Week of July 10, 2021 - Olivia Rodrigo (6)

Hey all! Just one big announcement: I'll be gone for the next three weeks. So I'll be back in three Saturdays, and I'll catch up on everything gradually throughout that week. Here are the exits for this week!

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion (#22) [#11] {16 weeks}

Wave of You - Surfaces (#15) [#15] {10 weeks}

Last Week's #1: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo (5)

#30: WANNA BE - jxdn/Machine Gun Kelly (DEBUT) [0 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#29: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd (-2) [#27] {2 weeks}

#28: Fine Apple - Nic D (+2) [#28] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#27: Cloudy Day - Tones And I (-1) [#26] {3 weeks}

#26: Iko Iko (My Bestie) - Justin Wellington/Small Jam (+2) [#26] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#25: working - Tate McRae/Khalid (+4) [#23] {3 weeks}

#24: Arcade - Duncan Laurence (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#23: telepatía - Kali Uchis (-) [#23] {6 weeks}

#22: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf (-4) [#9] {18 weeks}

#21: Girl From Rio - Anitta/DaBaby (-) [#21] {2 weeks}

#20: A-O-K - Tai Verdes (-) [#20] {5 weeks}

#19: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat (-3) [#14] {9 weeks}

#18: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran (+6) [#18] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#17: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch (+2) [#17] {7 weeks} *new peak*

#16: la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn (+9) [#16] {4 weeks} *new peak*

#15: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic (-1) [#7] {18 weeks}

#14: 90s Kids - Jax (+3) [#14] {8 weeks} *new peak*

#13: pov - Ariana Grande (-8) [#4] {15 weeks}

#12: Heat Waves - Glass Animals (-) [#6] {24 weeks}

#11: Butter - BTS (-2) [#9] {7 weeks}

#10: Way Less Sad - AJR (-) [#3] {20 weeks}

#9: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (-6) [#3] {6 weeks}

#8: Shy Away - Twenty One Pilots (-1) [#7] {13 weeks}

#7: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo (+1) [1 week at #1] {13 weeks}

#6: Lil Bit - Nelly/Florida Georgia Line (+7) [#6] {7 weeks} *new peak*

#5: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae (+6) [#5] {12 weeks} *new peak*

#4: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X (-) [#2] {14 weeks}

#3: Leave Before You Love Me - Marshmello/Jonas Brothers (+3) [#3] {7 weeks} *new peak*

#2: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA (-) [#2] {13 weeks}

#1: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo (-) [6th week at #1] {7 weeks}

Last Year's #1: Watermelon Sugar - Harry Styles [3/7 weeks at #1]

Countdown Extra: t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker

Our new One to Watch, jxdn debuts the Countdown this week at #30 with his new song, WANNA BE featuring Machine Gun Kelly. This song's alright. I like the instrumentation, and MGK sounds fantastic here, but jxdn really doesn't sound good in the chorus, and the song's not too memorable. It's well-written too, but that's not really enough to bring it up to blue. I'm not too disappointed that this is the new One to Watch though, because it's decent.

After dropping out of Hit-Bound a couple weeks ago, Arcade by Duncan Laurence debuts the Countdown at #24 this week. I like this song. I think Duncan Laurence sounds great here, and I really like the chorus. My only issue with it is that the verses get a little boring. But other than that, this is just a really solid song, and I'm glad it's becoming a pop hit two years after its release.

Best Debut: Arcade - Duncan Laurence

Biggest Drop: pov - Ariana Grande (-8): I would say that I'm disappointed that this isn't in the top 5 anymore, but it's starting to get just a little old, so I don't care that much.

Biggest Jump: la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn (+9): This song has actually grown on me a bit since last week, so I'm pretty glad that it's all the way up at #16. I'd love to see this become a hit.

Countdown Ranking

0 - Awful:

#30: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch

1 - Bad:

#29: Lil Bit - Nelly/Florida Georgia Line

#28: Fine Apple - Nic D

#27: A-O-K - Tai Verdes

2 - Mediocre:

#26: telepatía - Kali Uchis

#25: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat

#24: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae

3 - Decent:

#23: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic

#22: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA

#21: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo

#20: Cloudy Day - Tones And I

#19: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd

#18: WANNA BE - jxdn/Machine Gun Kelly

#17: Heat Waves - Glass Animals

4 - Good:

#16: Iko Iko (My Bestie) - Justin Wellington/Small Jam

#15: Girl From Rio - Anitta/DaBaby

#14: Arcade - Duncan Laurence

#13: 90s Kids - Jax

#12: la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn

#11: Leave Before You Love Me - Marshmello/Jonas Brothers

#10: working - Tate McRae/Khalid

#9: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X

5 - Great:

#8: Butter - BTS

#7: pov - Ariana Grande

#6: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan

#5: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf

#4: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

#3: Way Less Sad - AJR

#2: Shy Away - Twenty One Pilots

#1: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

Overall Score: 102/150 = 68%

5 Oldest Songs

#5: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X {14 weeks}
#4: pov - Ariana Grande {15 weeks}
#3: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf & Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic {18 weeks}
#2: Way Less Sad - AJR {20 weeks}
#1: Heat Waves - Glass Animals {24 weeks}

#1 Recommendation for Hits 1: Wrecked - Imagine Dragons

My Favourite Song Last Year: ROCKSTAR - DaBaby/Roddy Ricch

My Least Favourite Song Last Year: Daisies - Katy Perry

Most Missed Countdown Song: Bang Bang - Jessie J/Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj

Hit-Bound

JUST LIKE YOU - NF [3]

Late At Night - Roddy Ricch [3]

Love Again - Dua Lipa [1]

Motley Crew - Post Malone [1]

Lost - Maroon 5 [2]

Dinero - Trinidad Cardona [1]

t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker [3]

Heartbreak Anniversary - Giveon [14]

Stay - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber [1]

Renegade - Big Red Machine/Taylor Swift [1]

RAPSTAR - Polo G [2; 2nd time]

NDA - Billie Eilish [1]

Lean On Me - Cheat Codes/Tinashe [4]

Say So - Masked Wolf [1]

Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo [2; 2nd time]

Our first of many Hit-Bound debuts this week comes from Dua Lipa and her billionth single from her album Future Nostalgia, Love Again. Like almost all of her singles so far, this song is great. It's ridiculously catchy, Dua sounds incredible and the production is great. I don't know what that sample's from, but it fits the song really really well. Quick side note, the radio edit of this song is really weird. It goes: "But [gap], you got me in love again"... like, you couldn't have just made her say "hot damn" or something? Anyways, this is a great song and I'm glad that it's becoming a hit. I'd love to see this debut the Countdown soon.

