
The official TikTok sound for “Ghetto” now boasts over 157,000 posts, including one from E.K.E. himself. Back in September, about a month after the song was released (Aug. 2), E.K.E. posted a TikTok attempting to jumpstart his own dance trend for “Ghetto.” While his trend wasn’t the one to take off, his head was always in the right place.
Already off to a No. 14 start on the TikTok Billboard Top 50, expect “Ghetto” to continue rising in the weeks to come. – KD
NLE Choppa’s Latest Horny Hit Finds Its Way to the Hot 100
It’s been a pretty crazy year for NLE Choppa, who has reworked his now-signature hit “Slut Me Out” into multiple sequel incarnations, scored a breakout hit alongside New York crew 41 with the blaring “Or What,” and released one of the wildest short films you’ll see outside of the festival circuit in 2024 with NLE Choppa: The Wash. Now, he’s back with a new single that might be on its way to being his most viral non-collab hit of 2024: the characteristically horny “Gang Baby.”
The new hit, which features the repeat chorus lyric “Let me f–k somethin’” and shows NLE Choppa surrounded by a circle of twerking behinds in the video, has been absolutely exploding on streaming lately, thanks to a dance challenge and other edits that have helped the song become a major TikTok hit, many of which used a slightly sped-up version of the song. After growing 267% in official on-demand U.S. streams over the past five weeks – to 5.7 million official streams for the week ending Nov. 28 – it has now also punctured the Hot 100, reaching No. 98. Clearly, we all observe cuffing season in our own ways. – AU
Welcome to Billboard Pro‘s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
This week: A surprise Kendrick Lamar album is good news for (almost) everyone, the original Wicked cast album keeps rising as the new movie soundtrack also becomes a huge hit and OMB Peezy scores a new-old viral hit.
Kendrick Lamar’s ‘GNX’ Sends Sampled Songs By Luther Vandross, SWV & More Streaming
In the least shocking news of the week, GNX, the surprise new album by Kendrick Lamar, has gotten off to a scorching start on streaming services after dropping out of the sky last Friday (Nov. 22). Through its first four days, GNX earned an eye-popping 242.3 million official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate — never falling below 50 million daily streams through Monday. And the new album is also boosting Lamar’s back catalog aside from GNX, which earned 44.6 million streams from Nov. 22-25, a 10% increase from the same four-day period during the previous week.
Trending on Billboard
Meanwhile, some of the songs sampled across GNX have also enjoyed streaming gains, as listeners peruse the older material that was revived on Lamar’s new LP. With “Squabble Up” eyeing a major debut on the Hot 100 next week, for instance, “When I Hear Music,” the iconic 1984 electro single from Debbie Deb that’s prominently featured in the production, scored a huge boost: 225,000 streams from Nov. 22-25, up 76% from its total from Nov. 15-18 (127,000 streams).
Elsewhere, Luther Vandross’ version of “If This World Were Mine,” which serves as the connective tissue of Lamar’s new SZA collaboration “Luther,” more than doubled its streams from the weekend before GNX arrived (79,000 streams from Nov. 15-18) to last weekend (164,000 streams from Nov. 22-25). And SWV’s 1996 hit “Use Your Heart,” which gets flipped on “Heart Pt. 6,” was also up 25% in streams during those same periods, from 379,000 to 476,000 streams. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
After Bewitching the Global Box Office, Ariana Grande & Cyntha Erivo’s Wicked Soundtrack Soars on Streaming
Wicked – the Jon M. Chu-helmed film adaptation of the 2003 hit Broadway musical – debuted atop the domestic box office with the biggest opening weekend for a Broadway musical adaptation in history ($114 million). The film grossed $164.2 million globally in its first weekend (Nov. 22-25), with strong word of mouth and rave reviews going into Thanksgiving weekend.
Starring Cynthia Erivo (Elphaba) and Ariana Grande (Galinda), Wicked was already spurring streaming increases for the Broadway cast recording before it even hit theaters. In the weekend preceding the film’s release (Nov. 15-18) the original Wicked Broadway cast recording pulled 6.6 million official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate. That number rose by 109% to 13.8 million streams during the film’s opening weekend (Nov. 22-25).
Of course, a new adaptation of Wicked means new interpretations of Stephen Schwartz’s timeless music. Alongside Erivo and Grande, fellow cast members Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Ethan Slater, Peter Dinklage and Michelle Yeoh all lend their voices to the soundtrack. “Defying Gravity,” the song that closes the first act of the musical, is easily the most widely known Wicked song, hence the impressive early performance of Erivo and Grande’s version. Streams for their “Gravity” take remained above one million, increasing with each passing day of the film’s opening weekend. On Monday (Nov. 25), the rousing duet collected 1.8 million official on-demand U.S. streams, marking a 30% increase in streaming activity from the day prior.
The entire new Wicked soundtrack has performed similarly; the set has remained above 7.7 million official on-demand U.S. streams each day since its Nov. 22 release. Monday (Nov. 25) marked the soundtrack’s biggest streaming day so far with over 10.43 million streams earned – a 34% boost from its Sunday streaming total (7.77 million).
