RADIO ACTIVE — A Weekly Chart CHRonicle (August 25, 2019)

Welcome to Radio Active, a Sunday evening report from POP! Goes The Charts that gets to the chart of the matter: all the highlights from the CHR/Top 40 chart, as published by Mediabase 24/7 and Mediabase Research. For all of you señores y señoritas wanting to know how your favorite songs are doing, let’s see what’s popping at the Top 40 format this Sunday:

IF I CAN HAVE TWO: It’s a huge week for Shawn Mendes on the Top 40 chart, as the pop star leaps from 3-1 with the Camila Cabello-assisted “Señorita”, while “If I Can’t Have You” reverses direction and leaps from 4-2, thanks in part to a midweek spike in airplay. Though originally released as stand-alone singles, both tracks can be found on a digital reissue of his 2018 self-titled album. Mendes joins Halsey as the only two artists to control the top two slots on the pop chart for a period of time this year.

Charting with her third top 40 solo hit, Normani leaps onto the survey at #34 with “Motivation”, which was last Tuesday’s top title on the weekly adds report. Of course, Normani had an additional nine top 40 songs as a member of Fifth Harmony. The late great Whitney Houston earns her 30th top 40 hit this week thanks to Kygo‘s new version of “Higher Love”, up 41-38. It also makes the top 40 on the Hot AC chart this Sunday. On the pop airwaves, this marks Kygo’s sixth top 40 single to date. The third and final entry in the region is the first for viral star Lil Tecca, who bounces from 43-40 with “Ransom”. The song also makes a significant move at the Rhythmic radio format, where it lifts into the top ten.

“Small Talk” leads off this week’s top 50 entries, as Katy Perry‘s latest release bows at #42. It’s her third single to chart this year. A few spots lower, at #46, Twenty One Pilots return to the pop airspace with “The Hype”. The song is currently approaching the top ten on the Alternative chart and heads for adds at the Hot AC format tomorrow. Finally, at #49, Saweetie makes the Top 40 list for the first time with “My Type”, a recent top ten hit on both the Rhythmic and Urban charts. The tune samples Petey Pablo‘s “Freek-A-Leek”, a 2004 single which spent two weeks at #18 that July.

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RADIO ACTIVE — A Weekly Chart CHRonicle (August 4, 2019)

Welcome to Radio Active, a Sunday evening report from POP! Goes The Charts that gets to the chart of the matter: all the highlights from the CHR/Top 40 chart, as published by Mediabase 24/7 and Mediabase Research. If you “Care” about all the big pop songs for the first week of August, you’re in the right place! Let’s see what’s popping at the Top 40 format this Sunday:

“I” IN THE SKY: Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber‘s huge hit “I Don’t Care” continues its run at the summit on the Top 40 list for its third week, eclipsing the 19,000 spin mark in the process (though it doesn’t set a new record.) The tune also remains strong at #1 on the Hot AC chart. With Billie Eilish‘s “Bad Guy” at just over 300 spins away now, her current #2 hit will likely replace “I” in the next few days and become official by next weekend, unless Sheeran and Bieber’s collaboration has a better hold than expected.

Christian rapper NF leaps from 47-34 with the song that becomes his fourth top 40 entry at the format, “Time”. The simple title has also appeared on the chart in the past for groups like The Alan Parsons Project and Hootie & The Blowfish, whose respective singles made the top ten in 1981 and 1996. One notch below him, “Boyfriend” debuts on the entire chart at #35 for Ariana Grande and Social House. The collaboration becomes Grande’s 22nd top 40 entry on the pop chart and the duo’s first, which comes a year after they first entered the top 50 here with the Lil Yachty-assisted “Magic In The Hamptons”. It stalled at #43. Our third and final top 40 entry this week is OneRepublic‘s “Rescue Me”, a top 20 song on the Hot AC chart that moves from 44-38 here. It’s the act’s 13th top 40 single at this format since 2007.

A handful of collaborations enter the top 50 this week, led by Chris Brown and Drake‘s “No Guidance” at #45. The song leads the Rhythmic and Urban charts on the current update. Sam Feldt and RANI, both appearing on the pop chart for the first time, dance onto the survey with “Post Malone” at #46. (Malone ranks at #11 this week with the Young Thug-assisted “Goodbyes”.) Landing at #48 is “Higher Love”, a single combining the talents of Kygo and the late Whitney Houston. Originally recorded in 1990, this cut marks the first appearance for Houston on the pop chart since 2002’s “Whatchulookinat”, which reached #46 that September. 2009 also saw her track “Million Dollar Bill” receive a little pop airplay, though it failed to reach the top 50. Finally, at #49, Illenium and Jon Bellion enter the region with “Good Things Fall Apart”, which is approaching the top ten at Alternative radio.