Post Malone returns this week with a new song, Motley Crew. The first thing off of the bat that you notice is that this isn't nearly as bop-y as the Hollywood's Bleeding singles. Is that a bad thing? I'm not sure, because it's not like this dark vibe is bad. I'm not so sure I'm loving Post's voice here, and I think he definitely could've sung a bit lower here, but overall, I don't think this is that bad. I'd be alright if this became a hit.

Our next debut is yet another TikTok song from newcomer Trinidad Cardona, Dinero. This song is super catchy and I actually really love it. The chorus is super fun and I love the beat here. Trinidad Cardona sounds really good here, and I really love how he's managed to mix mainstream pop and latino music. I'd really love for this to become a hit, it's a super fun song.

Next up is a collaboration Waffle's really gonna hate, The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber on Stay. I actually really like this song. I think both LAROI and Bieber sound really good here, and the song's super upbeat and fun. I like the chorus especially the last one, and it's pretty catchy and the verses are pretty interesting too. I'm kind of surprised that these two have such great chemistry, but they really do. I have no doubts that this'll become a huge hit, and I'm super pumped for that.

We get some more Taylor Swift this week, as she teams up with Big Red Machine (Aaron Dessner and Justin Vernon of Bon Iver) on this new song, Renegade. This song has huge folklore/evermore vibes, which makes sense, as all three of them worked on both albums. This song's alright. I like the production here, and Taylor Swift sounds fantastic as always. It's only slightly boring, and I wouldn't exactly say that it's made for radio. But, I have a feeling this song will do well here nonetheless.

So... Billie Eilish released another song. *sighs* NDA is easily the worst single from Happier Than Ever so far. It has little to no production, and Billie's whisper-singing so much (when she's not drenched in autotune) that you can't even tell what she's saying. The only mildly interesting thing about this song is that it flows into Therefore I Am. I hope this flops like both Your Power and Lost Cause did.

Finally, we have a new one from Masked Wolf, Say So. H o l y c r a p. This song is 10 times more of a bop than Astronaut In The Ocean. The chorus is so catchy and the song's super upbeat. Masked Wolf sounds great in the hook, and his flow's great in the verses. This is another song where it has sad lyrics, but a happy melody, and I'm all for it. I love this song and I'm super happy for what Masked Wolf is to bring in the future.

Why is Heartbreak Anniversary still here? We can get rid of this, I don't think anybody would mind too much.

We had seven Hit-Bound dropouts this week. This is getting ridiculous. We're saying goodbye to Track Star, Solar Power, I DID IT, Higher Power, Friday, All My Favorite Songs and Good Without. The only two that I don't mind leaving are Track Star and Solar Power. I'm really sad that the rest of them are gone, and I hope at least one or two re-enter.

Best Hit-Bound Debut: Say So - Masked Wolf

Hit-Bound Ranking

0 - Awful:

#15: NDA - Billie Eilish

1 - Bad:

NONE!

2 - Mediocre:

#14: t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker

#13: Heartbreak Anniversary - Giveon

3 - Decent:

#12: Motley Crew - Post Malone

#11: Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo

#10: Renegade - Big Red Machine/Taylor Swift

4 - Good:

#9: Late At Night - Roddy Ricch

5 - Great:

#8: Lost - Maroon 5

#7: Lean On Me - Cheat Codes/Tinashe

#6: RAPSTAR - Polo G

#5: Dinero - Trinidad Cardona

#4: JUST LIKE YOU - NF

#3: Stay - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber

#2: Love Again - Dua Lipa

#1: Say So - Masked Wolf

Overall Score: 57/75 = 76%

Loving Blurbs Is a Losing Game

Our two exits this week were Beautiful Mistakes and Wave of You. For the former, I'm satisfied with the run it had here, and the latter wasn't a hit and I'm not sure why it was here in the first place. That being said, it was still a good song.

Looks like Astronaut In The Ocean will leave before I get back, which sucks. But, Say So is better, so I don't care too much.

I'm glad Bad Habits had a big jump this week, which I'm quite happy about.

Our Song fell all the way to #9 for whatever reason. I definitely wasn't expecting that, but it's alright.

For whatever reason, deja vu just now decided to grow on me. Not sure why, but I don't mind it now.

Why is Lil Bit at #6? Seriously, there's no reason for this to be so high. It's getting worse and worse with each listen.

You jumped all the way up to #5 this week, which is surprising. I don't exactly mind that this is so high, but it doesn't make much sense.

I forgot to mention this last week, but good 4 u is now our longest-running #1 song this year with its very Hot 100-esque run here. I'm really happy about that, and I can definitely see it being the #1 of the year as long as it doesn't leave for a couple of months.