As Wicked continues to enrapture audiences, expect the soundtrack to perform strongly as the film barrels towards the Oscars stage next March.
Dance Trend Spurs Revival OMB Peezy’s Seven-Year-Old OG Breakout Song
Back in 2017, Alabama-born, Cali-based rapper OMB Peezy started making major waves as his “Lay Down” single gained traction across the country. Seven years later, a TikTok dance trend has given the song a new life.
On Nov. 7, TikTok user @rahdboss posted a clip of himself living his best video vixen life and dancing to “Lay Down.” In the following weeks, the clip amassed over 4.8 million views and over half a million likes; the user’s moves quickly captured the attention of other TikTokers, and hundreds of similar videos began to populate the official “Lay Down” TikTok sound, which now boasts nearly 56,000 posts.
During the first week of the month (Nov. 1-7), “Lay Down” earned over 95,000 official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate. That number exploded by 329% to over 408,000 streams earned during the following week (Nov. 8-14). Last week (Nov. 15-21), that figure once again rose, this time by 142% to over 987,000 official on-demand U.S. streams. Over the past two weeks, “Lay Down” has jumped nearly 940% of streaming activity a whopping seven years post-release. A fire track will always find its audience!
Q&A: Chris Jordan, Music Agent at UTA, on What’s Trending Up in His World
As we approach the end of 2024, what has been your main takeaway from the hip-hop live space this year?
The days of mediocrity are over — fans are paying closer attention to where they spend their money, raising their expectations for high-quality live events.
How would you describe the evolution of hip-hop festivals (and the presence of hip-hop at all-genre festivals) this year?
Hip-hop festivals were once limited, with few options available. However, in recent years, they have grown significantly in both number of festivals and size. They even compete with mainstream festivals in terms of acts, talent bookings, and ticket grosses. As a result, mainstream festivals have started paying more attention, curating a certain percentage of their bookings of hip-hop artists.
Which artist that you work with do you expect to have a breakthrough 2025 as a live performer?
Fortunately, I have an eclectic roster of amazing artists. I feel that all of my artists are going to put forth great material to then be able to create a great tour. With that said, I feel that Jordan Ward is set to have a tremendous 2025.
Fill in the blank: the hip-hop touring industry needs to think more about _________.
Mental health in relation to the conditions of being on the road can be a strenuous and tenuous challenge. Artists, touring teams, and production staff are often away from their loved ones for long periods, which can lead to unhealthy mental states for everyone involved. This is an issue we cannot afford to ignore. – J.L.
Welcome to Billboard Pro‘s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
This week: The original Wicked cast album gets a big bump in anticipation of the imminent film adaptation, Jake Paul uses a rock classic to (maybe) take a pre-fight musical swipe at Mike Tyson, a Grammy nominee enjoys a nice winning streak and more.
‘Wicked’ Week Boosts Original Broadway Cast Album & Select Ariana Grande Tracks
After decades of development, Wicked is finally hitting the silver screen! On Friday (Nov. 2), the film adaptation of the beloved Tony-winning Broadway musical will open in theaters across the U.S. In the lead up to the film, which will star Grammy winners Cynthia Erivo (Elphaba) and Ariana Grande (Galinda), fans have been turning to the original Broadway cast album to hold them over.
Trending on Billboard
According to Luminate, the 2003 Wicked cast recording has risen 60% in streaming activity from between the first two weeks of November. During Nov. 1-7, the album earned 4.9 million official on-demand U.S. streams, with that figure jumping to 7.8 million during Nov. 8-14. Led by musical theatre icons Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth, the original Wicked cast recording features several songs that have earned significant streaming boosts as the film adaptation draws nearer.
“Defying Gravity,” which Erivo and Grande will perform to close the film, is up 47% streams from 909,000 official on-demand U.S. streams (Nov. 1-7) to 1.34 million (Nov. 8-14). Emmy nominee Jonathan Bailey will take on the role of Fiyero in the 2024 film, performing “Dancing Through Life,” which is up 62% in streams. The lengthy track, which was originally performed by Norbert Leo Butz, earned over 453,000 official on-demand U.S. streams during Nov. 8-14. “No One Mourns the Wicked,” the musical’s moving opening number, is also up 63% in streams, collecting over 417,000 official on-demand U.S. streams during Nov. 8-14.
The anticipation for Grande’s take on “Popular” has also spurred streaming gains for Chenoweth’s original. “Popular” is up 64% in streams from 562,000 official on-demand U.S. streams (Nov. 1-7) to 923,000 (Nov. 8-14). On her 2013 Billboard 200-topping debut album Yours Truly, Grande included a collaboration with MIKA titled “Popular Song” that interpolates elements of the Wicked classic. That duet is up 66% in streams from 113,000 official on-demand U.S. streams (Nov. 1-7) to 189,000 (Nov. 8-14).
