Album Review: Jessie J's "Sweet Talker" Is Her Best Yet

In less than 4 years of being a professional singer, Jessie J has experienced everything that artists normally take many, many years (if not decades) to experience. She's had a massive first album with 5+ chart hits, been featured on numerous soundtracks (The Mortal Instruments, Kick Ass 2, Easy A, etc.), shaved her head, broken her leg, experienced severe controversy (The Voice UK), released an album that was considered a critical and commercial failure and experienced a second coming in career. As an example, it took Britney Spears over a decade to complete a similar cycle (maybe 12 years), while it took Madonna roughly 25 years.

After the surprising outcome and subsequent success of the lead single from Sweet Talker, "Bang Bang", which was billed as Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj, people were finally starting to hop back onto the Jessie J bandwagon. All of a sudden, the British artist announced that she'd be releasing a new album to worldwide retailers on October 14th. Several days later, a not so good looking album cover was released and the album's tracklist soon followed. But does Sweet Talker having anything else besides "Bang Bang" that's 'sweet enough' to be marketed toward potential buyers and listeners? Based on what happened with her last album cycle ("Wild" and Alive), you'd think not. Fortunately, Sweet Talker is a marked improvement over J's previous album. In fact, I'd consider it her best if you (like me) think songs exclusive to Who You Are: Platinum Edition should be considered excluded because they were also released as a separate EP.

Although there are some distinct problems with several song on the album, the set as a collective piece feels like it works well enough to drum up enough sales. It has the already recognizable "Bang Bang", the album's instantly catchy second single ("Burnin' Up") and most surprising win of them all: the album's title track ("Sweet Talker"), which is mild yet extremely powerful at the same time.

While "Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" is similar to some other songs we've heard recently (the french horn element has been really popular this year in grimy pop songs), it's diverse enough to be chalked up to a win. Here's what I said about it upon release:

"Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" couldn't fit her new style better. Similar to Cheryl Cole's "Crazy Stupid Love", "Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" is a trap inspired dance number with an irresistibly catchy chorus. The addition of a featured rap verse from 2 Chainz doesn't really feel necessary, but in this case, it doesn't detract from the quality of the song either. Bound to be an instant hit, "Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" should easily replicate the success of "Bang Bang" in a handful of countries (namely the United Kingdom, Ireland and Scotland) and could potentially be another hit for the artist in the United States (where "Bang Bang" has reached #3).

Not only should it become a big hit, it could end up topping the United Kingdom charts as well. As for other standout tracks, "Sweet Talker" would be my next favorite song from the album. While starting off much slower than the album's previous two singles, "Sweet Talker" packs a powerful punch, bolstered by impressive vocals from both the artist and her back up vocalists as well as a think skinned beat composition arranged by world class DJ Diplo. With a whizzing beat and out of the box production, the track feels like it could work on Adult Contemporary, Pop, Rhythmic and possibly Rap (if she re-releases the song to feature Tinie Tempah, the artist featured on the live version) radio formats and, while its likely that it won't, could become a hit in the United States. However, there are several areas that need significant work. Elsewhere, on tracks like "Fire" and "Loud (feat. Lindsey Stirling)", Jessie J is thrown increasingly dramatic back beats. Unfortunately, the writers of those works decided that short handing the chorus and several portions of the verses would go unnoticed... untrue. I will applaud "Fire" for being in the style of a John Newman song (a style I like; he co-wrote it), but it just has too many kinks to work well. As for "Loud", Jessie J literally says the word loud nearly 100 times within the 4 minute and 30 second song. Violinist Lindsey Stirling doesn't add any value to the track at all; she's completely worthless on this song. I was expecting something along the line of Stirling's own "Shatter Me" (which would be a standout on this album). Unfortunately, no such luck. This is the biggest disappointment for me from the album. Back to other tracks that deserve attention would probably be "Strip" and "Masterpiece". "Strip", while being reserved for the deluxe edition, is written and sung in the same vein that the artist's hit single "Price Tag" was. I could see it being used as a promotional tool/eventual single later on in the album cycle to drum up sales of the premium priced deluxe edition.
Overall, I'd say it's worth the purchase... Alive wasn't.
Rating: 81/100 (B-) Positive

Jessie J's "Burnin' Up" Follows Up "Bang Bang" Perfectly

Following the success of her massive hit single "Bang Bang", which was released on July 29th in collaboration with Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj, British recording artist Jessie J needed another smash single to follow up her mammoth, multiplatinum hit. Thankfully, she was able to follow up the previous CDS Music Chart Hot 50 #1 single with a spicy, fiery new hit.

The singer has just released "Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" as the album's second official single, and it couldn't fit her new style better. Similar to Cheryl Cole's "Crazy Stupid Love", "Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" is a trap inspired dance number with an irresistibly catchy chorus. The addition of a featured rap verse from 2 Chainz doesn't really feel necessary, but in this case, it doesn't detract from the quality of the song either. Bound to be an instant hit, "Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" should easily replicate the success of "Bang Bang" in a handful of countries (namely the United Kingdom, Ireland and Scotland) and could potentially be another hit for the artist in the United States (where "Bang Bang" has reached #3).

Listen to "Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" below, and let me know what you think of the song below.

Rating: 8.8/10 (B+)
Come back for my album review of Jessie J's "Sweet Talker" (in stores beginning October 14th).

Vote For Your Favorites of the Week (Week 21)!