How Hits 1 Songs Are Doing on the Hot 100

#1: Butter - BTS

#2: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

#3: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA

#4: Levitating - Dua Lipa/DaBaby

#5: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

#6: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic

#7: Peaches - Justin Bieber/Daniel Caesar/Giveon

#8: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X

#9: Save Your Tears (Remix) - The Weeknd/Ariana Grande

#10: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo

#11: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd

#12: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf

#13: RAPSTAR - Polo G

#15: WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI

#17: Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion

#18: Blinding Lights - The Weeknd

#20: Heartbreak Anniversary - Giveon

#22: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat

#23: Lil Bit - Nelly/Florida Georgia Line

#25: Heat Waves - Glass Animals

#29: drivers license - Olivia Rodrigo

#30: telepatía - Kali Uchis

#31: Leave Before You Love Me - Marshmello/Jonas Brothers

#33: Late At Night - Roddy Ricch

#36: pov - Ariana Grande

#37: Mood - 24kGoldn/iann dior

#43: my ex's best friend - Machine Gun Kelly/blackbear

#46: Calling My Phone - Lil Tjay/6LACK

#49: Need To Know - Doja Cat

#64: Way Less Sad - AJR

#67: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch

#69: Arcade - Duncan Laurence

#71: Track Star - Mooski

#75: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae

#85: t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker

#90: Follow You - Imagine Dragons

#100: working - Tate McRae/Khalid

Top 10 on the Hunger Games Countdown

#10: Your Power - Billie Eilish

#9: Oh My God - Alec Benjamin

#8: Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo

#7: Sucks Being Sober - Annika Wells

#6: Sacrifice - Bebe Rexha

#5: Bummerland - AJR

#4: Way Less Sad - AJR

#3: Bad Girl - Daya

#2: In The Morning - Jennifer Lopez

#1: Momma Always Told Me - Mike Posner/Stanaj/Yung Bae

Top 10 If the Countdown Made Sense

#10: telepatía - Kali Uchis

#9: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf

#8: Butter - BTS

#7: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

#6: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat

#5: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo

#4: pov - Ariana Grande

#3: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

#2: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X

#1: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA

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

If the Countdown Made Sense: Week of July 10, 2021 - Doja Cat/SZA (3)

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

Wave of You - Surfaces (#30) [#30] {1 week}

WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI (#29) [5 weeks at #1] {23 weeks}

I DID IT - DJ Khaled/Post Malone/DaBaby/Megan Thee Stallion/Lil Baby (#27) [#26] {3 weeks}

Friday (Re-Edit) - Riton/Nightcrawlers/Mufasa & Hypeman/Dopamine (#24) [#22] {3 weeks}

Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion (#10) [#5] {17 weeks}

Last Week's #1: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA (2)

#30: Lean On Me - Cheat Codes/Tinashe (DEBUT) [3 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {N/A}

#29: 90s Kids - Jax (DEBUT) [7 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {-15}

#28: Save Your Tears (Remix) - The Weeknd/Ariana Grande (-) [1 week at #1] {29 weeks} {N/A}

#27: Heat Waves - Glass Animals (-12) [#10] {13 weeks} {-15}

#26: Peaches - Justin Bieber/Daniel Caesar/Giveon (-1) [2 weeks at #1] {15 weeks} {N/A}

#25: Levitating - Dua Lipa/DaBaby (-4) [#3] {32 weeks} {N/A}

#24: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (-6) [#18] {5 weeks} {-15}

#23: Shy Away - Twenty One Pilots (-1) [#22] {4 weeks} {-15}

#22: RAPSTAR - Polo G (RE-ENTRY) [#22] {2 weeks} {N/A} *new peak*

#21: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch (+5) [#21] {3 weeks} {-4} *new peak*

#20: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {+9}

#19: Girl From Rio - Anitta/DaBaby (+1) [#19] {6 weeks} {+2} *new peak*

#18: Way Less Sad - AJR (-2) [#13] {16 weeks} {-8}

#17: working - Tate McRae/Khalid (+6) [#17] {2 weeks} {+8} *new peak*

#16: Heartbreak Anniversary - Giveon (+1) [#16] {9 weeks} {N/A} *new peak*

#15: Arcade - Duncan Laurence (RE-ENTRY) [#15] {2 weeks} {+9} *new peak*

#14: Lil Bit - Nelly/Florida Georgia Line (-) [#14] {11 weeks} {-8}

#13: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic (-4) [#2] {17 weeks} {+2}

#12: Leave Before You Love Me - Marshmello/Jonas Brothers (+1) [#12] {6 weeks} {-9} *new peak*

#11: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae (+1) [#11] {9 weeks} {-6} *new peak*

#10: telepatía - Kali Uchis (+1) [#10] {10 weeks} {+13} *new peak*

#9: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf (-2) [#4] {18 weeks} {+13}

#8: Butter - BTS (-) [#8] {7 weeks} {+3}

#7: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran (+12) [#7] {2 weeks} {+11} *new peak*

#6: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat (-) [#6] {15 weeks} {+13}

#5: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo (-) [#5] {13 weeks} {+2}

#4: pov - Ariana Grande (-1) [1 week at #1] {14 weeks} {+9}

#3: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo (+1) [#3] {6 weeks} {-2} *new peak*

#2: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X (-) [#2] {13 weeks} {+2}

#1: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA (-) [3rd week at #1] {13 weeks} {+1}

Last Year's #1: Savage - Megan Thee Stallion [3/4 weeks at #1]

Biggest Drop: Heat Waves - Glass Animals (-12)

Biggest Jump: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran (+12)

Hit-Bound

A-O-K - Tai Verdes [7]

Cloudy Day - Tones And I [4]

Dinero - Trinidad Cardona [1]

Fine Apple - Nic D [3]

Iko Iko (My Bestie) - Justin Wellington/Small Jam [2]

Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo [6]

Late At Night - Roddy Ricch [3]

LMLY - Jackson Wang [8]

Lost - Maroon 5 [2]

Love Again - Dua Lipa [1]

Magic - TOMORROW X TOGETHER [1]

Motley Crew - Post Malone [1]

NDA - Billie Eilish [1]

Renegade - Big Red Machine/Taylor Swift [1]

Say So - Masked Wolf [1]

Stay - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber [1]

t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker [3]

WANNA BE - jxdn/Machine Gun Kelly [1]

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

Hunger Games Countdown: Week of July 10, 2021 - Mike Posner/Stanaj/Yung Bae (2)