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ADD LIB — Brace For (CHR) Impact (July 30, 2019)

Welcome to Add Lib, your Tuesday report on POP! Goes The Charts that’s mad about CHR/Top 40 adds, based on the station data provided by Mediabase 24/7 and Add Board. This week: newcomer Lil Tecca is up against Sam Smith‘s not-so-sleeper hit in the race for the top spot. Will this Lil name yield big action? Let’s add ’em up:

JUST A LIL BIT SHORT: During a slower week at the format, “How Do You Sleep?” by Sam Smith was the Most Added track at the Top 40 format for a second week, earning another 33 stations. Lil Tecca’s “Ransom” finishes just five adds behind him with 28. The latter song is already well into the top 30 on the Rhythmic radio list, though its most impressive stats thus far are at streaming services like Apple Music and Spotify, where it currently sits at #2 and #1 on their respective U.S.-based surveys.

After several weeks of minor activity, new titles from Kygo x Whitney Houston and Stephen Puth join the top ten for the first time. The late Houston last reached the top 50 at the format with 2002’s “Whatchulookinat”, which peaked at #46. Puth has yet to make the top 50 here, though his song “Sexual Vibe” did receive some unsolicited airplay at a handful of stations earlier this year.

Charting hits by NF and OneRepublic are among those titles holding in the top ten from a week ago, albeit with lower add totals.

With a new single from Ariana Grande and Social House ready to make the format its home, as well as rumored new music by Rihanna on the way, next Tuesday’s results will certainly be very interesting.

MOST ADDED — THIS WEEK’S TOP TEN
1. SAM SMITH, “How Do You Sleep?” (Capitol)
2. LIL TECCA, “Ransom” (Galactic/Republic)
3. ED SHEERAN featuring KHALID, “Beautiful People” (Atlantic)
4. BLANCO BROWN, “The Git Up” (BBR/BMG-Warner)
5-T. NF, “Time” (Caroline)
5-T. SAM FELDT featuring RANI, “Post Malone” (Spinnin’/Warner)
7. ONEREPUBLIC, “Rescue Me” (Interscope)
8-T. KYGO x WHITNEY HOUSTON, “Higher Love” (RCA)
8-T. STEPHEN PUTH, “Look Away” (Arista/RED)
10-T. HERVE PAGEZ & DIPLO featuring CHARLI XCX, “Spicy” (Mad Decent)

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RADIO ACTIVE — A Weekly Chart CHRonicle (June 2, 2019)

Welcome to Radio Active, a Sunday evening report from POP! Goes The Charts that gets to the chart of the matter: all the highlights from the CHR/Top 40 chart, as published by Mediabase 24/7 and Mediabase Research. Want some splashy June tunes? We have so many jumping into the chart waters these days. For all the latest info, let’s see what’s popping at the Top 40 format this Sunday:

THEY’RE BACK, SUCKERS: After two weeks out of the top spot, “Sucker” by Jonas Brothers returns to #1 for a fifth week. It’s not unusual to see this kind of thing happen at the format now: this is the sixth time since the spring of 2016 that a single has earned at least a week at the top, fallen out for one week or more and then re-emerged at the summit. The band’s “Cool” has also received its second wind, moving from 15-14 with a larger gain in spins after appearing to stall out for the second half of May. With the trio’s new Happiness Begins album due on Friday, look for more smiles to pop up soon. (Feel free to fangirl like it’s 2008.)

Katy Perry earns this week’s Highest Debut at #29 with her 27th top 40 hit, “Never Really Over”. Perry is also featured on the song that moves up a notch to #17 this week: a remix of “Con Calma” by Daddy Yankee and Snow. “Never” also jumps in at #24 on this week’s Hot AC update, with more minor airplay at a handful of other formats. Lizzo soars from 47-33 with “Truth Hurts”, becoming her second top 40 hit at the format. “Juice”, her first entry at the format, has been pulled in favor of the surging “Truth”. It peaked at #25 two weeks ago. DJ Khaled and SZA also start their top 40 run here with “Just Us”, climbing from 42-36. This is the ninth tune from the former and the fourth for the latter to reach the region.

This week’s one new top 50 entry sneaks in at #50: “Carry On” is the first collaboration from Kygo and Rita Ora. The track is taken from the film Pokémon Detective Pikachu and is the first Pokémon-affiliated title to reach the chart in nearly 20 years.

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ADD LIB — Brace For (CHR) Impact (May 21, 2019)

Welcome to Add Lib, your Tuesday report on POP! Goes The Charts that’s mad about CHR/Top 40 adds, based on the station data provided by Mediabase 24/7 and Add Board. This week: Halsey‘s controlling your pop dreams, as her latest single easily takes the crown over a single from one of Friday’s most-anticipated releases. Let’s add ’em up:

WELCOME TO MY “NIGHTMARE”: She may not be Alice Cooper yet, but Halsey is rocking atop this week’s pop radio adds report with a lofty 162 stations on impact for “Nightmare”. The hit entered at #26 on last Sunday’s list after hourly airplay at many stations on Friday and should continue to rise quickly in the coming weeks. Will it become the performer’s third #1 single of 2019? Will the dream police stop her? Someone call Cheap Trick to solve this one! For those of you chart archive enthusiasts, this is the third “nightmare” title to reach the top 40 at the format, with cuts by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (1988) and Shontelle (2010) being the first two to pull off the feat.