Hot New Track This Week:

"Warriors"
Imagine Dragons
From the forthcoming 2nd studio album by Imagine Dragons (Title TBA)
Release: September 18th

Thoughts: Imagine Dragons have made my list a total of 3 times (with "It's Time", "Radioactive", and "Demons"), but only one of their releases became a decent sized hit on the CDS Music Chart Hot 50. Now, with "Warriors" leading off the group's 2nd studio album, they have a chance to chart again. 

This new sound is similar to that of what we heard on "Radioactive" (the group's best performing CDS Music Chart Hot 50 single), but it feels a bit darker. There's lots of raised voices, emotions and an overly rock vibe, which is similar yet different compared to their earlier work. I can't tell if I like it as much as their other stuff, but it is still decent.

Now you be the judge. Does "Warriors" have what it takes to debut on the Hot 50? If yes, vote it up, if no, vote down.

Last Week's Outcome: There was no voting last week. Sorry!

New Entries:
- "Warriors" by Imagine Dragons
- "i" by Kendrick Lamar
- "Burnin' Up (feat. 2 Chainz)" by Jessie J
- "No Enemiesz" by Kiesza
- "Therapy" by Mary J. Blige
- "Whole Damn Year" by Mary J. Blige
- "Take Ü There (feat. Kiesza)" by Jack Ü

Note: The final positions of the songs at the end of the week is equivalent to the Social Songs 100 chart. This is only accounts for approximately 1/3 of all points entered into the Hot 50 weekly issue.

Hey guys! There have been some concerns and questions on voting for your favorite tracks every week. To make things a whole lot easier, you can now vote songs up and down the list. At the end of the week, the points will be calculated and the ranker will be reset for the next week! All votes count! Don't see your favorite song? Feel free to leave a comment and I will add it! I will be updating the ranker from time to time as new tracks become available!

Welcome to the 21st week of voting! Your votes help determine the top songs on the CDS Music Chart Hot 50. Please note that only the top 10 most approved tracks will receive bonus points toward their scores on the upcoming chart. Make sure you share this to get your favorite tracks into the top 10. If this gets 250 voters and/or 5,000 votes by the end of Friday, each track in the top 10 will get 2x the regular votes and #11-20 on the list will get the score that the top 10 usually gets.

Lists on Ranker

Album Review: Ariana Grande's "My Everything" Turns On Variety... A Little Too Much?

Ariana Grande first soared onto the music scene with "The Way (feat. Mac Miller)", a catchy yet heavily sample driven rhythmic pop production. She rapidly accumulated fans by the hundreds of thousands and began working very hard on what would eventually become her first studio album, Yours Truly, which saw release in August of 2013. About 4 months later, Grande returned with a digital only Christmas inspired EP, Christmas Kisses, which received instantaneous critical acclaim. Similar critical acclaim came in April 2014 with the release of Grande's never before heard new single, "Problem (feat. Iggy Azalea)".

When "Problem" debuted on the Hot 100 with sales of 438,000 (the year's biggest debut thus far), Grande had solidified her status as a pop diva and stripped away any remaining Nickelodeon threads. She was shining and there was nothing anybody could do about it. Unfortunately for Grande, not all of My Everything really seems up to par with "Problem" and "The Way". Sure it shows more maturity and a lot more variety, but it doesn't seem to encompass one true body or theme. It's a bit too scattered. "Problem" was not a good representation of anything else on the album at all.

Relying on the strength of co-headliners like Iggy Azalea, The Weeknd, Nicki Minaj, Jessie J, and Zedd, My Everything falls a bit flat when it comes to solo performances. I mean why include "Bang Bang" if you're in the backseat the entire time? An additional slew of unneeded track samples further downgrade the quality of the album as a whole. What's the point of including a sample of Diana Ross' "I'm Coming Out" on "Break Your Heart Right Back (feat. Childish Gambino)" if its going to get hidden in the backbeat? It makes the younger generation confused and the older generation disgusted.

With that being said, there are some distinct highlights on My Everything. "One Last Time" (probably my favorite track other than the singles) blends the right amount of dance vibes and pop vibes, while supplying vocals that aren't too candy coated nor overly dull.

Among the other highlights are "Break Free (feat. Zedd)" (which was released as the album's second single), "Love Me Harder (feat. The Weeknd)" and of course "Bang Bang". Unfortunately, that short list of about 4-5 songs is composed nearly entirely of tracks that feature help from other artists, bringing several questions to mind. Most notably: Was this album rush released and filled with as many cheap collaborations as possible to distract us from the fact that Ariana hadn't actually grown that much 12 months? I'm betting on a yes.

I guess I should have known something was up when I wasn't impressed with the "Break Free" video:

"While the rest of Ariana Grande's music videos are far from perfect, the music video for "Break Free" borders on the edge of utter ridiculousness -- her worst video to date. The inspirations behind it -- original Star Trek episodes, space dominatrixes, Katy Perry's "E.T." video, Star Wars, etc. -- would normally all work together to create a strong final product, but the lack of originality and an interesting story line, combined with the fact that nearly everything in the entire video was developed on a green screen, make for a really uncomfortable and downright stupid video.
I understand that you can't actually shoot a project in space, but it feels like they spent too much time on Grande's appearance rather than the sets and plot itself. Okay, yes, she looks cute but then again when has she not?
Despite critical opinions popping up all across the internet, most of America has embraced the video for "Break Free" with open arms -- Ariantors have made sure of it. Once again, a terrible video will help propel a decent song to success. We needed another one of those."
I guess the same thing can be applied to the album. It has solid material, yet it also has some songs that sound like they were strung together randomly.