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

Peaches - Justin Bieber/Daniel Caesar/Giveon (#30) [1 week at #1] {11 weeks}

Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (#29) [1 week at #1] {2 weeks}

Last Week's #1: Bummerland - AJR (2)

#30: Late At Night - Roddy Ricch (-19) [#11] {2 weeks} {Oh My God}

#29: Friday (Re-Edit) - Riton/Nightcrawlers/Mufasa & Hypeman/Dopamine (DEBUT) [3 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {Build a B****, The Way You Felt, You & THINK ABOUT ME}

#28: SUN GOES DOWN - Lil Nas X (-26) [#2] {2 weeks} {Sacrifice & Your Power}

#27: 3, 2, 1 - 24kGoldn (-11) [3 weeks at #1] {18 weeks} {N/A}

#26: Lifestyle - Jason Derulo/Adam Levine (-13) [#2] {17 weeks} {N/A}

#25: THINK ABOUT ME - jxdn (-17) [#8] {2 weeks} {We're Good}

#24: The Way You Felt - Alec Benjamin (-2) [#22] {3 weeks} {Build a B****}

#23: positions - Ariana Grande (-11) [#2] {26 weeks} {N/A}

#22: Solar Power - Lorde (+6) [#22] {2 weeks} {N/A} *new peak*

#21: We're Good - Dua Lipa (-17) [#3] {18 weeks} {N/A}

#20: telepatía - Kali Uchis (+7) [#3] {9 weeks} {N/A}

#19: la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn (-16) [#3] {7 weeks} {2Drunk, Bummerland & t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l}

#18: 2Drunk - Nick Jonas (-) [1 week at #1] {16 weeks} {Mr. Perfectly Fine (Taylor's Version), Goosebumps (Remix) & t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l}

#17: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae (+6) [#3] {11 weeks} {Your Power}

#16: t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {N/A}

#15: Mr. Perfectly Fine (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift (+10) [#2] {12 weeks} {N/A}

#14: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA (+5) [1 week at #1] {11 weeks} {Way Less Sad}

#13: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X (-7) [#2] {7 weeks} {N/A}

#12: Goosebumps (Remix) - Travis Scott/HVME (+12) [#2] {18 weeks} {In The Morning}

#11: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch (-2) [#4] {7 weeks} {Sucks Being Sober}

#10: Your Power - Billie Eilish (+7) [#8] {7 weeks} {Bad Girl & Bummerland}

#9: Oh My God - Alec Benjamin (+6) [2 weeks at #1] {68 weeks} {N/A}

#8: Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo (+12) [#8] {2 weeks} {In The Morning & Bummerland} *new peak*

#7: Sucks Being Sober - Annika Wells (+3) [#2] {14 weeks} {N/A}

#6: Sacrifice - Bebe Rexha (+1) [1 week at #1] {13 weeks} {Sucks Being Sober}

#5: Bummerland - AJR (-4) [2 weeks at #1] {32 weeks} {N/A}

#4: Way Less Sad - AJR (+22) [1 week at #1] {13 weeks} {In The Morning}

#3: Bad Girl - Daya (+2) [#3] {16 weeks} {Momma Always Told Me}

#2: In The Morning - Jennifer Lopez (+12) [1 week at #1] {21 weeks} {Momma Always Told Me}

#1: Momma Always Told Me - Mike Posner/Stanaj/Yung Bae (+20) [2nd week at #1] {21 weeks}

Last Week's #1: MAMACITA - Black Eyed Peas/Ozuna/J. Rey Soul [1/1 week at #1]

Biggest Drop: SUN GOES DOWN - Lil Nas X (-26)

Biggest Jump: Way Less Sad - AJR (+22)

Hit-Bound Exits

deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo [1; 2nd time]

working - Tate McRae/Khalid [2]

Need To Know - Doja Cat [3]

JUST LIKE YOU - NF [2]

You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd [2]

A-O-K - Tai Verdes [1; 2nd time]

Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran [1]

Hit-Bound

#15: Lost - Maroon 5 (-12) [2] {N/A}

#14: By Your Side - Calvin Harris/Tom Grennan (-7) [5] {NDA}

#13: Love Again - Dua Lipa (DEBUT) [1] {N/A}

#12: Stay - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber (DEBUT) [1] {N/A}

#11: Renegade - Big Red Machine/Taylor Swift (DEBUT) [1] {I DID IT}

#10: Iko Iko (My Bestie) - Justin Wellington/Small Jam (-2) [2] {I DID IT}

#9: WANNA BE - jxdn/Machine Gun Kelly (DEBUT) [1] {N/A}

#8: Shy Away - Twenty One Pilots (RE-ENTRY) [8] {N/A}

#7: All My Favorite Songs - Weezer/AJR (-3) [3] {N/A}

#6: Say So - Masked Wolf (DEBUT) [1] {Motley Crew}

#5: Dinero - Trinidad Cardona (DEBUT) [1] {Motley Crew}

#4: NDA - Billie Eilish (DEBUT) [1] {N/A}

#3: I DID IT - DJ Khaled/Post Malone/DaBaby/Megan Thee Stallion/Lil Baby (+3) [3] {Motley Crew}

#2: F***BOY - Dixie (+3) [7] {Motley Crew}

#1: Motley Crew - Post Malone (DEBUT) [1]

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

Week of July 3, 2021 - Olivia Rodrigo (5)

Hey! It was an interesting week this week to say the least. There was a ton of stuff that happened on the Countdown this week and some of it was good, but some of it was bad. Just one announcement this week. Event 2 for the Weekend Countdown Olympics will likely be up today or tomorrow. Here are our exits for this week.

