Thursday, October 3, 2024

Hi. Let me reintroduce myself.

 Wow, it's been a while since I've logged on to this. 

Hope you guys are all doing well, I know I just kinda disappeared without saying much, so I'm gonna catch you guys up a bit.

For the past few years, I've really been deciding what I want to do with my life, and where I go from here. I've always loved writing music, and recently (over the past year or so), I've written a lot of songs that I'm really proud of. And I'm ready to bring them to the world.

So without further ado...


Hi. My name is Jack. If you want to hear my first song, "Hope", you can follow me below:

IG: jack_xander_music

YouTube: Jack Xander


I'm also thinking about doing some commentary videos along the same vein of what used to be on this blog. So if you've been missing that, I would definitely recommend subscribing.

Anyways, hope you've all been doing well, I'll hang out in the comments for the next few days, so if you want to ask me any questions, I'll be checking in.

Thanks for checking out my music, it helps a TON, and I thought there'd be nobody better to show it to than you guys.

Kwaheri, everybody. See you in the next one.

Tuesday, January 31, 2023

Voting for the 2022 Ultimate Pop Rate is Open!!!

    Hey, all! So, while I still don't have the final list for the Pop Rate, I figured we could get started on it anyways. I'll just get rid of songs that end up being ineligible. So, without further ado, here is the list of songs for the 2022 Ultimate Pop Rate!

  • 10 Things I Hate About You - Leah Kate
  • 2 Be Loved (Am I Ready) - Lizzo
  • 2step - Ed Sheeran/Lil Baby
  • abcdefu - GAYLE
  • About Damn Time - Lizzo
  • All 4 Nothing (I'm So In Love) - Lauv
  • Anti-Hero - Taylor Swift
  • Anxiety - Coi Leray
  • Are You Entertained - Russ/Ed Sheeran
  • As It Was - Harry Styles
  • attention - Omah Lay/Justin Bieber
  • Baby Boo - Muni Long/Saweetie
  • Bad Decisions - benny blanco/BTS/Snoop Dogg
  • Bad Habit - Steve Lacy
  • Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran
  • Becky's So Hot - FLETCHER
  • Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G
  • Betty (Get Money) - Yung Gravy
  • Big Energy - Latto
  • Bigger Than Me - Louis Tomlinson
  • BILLIE EILISH. - Armani White
  • Bite Me - Avril Lavigne
  • Bones - Imagine Dragons
  • Boyfriend - Dove Cameron
  • Boys Don't Cry - Anitta
  • BREAK MY SOUL - Beyoncé
  • Calm Down - Rema/Selena Gomez
  • Can't Stop Us Now - Pitbull/Zac Brown
  • Chosen - Blxst/Tyga/Ty Dolla $ign
  • Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.
  • COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer
  • Cooped Up - Post Malone/Roddy Ricch
  • CUFF IT - Beyoncé
  • Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE
  • Devil Doesn't Bargain - Alec Benjamin
  • Die For You - The Weeknd
  • Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish
  • Don't Forget My Love - Diplo/Miguel
  • Don't Let The Light Go Out - Panic! At The Disco
  • Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence
  • DON'T YOU WORRY - Black Eyed Peas/Shakira/David Guetta
  • Dreamers - Jung Kook
  • Dress - Charlotte Sands
  • Easy Lover - Ellie Goulding/Big Sean
  • Easy On Me - Adele
  • emo girl - Machine Gun Kelly/WILLOW
  • Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID
  • Enough - charlieonnafriday
  • Escape - Kx5/Hayla
  • Evergreen (You Didn't Deserve Me At All) - Omar Apollo
  • Faking Love - Anitta/Saweetie
  • feel like shit - Tate McRae
  • The Feels - TWICE
  • Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer Smith
  • First Class - Jack Harlow
  • Flowers - Lauren Spencer Smith
  • fmk - GAYLE/blackbear
  • Forget Me - Lewis Capaldi
  • For Tonight - Giveon
  • Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat
  • Get Into It (Yuh) - Doja Cat
  • Ghost - Justin Bieber
  • Glimpse of Us - Joji
  • golden hour - JVKE
  • Good Ones - Charli XCX
  • Grand - Kane Brown
  • Have Mercy - Chlöe
  • Heat Waves - Glass Animals
  • High - The Chainsmokers
  • Hold Me Closer - Elton John/Britney Spears
  • Hold My Hand - Lady Gaga
  • Honest - Justin Bieber/Don Toliver
  • House On Fire - Mimi Webb
  • I Ain't Worried - OneRepublic
  • I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli
  • IDGAF - BoyWithUke/blackbear
  • i feel everything - Amelia Moore
  • I Feel Good - Pitbull/Anthony Watts/DJ White Shadow
  • I Hate U - SZA
  • I Like You (A Happier Song) - Post Malone/Doja Cat
  • I Love U - The Chainsmokers
  • I Love You So - The Walters
  • I'm a Mess - Avril Lavigne/YUNGBLUD
  • I'm Good (Blue) - David Guetta/Bebe Rexha
  • I'm Tired - Labrinth/Zendaya
  • iPad - The Chainsmokers
  • I Remember - Cheat Codes/Russell Dickerson
  • It's Been So Long - K.Flay
  • It Was A... (Masked Christmas) - Jimmy Fallon/Ariana Grande/Megan Thee Stallion
  • I Won't - AJR
  • Jiggle Jiggle - Duke & Jones/Louis Theroux
  • Jimmy Cooks - Drake/21 Savage
  • The Joker And The Queen - Ed Sheeran/Taylor Swift
  • Just a Cloud Away - Pharrell Williams
  • Late Night Talking - Harry Styles
  • Left and Right - Charlie Puth/Jung Kook
  • let you - iann dior
  • Life Goes On - Oliver Tree
  • Lift Me Up - Rihanna
  • Light Switch - Charlie Puth
  • THE LONELIEST - Måneskin
  • Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear
  • Love Me More - Sam Smith
  • love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay
  • Made You Look - Meghan Trainor
  • Make You Say - Zedd/Maren Morris/BEAUZ
  • Male Fantasy - Billie Eilish
  • MAMIII - Becky G/KAROL G
  • MANIAC - Macklemore/Windser
  • Massive - Drake
  • Maybe You're The Problem - Ava Max
  • Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY
  • Me Myself & I - 5 Seconds of Summer
  • Merry Christmas - Ed Sheeran/Elton John
  • Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift
  • Middle Of A Breakup - Panic! At The Disco
  • Million Dollar Baby - Ava Max
  • MONEY - LISA
  • Moth To A Flame - Swedish House Mafia/The Weeknd
  • The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max
  • Move - DNCE
  • Music For a Sushi Restaurant - Harry Styles
  • My Mind & Me - Selena Gomez
  • Need to Know - Doja Cat
  • Numb - Marshmello/Khalid
  • Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold
  • Oh My God - Adele
  • One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd
  • Out of Time - The Weeknd
  • Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran
  • Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran
  • Pink Venom - BLACKPINK
  • Potion - Calvin Harris/Dua Lipa/Young Thug
  • Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR
  • Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) - Kate Bush
  • Sacrifice - The Weeknd
  • sheluvme - Tai Verdes
  • she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae
  • SIMPLY THE BEST - Black Eyed Peas/Anitta/El Alfa
  • SKIN OF MY TEETH - Demi Lovato
  • Skyline - Khalid
  • Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic
  • SNAP - Rosa Linn
  • So Good - Halsey
  • STAR WALKIN' - Lil Nas X
  • STAYING ALIVE - DJ Khaled/Drake/Lil Baby
  • Sunroof - Nicky Youre/dazy
  • Super Freaky Girl - Nicki Minaj
  • SUPERMODEL - Måneskin
  • Sweetest Pie - Megan Thee Stallion/Dua Lipa
  • THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X
  • this is what falling in love feels like - JVKE
  • Thousand Miles - The Kid LAROI
  • TO THE MOON - Jnr Choi/Sam Tompkins
  • Toxic Pony - ALTÉGO/Britney Spears/Ginuwine
  • uh oh - Tate McRae
  • Unholy - Sam Smith/Kim Petras
  • Unstoppable - Sia
  • Until I Found You - Stephen Sanchez
  • Vegas - Doja Cat
  • Victoria's Secret - Jax
  • Viva Las Vengeance - Panic! At The Disco
  • WAIT FOR U - Future/Drake/Tems
  • Wandered To LA - Juice WRLD/Justin Bieber
  • Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin
  • We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast
  • The Weekend (Remix) - 88rising/BIBI/347aidan
  • When I'm Gone - Alesso/Katy Perry
  • When You're Gone - Shawn Mendes
  • Where Are You Now - Lost Frequencies/Calum Scott
  • Woman - Doja Cat
  • Wonderland - AleXa
  • World's Smallest Violin - AJR
  • Wrapped Around Your Finger - Post Malone
  • WYD Now? - Sadie Jean
The rules are simple. You're going to rate each song from 1-10. You may give ONE song a 0 and ONE song an 11. Also, it's highly encouraged to add a fun little comment next to each song. For my convenience, please format your responses like this:

