A Moment Of Gratitude (With An Assist From Big Star)
As you might have noticed, this is a bittersweet week around here; because of budget cuts, we’ve had to say goodbye to pretty much all the Idolator contributing writers, from columnists to daily...
View ArticleGreen Day Own Rock Charts, Prepare to Qualify
The most notable move on any of Billboard‘s flagship singles charts this week isn’t on the Hot 100, where the Black Eyed Peas make it a month at No. 1 with the tiresome “Boom Boom Pow.” Instead, over...
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Our resident chart guru Chris Molanphy was on WNYC’s On The Media this weekend, where he shared his thoughts on the meaning of the pop charts in an age where music is so atomized. The transcript isn’t...
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A Strapped America Goes To The 99-Cent Store, And New Singles Storm The Top 40
In a week where it seems the global financial crisis is inescapable, America decides that a buck is a nice price to spend on music, and the Top 40 of Billboard‘s Hot 100 sees a wave of new best-selling...
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Do iTunes Sales Show “High School Musical” Fans Breaking Free Of The Franchise?
In the doldrums of January 2006, several weeks after the annual flurry of post-Christmas music-buying, the iTunes Store was livened up by the sudden appearance on its best-sellers list of a bunch of...
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Got Lost In The Game: Hot 100 Victory Returns Britney From Chart Wilderness
Ten years ago this month—Oct. 23, 1998, to be exact—Jive Records released a savvy, Max Martin–produced pop trifle called “…Baby One More Time.” It went on to top Billboard‘s Hot 100 in the winter of...
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Catchy Deeds, Sold Dirt Cheap: Angus Young Not As Allergic To Singles As He...
For all you vinyl fetishists out there, here are a couple of catalog numbers to look up in your collection of vintage 45s: Atlantic 3761, and Atlantic 3787. From what classic, hit-single-producing...
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Damn That Radio Song: T.I.’s Twofer Still Tops, But Airplay Gives One Song...
“Okay, it’s official,” I wrote to Maura midday on Thursday, when Billboard released the new Hot 100. “I have seriously underestimated ‘Whatever You Like.’” That durable smash by Atlanta rap deity T.I....
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Independent Woman: Beyoncé Approaching Destiny’s Chart Record
We knew last week that Beyoncé’s “If I Were a Boy” was poised to make a big leap on Billboard‘s Hot 100. The only question was, how big? Just a year ago, a 65-space jump to No. 3 would have been enough...
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Steady Chasin’ That Paper: T.I. Replaces Self, Settles In Atop Charts
Maybe the country has been a little too distracted to listen to the radio recently, but for whatever reason, there’s a paucity of big moves on Billboard‘s Hot 100 this week: no skyrocketing songs...
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Paramore Hitches Wagon To “Twilight” Star, Crosses Over To Top 40
A band with a charismatic frontwoman attracts a passionate young following, briefly with Contemporary Christian fans and then with a mass audience bewitched by their alternative-but-accessible vibe....
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Swift Kick: For Country’s New Teen Megastar, Every Song’s A Hit
In the annals of popular music, certain albums stand out for their sheer percentage of hit-bound material. Michael Jackson’s Thriller is the most famous, not just because it spun off seven Top 10...
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Limey Lass Vs. Gator Crass: Predicting The Year-End Hot 100
When Billboard closes out 2008 next week by charting the year’s biggest hits, you can expect several songs from late 2007 to loom large on the year-end Hot 100. But I doubt any will surpass the song...
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Doubled His Pleasure, Quadrupled His Fun: Chris Brown is 2008’s Stealth Chart...
The release today of Billboard’s tallies for the year’s biggest U.S. singles and albums produce few jaw-dropping surprises. The top eight songs of the year, according to the Hot 100, come directly from...
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One More List Before We Go: The Top 12 Idolator Posts Of 2008
As you may have gathered, I’m raring to close the book on 2008, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t run down some of the site’s highlights during what was a pretty dreary year overall. After the jump, behold...
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Lady GaGa Dances To No. 1 As iTunes’ Beat Gets A Little Bit Slower
Over the holidays, Billboard‘s song charts were, at least on the surface, pretty sleepy. On the Hot 100, most of the songs that were hot late last fall—Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies” and “If I Were a Boy,”...
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“Suck” Blows (Up): Clarkson’s Comeback Could Make It To The Top Of The Pops
The most interesting news on Billboard’s Hot 100 isn’t at the summit, where the entire Top Five has been static for the last couple of weeks. It’s in the basement, where a flotilla of new songs—many by...
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Heavy Lies the Crown: Clarkson Still Tops, But Slim Shady Is Poised to Pounce
Maura and I have already taken a victory lap about our fulfilled prediction that Kelly Clarkson would vault to the top of Billboard‘s Hot 100. Clarkson’s “My Life Would Suck Without You” dominates the...
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Two-Hit Wonder Flo Rida Owns Charts, Reminds Us He Exists
Obviously, we need to talk about the new song that takes over the top of Billboard‘s Hot 100, and the mind-blowing record it sets. But before we do that, let’s talk about Hilary Swank. I find Swank’s...
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Lady GaGa Takes Slow and Steady Route to the Top
“Lady GaGa Scores Hot 100 Milestone,” a Billboard headline trumpeted yesterday upon the release of the new Hot 100.What could this milestone be? you might ask yourself. Biggest self-aggrandizer since...
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