Overview: While My Everything is far from terrible, it lacks uniform and has a lazy overall structure. The over used samples and overly promoted collaborations make for an album that feels just a bit rushed. There are some notable and worthy highlights on the album ("Problem", "Break Free", "One Last Time", "Love Me Harder" and "Bang Bang"), but everything seems to lie on the shoulders of the collaborators, which is the exact opposite of what happened on her last album. Overall, the individual themes on My Everything are all pretty much clear, but when they're combined together, everything seems a lot hazier and the overall theme feels distant. There's too much going on. There's lots of pop, lots of r&b, lots of rap, lots of EDM and a lot of filler. It's solid, but at the same time its not.

Rating 71/100 (C-)

Chart Highlights: Röyksopp & Robyn, Alyssa Reid Reach Top 10

Meanwhile, Iggy Azalea's "Black Widow" pushes 38-26 as the Hot 50's Greatest Gainer, Ella Henderson's "Glow" snags top debut, and Nicki Minaj's "Anaconda" dives 29-41.

The Hot 50 chart is counts points from Saturday to Friday and is formulated using the following:

• Official US Radio plays that I listen to count as 1 point each. Referred to as the Radio Songs Chart.
• Plays through my iTunes or Spotify (mainly the former) libraries count as 2 points each. If the track is not available to purchase at a given moment, plays of the track's official audio on Youtube or Soundcloud also count for 2 points each. Referred to as the Streaming Songs Chart.
• The release of a track's official music video sees the song in question receive a one time bonus of 5 points if I watch the video within its first two weeks of release. If a song first charts over two weeks after the video's release, it is eligible to get the five point bonus within its first two weeks of charting. There is no component chart for this category given that it awards a one time bonus.
• The top 10 most voted for songs on the "Vote For Your Favorites of the Week" chart receive points. #1 gets 10 points, #2 gets 9 and so on and so forth. If voting reaches a certain threshold during any given week, the 2x multiplier will be unlocked. If the 2x multiplier is unlocked, #1 gets 20 points (instead of 10), #2 gets 19 points (instead of 9) so on and so forth. #11 gets 10 points (instead of none), and #20 gets 1 point (instead of none). Referred to as the Social Songs 100 Chart.

As I do every weekend, let's dive deeper into the numbers and how things played out on this week's Hot 50 chart. But before we get into that, I'd like to point out that it will be impossible for any song to pass Platinum status (1000+ points) by the end of 2014. In addition, said song would pretty much have to remain in the top 5 for the next 20 weeks to reach that level.

For those of you that are not aware of how the point system works:

The #1 song each week receives 50 base points and a weekly bonus. #2 receives 49 points and a bonus and so on and so forth. #50 receives 1 point and a bonus. The bonus is determined by how many weeks a track is listed on the Hot 50. In week #1, any given track will receive .01 extra points, regardless of position. In week #2, they'll receive .02 and so on and so forth until they end their chart run.

As another note, the Summer Songs Competition will run for another 3 weeks (ending with the Hot 50 issue dated September 11th). The top 40 Summer Songs will be revealed in a special post on September 7th, so get ready!

Maroon 5's "It Was Always You" holds at #1 for a second consecutive week, breaking a 3 way tie for third place among all time longest reigns at #1 for a Maroon 5 song. It now just holds third place by itself, while "Love Somebody" and "One More Night" both fall into 4th place. With this week at #1, Maroon 5 becomes the only artist to hold the #1 position for more than 6 weeks in 2014. Additionally, they log a 13th overall week at the summit since the chart's 2012 inception. These 13 weeks are of course spread across 5 #1's (which ties Rihanna's sum of 5 as the most for any artist or group). Among all acts, Maroon 5 ranks 3rd for most overall weeks at the summit behind Rihanna's record 20 and Lady Gaga's 18 (all of which came consecutively at the tail end of 2013).

Here's a quick look at Maroon 5's #1 reigns on the Hot 50 since its 2012 inception. The bolded track is the current leader ("It Was Always You").

Weeks - Title - Start of Reign
5 Weeks at #1 - "Maps" - July 10th, 2014

4 Weeks at #1 - "Payphone (feat. Wiz Khalifa)" - April 19th, 2012
2 Week at #1 - "It Was Always You" - August 14th, 2014

1 Week at #1 - "Love Somebody" - September 20th, 2012

1 Week at #1 - "One More Night" - September 13th, 2012

Back to "It Was Always You", the track posts across the board gains on the Streaming Songs chart and the Radio Songs chart. It holds 2-2 on the Streaming Songs chart (behind Kiesza's "Hideaway" which holds the top slot for a record 16th consecutive week) with a 6% gain, jumps 4-1 on Radio Songs but unfortunately dips 14-37 on the Social Songs 100. The cut holds at #1 on the Pop Songs list for the second consecutive week as well as on the subsidiary Adult Pop Songs and Adult Songs lists.

Kiesza's "Hideaway" holds 2-2 on the Hot 50, tallying a 10th consecutive week in the runner up slot (after leading the list for 6 weeks beginning in early May). With 10 weeks in the runner up slot, the track breaks a tie with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' "Can't Hold Us (feat. Ray Dalton)" to become the song with the most amount of weeks in the position. The honor of the longest time spent in the second place slot is still bestowed upon OneRepublic's "Counting Stars" which wrapped an 11 week run in the slot back in early 2014.