World's Smallest Violin: 0, World's Smallest Violin? More like World's ANNOYINGEST Violin amirite?

Also, yes, I know that this is a lot of songs, but you guys have probably heard the vast majority of these many times, so I don't care. This is gonna be fun, and you'll LIKE IT.

Also also, please rate the songs based on how you genuinely feel about them. So I don't care if you don't like old songs coming to radio, rate them honestly.


Voting is closed two weeks after the list is set. I will update this post once that happens.

Sunday, January 8, 2023

Big Announcement!

    Hey all! Wow, it's been a while since I've been here. I hope you're all doing well, and I've missed checking in on you guys every week. However, I have an announcement to make, and I think it's one that you guys will be very excited about. In the coming months, I'm planning on hosting a HUGE 2022 Ultimate Pop Rate!! Basically, I'll post a form for you guys to rate every Weekend Countdown song and every Billboard Pop song in 2022. Then, over the course of a few weeks, I'll reveal the list! It's important to note that I won't be including every single song to reach either chart over the past year, only the ones that were the most successful in 2022 on either chart. So for example, I won't be including Shivers or Creepin', as Shivers performed better in 2021 on both charts, and I expect Creepin' to perform better in 2023 on both charts. However, I will be including songs like Heat Waves, as while it didn't chart at all on the Countdown in 2022, it was actually more successful in 2022 than in 2021 on the Billboard Pop Chart. Because of that, I won't be releasing the form right away, as I need to see how things shake up in the coming weeks (possibly even a month or two), to see if certain songs will be bigger in 2022 or 2023. I likely won't be participating in this myself, as I've really grown these past months to just appreciate music, rather than trying to form an opinion on it, so I'll be solely acting as your host.