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

RAPSTAR - Polo G (#30) [#30] {1 week}

Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo (#28) [#28] {2 weeks}

Peaches - Justin Bieber/Daniel Caesar/Giveon (#26) [#16] {14 weeks}

Follow You - Imagine Dragons (#9) [#9] {9 weeks}

WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI (#7) [#7] {21 weeks}

Last Week's #1: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo (4)

#30: Fine Apple - Nic D (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#29: working - Tate McRae/Khalid (-6) [#23] {2 weeks}

#28: Iko Iko (My Bestie) - Justin Wellington/Small Jam (DEBUT) [0 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#27: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#26: Cloudy Day - Tones And I (+1) [#26] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#25: la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn (+4) [#25] {3 weeks} *new peak*

#24: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran (DEBUT) [0 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#23: telepatía - Kali Uchis (+2) [#23] {5 weeks} *new peak*

#22: Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion (-11) [#11] {16 weeks}

#21: Girl From Rio - Anitta/DaBaby (DEBUT) [9 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#20: A-O-K - Tai Verdes (+4) [#20] {4 weeks} *new peak*

#19: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch (+2) [#19] {6 weeks} *new peak*

#18: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf (-6) [#9] {17 weeks}

#17: 90s Kids - Jax (+3) [#17] {7 weeks} *new peak*

#16: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat (+3) [#14] {8 weeks}

#15: Wave of You - Surfaces (+3) [#15] {10 weeks} *new peak*

#14: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic (-4) [#7] {17 weeks}

#13: Lil Bit - Nelly/Florida Georgia Line (+9) [#13] {6 weeks} *new peak*

#12: Heat Waves - Glass Animals (+1) [#6] {23 weeks}

#11: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae (+6) [#11] {11 weeks} *new peak*

#10: Way Less Sad - AJR (-7) [#3] {19 weeks}

#9: Butter - BTS (+6) [#9] {6 weeks} *new peak*

#8: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo (-2) [1 week at #1] {12 weeks}

#7: Shy Away - Twenty One Pilots (+9) [#7] {12 weeks} *new peak*

#6: Leave Before You Love Me - Marshmello/Jonas Brothers (+2) [#6] {6 weeks} *new peak*

#5: pov - Ariana Grande (-) [#4] {14 weeks}

#4: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X (-) [#2] {13 weeks}

#3: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (+11) [#3] {5 weeks} *new peak*

#2: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA (-) [#2] {12 weeks}

#1: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo (-) [5th week at #1] {6 weeks}

Last Year's #1: Watermelon Sugar - Harry Styles [2/7 weeks at #1]

Countdown Extra: All My Favorite Songs - Weezer/AJR

So after just one week in Hit-Bound, Fine Apple by Nic D debuts at #30. Seriously? Why this song out of all the Hit-Bound debuts last week? In case you couldn't tell, I don't like this song. Nic D doesn't sound good here, especially in his rapping, and the hook's pretty annoying. The writing's also pretty weird. I kind of get that the first line of the chorus is a pun on the word "pineapple", but what the hell does "If you were words, you'd be the fine print" mean? Does it mean that whoever he's talking to is integral, but nobody ever pays attention to them? Yeah, I don't know, and I don't really care that much. Unfortunately, I have a suspicion that this will end up being our next One to Watch, which I definitely wouldn't like. Oh, well, we'll have to see.

Coming kind of out of nowhere, Iko Iko (My Bestie) by Justin Wellington and Small Jam skips Hit-Bound and debuts at #28. This song feels very similar to Banana from last year, where it's a spin on an old song with an EDM beat. I'd say that this is better than the aforementioned song, but it's not fantastic. It's definitely faded on me since I first listened to it. But, it's still solid. Both Justin Wellington and Small Jam sound good, and the chorus is fun, but the song's quite forgettable.

Also debuting after only one week in Hit-Bound, we have You Right by Doja Cat and The Weeknd from Doja's new album Planet Her. This has definitely grown on me since last week. The chorus is decently interesting, and both Doja and Abel sound quite good here. I still think this is kind of boring and forgettable though, and I think it would've been better as just an album song rather than a single.

Ed Sheeran's newest, Bad Habits also skips Hit-Bound and debuts this week at #24. I like this song quite a bit. I enjoyed Afterglow from about six months ago, but this one's a little more upbeat, which I enjoy. The chorus here is pretty catchy, and Ed sounds good throughout, but the best part is easily the production. It's just really interesting to listen to. Overall, this is really good and I'd love for this to become a hit. That album cover is creepy though.

Surprisingly, Girl From Rio by Anitta and DaBaby debuted this week at #21. Needless to say, I'm happy that they switched back to the DaBaby remix, because it's much better. Anyways, this song's solid. Anitta's part is fun, and DaBaby has a fantastic verse here. The song's not ridiculously memorable, but I'm fine with it sticking around for a bit if that's what it wants to do.

Best Debut: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

Biggest Drop: Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion (-11): After getting a big boost last week, this song drops back down again. Like I've said before, this song's been around for a while, so I don't really care that it's starting to fade.

Biggest Jump: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (+11): I feel like I should be upset that this is already at #3, but I actually quite like the song, so I'm not.

Countdown Ranking

0 - Awful:

#30: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch

1 - Bad:

#29: Fine Apple - Nic D

#28: Lil Bit - Nelly/Florida Georgia Line

#27: A-O-K - Tai Verdes

2 - Mediocre:

#26: telepatía - Kali Uchis

#25: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat

#24: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae

#23: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo

3 - Decent:

#22: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic

#21: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA

#20: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd

#19: Cloudy Day - Tones And I

#18: Heat Waves - Glass Animals

#17: la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn

4 - Good:

#16: working - Tate McRae/Khalid

#15: Girl From Rio - Anitta/DaBaby

#14: 90s Kids - Jax

#13: Leave Before You Love Me - Marshmello/Jonas Brothers

#12: Iko Iko (My Bestie) - Justin Wellington/Small Jam

#11: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X

5 - Great:

#10: Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion

#9: Wave of You - Surfaces

#8: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

#7: Butter - BTS

#6: pov - Ariana Grande

#5: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan

#4: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf

#3: Shy Away - Twenty One Pilots

#2: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

#1: Way Less Sad - AJR

Overall Score: 103/150 = 69%

5 Oldest Songs

#5: pov - Ariana Grande {14 weeks}
#4: Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion {16 weeks}
#3: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf & Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic {17 weeks}
#2: Way Less Sad - AJR {19 weeks}