In addition to that, "Hideaway" notches a 16th consecutive week within the top 2, which rewrites history in the fact that it has now spent the most weeks within that 2 position region for any song to date (16). Lady Gaga's "Applause" previously held the most overall week title with 15 (which were in 2013-2014). OneRepublic's "Counting Stars" previously held the most consecutive week title with 13 (all of which were in 2014). With "Hideaway" still in a great spot, it's highly likely that the track winds up with a final point cume around the same level as both "Applause" and "Counting Stars" (both of which ended with over 1500 points and currently rank among the All Time top 5). With approximately 800 points earned through week #16, "Hideaway" is already one of the most successful singles of 2014.

Maroon 5's "Maps" holds 3-3, tallying a 4th non-consecutive week in the position, and a 9th week in the top 5. It previously peaked at #1 for 5 consecutive weeks. Following its run in the top slot, it relinquished its throne to fellow Maroon 5 track "It Was Always You". With just 3 more weeks of tracking left in the Summer 2014 season, "Maps" is bound to finish in the top 5, likely behind longtime frontrunner "Hideaway" (by Kiesza), and Sweden's Eurovision 2014 entry, "Undo" (by Sanna Nielsen). As for the final outcome of "Maps", it should be on track to complete the year with around 1000 points, which would make it the group's third single to do so. With "Animals" set to be released at the end of next week, Maroon 5's forthcoming album, V, which will debut on September 2nd, could end up producing another instant hit just like 2012's Overexposed did.

Back to "Maps", the cut holds at #2 for a second week on Pop Songs (which it previously led for 5 weeks), slides 3-5 on the Streaming Songs chart (where it previously bulleted at #2 for 4 weeks) and bullets yet again at #1 on Radio Songs (which it has lead for 9 consecutive weeks). It also elevates sharply on the Social Songs 100. It previously led the mentioned chart for a single week. Additionally, "Maps" holds at #2 on Adult Pop Songs and on Adult Songs. It led the former for 5 weeks and the latter for 7 weeks.

Kiesza's "Giant In My Heart" holds tight at #4 on the CDS Music Chart Hot 50 for a second week, tallying a 9th consecutive week in the top 10. It previously stalled at #3 for a record long 4 consecutive weeks. Previously, her debut single "Hideaway" reached the summit of the Hot 50 chart for 6 consecutive weeks. While "Giant In My Heart" is in a tough spot (thanks to a strong amount of competition), it could eventually wind up as Kiesza's 2nd consecutive chart topping single. With two more tracks ready for release (an official worldwide release of the rarely heard "No Enemiesz" and a collaboration with Diplo and Skrillex titled "Take U There"), Kiesza could end up walking away from 2014 with 4 #1s. That would tie Rihanna and Nicki Minaj for the most #1 singles by an artist in a single calendar year (4 apiece). But lets not get ahead of ourselves; Kiesza has only nailed a single #1 for now. Stay tuned.

Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj bound 7-5 with "Bang Bang". With the move, Nicki Minaj scores her 7th top single (in its debut week it became the singer's 12th top 10). Additionally, the track is Jessie J's 3rd top 5 and first since "LaserLight (feat. David Guetta)" wound up at #3 in mid 2012. It's also Ariana Grande's first single to reach the top 5, with "The Way" and "Problem (feat. Iggy Azalea)" stopping at #9. "Break Free (feat. Zedd)", her only other charting entry to not reach the top 10, has since reached #40 on the CDS Music Chart Hot 50.

Meanwhile, Sia's "Chandelier" reverses course by dropping 5-6. It previously reached a peak of #5 during its 21st week on the CDS Music Chart Hot 50, her second highest peaking single to date. Her only other journey to the top 5 came when her collaboration single with David Guetta ("Titanium") reached the pinnacle of the Hot 50 for two consecutive weeks back in August 2012 (almost exactly two years ago), while her collaboration with Flo Rida ("Wild Ones") reached #8 several weeks after the inception of the chart (early 2012). Unfortunately, the only record that "Chandelier" could have possibly broken was the longest climb to the top 5 record (held by Kelly Clarkson's #3 peaking "People Like Us"); it missed tying the record by one week and fell two weeks short of rewriting the record.

Two entries catapult into the CDS Music Chart Hot 50's top 10 this week: Röyksopp & Robyn vault 15-7 with their debut collaboration single "Do It Again". As separate artists, they each claim their first ever top 10 singles. The track claims this week's Airplay Gainer distinction. Additionally, Alyssa Reid's "Satisfaction Guaranteed" reaches the upper tier by blasting 19-8. It's the CDS Music Chart Hot 50's biggest streaming gainer this week, as well as Reid's first ever top 10 single. These tracks swap with with Vita Chambers' "A+D" (which drops 6-11) and Nico & Vinz's "Am I Wrong" (which dives 8-13).

Secondcity's "I Wanna Feel" climbs a single rung to #9 (10-9). While it might end up being stuck in the same position for a few consecutive weeks, it's likely that "I Wanna Feel" winds up peaking higher than this.

Clean Bandit's "Rather Be (feat. Jess Glynne)" dips 9-10, spending an 19th non-consecutive week in the top 10. To date, the track has scored just over 1100 points to date, which is just 40 points under the amount of points scored by the #1 song of the year to date (One Republic's "Counting Stars"). In just about one more weeks, "Rather Be" will become the most successful single of the year to date.

Come back for more posts!