    Now, to just talk about the state of this blog, as I know I kind of abandoned it without really letting you guys I was going to, and the reason for that is that I didn't know I was going to either. Life just really got busy, and I've almost completely run out of time for stuff like this. That's why I want to let you guys know that this will probably end up being the last year that I post here, as I really can't see myself having time for this at all in the future. But if it is my last year, I want to make it a memorable one instead of quietly drifting away, so I'm going to try my best to give you guys a different post every month. The posts will probably be quite different from what you're used to, and I have a few ideas bouncing around that I know you guys will like. But we'll kick it off with a top 10 songs of 2022 that I'll release this month (I'll also post what I had as my top 45 of 2021 in the comments of this one, as I promised you guys that post, and then never delivered).

    Q&A will be open in the comments below, so if you guys want to ask me about anything in particular, music-related or not, drop your questions down below, and I'll try to get back to you guys ASAP.

    Kwaheri, everybody! See you all in the next one.

Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Chart Check-in: June 2022 - Harry Styles

Hello, friends! It's always nice to be back. Anyways, my final Year-End post will be coming out this week (or at least, I sure hope so, because I'm gone all July), so look for that in the coming few days. But before we get ahead of ourselves, let's take a look at Hits 1 from the past month! Remember that I've been constantly updating the Weekend Countdown on the tab above, so if you ever want to know early what some of my opinions are, go check that out (but not for next month, because I'm gone). I've also been including a blurb of the week, as well as an interesting title for each week, just in case you've been missing some of my charm. Anyways, let's get into it!

Debuts
Devil Doesn't Bargain - Alec Benjamin
Get Into It (Yuh) - Doja Cat
i feel everything - Amelia Moore
I Like You (A Happier Song) - Post Malone/Doja Cat
I Love U - The Chainsmokers
Jiggle Jiggle - Duke & Jones/Louis Theroux
Late Night Talking - Harry Styles
Numb - Marshmello/Khalid
Potion - Calvin Harris/Dua Lipa/Young Thug
SKIN OF MY TEETH - Demi Lovato
So Good - Halsey
Until I Found You - Stephen Sanchez
Viva Las Vengeance - Panic! At The Disco
Wrapped Around Your Finger - Post Malone

  • Devil Doesn't Bargain is easily the best Alec Benjamin song I've ever heard. Sure, he still sounds like he's 13, but those melodies are incredible and the production is nothing short of fantastic. I'd love to see this do well here.
  • After spending three weeks in Hit-Bound last year, then way too long in the Abyss this year, Get Into It (Yuh) finally debuted... and spent one week on the Countdown before leaving. Seriously? Anyways, this song is fun, but it's gotten kind of old, because I've known about it for a while.
  • Amelia Moore is our newest One to Watch, and she brings us i feel everything, which is... not great. Her voice is a little grating in the chorus, and the rest isn't that interesting.
  • Post Malone and Doja Cat teamed up on I Like You, which is a great song that's much more upbeat than the rest of the Twelve Carat Toothache singles. Super fun, both artists do great here, +10 bonus points for that awesome outro. Just a great song overall.
  • After spending a while in the Abyss, The Chainsmokers' I Love U debuted last week. Not too interesting, but a really enjoyable song.
  • Possibly the stupidest song ever, Jiggle Jiggle by Duke & Jones and british journalist Louis Theroux debuted. Not sure why this song was made, as it's ridiculously stupid, but it's just so much fun, I love it. The production is also kinda great? Yeah, I shouldn't love this, but I do (also it CRUSHED the record for the shortest song to reach the Countdown, at 1:37).
  • The second single from Harry's House, Late Night Talking also debuted. While I personally think Music For a Sushi Restaurant is better, and would've made for a better single, this song is still a bop, and I'd love to see it do well here... and I mean, it's Harry Styles, so is that even in question?
  • Marshmello and Khalid's new song Numb is SO GOOD! It's so catchy, I can't.
  • Calvin Harris, Dua Lipa and Young Thug's Potion debuted, left and re-entered this month, and seems to be holding steady now. I like it, but it feels like it has potential to be much better. It's just not all that memorable.
  • Demi Lovato returned with SKIN OF MY TEETH, which is just a full-on pop-punk song. This is fine. The chorus is pretty catchy, and I like the production, but it's not all that memorable. Probably why it only spent a week here.
  • Halsey's new song So Good already feels nostalgic for whatever reason, and I love it. I also like how it kinda tells a story, which is something that I wish more songs would do. I'd love to see this do super well.
  • Until I Found You is really really bad and I hope it doesn't re-enter.
  • In the past few months, I've gotten really into Panic! At The Disco's stuff, and I've heard all of their songs now, so I was pretty excited to see that Viva Las Vengeance was coming out. It's definitely not their best, but it's fun and catchy, and it's always nice to see Brendon return.
  • Apparently Hits 1 got confused and thought that Wrapped Around Your Finger was the big Post Malone single, and well... it wasn't, but it's still a solid song.
Best Debut of the Month: So Good - Halsey

Exits
COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer [#5] {12 weeks}
Cooped Up - Post Malone/Roddy Ricch [#25] {3 weeks}
Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID [6 weeks at #1] {20 weeks}
Flowers - Lauren Spencer-Smith [#19] {4 weeks}
Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat [#15] {10 weeks}
Get Into It (Yuh) - Doja Cat [#28] {1 week}
Honest - Justin Bieber/Don Toliver [#27] {5 weeks}
Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear [#3] {17 weeks}
Move - DNCE [#20] {3 weeks}
she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae [#5] {18 weeks}
SKIN OF MY TEETH - Demi Lovato [#29] {1 week}
Skyline - Khalid [#17] {7 weeks}
TO THE MOON - Jnr Choi/Sam Tompkins [#21] {10 weeks}
Until I Found You - Stephen Sanchez [#21] {2 weeks}
Wrapped Around Your Finger - Post Malone [#25] {1 week}