#1: Heat Waves - Glass Animals {23 weeks}

#1 Recommendation for Hits 1: Wrecked - Imagine Dragons

My Favourite Song Last Year: ROCKSTAR - DaBaby/Roddy Ricch

My Least Favourite Song Last Year: death bed (coffee for your head) - Powfu/beabadoobee

Most Missed Countdown Song: High Hopes - Panic! At The Disco

Hit-Bound

RAPSTAR - Polo G [1; 2nd time]

Lost - Maroon 5 [1]

Heartbreak Anniversary - Giveon [13]

Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo [1; 2nd time]

Track Star - Mooski/Chris Brown [8]

Solar Power - Lorde [2]

I DID IT - DJ Khaled/Post Malone/DaBaby/Megan Thee Stallion/Lil Baby [7]

Higher Power - Coldplay [7; 2nd time*]

Friday (Re-Edit) - Riton/Nightcrawlers/Mufasa & Hypeman/Dopamine [3]

t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker [2]

JUST LIKE YOU - NF [2]

All My Favorite Songs - Weezer/AJR [2]

Good Without - Mimi Webb [13]

Lean On Me - Cheat Codes/Tinashe [3]

Late At Night - Roddy Ricch [2]

*Skipped Hit-Bound, so this is technically its first time around.

Our one and only Hit-Bound debut this week comes from Maroon 5, and their fifth single from their album JORDI. This song's called Lost, and I actually quite like it. The production's honestly really cool and interesting in this song. Adam Levine sounds good here, even if the chorus is a little underwhelming, and overall, this is just a really solid Maroon 5 single.

Both Polo G's RAPSTAR and Tesher and Jason Derulo's Jalebi Baby re-entered Hit-Bound this week. I kind of get why Jalebi Baby only stuck around on the Countdown for a couple weeks, because it's not really gaining much traction, but I have no clue why RAPSTAR only spent one week on the Countdown. It deserves so much more.

Also returning to Hit-Bound this week, we have Lean On Me by Cheat Codes and Tinashe. This song dropped out a couple of months ago, but it's actually starting to gain traction elsewhere, so it makes sense for this to be back, and I'm happy that it is.

Our one and only Hit-Bound dropout this week is Lost Cause. I'm really happy that this song didn't become a hit, because it really wasn't built for radio. Funnily enough though, because of this and Fine Apple debuting, there are no songs left on Hit-Bound that I consider bad, so I just don't have anything to give my orange ranking to. Honestly, t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l is my least favourite, but I don't dislike it, so I don't find it fair to give that my orange.

Hit-Bound Ranking

0 - Awful:

NONE!

1 - Bad:

NONE!

2 - Mediocre:

#15: t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker

#14: Heartbreak Anniversary - Giveon

3 - Decent:

#13: Solar Power - Lorde

#12: Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo

4 - Good:

#11: Track Star - Mooski/Chris Brown

#10: Late At Night - Roddy Ricch

#9: Higher Power - Coldplay

5 - Great:

#8: Lost - Maroon 5

#7: JUST LIKE YOU - NF

#6: RAPSTAR - Polo G

#5: Lean On Me - Cheat Codes/Tinashe

#4: Good Without - Mimi Webb

#3: Friday (Re-Edit) - Riton/Nightcrawlers/Mufasa & Hypeman/Dopamine

#2: I DID IT - DJ Khaled/Post Malone/DaBaby/Megan Thee Stallion/Lil Baby

#1: All My Favorite Songs - Weezer/AJR

Overall Score: 62/75 = 83%

My Bad Habits Lead to Blurbs

Our three other exits this week were Peaches, Follow You and WITHOUT YOU. I'm super happy that Peaches underperformed here, because it's really bad. I would be disappointed that Follow You didn't do too well here, but Wrecked is out now, and it's much better, so as long as that debuts Hit-Bound in the next couple of weeks, I don't care. As for WITHOUT YOU, it was good, but it was getting kind of old, so I don't care that it left from so high up.

working fell all the way to #29 after its debut last week, which is kind of surprising considering that it's actually becoming a hit.

Astronaut In The Ocean fell six spots this week... seriously? Why is this not still in the top 10?

Somehow, Wave of You is not only still here, but in the top 15 now. I have no clue how, but I guess I'm not exactly complaining?

Ugh. Lil Bit got a huge boost up to #13. We really don't need this to be a hit here.

For whatever reason, You is sitting just outside the top 10. I'd really rather not have this in the top 10.

Way Less Sad fell all the way to #10 this week. I really hope it stays around for just a bit longer.

Both Butter and Shy Away became top 10 hits this week, and I'm totally fine with both of them reaching their respective spots of #9 and #7.