Chart Highlights: "Anaconda" Slithers Onto Hot 50, Maroon 5 Self Replaces At Summit

Meanwhile, Meghan Trainor's "All About That Bass" vaults, and Iggy Azalea's collaboration with Rita Ora scales the Hot 50.

The Hot 50 chart is counts points from Saturday to Friday and is formulated using the following:

• Official US Radio plays that I listen to count as 1 point each. Referred to as the Radio Songs Chart.
• Plays through my iTunes or Spotify (mainly the former) libraries count as 2 points each. If the track is not available to purchase at a given moment, plays of the track's official audio on Youtube or Soundcloud also count for 2 points each. Referred to as the Streaming Songs Chart.
• The release of a track's official music video sees the song in question receive a one time bonus of 5 points if I watch the video within its first two weeks of release. If a song first charts over two weeks after the video's release, it is eligible to get the five point bonus within its first two weeks of charting. There is no component chart for this category given that it awards a one time bonus.
• The top 10 most voted for songs on the "Vote For Your Favorites of the Week" chart receive points. #1 gets 10 points, #2 gets 9 and so on and so forth. If voting reaches a certain threshold during any given week, the 2x multiplier will be unlocked. If the 2x multiplier is unlocked, #1 gets 20 points (instead of 10), #2 gets 19 points (instead of 9) so on and so forth. #11 gets 10 points (instead of none), and #20 gets 1 point (instead of none). Referred to as the Social Songs 100 Chart.

As I do every weekend, let's dive deeper into the numbers and how things played out on this week's Hot 50 chart. But before we get into that, I'd like to point out that it will be impossible for any song to pass Platinum status (1000+ points) by the end of 2014 if they do not debut by next week. In addition, said song would pretty much have to remain in the top 5 for the next 20 weeks to reach that level. 

For those of you that are not aware of how the point system works:

The #1 song each week receives 50 base points and a weekly bonus. #2 receives 49 points and a bonus and so on and so forth. #50 receives 1 point and a bonus. The bonus is determined by how many weeks a track is listed on the Hot 50. In week #1, any given track will receive .01 extra points, regardless of position. In week #2, they'll receive .02 and so on and so forth until they end their chart run.

As another note, the Summer Songs Competition will run for another 4 weeks (ending with the Hot 50 issue dated September 11th). The top 40 Summer Songs will be revealed in a special post on September 7th, so get ready!

Maroon 5's "It Was Always You" jumps 4-1 to crown the chart for the first time. With the jump to the summit, Maroon 5 becomes the first artist or group this year to replace themselves at the top slot (previously, "Maps" had led the list for 5 weeks before being replaced by "It Was Always You"). Additionally, they log a 12th overall week at the summit since the chart's 2012 inception. These 12 weeks are of course spread across 5 #1's (which ties Rihanna's sum of 5 as the most for any artist or group). Among all acts, Maroon 5 ranks 3rd for most overall weeks at the summit behind Rihanna's record 20 and Lady Gaga's 18 (all of which came consecutively at the tail end of 2013).

Here's a quick look at Maroon 5's #1 reigns on the Hot 50 since its 2012 inception. The bolded track is the current leader ("It Was Always You").

Weeks - Title - Start of Reign
5 Weeks at #1 - "Maps" - July 10th, 2014

4 Weeks at #1 - "Payphone (feat. Wiz Khalifa)" - April 19th, 2012
1 Week at #1 - "It Was Always You" - August 14th, 2014

1 Week at #1 - "Love Somebody" - September 20th, 2012

1 Week at #1 - "One More Night" - September 13th, 2012

Back to "It Was Always You", the track posts across the board gains on the Streaming Songs chart, the Social Songs 100 and the Radio Songs chart. It gains 6-2 on the Streaming Songs chart (behind Kiesza's "Hideaway" which holds the top slot for a 15th consecutive week), jumps 8-4 on Radio Songs and soars 47-14 on the Social Songs 100. The cut takes over the Pop Songs list (dethroning "Maps", which led for 5 weeks) as well as the subsidiary Adult Pop Songs and Adult Songs lists (dethroning "Maps" on both).

Kiesza's "Hideaway" holds 2-2 on the Hot 50, tallying a 9th consecutive week in the runner up slot (after leading the list for 6 weeks beginning in early May). With 9 weeks in the runner up slot, the track ties Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' "Can't Hold Us (feat. Ray Dalton)" for the second most amount of weeks in the position with 9 apiece. The honor of the longest time spent in the second place slot is bestowed upon OneRepublic's "Counting Stars" which wrapped an 11 week run in the slot back in early 2014. Interestingly enough, all songs to spend at least 8 weeks in the position hit #1 immediately following or immediately preceding their time at #2. Even more twisted, all tracks to reach #1 after spending at least two months at #2 wound up with extremely short reigns at the summit. In fact the longest time spent at #1 after spending at least 8 weeks at #2 is a mere 3 weeks (Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' "Can't Hold Us").

In addition to that, "Hideaway" notches a 15th consecutive week within the top 2, which rewrites history in the fact that it has now spent the most consecutive weeks within that 2 position region for any song to date (15), and ties for the most overall weeks in the 2 position region (Lady Gaga's "Applause" spent 15 non-consecutive weeks in the region across 2013-2014) . OneRepublic's "Counting Stars" previously held the most consecutive week title with 13 (all of which were in 2014).  With "Hideaway" still in a great spot, it's highly likely that the track winds up with a final point cume around the same level as both "Applause" and "Counting Stars" (both of which ended with over 1500 points and currently rank among the All Time top 5). With approximately 750 points earned through week #15, "Hideaway" is bound to become one of the most successful singles of 2014, if not the most successful.