Grande also covered “The Wizard and I” for 2019’s A Very Wicked Halloween 15-year anniversary special, and that version was tacked onto a commemorative re-release of the Wicked cast album. Grande’s rendition of the showstopper – which will be performed by Erivo in the film – pulled over 22,000 streams during Nov. 1-7. The following week (Nov. 8-14), that number jumped by a whipping 82% to over 40,000 streams. The original version of “The Wizard And I” is performed by Menzel and the late Carole Shelley, who originated the role of Madame Morrible that Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh will assume in the film. Their version jumped 64% in streaming activity from 294,000 official on-demand U.S. streams (Nov. 1-7) to 483,000 (Nov. 8-14).
As crowds flock to Wicked expect to see more gains for the original Broadway cast recording – and a notable debut for the film soundtrack, which will arrive on Nov. 22 through Republic and Verve. — KYLE DENIS
Well If You Told Me You Were Boxing: Jake Paul Lends a Hand to a Phil Collins Classic
It was one of the most surreal (and most watched) sporting events of the year: the 27-year-old influencer-turned-pugilist Jake Paul taking on 58-year-old all-time boxing legend Mike Tyson in a Netflix-streamed Friday night fight (Nov. 15). Though many watching wanted to see the former undisputed heavyweight champion give the YouTube superstar a spanking, Paul ended up winning the much-hyped bout in a unanimous decision. Another less-likely winner from the evening, however, was another legend even more veteran than Tyson: U.K. pop and rock great Phil Collins.
Collins ended up soundtracking part of the evening, as Paul used the Genesis frontman’s eternal 1981 solo debut single “In the Air Tonight” as his entrance music – likely a winking pre-ring jab at the champ, who sang (and drummed) along to the song in a famous scene from the 2009 comedy The Hangover. Whatever Paul’s intent, the music did its job: Not only did he win the fight, but “Tonight” totaled 779,000 official on-demand U.S. streams over the following Saturday and Sunday, up 47% from the equivalent period the prior week, according to Luminate. (Tyson’s own walkout song, “Murdergram” (by Jay-Z, DMX and Ja Rule, recording collectively as Murder Inc.), was up 185% to 9,000 streams.)
Another non-entrance song seeing related gains this week? DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince’s 1989 hit “I Think I Can Beat Mike Tyson,” which racked up nearly 15,000 streams combined over Friday and Saturday, up from under 1,000 over the same period the prior week. – ANDREW UNTERBERGER
PartyNextDoor Eyes Eleventh Hour 2024 Hit with a Nine-Year-Old Leak
With PartyNextDoor 4, PartyNextDoor became one of the select few artists to reach the Billboard 200’s top 10 with a newly released R&B album – but his latest hit isn’t even on that project.
“Dreamin” originally leaked alongside a slew of other PND tracks back in 2015, but thanks to a viral unofficial remix from rising artist Zayskii, the Grammy-nominated star uploaded the original track to DSPs two weeks ago (Nov. 3). During the first week of the month (Nov. 1-7), “Dreamin” earned 2.42 million official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate. By the following week (Nov. 8-14), that figure ballooned 100% to 4.85 million streams.
Zayskii (@onlyzayskii) first uploaded a snippet of his remix on Oct. 18, with a post captioned “Partynextdoor remix?” To date, the snippet has earned 6.3 million views and over 1.1 million likes; there are now over 61,000 posts soundtracked by that snippet.
With the original version finally on DSPs, “Dreamin” will likely continue to grow. Time will tell if that buzzy remix also gets an official release. — KD
Doechii Experiences the ‘Heal’ing Powers of Grammy Nominations & Live Moments
It’s been a great couple of weeks for Florida rapper-singer Doechii, whose Alligator Bites Never Heal mixtape was released to strong reviews but little commercial fanfare back in August. She’s belatedly getting her due for the set this month, however – particularly with the nominations she landed for next February’s Grammys: best rap album for Bites and best rap performance for its lead single “Nissan Altima.”
Those nominations, announced Nov. 8, have proven well-timed for Doechii, who has since wrapped her accompanying tour for the album and performed at the Tyler, the Creator-curated Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival (Nov. 16) – all of which has driven extra ears to her recent set and its lead single, which has also enjoyed some extra TikTok attention lately. The album drew 5.9 million official on-demand U.S. streams this past tracking week (ending Nov. 14), according to Luminate – a 40% gain from the prior week – while “Nissan Altima” was up 29% to over 1.7 million streams on its own.
The good momentum should just keep growing for Doechii through this Friday’s Musicians on Musicians event at New York’s Apollo Theater, which will see her speaking and performing alongside Brittany Howard, Busta Rhymes and GloRilla. — AU
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
This week: Grammy nominations spur gains for some of the bigger (and a couple of the less-expected) nominees, while the election sends listeners to various politically and/or patriotically minded songs and the latest SNL guest gets a big bump.