Of course, DJ Khaled has another one on the Top 40 airwaves, as his SZA-assisted “Just Us” takes the runner-up spot on the log. With 48 stations on impact, the collaboration from Father Of Asahd should easily chart by this weekend’s published update. You’ll also find a number of emerging titles from acts like Christian Paul, Lizzo and SHAED among the rest of the top ten this week.

Next week, an easier choice emerges for the format: of course, that would be the latest single from 5 Seconds Of Summer. Until then, have a good long weekend!

MOST ADDED — THIS WEEK’S TOP TEN
1. HALSEY, “Nightmare” (Capitol)
2. DJ KHALED featuring SZA, “Just Us” (We The Best/Epic)
3. SHAED, “Trampoline” (Photo Finish/Caroline)
4. BILLIE EILISH, “Bad Guy” (Darkroom/Interscope)
5. KYGO & RITA ORA, “Carry On” (Palm Tree/RCA)
6. ALAN WALKER featuring SABRINA CARPENTER and FARRUKO, “On My Way” (RCA)
7-T. BRYCE VINE featuring YG, “La La Land” (Sire/Warner Bros.)
7-T. MAX featuring QUINN XCII, “Love Me Less” (Arista/RED)
9-T. CHRISTIAN PAUL, “Strong” (12Tone/SRP)
9-T. LIZZO, “Truth Hurts” (Atlantic)

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ADD LIB — Brace For (CHR) Impact (May 14, 2019)

Welcome to Add Lib, your Tuesday report on POP! Goes The Charts that’s mad about CHR/Top 40 adds, based on the station data provided by Mediabase 24/7 and Add Board. This week: Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber collaborate on one dynamite release, as the overall numbers slow down a bit due to a lack of competition. Let’s add ’em up:

“DON’T” TOUCHES THAT DIAL: After a pair of perfect weeks here at the format, “I Don’t Care” by Sheeran and Bieber makes it three, picking up adds at all 184 stations on the Top 40 panel this Tuesday. It’s the first perfect week for both artists. The track is now the fifth song in the Mediabase era and the sixth in the plays-per-week era on the pop survey to accomplish this feat. It landed just outside the top 20 on last Sunday’s published chart and should be well into the top 15 by this coming weekend’s chart. “I Don’t Care” also topped the adds results at Hot AC radio yesterday, picking up another 90 stations there.

Of this week’s other impacting titles, newcomer Christian Paul‘s “Strong” is in with a solid 18 stations and a third place finish. In a fifth place tie with 12 stations, Kygo and Rita Ora‘s “Carry On” is off to a slightly weaker start. A number of proven singles from artists like AJ Mitchell, Lizzo and Panic! At The Disco make up the rest of the top ten on the latest update.

Next week, look for Halsey‘s “Nightmare” to scare up some major adds from the panel. Who will join her? Stay tuned.

MOST ADDED — THIS WEEK’S TOP FIVE (SEVEN)
1. ED SHEERAN & JUSTIN BIEBER, “I Don’t Care” (Atlantic-Def Jam)
2. BILLIE EILISH, “Bad Guy” (Darkroom/Interscope)
3. CHRISTIAN PAUL, “Strong” (12Tone/SRP)
4. MAX featuring QUINN XCII, “Love Me Less” (Arista/RED)
5. DADDY YANKEE & KATY PERRY featuring SNOW, “Con Calma” (El Cartel/UMLE/Capitol)
5-T. KYGO & RITA ORA, “Carry On” (Palm Tree/RCA)
5-T. LIZZO, “Juice” (Atlantic)

(Due to a lack of activity this week, a full report will return next week.)

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RADIO REPORT: What’s Popping At Top 40 Radio This Week (May 13-14, 2019)

It’s time once again to analyze the airwaves and find out if your favorite new releases will be lighting up your local station’s playlist this week. Which tunes will climb to the top and which ones will hit a stop? Here are three impacting tunes this week at the Top 40 format:

CHRISTIAN PAUL – “Strong” (12Tone/SRP)
Album: Christian Paul (EP) (2019)
Past T40 History: Paul is the only format newcomer this week. His label recently made the top 20 with Lauren Daigle’s “You Say”.

ED SHEERAN & JUSTIN BIEBER – “I Don’t Care” (Atlantic)
Album: TBA (2019)
Past T40 History: With a chart entry just below the top 20 on Sunday, expect this collaboration to potentially have a perfect week!

KYGO & RITA ORA – “Carry On” (Ultra/RCA)
Album: Pokémon: Detective Pikachu (Soundtrack) (2019)
Past T40 History: Kygo has five top 40 singles to date; Ora has six. Will the movie’s second place opening help this one chart well?

Next week: stay tuned, you never know when something big will pop up…

Which of these new songs would you like to see top the charts? Let me know!

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