How Hits 1 Songs Are Doing on the Hot 100

#1: Butter - BTS

#2: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

#3: Levitating - Dua Lipa/DaBaby

#4: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA

#5: Peaches - Justin Bieber/Daniel Caesar/Giveon

#6: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic

#7: Save Your Tears (Remix) - The Weeknd/Ariana Grande

#8: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X

#9: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo

#10: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf

#11: RAPSTAR - Polo G

#13: Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion

#14: WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI

#15: Blinding Lights - The Weeknd

#16: Heartbreak Anniversary - Giveon

#18: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat

#19: Heat Waves - Glass Animals

#23: drivers license - Olivia Rodrigo

#24: Lil Bit - Nelly/Florida Georgia Line

#25: telepatía - Kali Uchis

#27: pov - Ariana Grande

#29: Mood - 24kGoldn/iann dior

#31: Calling My Phone - Lil Tjay/6LACK

#32: Late At Night - Roddy Ricch

#33: my ex's best friend - Machine Gun Kelly/blackbear

#37: Leave Before You Love Me - Marshmello/Jonas Brothers

#38: What You Know Bout Love - Pop Smoke

#44: Up - Cardi B

#53: Track Star - Mooski

#57: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch

#59: Way Less Sad - AJR

#61: Arcade - Duncan Laurence

#66: Need To Know - Doja Cat

#71: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae

#76: t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker

#81: Follow You - Imagine Dragons

#87: We're Good - Dua Lipa

#92: Lost Cause - Billie Eilish

#94: working - Tate McRae/Khalid

Top 10 on the Hunger Games Countdown

#10: Sucks Being Sober - Annika Wells

#9: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch

#8: THINK ABOUT ME - jxdn

#7: Sacrifice - Bebe Rexha

#6: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X

#5: Bad Girl - Daya

#4: We're Good - Dua Lipa

#3: la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn

#2: SUN GOES DOWN - Lil Nas X

#1: Bummerland - AJR

Top 10 If the Countdown Made Sense

#10: Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion

#9: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic

#8: Butter - BTS

#7: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf

#6: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat

#5: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo

#4: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

#3: pov - Ariana Grande

#2: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X

#1: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA

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

If the Countdown Made Sense: Week of July 3, 2021 - Doja Cat/SZA (2)

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

JUST LIKE YOU - NF (#30) [#30] {1 week}

RAPSTAR - Polo G (#28) [#28] {1 week}

la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn (#25) [#24] {4 weeks}

Follow You - Imagine Dragons (#24) [#24] {9 weeks}

Last Week's #1: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA (1)

#30: Wave of You - Surfaces (DEBUT) [11 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {-15}

#29: WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI (-25) [5 weeks at #1] {23 weeks} {N/A}

#28: Save Your Tears (Remix) - The Weeknd/Ariana Grande (-1) [1 week at #1] {28 weeks} {N/A}

#27: I DID IT - DJ Khaled/Post Malone/DaBaby/Megan Thee Stallion/Lil Baby (-1) [#26] {3 weeks} {N/A}

#26: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch (-3) [#23] {2 weeks} {-7}

#25: Peaches - Justin Bieber/Daniel Caesar/Giveon (-14) [2 weeks at #1] {14 weeks} {N/A}

#24: Friday (Re-Edit) - Riton/Nightcrawlers/Mufasa & Hypeman/Dopamine (-2) [#22] {3 weeks} {N/A}

#23: working - Tate McRae/Khalid (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {+6}

#22: Shy Away - Twenty One Pilots (RE-ENTRY) [#22] {3 weeks} {-15} *new peak*

#21: Levitating - Dua Lipa/DaBaby (-) [#3] {31 weeks} {N/A}

#20: Girl From Rio - Anitta/DaBaby (-) [#20] {5 weeks} {+1}

#19: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran (DEBUT) [0 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {+5}

#18: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (+11) [#18] {4 weeks} {-15} *new peak*

#17: Heartbreak Anniversary - Giveon (+2) [#17] {8 weeks} {N/A} *new peak*

#16: Way Less Sad - AJR (+2) [#13] {15 weeks} {-6}

#15: Heat Waves - Glass Animals (-1) [#10] {12 weeks} {-3}

#14: Lil Bit - Nelly/Florida Georgia Line (+3) [#14] {10 weeks} {-1} *new peak*

#13: Leave Before You Love Me - Marshmello/Jonas Brothers (+3) [#13] {5 weeks} {-7} *new peak*

#12: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae (+3) [#12] {8 weeks} {-1} *new peak*

#11: telepatía - Kali Uchis (+2) [#11] {9 weeks} {+12} *new peak*

#10: Beautiful Mistakes - Maroon 5/Megan Thee Stallion (-) [#5] {17 weeks} {+12}

#9: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic (-2) [#2] {16 weeks} {+5}

#8: Butter - BTS (+4) [#8] {6 weeks} {+1} *new peak*

#7: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf (-1) [#4] {17 weeks} {+11}

#6: Best Friend - Saweetie/Doja Cat (+3) [#6] {14 weeks} {+10} *new peak*

#5: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo (+3) [#5] {12 weeks} {+3} *new peak*

#4: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo (+1) [#4] {5 weeks} {-3} *new peak*

#3: pov - Ariana Grande (-1) [1 week at #1] {13 weeks} {+2}

#2: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X (+1) [#2] {12 weeks} {+2}

#1: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA (-) [2nd week at #1] {12 weeks} {+1}

Last Year's #1: Savage - Megan Thee Stallion [2/4 weeks at #1]

Biggest Drop: WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI (-25)

Biggest Jump: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (+11)

Hit-Bound

All My Favorite Songs - Weezer/AJR [2]

A-O-K - Tai Verdes [6]

Cloudy Day - Tones And I [3]

Fine Apple - Nic D [2]

Higher Power - Coldplay [8]

Iko Iko (My Bestie) - Justin Wellington/Small Jam [1]

Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo [5]

Late At Night - Roddy Ricch [2]

Lean On Me - Cheat Codes/Tinashe [3]

LMLY - Jackson Wang [7]

Lost - Maroon 5 [1]

Solar Power - Lorde [2]

Track Star - Mooski/Chris Brown [8]

t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker [2]

Waves of Blue - Majid Jordan [5]

You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd [2]

90s Kids - Jax [7]

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

Hunger Games Countdown: Week of July 3, 2021 - AJR (2)

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

A-O-K - Tai Verdes (#30) [#5] {4 weeks}

deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo (#29) [1 week at #1] {11 weeks}

Cloudy Day - Tones And I (#28) [#28] {1 week}

Arcade - Duncan Laurence (#27) [#3] {3 weeks}

Frankenstein - Claire Rosinkranz (#26) [#26] {1 week}

Last Week's #1: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (1)

#30: Peaches - Justin Bieber/Daniel Caesar/Giveon (-5) [1 week at #1] {11 weeks} {The Way You Felt}

#29: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (-28) [1 week at #1] {2 weeks} {2Drunk}