  • COMPLETE MESS faded on me pretty quickly, so I'm not sad at all that it's gone.
  • Cooped Up was great, but kinda forgettable, so I'm not surprised that it wasn't a hit, although I really want Roddy to get another pop hit. He's so good, you guys.
  • I'm really satisfied with how well Enemy did here. It had a great run, and I hope that Bones can match it.
  • Honestly, Flowers should still be here, and there's no reason Hits 1 should've dropped it, especially because of how good it is.
  • Freaky Deaky should've done much better here.
  • Okay, seriously, though, one week for Get Into It (Yuh)? The song is top 10 on the pop charts, yet it was only good enough for one week on Hits 1? Come on.
  • Glad to see the world figured out that Honest is bad (although, I do hope that Justin Bieber gets better. That's really unfortunate, and I wish him and his family the best).
  • Wait... Love It When You Hate Me left this month? Ok then.
  • Oh yeah, haha, Move was a song.
  • I'm happy that she's all i wanna be ended up peaking in the top five, but it shouldn't have left so quickly.
  • Yeah, SKIN OF MY TEETH wasn't all that memorable, so I don't care that it's gone for good.
  • Skyline deserved better, it was really fun. It fell everywhere really quickly because of Numb, and while I agree that that's a better song, Skyline is still really good.
  • Oh, yeah, also, TO THE MOON should still be here. It deserved better.
  • I'm beyond happy that Until I Found You only spent two weeks on the Countdown, because it is not a radio song.
  • Hits 1 figured themselves out with Wrapped Around Your Finger, don't worry.
Best Exit: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID (yeah, I got tired of it too, but it's still my favourite of the bunch)

Top 10 Hits 1 Songs from June 2022
#10: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran (-) [#9]
#9: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold (-5) [#3]
#8: Sweetest Pie - Megan Thee Stallion/Dua Lipa (-6) [#6]
#7: Bones - Imagine Dragons (new) [#7]
#6: When You're Gone - Shawn Mendes (+2) [#5]
#5: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron (-2) [#5]
#4: Sunroof - Nicky Youre/dazy (new) [#2]
#3: 2step - Ed Sheeran/Lil Baby (+4) [#3]
#2: About Damn Time - Lizzo (new) [#2]
#1: As It Was - Harry Styles (-) [4 weeks at #1]

  • Lmao, Bam Bam has been #10 for both May and June. It's really hovering in the low top 10, isn't it? Which is fitting, that's about where I'd place it.
  • I'm glad Numb Little Bug ended up coming back to the top five, but it's plummeting way too fast for my comfort right now. This song is really good, and it doesn't deserve this.
  • Sweetest Pie is still annoying, but #8 of the month is more tolerable than #2 of the month.
  • Ayy, nice to see Bones getting some success here. I'd love to see it do even better here (yes, I know I'm a basic Nathan for liking Imagine Dragons but whatever).
  • When You're Gone has reached the top five, which is awesome. It's so much fun, I've been listening to it so much this past month.
  • I'm still fading on Boyfriend, but I haven't gotten outright sick of it yet, so this is fine.
  • Ope. I guess Sunroof is a thing now. I'm definitely not complaining, because it's a great song, but this was definitely unexpected to say the least.
  • I can't explain how much I want 2step to be a huge hit. It deserves to be bigger than Shivers (HITS 1: I AM NOT ASKING FOR 15 WEEKS AT #1. THAT IS EXCESSIVE. NO SONG DESERVES THAT).
  • About Damn Time is so much fun and I'm glad it didn't end up flopping. I really want this to hit #1 on the Countdown, but I don't see that happening, because Hits 1 is Hits 1.
  • And of course, As It Was dominated the #1 spot for the entire month. The song's starting to fade on me, but it's still solid, so I'm not complaining that much. Just as long as we can switch it up soon.

Hit-Bound Debuts
a letter to me - Dixie
Angry Woman - Ashe
Baby Boo - Muni Long/Saweetie
Booty - Saucy Santana/Latto
Breakfast - Dove Cameron
Carolina - Taylor Swift
die first - Nessa Barrett
Disaster - Conan Gray
DON'T YOU WORRY - Black Eyed Peas/Shakira/David Guetta
Dress - Charlotte Sands
Falling Back - Drake
Glimpse of Us - Joji
Goodbye - Mimi Webb
Grrrls - Lizzo
Left and Right - Charlie Puth/Jung Kook
Life's Too Short (English Version) - aespa
Only You - Eddie Benjamin/Alessia Cara
sheluvme - Tai Verdes
Something to Someone - Dermot Kennedy
Twinkle Twinkle Little Bitch - Leah Kate
Want Want - Maggie Rogers