Grammy Nominations Provide Sizable Streaming Bumps to André 3000, The Beatles, ‘Cowboy Carter’ Tracks and More
When the nominations for the 2025 Grammy Awards were announced on Friday (Nov. 8), several current smash hits, from Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” to Chappell Roan’s “Good Luck, Babe!” to Bruno Mars & Lady Gaga’s “Die With a Smile,” populated the general categories, along with still-enormous albums from Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter and Billie Eilish in the album of the year race. Those songs and albums were too big to see a noticeable streaming increase from the Grammy nominations — but some surprise nominees did receive upticks, as music fans headed to their streaming platform of choice to check out (or revisit) the unexpected contenders.
Trending on Billboard
In the album of the year category, André 3000’s fully instrumental flute showcase New Blue Sun and Jacob Collier’s sprawling and expansive Djesse, Vol. 4 each posted considerable gains following their nominations. New Blue Sun earned 164,000 official on-demand streams U.S. between Friday and Saturday (Nov. 8-9), according to Luminate — a 46% increase from the same two-day period the previous week — while Djesse, Vol. 4 rose to 139,000 streams, up 31% from the previous Friday and Saturday. “Now and Then,” the Beatles’ single that was revived with the use of AI in November 2023, also rose 42% in streams following its unexpected record of the year nomination, from 83,000 streams during Nov. 1-2 to 118,000 streams during Nov. 8-9.
Meanwhile, Beyoncé’s big nominations morning — 11 total, the most of any artist and the most any woman artist has ever received in a single year — resulted in major streaming gains as well. Cowboy Carter, Bey’s fourth straight solo album to score an album of the year nomination, rose to 3.2 million streams during Nov. 8-9, up 42% from the same period during the previous week. And some of the individual songs from Cowboy Carter that earned nominations in the genre categories soared even higher, with “Bodyguard” (nominated for best pop solo performance) and “16 Carriages” (up for best country solo performance) up 76% and 75% in streams, respectively — also helped by a recently released new video for the former and new found TikTok virality for the latter. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
Anti-Trump & Pro-Obama Songs Soar Following Vice President Kamala Harris’ Election Loss
The whirlwind 2024 U.S. presidential election is finally over, and former President Trump is now America’s President-Elect. In the wake of his victory, American’s have turned to a diverse spread of songs to process their emotions regarding the next four years.
Vice President Kamala Harris selected Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar’s “Freedom” as her official campaign song at the beginning of her presidential bid (July 21), and she walked off to the rousing song for the final time after her concession speech at Howard University on Nov. 6. During Election Week (Nov. 1-7), “Freedom” earned over 965,000 official on-demand U.S. streams, according to Luminate. That marks a 141% jump from the 399,000 streams it pulled the week prior (Oct. 24-31). Notably, Beyoncé also cleaned up at the 2025 Grammy nominations reveal – Cowboy Carter earned 11 nods – which took place just three days after Election Day on Nov. 8.
Donald Trump of course narrowly won the election, spurring some Americans to return YG and Nipsey Hussle fiery “FDT.” Originally released in 2016 ahead of Trump’s first presidential election victory, “FDT” — which stands for “F–k Donald Trump” — has previously reached No. 50 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The anthemic track returned to the top of the iTunes charts after President Biden defeated Trump in 2020. Now starring in its third consecutive presidential election, “FDT” ballooned 455% in streams from 126,000 official on-demand U.S. streams in the week preceding the election (Oct. 24-31) to over 703,000 during Election Week (Nov. 1-7).
An even older election-minded song – Jeezy and Nas’ Obama-praising “My President Is Black” — earned streaming gains following Trump’s victory. Whether people were playing the song in preemptive celebration or post-election dejection, streams for the 2008 track jumped 128% thanks to the past week’s events. Before Election Week (Oct. 24-31), the song earned over 126,000 official on-demand U.S. streams. During Election Week (Nov. 1-7), that figure rose to 288,000 streams.
Lee Greenwood’s perennial “God Bless the U.S.A.” also earned eye-popping streaming gains following the election. Going into Election Week (Oct. 24-31), the patriotic track pulled just over 391,000 official on-demand U.S. streams. By the end of Election Week (Nov. 1-7), streams for the song clocked in at over 1.7 million, marking a whopping 334% increase. Digital sales for the song also jumped 266% to 2,500 copies sold during Election Week (Nov. 1-7).
As the country prepares to undergo Trump’s second presidential term, expect more politically minded songs to make major streaming moves. — KYLE DENIS
Are You Looking Up? Mk.Gee Gets the ‘SNL’ Bump
It took many by surprised when Mk.Gee — an indie singer-guitarist with considerable critical acclaim and a growing cult following, but zero entries on either the Billboard 200 or Billboard Hot 100 — was announced as the musical guest on the post-election episode of Saturday Night Live. But the enigmatic performer rose to the occasion with electrifying performances of his Two Star & The Dream Police highlight “Alesis” and the newer single “Rockman” — and it appears that plenty of folks watching were sufficiently impressed to check out his discography from there.