For those of you that have been paying attention, you'll note that Maroon 5's "Maps" (which led last week) has indeed landed at #3 this week, which marks a two position drop from the top (1-3). This week ends the 5 week command of "Maps", which along with "Hideaway" has pretty much ruled this Summer. Racking nearly 400 points across its first eight weeks, the track will without a doubt pass 900 points and continue Maroon 5's massive success streak. As a side note, however, Maroon 5's next single ("Animals") will debut within the next two weeks and could wind up stealing the show from both "It Was Always You" and "Maps". I'm expecting "Animals" to eventually wind up with a #1 stint, but whether or not it will directly follow up "It Was Always You" at the summit is beyond me. Maroon 5's forthcoming album, V, will debut on September 2nd and could end up producing another instant hit just like 2012's Overexposed did ("Lucky Strike" followed by "Love Somebody").

Back to "Maps", the cut slides 1-2 on Pop Songs (which it previously led for 5 weeks), slides 2-3 on the Streaming Songs chart (where it previously bulleted at #2 for 4 weeks) and bullets yet again at #1 on Radio Songs (which it has lead for 8 consecutive weeks). The track bullets 40-9 (a 31 position gain) on the Social Songs 100, becoming one of this week's greatest gainers. It previously led the mentioned chart for a single week. Additionally, "Maps" slides 1-2 on Adult Pop Songs and on Adult Songs. It led the former for 5 weeks and the latter for 7 weeks.

Kiesza's "Giant In My Heart" slides 3-4 after peaking at #3 for 4 consecutive weeks, to notch a 8th consecutive week in the top 10. Previously, her debut single "Hideaway" reached the summit of the Hot 50 chart for 6 consecutive weeks. "Giant" ups 4-3 on the Streaming Songs chart, and charges 42-29 on the Social Songs 100. At this point, it is highly likely that Kiesza's "Giant In My Heart" ends up joining "Hideaway" in the Summer Songs top 10. We'll know more about where it could rank in just a few weeks, as the competition will gruel on for 4 more weeks.

Sia's "Chandelier" reaches the top 5 for the first time in its 21 week run on the Hot 50 by climbing 7-5. With the move, the track becomes Sia's second highest peaking single to date and second to ever rank #5 or above. Her only other journey to the top 5 came when her collaboration single with David Guetta ("Titanium") reached the pinnacle of the Hot 50 for two consecutive weeks back in August 2012 (almost exactly two years ago), while her collaboration with Flo Rida ("Wild Ones") reached #8 several weeks after the inception of the chart (early 2012). Also to note, "Chandelier" becomes just the third song ever to reach the top 5 after spending at least 19 prior weeks on the chart. Kelly Clarkson's #3 peaking "People Like Us" (which holds the record for the longest climb to the top 5) took 22 weeks to reach the platform, while Marina & the Diamonds took 20 weeks to land "How to Be A Heart Breaker" in the region. It's safe to say that "Chandelier" is extremely unlikely to summit the Hot 50: no act has ever reach this milestone and reached the top of the chart.

Vita Chambers' "A+D" holds 6-6 during its 15th week on the chart. The song, which previously peaked at #4, was the 4th single from the artist to reach the CDS Music Chart Hot 50's top 5. It followed "Fix You", "Masquerade" and "What If?", which peaked at numbers 1, 2 and 3 respectively.

Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj bound 9-7 with "Bang Bang" thanks mainly due to a 2-1 rise on the Social Songs 100 and a 10-8 rise on Streaming Songs. With the lift, the track becomes Ariana Grande's highest charting single ever (her only other top 10 singles, "Problem" and "The Way", both stopped at #9) and the highest charting single ever from a 3-pack of solo artists.

Nico & Vinz crash 5-8 with their debut single "Am I Wrong". The track, which peaked at #5 for two consecutive weeks, is the only song by an Norwegian group or solo artist to reach the top 5. Unfortunately, this track didn't hold as well as initially expected, elevating over 30 positions and crashing downward all within a 10 week span. Hopefully the September 16th release of the group's debut studio album (Black Star Elephant) can help regenerate some momentum for the song.

Clean Bandit's "Rather Be (feat. Jess Glynne)" dips 8-9, spending an 18th non-consecutive week in the top 10. To date, the track has scored just over 1060 points to date, which is just 80 points under the amount of points scored by the #1 song of the year to date (One Republic's "Counting Stars"). In just about two more weeks, "Rather Be" will become the most successful single of the year to date.

To round out the top 10, Secondcity's "I Wanna Feel" climbs 11-10 on the CDS Music Chart Hot 50. With the move, the track becomes Secondcity's first ever top 10 single, as well as the 4th and final deep house song to rank in the upper tier this week.

Below the top 10, "Satisfaction Guaranteed" by Alyssa Reid rebounds 24-19 on the CDS Music Chart after leaving the top 20 for several weeks. Thanks to a large gain at the end of this week, it could end up reaching the top 10 next week. Röyksopp & Robyn's "Do It Again" is in a similar predicament. It rebounds 20-15 on the Hot 50 as well, and should be able to crack the top 10 next week.

This week's top debut arrives courtesy of Nicki Minaj. The rapper arrives at #29 with her just released new single, "Anaconda". With the debut, the track becomes the artist's 21st entry onto the Hot 50. That ranks 1st all time (since the chart's 2012 inception).