  • a letter to me is really boring and uninteresting. This shouldn't have replaced Wild.
  • Yeah, I'm not a huge Ashe fan. The lyrics and message in Angry Woman are great, but I'm just not a huge fan of Ashe.
  • Baby Boo is a bop, and this song should be actually doing something on radio.
  • Booty is also a bop, and I love the Crazy In Love sample (which is probably a sample of something else, but I'm too lazy to look it up).
  • Is Dove Cameron's whole vibe just "spy"? Ok then.
  • Carolina is good, but I'm still waiting for a 1989 vault track to be a bop and a half and blow everyone away.
  • die first is typical Nessa Barrett, except, contrary to what the title would have you think, it's actually a love song. Cool.
  • Disaster is SO GOOD, and if Hits 1 lets this flop, I will have some WORDS to say.
  • DON'T YOU WORRY sounds like it came right out of 2006, and I don't mean that as a compliment. At least it's better than GIRL LIKE ME.
  • After Hits 1 ignoring it for way too long, Dress by Charlotte Sands is finally here! This is a good song, and I'd love to see it do well here.
  • Drake released a surprise album, Honestly, Nevermind, a couple weeks ago. I've never listened to a Drake album in full, but I did for this one, and it was actually really good. Every song was pretty dance-y, and I loved it. I don't think any song would work very well as a single, but they're all good. Falling Back falls back in that category.
  • I have no clue why Glimpse of Us blew up like it did, because... uh... (guys, it's bad. I'm not sure if you've been told that, but it's a bad song).
  • Goodbye is a great Mimi Webb ballad, and I wish it was a hit.
  • Apparently Lizzo's newest, Grrrls, had some controversy around it that's mostly cleared up now, but it probably tanked its chances of becoming a hit, which sucks, because it's a bop.
  • A Charlie Puth / Jung Kook collaboration is something I never knew I needed, but it's really catchy and great.
  • Life's Too Short is good, even if not all that memorable.
  • Only You is definitely better than Weatherman, but Eddie Benjamin is still annoying.
  • I respect Tai Verdes for not staying a TikTok artist, even if his style right now isn't really my thing.
  • Something to Someone was good and should've been here for more than a week.
  • Even if the "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" melody takes me out of the new Leah Kate song a bit, the rest of it is SO GOOD,
  • Want Want is just a solid, if forgettable, song.
Best Hit-Bound Debut: Disaster - Conan Gray

Hit-Bound Exits
100sadsongs - Tai Verdes
Best Lover - BIBI
don't come back - Tate McRae
Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence
Falling Back - Drake
gfy - blackbear/Machine Gun Kelly
Goodbye - Mimi Webb
Grrrls - Lizzo
MEAN! - Madeline The Person
No One Dies From Love - Tove Lo
Only You - Eddie Benjamin/Alessia Cara
Overthinking - Mabel/24kGoldn
P.G.N.L. - Conor Maynard
Something to Someone - Dermot Kennedy
Too Precious - Em Beihold
Want Want - Maggie Rogers
Wild - Dixie
Will It Ever Feel The Same? - Bazzi

  • I literally can't remember what 100sadsongs sounds like.
  • Yeah, Best Lover wasn't all that memorable, but I think it still deserved better than this.
  • don't come back shouldn't have replaced what would you do?, and that should've been a hit.
  • Don't Lose Sight was here for a ridiculously long time, so while it never ended up debuting, I'm fine with it being gone.
  • Massive is actually getting played on the station now instead of Falling Back, so Hits 1 might've changed their minds.
  • gfy was so good, it deserved better.
  • Goodbye was also really good, so I'm sad I didn't get to hear much of it.
  • I get why Grrrls didn't end up doing too well, but I'm disappointed nonetheless.
  • MEAN! was really forgettable, so I'm not disappointed in the slightest.
  • I've never been a huge Tove Lo fan, and No One Dies From Love did not change my mind.
  • I can't remember what Only You sounds like, plus it was an Eddie Benjamin song, so I'm fine with it being gone.
  • Overthinking probably deserved better than what it got.
  • P.G.N.L. definitely deserved to debut, and I'm sad it was only in the Abyss for a week or two after it left.
  • Not sure why Something to Someone only lasted a week, but it's okay. Outnumbered was better anyways.
  • I never expected Too Precious to do well, so I'm not sad it's gone.
  • Want Want seems to be in the Abyss, so I don't think it's fully gone quite yet. Will it debut? Probably not, but we'll see.
  • Wild definitely shouldn't have been replaced by a letter to me.
  • Will It Ever Feel The Same? was never that good, so I don't care that it's gone.
Best Hit-Bound Exit: Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence

So next up is a list of the songs that charted on Billboard's Pop Songs chart this month, but haven't reached the Countdown at all yet.

Songs That Hits 1 is Missing Out On
Don't Forget My Love - Diplo/Miguel
Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence
DON'T YOU WORRY - Black Eyed Peas/Shakira/David Guetta
Dress - Charlotte Sands
MAMIII - Becky G/KAROL G
Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) - Kate Bush
this is what falling in love feels like - JVKE
Wonderland - AleXa

  • Yeah, I think Hits 1 has missed out on adding Don't Forget My Love to the Countdown, which is a shame, because it was a great song.
  • Same with Don't Lose Sight.
  • Yeah, that's okay, we don't need DON'T YOU WORRY on the Countdown.
  • As I mentioned earlier, they finally picked up on Dress, so fingers crossed.
  • MAMIII had some really great production, so I kinda wish it made its way to Hits 1, but it didn't, and that's ok.
  • Um... so yeah, a song from 1985 is charting on pop radio. Why, you may ask? Actually, it's not TikTok this time. Well, ok, it's partially TikTok. But it's mostly because the song was featured in the fourth season of Stranger Things. And I never would've heard Running Up That Hill if it didn't become viral, so I'm glad it did, because it's a great song.
  • Yeah, we don't need this is what falling in love feels like on the Countdown either. It's been in the Abyss for a long time, and I'd be ok if it stayed that way.
  • Wonderland was fun, but not all too memorable.
Song Hits 1 Should Add to the Countdown: Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) - Kate Bush

Yeah, so that's it! As I did last month, I'll open up Q&A if there's anything you guys feel like asking me. But for now, kwaheri, everybody! See you all in the next one (hopefully this week!).