For the days of Nov. 10-11 — the two days following the SNL gig — Mk.Gee’s catalog had amassed a combined 906,000 official on-demand U.S. streams, a 71% gain from the 529,000 he’d totaled for the same period the prior week. Leading the way there of course were the two songs he played in his performance: “Alessis” (up 75% to 135,000) and “Rockman” (up 87% to 209,000). Those numbers aren’t yet at the level of threatening Mk.Gee’s first appearance on Billboard‘s all-genre charts, but it continues to show what a lot of industry insiders have been saying about the singer-guitarist for some time now: The more exposure he gets, the more and more people he turns into believers. — ANDREW UNTERBERGER
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip. This week: The legendary Quincy Jones’ catalog sees a big bump after his passing, a ’70s hitmaker officially becomes one of the big names of spooky-season streaming, a 2003 pop-rock jam gets a big horror synch and more.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Quincy Jones Catalog Explodes on Streaming Following Legend’s Passing
Late Sunday night (Nov. 3), Quincy Jones, a 28-time Grammy-winning giant who played a key role in some of the world’s most impactful works of art across the music, film, television and the stage, passed away surrounded by family in his Bel Air home. In commemoration of Jone’s near-unquantifiable legacy, fans have found solace in some of his biggest musical contributions.
Trending on Billboard
According to Luminate, Jones’ entire catalog is up 1,229% in streaming activity, earning nearly 1.25 million official on-demand streams on the first full-day following his passing (Nov. 4). On the Monday prior (Oct. 28), Jones’ catalog collected just under 94,000 streams.
“Just Once,” a Grammy-nominated single from Jones’ The Dude LP that introduced the world to James Ingram is up 632%, earning 77,000 official on-demand streams on Nov. 4 versus 10,500 streams on Oct. 28. “One Hundred Ways” — another Jones-Ingram team-up from The Dude (this one actually won its Grammy category) — saw a similar bump, jumping 626% in streaming activity from a little over 8,000 official on-demand streams on Oct. 28 to over 60,000 streams on Nov. 4. About two decades before The Dude, Jones composed the massively influential “Soul Bossa Nova” instrumental, which has been used as the theme song for everything from 1997’s Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery to the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Streaming activity for “Soulful” leapt a whopping 755% from 11,500 official on-demand streams (Oct. 28) to just over 98,000 streams (Nov. 4).
Of course, “We Are the World,” the Billboard Hot 100-topping charity single that won record and song of the year at the 1986 Grammys, is a towering part of Jones’ far-reaching legacy. That classic is up 146% in streams from 37,500 official on-demand streams (Oct. 28) to over 92,000 streams (Nov. 4). With a career spanning seven decades, Jones hits also included Lesley Gore’s timeless 1963 Hot 100 chart-topper “It’s My Party.” That iconic track jumped 17% in streaming activity, going from 33,000 official on-demand streams (Oct. 28) to just over 39,000 streams (Nov. 4).
As a producer, Jones’ sprawling catalog also includes three of the most seminal albums in pop history: Michael Jackson’s Off the Wall (1979), Thriller (1982) and Bad (1987). Jones-related gains for Thriller and Bad are a bit complicated because both house Halloween anthems (the title track for Thriller and “Smooth Criminal” for Bad). Nonetheless, Off the Wall – Jackson’s first Jones-helmed LP – is up 10%, pulling 794,000 official on-demand U.S. streams (Nov. 4) versus 720,000 streams (Oct. 28).
Jones’ oeuvre also includes the classic soundtracks for The Color Purple and The Wiz. The former is up 290%, collecting over 41,000 official on-demand U.S. streams on Nov. 4, while the latter is up 219%, earning over 47,000 official on-demand U.S. streams on the same day.
Jones passing is a particularly painful one for global pop culture, but he’s left behind an incredibly rich catalog for us to continue to revisit and learn from. – KYLE DENIS
Andrew Gold: The New King of Halloween?
Scan the Hot 100 this week and you’ll see some of the most familiar names long associated with Halloween music: Michael Jackson (“Thriller,” No. 20), Ray Parker Jr. (“Ghostbusters,” No. 28), Bobby Boris Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers (“Monster Mash,” No. 30) and Danny Elfman – technically “The Citizens of Halloween” (“This Is Halloween,” No. 38). But finishing just below their ranks and outside the Hot 100 (for now) is a guy who is only come in recent years to be majorly associated with Spooky Season: ‘70s singer-songwriter and pop-rock hitmaker Andrew Gold.
For most of his career, Gold (who died 2011) in was primarily associated with two singles: The heartrending story song “Lonely Boy” (a No. 7 hit in 1977) and the heartwarming “Thank You for Being a Friend” (a No. 28 hit in 1978 – though better associated with a Cynthia Fee cover version, used as the theme to the timeless ‘80s sitcom The Golden Girls). But thanks to some TikTok trending that first started at the end of the 2010s, Gold is now best known to younger fans as the guy behind 1996’s “Spooky, Scary Skeletons,” a cartoon-y Halloween number that has been remixed and memed to death over the past half-decade.