Genre Based Top 5's:

Pop Songs
#1(+1) "It Was Always You" by Maroon 5 (1 week @ #1)
#2(-1) "Maps" by Maroon 5 (5 weeks @ #1)
#3(+1) "Chandelier" by Sia
#4(-1) "Am I Wrong" by Nico & Vinz
#5(+1) "Bang Bang" by Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj

Notable Gainer: "All About That Bass" by Meghan Trainor

Hip-Hop/Rap Songs
#1(=) "She Came To Give It To Yo (feat. Nicki Minaj)" by Usher (2 weeks @ #1)
#2(=) "Fancy (feat. Charli XCX)" by Iggy Azalea (13 weeks @ #1)
#3(+1) "Pills N Potions" by Nicki Minaj
#4(-1) "Problem (feat. Iggy Azalea)" by Ariana Grande
#5(=) "No Mediocre (feat. Iggy Azalea)" by T.I.

Notable Debut: "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj

Dance Songs
#1(=) "Hideaway" by Kiesza (13 weeks @ #1)
#2(=) "Giant In My Heart" by Kiesza
#3(+1) "Chandelier" by Sia
#4(+1) "Rather Be (feat. Jess Glynne)" by Clean Bandit
#5(+1) "I Wanna Feel" by Secondcity

Notable Gainer: "Ready For the Weekend (feat. Ayah Marar)" by NERVO & R3HAB

Electronic Songs
#1(=) "Hideaway" by Kiesza (15 weeks @ #1)
#2(=) "Giant In My Heart" by Kiesza
#3(=) "Rather Be (feat. Jess Glynne)" by Clean Bandit (7 weeks @ #1)
#4(=) "I Wanna Feel" by Secondcity
#5(+1) "Do It Again" by Röyksopp & Robyn

Notable Gainer: "Ready For the Weekend (feat. Ayah Marar)" by NERVO & R3HAB

On The Bubble/Next Up:
New tracks you'll see on the chart soon.
#51(NEW) "Dirt" by Florida Georgia Line
#52(=) "0 to 100/The Catch Up" by Drake

#53(=) "Big Girls Cry" by Sia
#54(=) "Go (feat. Blood Diamonds)" by Grimes
#55(=) "Stolen Dance" by Milky Chance
#56(=) "Gecko (Overdrive)" by Becky Hill
#57(=) "Bo$$" by Fifth Harmony
#58(=) "Happy Little Pill" by Troye Sivan
#59(=) "Rainbow" by Sanna Nielsen
#60(NEW) "I'm Not the Only One" by Sam Smith

Out:
X (60) "Ordinary Human" by OneRepublic

In the Mix:
Tracks that are just starting to surge in popularity. You'll see 'em on the Hot 50 real soon! Bold indicates that the track is one of the largest movers of the week. Red tracks are falling off.

- "Lovers On the Sun" by David Guetta
- "Go (feat. Blood Diamonds)" by Grimes
- "Big Girls Cry" by Sia
- "Ghost" by Ella Henderson
- "UP!" by Samantha Jade
- "Bartender" by Lady Antebellum
- "Hurricane" by Alyssa Reid
- "Happy Little Pill" by Troye Sivan
- "Another's Arms" by Coldplay
- "Rainbow" by Sanna Nielsen
- "Wait On Me" by Rixton
- "Cellophane" by Sia
- "Waves" by Mr. Probz
- "Back to the Shack" by Weezer
- "Chains" by Nick Jonas
- "Battle Cry" by Imagine Dragons
- "Chimes" by Hudson Mohawke
- "Paralyzed" by Mystery Skulls
- "Turn Down For What (feat. Lil Jon)" by DJ Snake
- "Bo$$" by Fifth Harmony
- "Glow" by Ella Henderson
- " This Is How We Do" by Katy Perry
- "Dirt" by Florida Georgia Line
- "I'm Not the Only One" by Sam Smith

Falling Off:
- "Try" by Colbie Calliat
- "Flipside" by Lana Del Rey
- "Smoke (feat. Trey Songz)" by 50 Cent
- "Eye of the Needle" by Sia
- "Gore & Glory" by Lorde
- "A.K.A (feat. T.I.)" by Jennifer Lopez
- "Extraordinary (feat. Sharna Bass)" by Clean Bandit
- "Rainmaker" by Emmelie De Forest

Voter's Top 10:
The top 10 most approved songs by the public across all platforms. Red tracks didn't reach the Hot 50 this week. Bolded tracks debuted on the Hot 50. Italicized tracks were on Hot 50 last week and are listed again. Vote for your favorites each week.

#1(+1) "Bang Bang" by Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj
#2(+19) "She Came To Give It To You (feat. Nicki Minaj)" by Usher
#3(+21) "Pills N Potions" by Nicki Minaj
#4(NEW) "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj
#5(NEW) "Flawless (feat. Nicki Minaj) [Remix]" by Beyoncé*
#6(+3) "Hideaway" by Kiesza
#7(+19) "2 On (feat. SchoolBoy Q)" by Tinashe
#8(+77) "Boom Clap" by Charli XCX
#9(+31) "Maps" by Maroon 5
#10(+77) "This Is How We Do" by Katy Perry

Top 10 Dropouts:
#12(-4) "Ready For the Weekend (feat. Ayah Marar)" by NERVO & R3HAB
#13(-12) "Superheroes" by The Script
#16(-6) "All About That Bass" by Meghan Trainor
#21(-17) "Strange Enough" by VÉRITÉ
#32(-26) "Satisfaction Guaranteed" by Alyssa Reid
#64(-61) "Only Love Can Hurt Like This" by Paloma Faith
#69(-64) "Angel In Blue Jeans" by Train
#77(-70) "First Love" by Jennifer Lopez*

*Charted as "Bow Down/I Been On" in May 2013.