Saturday, June 11, 2022

Chart Check-in: May 2022 - Harry Styles

Welp, needless to say, things haven't quite gone according to plan, but I thought I'd still take the time to do my May check-in. I'll kinda go through how this is gonna work, but basically it's just a pretty quick rundown of everything that happened on the Countdown in May. Let's kick it off with the songs that debuted in May.

Debuts
Cooped Up - Post Malone/Roddy Ricch
Flowers - Lauren Spencer-Smith
Hold My Hand - Lady Gaga
Honest - Justin Bieber/Don Toliver
Love Me More - Sam Smith
Maybe You're The Problem - Ava Max
Me Myself & I - 5 Seconds of Summer
Move - DNCE
Skyline - Khalid
SUPERMODEL - Måneskin

  • Ok, so Cooped Up isn't the best Post Malone song, but it's nice and chill and it's always great to have Roddy back on radio.
  • I really didn't expect Flowers to debut, but here we are I guess. Can't say I'm complaining, it's a great song. A little confused though, and I don't see this lasting very long.
  • Hold My Hand is definitely a movie song. It's also definitely a Lady Gaga song. Overall, pretty great, and I'd love to see this be a hit.
  • Honest is so bad. Nothing really works here, except for Don Toliver, I guess. Overall just a very weird song.
  • I expected Love Me More to debut, but I don't see it doing too well given it's kind of slow. Good song though.
  • I'm SO HAPPY to see Maybe You're The Problem here so quickly. It's such a fun song, and I'd love to see it do well here.
  • OK GUYS. Me Myself & I IS THE BEST 5SOS SONG I'VE EVER HEARD. SERIOUSLY, IT'S SO GOOD. EVERYONE HERE SOUNDS GREAT AND IT'S CATCHY AND THE INSTRUMENTATION IS GREAT AGHHHHHH. I WANT THIS TO BE A HIT SO BAD.
  • Move is fine. It's fun, but not too memorable in the long run.
  • I've been enjoying Skyline lately, so I'm glad it's here.
  • Also, Måneskin is back and SUPERMODEL is easily the best song from them so far. So much fun, great instrumentation, just a masterpiece. I'd love to see this become a hit too.
Best Debut of the Month: SUPERMODEL - Måneskin (very close tho)

Ok next up is every song that left (without re-entering) this month.

Exits
Big Energy - Latto [#7] {15 weeks}
Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith [#10] {15 weeks}
Hold My Hand - Lady Gaga [#28] {1 week}
House On Fire - Mimi Webb [#15] {9 weeks}
IDGAF - BoyWithUke/blackbear [#25] {5 weeks}
Light Switch - Charlie Puth [1 week at #1] {15 weeks}
Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran [5 weeks at #1] {24 weeks}
The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max [#4] {14 weeks}
Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin [#18] {11 weeks}
Woman - Doja Cat [#12] {16 weeks}

  • Ugh, I can't believe Big Energy flopped as much as it did here. It was such a big hit, and such a great song, and Hits 1 didn't treat it well enough.
  • Fingers Crossed was good, but ultimately got a little annoying, so I'm not sad that it's gone.
  • Pffsh, Hold My Hand only spent a week on the Countdown. Something tells me it'll be back though.
  • Ok I could've sworn that House On Fire left way before it did. Not saying that it's a bad song, I love it, just not all that memorable.
  • IDGAF should've done so much better, it was so good.
  • I'm pretty satisfied with how Light Switch did here. Great song, and was treated as such.
  • I really didn't expect Overpass Graffiti to grow on me as much as it did, to the point where I was a little sad when it left, even though it spent much too long here.
  • I also got a little bored with The Motto, and it did quite well, so I'm not sad to see it go.
  • Weatherman was trash, and should've left a long time ago.
  • Woman should've done so much better what the hell.
Now is the part where I give the award for "Song That Will Be Missed the Most" (title is a work in progress). And this month, it goes to Big Energy by Latto. Seriously, this was done dirty here.

Here are the top 10 songs on Hits 1 of the month based on chart performance.

Top 10 Hits 1 Songs from May 2022
#10: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran [#9]
#9: COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer [#6]
#8: When You're Gone - Shawn Mendes [#8]
#7: 2step - Ed Sheeran/Lil Baby [#6]
#6: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID [#1]
#5: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae [#5]
#4: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold [#3]
#3: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron [#2]
#2: Sweetest Pie - Megan Thee Stallion/Dua Lipa [#2]
#1: As It Was - Harry Styles [#1]

  • Bam Bam is pretty good, so I'm glad to see it in the top 10 now.
  • COMPLETE MESS really faded on me, so I'm glad to see it starting to go.
  • I'm very happy to see When You're Gone doing somewhat well, because it's a great song.
  • I'm unsure why 2step hasn't entered the top five yet, considering it's Ed Sheeran, and it's probably the best = song.
  • Enemy has started to drop a ton, and while I'm sad, because I still love the song, it did much better here than I expected it to, so I'm satisfied.
  • Ayy, she's all i wanna be finally entered the top five! Let's go!
  • I got very scared that Numb Little Bug was gonna fall quickly, but it seems to have rebounded, so fingers crossed that it'll manage to hit #1.
  • I don't think Boyfriend deserves #3 of the month, but whatever.
  • Sweetest Pie got so annoying. I'm sorry, I just don't really like it anymore.
  • It doesn't surprise me in the slightest that As It Was is the #1 of the month. It's a solid song, though, so I'm not complaining. I listened to Harry's House too, and it was actually a pretty great little album. I wasn't expecting that at all, and I'm so glad it was.
Next is all the Hit-Bound debuts (that I haven't already talked about) from May.