“Skeletons” racked up 11.2 million official on-demand U.S. streams for the week ending Nov. 2, according to Luminate – a massive number, and a bump of 1,146% from the 898,000 streams the song notched six weeks earlier. It’s not the only song of Gold’s to see such gains, either, as his entire ‘96 set Halloween Howls: Fun & Scary Music is way up, including his version of the classic theme to The Addams Family – which amassed 2.1 million streams for that same week. All in all, Gold totaled 14.7 million streams for the week, up 1,040% from his 1.3 million total the week of Sept. 19 – proving that Gold is on the verge of becoming the standard for Halloween-week streaming performance. – ANDREW UNTERBERGER
Joé Dwèt Filé Eyes Stateside Konpa Hit With “4 Kampé”
The streaming era and increased globalization have largely leveled the playing field for more niche genres to make inroads in the U.S. market – and konpa could be up next. Popularized in the 1950s, konpa (sometimes spelled “kompa”) is a descendant of méringue music that is characterized by the prominent use of tanbou drum, buoyant horns and rhythmic guitars.
With “4 Kampé,” Joé Dwèt Filé — a singer, songwriter and engineer of Haitian descent – is eyeing a hit single with notable crossover potential. During the period of Oct. 25-28, “4 Kampé” earned over 393,000 official on-demand U.S. streams. By the post-Halloween period of Nov. 1-4, consumption activity for the track rose 13%, collecting over 446,000 streams.
Filé started teasing the song a week before its Oct. 25 release with a post that has since garnered over 1.6 million views and over 195,000 likes. Two more teasers followed, with each each video earning more views than the last. Currently, the official “4 Kampé” TikTok sound boasts nearly 190,000 posts, with many of them featuring users performing the kare dance that traditionally accompanies konpa music. In just 12 days, the official “4 Kampé” lyric video hit 3.4 million views on YouTube, while the track’s official music video crossed two million views in under a week.
Although it is still early in the song’s run, these gains for “4 Kampé” look promising. – KD
So Yesteryear: Time Cut Offers Big Bump to ‘00s Hilary Duff Classic
Netflix’s time-traveling slasher flick Time Cut is currently the streaming service top-ranked film, with its ending proving to be a source of controversy for viewers. But before that was a source of debate for the movie, social media users were busy arguing about whether a scene from the movie released as a teaser on Netflix’s channels – a high-school hallway montage, meant to reflect teenage life in the year 2003 – was actually all that reflective of the fashion and styles of the time. One choice was pretty inarguable though: the use of Hilary Duff’s 2003 pop-rock hit “So Yesterday.”
“Yesterday,” which only peaked at No. 42 on the Hot 100 in Oct. 2003 (but was much bigger on MTV and Radio Disney-type platforms), is featured as the slow-motion scene’s soundtrack, evoking the cultural moment fairly effectively. Unsurprisingly, the clip sent nostalgic viewers heading to streaming services to play the period classic – “Yesterday” totaled over 85,000 official on-demand U.S. streams combined for the first four days of November, a 49% gain over the previous four-day total in the prior tracking week. Not quite “Unwritten” numbers yet, but a good start for a song that has lived in the shadow of Duff’s bigger hit “Come Clean” for too long. – AU
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
Explore
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
This week: Tyler, the Creator’s new album already appears to be taking him to a new commercial level, Imogen Heap gets an unexpected video game bump and a dance trend helps a new rap single take off.
Chromakopiamania: Tyler, the Creator’s New Album Off to Huge Start, Results in Whole Catalog Gains
Though Tyler, the Creator essentially split his debut week in half for new album Chromakopia — releasing the album on Monday morning (Oct. 28) at 6:00 ET rather than the usually Friday midnight release — it still looks to be going down as one of the biggest first weeks of his career, and perhaps the very biggest. The tracks from Chromakopia blanketed the top 10 on the daily charts of both Spotify and Apple Music for Monday, with each track drawing streams in the millions — led by album opener “St. Chroma,” which racked up nearly 6.2 million official on-demand U.S. streams in its first day, according to Luminate. (By contrast, Morgan Wallen’s “Love Somebody” — the prior week’s No. 1 Streaming Song — notched just over 2 million streams on Monday.)
Trending on Billboard
What’s more, anticipation for Chromakopia reached such a fever pitch last week that even Tyler’s older songs were beginning to claim in streams. For the three-day period of Monday to Wednesday last week (Oct. 21-23) — with the rapper announcing the new album, along with the new song “Noid,” on Monday morning — his pre-Chromakopia catalog scored a combined 32.1 million streams, up 29% from the 25 million of the previous three-day period (Oct. 18-20). It seems like 15 years into his acclaimed career, Tyler, the Creator is still just climbing in popularity, with true superstardom maybe in reach as soon as this album cycle. — ANDREW UNTERBERGER
Imogen Heap’s ‘Headlock’ Gets the Gamer Bump, Triples in Streams
Speak for Yourself, the sophomore album by Imogen Heap, became a solo breakthrough upon its 2005 release, earning the idiosyncratic British singer-songwriter a Grammy nod for best new artist following her work as part of the group Frou Frou. And since its release, the album has had a funny way of reappearing in popular culture: “Hide and Seek” has soundtracked several dramatic TV sequences (most notably in The O.C.), Kelly Clarkson covered “Just for Now” for her 2013 holiday album, and Ariana Grande reworked “Goodnight and Go” for 2018’s Sweetener.