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Song Review: "Bang Bang" by Jessie J, Nicki Minaj and Ariana Grande

 

While Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj promoted and teased "Bang Bang" for a number of weeks before the single's release, many speculated that it would become a massive critical failure. Fortunately, everything changed when the single surprisingly came out on top.

While Nicki Minaj remains rightfully in her position as the rapper of the track (delivering a strong, catchy verse), the overlapping vocals between Jessie J and Ariana Grande were honestly very surprising. Jessie J (an artist known for her average soul vocals) was actually the act that really made the song for me, overpowering Ariana Grande (who is known for Mariah Carey-esque, powerhouse vocals). That was the biggest shocker to me, other than the fact that the song itself was actually good.

The entire style of the track is just very unique for this era (as well as being extremely unexpected), making it one of the biggest releases that seems to be both critically and commercially. In a side note, the track is expected to open with a first week upwards of 225,000 copies. It's a perfect ending to the summer season.

86.5

Rating (Out of 100)

Positive/Acclaim

Hot 50 Forecast: Maroon 5 Set For Top Opening, Jessie J’s “Bang Bang”Starts Lukewarm

Now that approximately half the week is gone, it’s time to get down to this week’s forecast. Remember, the Hot 50 forecast is a representation of the first four days of tracking (Saturday-Tuesday) and is not reflective of the entire week.
 

Maroon 5’s just released single, “It Was Always You”, is currently in the lead among new entries this week, ranking among the top 20 this for the week to date (through Tuesday) despite just be released for the first time on Monday night. “It Was Always You” (which follows the group’s #1 peaking “Maps”) previews Maroon 5’s upcoming 5th studio album V. At this point, “It Was Always You” is set for a top 15 finish, which would be a modest start for the band (5 out of 8 of their previously charting hits have opened at #10 or higher). Heading into Wednesday, the track could enter the top 10. While we’re on the topic of Maroon 5, it’s worth pointing out that “Maps” (last week’s leader) is set to command the top of the list for a 5th consecutive week. If it does wind up on top this week, it’ll surpass 2012’s “Payphone (feat. Wiz Khalifa)” as the group’s longest running #1 to date. “Maps” will additionally become the second longest reigning song of 2014, behind Kiesza’s unstoppable “Hideaway”, which topped for 6 straight frames starting in early May.

On the other hand, Jessie J’s Collaboration with Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj (“Bang Bang”) is off to an underwhelming start. With just a handful of first day spins, don’t expect this to amount to much in its first week. When the Social Songs 100 opens up for voting later today, I’m guessing that “Bang Bang” will ride into the top position, which would give it an additional 10 points right off the bat. Still, at this point it’s likely that “Bang Bang” (a track that is actually decently composed) nabs the second highest debut of the week.

The Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga collaboration (“Anything Goes”) could potentially become the third highest debut of the week, with somewhere between #35-45 being a reasonable guess. While that would be a record low start for Gaga (who has tallied 18 weeks at #1), any debut on the Hot 50 would mark a career high for Bennett, who hasn’t released many tracks since the 2012 inception of the CDS Music Chart.

Other tracks that could potentially make a splash include Train’s “Bulletproof Picasso” (from the forthcoming album of the same name), and Secondcity’s “What Can I Do (feat. Ali Love)”. Hillary Duff’s “Chasing the Sun” is currently on pace to fall just short of the official Hot 50.

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Lost Chart: February 16th, 2012

#	LW	2W	PK	WKs	Name	Artist
1	1	1	1	7	***NUMBER 1*** Take Care (feat. Rihanna) {#1 for 3 Weeks}	Drake
2	2	2	2	7	Turn Me On (feat. Nicki Minaj)	David Guetta
3	3	4	3	6	The Motto (Bonus Track) [feat. Lil Wayne]	Drake
4	5	3	1	7	We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris) {#1 for 2 Weeks}	Rihanna
5	4	5	4	6	Talk That Talk	Rihanna
6	6	8	6	7	Dance (A$$) [feat. Nicki Minaj]	Big Sean
7	15	17	7	4	***GREATEST GAINER*** What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)	Kelly Clarkson
8	7	6	5	7	Moves Like Jagger (feat. Christina Aguilera)	Maroon 5
9	8	16	8	3	Make Me Proud (feat. Nicki Minaj)	Drake
10	9	7	2	7	Good Feeling	Flo Rida
11	11	-	11	2	Young Forever	Nicki Minaj
12	12	15	12	3	Marilyn Monroe	Nicki Minaj
13	10	10	10	7	Don’t Hold Your Breath	Nicole Scherzinger
14	18	-	14	2	Glad You Came	The Wanted
15	13	14	13	6	Roman In Moscow	Nicki Minaj
16	16	13	3	7	The One That Got Away	Katy Perry
17	14	12	4	7	Domino	Jessie J
18	20	20	5	7	It Will Rain	Bruno Mars
19	NEW	-	19	1	***HOT SHOT DEBUT*** Not Over You	Gavin Degraw
20	19	11	7	7	You Make Me Feel… (feat. Sabi)	Cobra Starship