Hit-Bound Debuts
100sadsongs - Tai Verdes
Best Lover - BIBI
don't come back - Tate McRae
Dope - John Legend/JID
Dua Lipa - Jack Harlow
gfy - blackbear/Machine Gun Kelly
Hope You're Not Happy - Ashe
I Love U - The Chainsmokers
In The Stars - Benson Boone
Late Night Talking - Harry Styles
MEAN! - Madeline The Person
No One Dies From Love - Tove Lo
Overthinking - Mabel/24kGoldn
P.G.N.L. - Conor Maynard
Potion - Calvin Harris/Dua Lipa/Young Thug
This Love (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift
Too Precious - Em Beihold
Until I Found You - Stephen Sanchez
what would you do? - Tate McRae
Wild - Dixie
Will It Ever Feel The Same? - Bazzi

  • 100sadsongs is solid, but not too memorable.
  • Best Lover isn't nearly as good as The Weekend, but it's still good, so I'll take it.
  • I've really been enjoying Tate McRae's new stuff, and don't come back is a great little bop.
  • A John Legend and JID song called Dope is something I never knew I needed in my life. Great song.
  • Apparently Jack Harlow made a song called Dua Lipa. And it's... fine? I mean, it's Jack Harlow, it can't really be that great or that bad.
  • gfy is yet another blackbear / MGK collaboration, and I don't even care, it's great.
  • I've never been a fan of Ashe and Hope You're Not Happy did not change my opinion at all.
  • I Love U isn't memorable at all, but it's pretty good.
  • In The Stars is so sad what. I didn't need to feel that on a random Friday night.
  • Late Night Talking is a BOP and I don't care what you say.
  • This song, MEAN! really bothers me because it had so much potential when I first starting listening to it, but it ended up being really underwhelming.
  • No One Dies From Love is really weird and it sucks.
  • Overthinking is good, but I don't know, something about it just isn't enough to make it great
  • P.G.N.L. is a super chill song, 8/10.
  • Same issue with Overthinking applies to Potion.
  • It was very weird having This Love here for a bit, because it's a song that I actually have memories attached to. It was weird to see a song I've been with for so long be on a new music show.
  • Too Precious isn't nearly as good as Numb Little Bug, but it's still a very solid song.
  • Ew, who is Stephen Sanchez and why does his song suck so much. Very slow and the vocal effects are bad.
  • I'm sad that what would you do? got replaced, because it was SO GOOD. So much fun, I loved it.
  • Wild is pretty great, actually. Dammit, Dixie, stop making me like your songs.
  • Will It Ever Feel The Same? exists, I guess.
Best Hit-Bound Debut of the Month: Late Night Talking - Harry Styles

Next, the Hit-Bound exits.

Hit-Bound Exits
Dope - John Legend/JID
Dua Lipa - Jack Harlow
Hope You're Not Happy - Ashe
I Love U - The Chainsmokers
In The Stars - Benson Boone
That's Hilarious - Charlie Puth
this is what falling in love feels like - JVKE
This Love (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift
what would you do? - Tate McRae
Where you are - PinkPantheress/WILLOW
Words - Alesso/Zara Larsson

  • Ugh, Dope should've lasted for more than a week, it was so fun.
  • Dua Lipa was just kinda there, so I'm not sad it's gone.
  • Glad to see Hope You're Not Happy didn't last.
  • I think I Love U was in the Abyss for a bit, so it might not be gone, idk.
  • I wish In The Stars had done better, it was so good.
  • That's Hilarious had actually started to grow on me a bit, so I'm sad to see it go.
  • why is this is what falling in love feels like in the Abyss? Come on, it's not good.
  • Ok, yeah, This Love is good, but it would've been weird to have it on the Countdown.
  • I said this earlier, but what would you do? shouldn't have been replaced.
  • Where you are was pretty bad, so I don't care that it's gone.
  • Oh yeah, Words exists.
Best Hit-Bound Exit of the Month: what would you do? - Tate McRae

So yeah! That's about it. I promise that my last Year-End post is coming, and the announcement I was talking about will come with it, and if not, at least before I leave for a month in July. Anyways, if you want to ask me anything about May, feel free, I'll try to respond lmao. And if you want the exact Countdown from each week in May, make sure you check out the "Weekend Countdown" tab above. That's where I've been posting the Countdown recently.

Kwaheri, everybody! See you all in the next one.

Saturday, May 14, 2022

Ok, I need to address something...

    Hey, guys. So if you've been reading this blog for a while, you'd know that there was like two years straight where I was consistently getting all of my posts out on Saturday. And if you've been with me in recent months, you'd know that that hasn't been happening recently. I thought about this for a while, and I've realized that at the moment, my motivation and time just doesn't match with the quality and speed that you guys (and myself) have come to expect from me. So with that being said, I've come to the disappointing conclusion that this is the end of weekly posts. I've seen this coming for a while, but I wanted to keep this going for as long as I could. I've had so much fun doing this over the years, and I love connecting with you guys too. I honestly wouldn't trade any of it.

    However, this isn't goodbye. I'll put up a tab or something where I'll post the Countdown every week, colour-coded and everything, so you guys can at least see my opinions on songs, but I won't be doing the full, week-by-week reviews. I might check in once a month or something to give you guys my thoughts on the charts, but we'll see when the time comes if I actually end up doing it.