Now, the opening track on Speak for Yourself, “Headlock,” is the latest song from the album to be hoisted up years after its release — largely thanks to Mouthwashing, a psychological horror video game that was released last month. Over the past few weeks, TikTok users have been editing clips of the game together and utilizing “Headlock” as a soundtrack, and as a result, the song’s official streams have grown exponentially over the past few weeks.
After the Sept. 26 release of Mouthwashing, “Headlock” earned 555,000 U.S. on-demand streams during the week ending Oct. 10, according to Luminate; that weekly streaming total more than tripled to 1.72 million during the week ending Oct. 24. Heap has never charted on the Hot 100 before, so if the exponential growth of “Headlock” continues, we might see a long-overdue chart achievement; if not, we’ll have to wait for the next Speak for Yourself song to be resurrected (our vote is for “The Walk”!). – JASON LIPSHUTZ
OhThatsMizz Dances His Way to a Breakout Hit With ‘Bumbaaa’
Another week means another dance trend on some corner of TikTok is lifting a song to new streaming heights. According to Luminate, “Bumbaa” — a collaboration between rising rappers OhThatsMizz and SturdyYoungin – has grown 120% in streaming activity over the past two weeks. During the period of Oct. 4-10, the track pulled over 287,000 official on-demand U.S. streams. The following week (Oct. 11-17), that figure jumped by 72% to 495,000 streams earned. Streams for “Bumbaaa” then increased a further 28% during the period of Oct. 18-24, which saw the track pulling just under 635,000 streams.
Mizz first shared a snippet of the track to his official TikTok page on Sept. 9 to the tune of 80,000 likes and 460,000 views. By Sept. 12, user @kastackzzz created a dance – which largely mimes the song’s lyrics before morphing into a TikTok-ified take on New Orleans’ “trip out” move – and his post has since garnered over 100,000 views. While that number may seem relatively small, it was more than enough to help the dance blow up before the track’s official release on Oct. 4. The official “Bumbaa” TikTok sound now boasts over 580,000 posts, with the majority of them featuring users doing the viral dance. Some famous participants include Emmy-winning actress Storm Reid, 41’s leading lady Jenn Carter (who teased her own freestyle over the beat) and Milwaukee breakout rap star J.P.
Mizz has already posted about visiting the Capitol Records and 300 Entertainment offices for meetings, so who knows what the future may hold as “Bumbaa” continues to grow. — KYLE DENIS
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
This week: ROSÉ & Bruno Mars’ new collab looks to be another steady-growing success, a Beyoncé classic goes re-viral on its own and in mashup form, victory anthems for the two New York baseball teams prove postseason-ready and much more.
‘APT.’ Unlocked: ROSÉ & Bruno Mars Team-Up Starts Off Strong on Streaming
Watch out, Luka Doncic, James Harden and Tyrese Haliburton: as a new NBA season gets underway, Bruno Mars has already become the king of the assist this fall. After teaming up with Lady Gaga on “Die With a Smile,” which has spent its entire nine-week run on the Billboard Hot 100 within the top 10, Mars jumped on “APT.,” the lead single from ROSÉ’s forthcoming debut solo project — and has likely helped the BLACKPINK star score the biggest chart hit of her career so far.
Trending on Billboard
The catchy, clap-along pop collaboration has been one of the biggest streaming hits in both the U.S. and the world since its release last Friday (Oct. 18): in its first four days of release, “APT.” earned 13.32 million U.S. on-demand streams, according to Luminate, while also topping Spotify’s global and U.S. daily streaming charts. Its daily streaming numbers also represent a positive sign for its continued momentum, as “APT.” started with 3.57 million U.S. streams on Friday, and cracked 3 million daily streams for each of the next three days, while also selling 5,700 downloads over that opening four-day period.
We’ll see how high “APT.” can bow on next week’s Hot 100, but there’s a great chance that the Mars assist will help ROSÉ score the highest-charting solo track from a member of K-pop superstars BLACKPINK; “One of the Girls,” the song from The Idol by The Weeknd, JENNIE and Lily Rose Depp, peaked at No. 51 last year, and both ROSÉ and LISA made it to No. 70 with “On the Ground” and “Rockstar,” respectively. Meanwhile, BLACKPINK’s highest-charting Hot 100 hit is their Selena Gomez collaboration “Ice Cream,” which peaked at No. 13. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
Viral Dance Trend & Unofficial GloRilla Mashup Boost 16-Year-Old Beyoncé Hit
Despite being the target of a bizarre conspiracy campaign on TikTok, Beyoncé has bounced back with her latest viral hit on the platform. According to Luminate, “Diva” — a single from her Billboard 200-topping I Am… Sasha Fierce album that peaked at No. 19 on the Hot 100 in 2009 – earned over 737,000 official on-demand U.S. streams during the period of Oct. 11-17. That marks an eye-opening 108% increase from the 354,000 streams it collected during the period of Oct. 4-10.
Beyoncé has famously updated the original music video choreography for “Diva” with each successive tour and festival appearance. She’s also kept the song current by mixing it with trending hip-hop songs ranging from Future’s “F–k Up Some Commas” to Lil Uzi Vert’s “Just Wanna Rock.” On TikTok, a dance trend blending choreography from Queen Bey’s “Diva” renditions at Coachella 2018 and the Renaissance World Tour has gone viral, helping the song increase in streams. Donte Colley, a dancer and choreographer who went viral this year for the trend he sparked with Nicki Minaj’s “FTCU,” perfected the choreography combination and posted his original clip on Sept. 17. That clip has amassed over six million views, and a more recent video of him performing the routine (Oct. 6) has collected over 26.4 million views. Colley soundtrack his video with an unofficial mashup of “Diva” and GloRilla’s “TGIF” courtesy of DJ Jacob Dior. That TikTok sound now boasts over 64,000 posts, while the official “Diva” sound plays in over 343,000 posts.
Beyoncé may still be in her country era, but she’ll always be one of TikTok’s favorite divas. – KYLE DENIS
Start Spreading the Streams: Two New York Baseball Anthems Up Following Postseason Runs
The New York Mets’ high-octane run through the first two rounds of the MLB playoffs came to an end on Sunday night, as the Los Angeles Dodgers eliminated them in six games to move onto the World Series. It was still a highly memorable postseason for the Mets, who had previously won a thrilling back-and-forth three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers and a less-suspenseful four-game drubbing of division rivals the Philadelphia Phillies – as well as a new good-luck charm in the form of McDonald’s mascot Grimace, and a new theme song in the crowd-pleasing “OMG.”
The Latin pop banger – with a drawn-out “Oh! My! God!” chorus hook – became a Mets fan favorite (and a Billboard chart-topper) after being released in June by Candelita, artist identity of Mets shortstop José Iglesias. The defensive stalwart’s breakout hit became a clubhouse anthem for the team, as the team also brought an “OMG” sign to the clubhouse, which they would pose for photos with anytime someone on the roster hit a home run. The song went viral nationally over the course of the Mets’ postseason run, rising by 523% in official on-demand U.S. streams from 146,000 on the tracking week ending Oct. 3 to nearly 910,000 for the week ending Oct. 17, according to Luminate. (A new remix of the song featuring Pitbull and Silvestre Dangond, released Oct. 11, no doubt also helped in those rising totals.)
Those streams will likely die down in the weeks to come, following the Mets’ postseason elimination, but their Big Apple rivals in the Bronx will probably see their own longer-established singalong anthem continue to gain in the meantime. Frank Sinatra’s “Theme From ‘New York, New York,” which has served as the Yankees’ victory song for well over 40 years now, has risen 24% in streams to over 864,000 over the same two-week period. It saw an even bigger bump this past Sunday (Oct. 20), racking up 180,000 streams following the Yankees’ Cleveland Guardians-eliminating Game Five ALCS victory the night before – a 59% gain over the prior Sunday – as the Yanks head to face the Dodgers in the World Series, and more and more listeners want to be a part of it. – ANDREW UNTERBERGER
Goofy ‘Gilmore Girls’ Trend Lifts Decade-Old Years & Years Song
Although Years & Years has effectively morphed into a solo project for Olly Alexander, the British electropop outfit is still snagging hits. Streams for “Breathe” — a cover of the 2003 Blu Cantrell and Sean Paul hit that appears on the super deluxe edition of the band’s 2015 Communion LP – have risen by over 100% for the past three weeks. During the period of Oct. 11-17, the track earned nearly 1.4 million official on-demand U.S. streams, marking a whopping 1,603% increase from the 81,000 streams it earned during the period of Sept. 27-Oct. 3.
A Sept. 17 TikTok post laying a Gilmore Girls clip over the Years & Years track is responsible for the streaming boost. In the original clip, Kirk Gleason tells the father of his love interest, “I love your daughter.” The father then replies, “Who are you to love my daughter? What do you have to offer her?” “Nothing,” Kirk responds. “Only this.” He then breaks out into an improvised dance number soundtracked by “Breathe.” TikTok users have quickly put their own spin on the scene, with some opting to act as Kirk and show off goofy dance moves of their own. The audio from the original TikTok post, courtesy of user @clozvr, currently plays in over 145,000 clips, while another unofficial sound boasts over 39,000 posts. There are also over 210,000 posts currently attached to the official “Breathe” sound.
Years & Years have never had a Hot 100 entry, but if the streams for “Breathe” continue to increase, there’s a possibility that they will change that.