    One thing that I definitely want to do however (and I'll have more time to now), is bigger posts. Obviously, this will start with finally finishing up the Rankdown, and getting my best list of 2021 out for my three-year anniversary (mark that as a schedule so that I get it done, June 1st). As well as ultimately announce something I've been planning on doing for a while now on June 1st. After all that happens, I'll probably do some album reviews, maybe a couple more fun games and rankdowns, and I have a few concepts bouncing around that I've wanted to do for a while, but never had the time to with the weekly posts.

    At the end of the day, I'm excited for this new chapter in my life, even if this is where my journey with you guys ends. I'll be focusing a lot more on songwriting now, which is really one of my passions, so if I ever make it, maybe you guys can get a face reveal (!).

    So yeah. I guess that's it. Make sure you check out Waffle's blog if you haven't already, because he puts out some high-quality weekly posts, and he's actually been doing this for longer than I have. As always, it's linked in the sidebar, and it'll update whenever he posts.

    Kwaheri, everybody. See you all in the next one.

Friday, May 13, 2022

If the Countdown Made Sense: Week of May 7, 2022 - Imagine Dragons/JID (1)

Hi! This week on If the Countdown Made Sense, Imagine Dragons and JID take the #1 spot from Latto with their hit Enemy! We also have debuts from Nicky Youre & dazy, Jnr Choi & Sam Tompkins, and a MASSIVE debut from The Kid LAROI. Enjoy!

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To
STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber (#30) [10 weeks at #1] {41 weeks}
Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran (#16) [#16] {6 weeks}
Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith (#6) [#4] {13 weeks}

Last Week's #1: Big Energy - Latto (3)

#30: Sunroof - Nicky Youre/dazy (DEBUT) [11 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {-15}
#29: Ghost - Justin Bieber (-) [1 week at #1] {32 weeks} {N/A}
#28: Heat Waves - Glass Animals (-) [#10] {36 weeks} {N/A}
#27: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd (-1) [#3] {26 weeks} {N/A}
#26: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X (-2) [2 weeks at #1] {32 weeks} {N/A}
#25: Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear (+2) [#18] {13 weeks} {-15}
#24: Woman - Doja Cat (-19) [2 weeks at #1] {17 weeks} {N/A}
#23: Light Switch - Charlie Puth (-5) [#6] {14 weeks} {-15}
#22: TO THE MOON - Jnr Choi/Sam Tompkins (DEBUT) [5 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {-}
#21: Out of Time - The Weeknd (+2) [#21] {3 weeks} {-10} *new peak*
#20: Don't Forget My Love - Diplo/Miguel (+2) [#20] {4 weeks} {N/A} *new peak*
#19: 2step - Ed Sheeran/Lil Baby (+6) [#19] {3 weeks} {-7} *new peak*
#18: I Love You So - The Walters (+2) [#18] {7 weeks} {N/A} *new peak*
#17: Chosen - Blxst/Tyga/Ty Dolla $ign (-) [#17] {8 weeks} {N/A}
#16: Get Into It (Yuh) - Doja Cat (+3) [#16] {3 weeks} {N/A} *new peak*
#15: Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat (+6) [#15] {5 weeks} {+4}
#14: COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer (-1) [#13] {8 weeks} {-8}
#13: Thousand Miles - The Kid LAROI (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {+11}
#12: First Class - Jack Harlow (+3) [#12] {2 weeks} {+15} *new peak*
#11: About Damn Time - Lizzo (+3) [#11] {2 weeks} {+10} *new peak*
#10: When You're Gone - Shawn Mendes (+1) [#10] {4 weeks} {+4} *new peak*
#9: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max (+1) [#9] {12 weeks} {-}
#8: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold (+4) [#8] {10 weeks} {-3} *new peak*
#7: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae (+2) [#7] {12 weeks} {-} *new peak*
#6: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran (+1) [#6] {9 weeks} {+10}
#5: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron (+3) [#5] {9 weeks} {-2} *new peak*
#4: Sweetest Pie - Megan Thee Stallion/Dua Lipa (-) [#4] {8 weeks} {-2}
#3: As It Was - Harry Styles (-) [#3] {5 weeks} {+1}
#2: Big Energy - Latto (-1) [3 weeks at #1] {15 weeks} {+11}
#1: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID (+1) [1st week at #1] {13 weeks} {-} *new peak*

Last Year's #1: WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI [1/5 weeks at #1]

Biggest Drop: Woman - Doja Cat (-19)

Biggest Jump: 2step - Ed Sheeran/Lil Baby & Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat (+6)

Hit-Bound
10 Things I Hate About You - Leah Kate [7]
All 4 Nothing (I'm So In Love) - Lauv [5]
Bones - Imagine Dragons [6]
Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence [9]
Flowers - Lauren Spencer-Smith [4]
Honest - Justin Bieber/Don Toliver [2]
Hope You're Not Happy - Ashe [1]
House On Fire - Mimi Webb [12]
In The Stars - Benson Boone [1]
Just a Cloud Away - Pharrell Williams [5]
Love Me More - Sam Smith [2]
MAMIII - Becky G/KAROL G [8]
Maybe You're The Problem - Ava Max [2]
Move - DNCE [1]
No One Dies From Love - Tove Lo [1]
Skyline - Khalid [2]
That's Hilarious - Charlie Puth [4]
this is what falling in love feels like - JVKE [5]
This Love (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift [1]
Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin [12]
Where you are - PinkPantheress/WILLOW [3]
Words - Alesso/Zara Larsson [3]

Kwaheri, everybody! See you all in the next one.

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