#28: Solar Power - Lorde (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {Way Less Sad}

#27: telepatía - Kali Uchis (-24) [#3] {8 weeks} {N/A}

#26: Way Less Sad - AJR (-9) [1 week at #1] {12 weeks} {la di die}

#25: Mr. Perfectly Fine (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift (-15) [#2] {11 weeks} {Sucks Being Sober}

#24: Goosebumps (Remix) - Travis Scott/HVME (-9) [#2] {17 weeks} {N/A}

#23: You - Regard/Troye Sivan/Tate McRae (-14) [#3] {10 weeks} {Lifestyle, THINK ABOUT ME & Oh My God}

#22: The Way You Felt - Alec Benjamin (+2) [#22] {2 weeks} {N/A} *new peak*

#21: Momma Always Told Me - Mike Posner/Stanaj/Yung Bae (-3) [1 week at #1] {20 weeks} {N/A}

#20: Jalebi Baby - Tesher/Jason Derulo (DEBUT) [4 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {N/A}

#19: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA (-11) [1 week at #1] {10 weeks} {Build a B****}

#18: 2Drunk - Nick Jonas (+5) [1 week at #1] {15 weeks} {Build a B**** & Bad Girl}

#17: Your Power - Billie Eilish (+5) [#8] {6 weeks} {N/A}

#16: 3, 2, 1 - 24kGoldn (+5) [3 weeks at #1] {17 weeks} {N/A}

#15: Oh My God - Alec Benjamin (+5) [2 weeks at #1] {67 weeks} {Late At Night}

#14: In The Morning - Jennifer Lopez (-10) [1 week at #1] {20 weeks} {N/A}

#13: Lifestyle - Jason Derulo/Adam Levine (-1) [#2] {16 weeks} {Bummerland}

#12: positions - Ariana Grande (-7) [#2] {25 weeks} {N/A}

#11: Late At Night - Roddy Ricch (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {Bad Girl}

#10: Sucks Being Sober - Annika Wells (+1) [#2] {13 weeks} {Bad Girl}

#9: Build a B**** - Bella Poarch (+10) [#4] {6 weeks} {N/A}

#8: THINK ABOUT ME - jxdn (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {We're Good}

#7: Sacrifice - Bebe Rexha (-1) [1 week at #1] {12 weeks} {N/A}

#6: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X (-4) [#2] {6 weeks} {la di die}

#5: Bad Girl - Daya (+11) [#3] {15 weeks} {N/A}

#4: We're Good - Dua Lipa (+9) [#3] {17 weeks} {Bummerland}

#3: la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn (+11) [#3] {6 weeks} {SUN GOES DOWN} *new peak*

#2: SUN GOES DOWN - Lil Nas X (DEBUT) [4 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week} {Bummerland}

#1: Bummerland - AJR (+6) [2nd week at #1] {31 weeks}

Last Year's #1: Maniac - Conan Gray [1/1 week at #1]

Biggest Drop: Our Song - Anne-Marie/Niall Horan (-28)

Biggest Jump: Bad Girl - Daya & la di die - Nessa Barrett/jxdn (+11)

Hit-Bound Exit

Fine Apple - Nic D [1]

Hit-Bound

#15: deja vu - Olivia Rodrigo (RE-ENTRY) [1; 2nd time] {N/A}

#14: working - Tate McRae/Khalid (-5) [2] {Lost}

#13: Need To Know - Doja Cat (+1) [3] {N/A}

#12: JUST LIKE YOU - NF (-2) [2] {All My Favorite Songs}

#11: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd (-) [2] {N/A}

#10: A-O-K - Tai Verdes (RE-ENTRY) [1; 2nd time] {N/A}

#9: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran (DEBUT) [1] {N/A}

#8: Iko Iko (My Bestie) - Justin Wellington/Small Jam (DEBUT) [1] {N/A}

#7: By Your Side - Calvin Harris/Tom Grennan (+6) [4] {N/A}

#6: I DID IT - DJ Khaled/Post Malone/DaBaby/Megan Thee Stallion/Lil Baby (RE-ENTRY) [2] {F***BOY}

#5: F***BOY - Dixie (+1) [6] {N/A}

#4: All My Favorite Songs - Weezer/AJR (+8) [2] {N/A}

#3: Lost - Maroon 5 (DEBUT) [1] {N/A}

#2: Friday (Re-Edit) - Riton/Nightcrawlers/Mufasa & Hypeman/Dopamine (+5) [3] {N/A}

#1: t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l - WILLOW/Travis Barker (+7) [2]

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

New Music Friday: Imagine Dragons, jxdn & More!

New Music Friday: July 2, 2021

Yeah, so it's been a few weeks since I've come out with one of these posts, but luckily, I won't fall behind, because it's not really something that I feel pressured to catch up on. All that being said though, there was an obvious reason why I got enough drive to get this one out. So let's jump into it.

Our first song this week comes from my absolute favourite artists of all time, Imagine Dragons. They're releasing their third single from their upcoming album, Mercury - Act 1 this week. This song's called Wrecked. Have a listen below.

Wrecked - Imagine Dragons

Wow, this might actually be my favourite Imagine Dragons song of all time. It's just... unbelievably good. First, I'll break down a bit about the lyrics. It's about Dan Reynolds' sister-in-law, who passed away after battling cancer for about a year. The emotional intensity of the song is insane and you can hear Dan's emotions just seeping through his vocals. His falsetto in the verses and the pre-chorus is very good, then you get to the chorus, and his vocals there are just insane. This song switches between being a little calmer, and then being pretty heavy rock. I doubt this'll be much of a radio hit, but I still hope it is. I really love this song, and I would highly recommend that you give it a listen. This is 4:04 of pure perfection.

My Opinion: 10/5 = Absolutely Outstanding

I was originally going to include a new Bebe Rexha song here, called American Citizen, but I started listening to it and I really didn't want to keep listening to it, so I'm choosing the Cash Cash remix of AJR's Way Less Sad instead. Have a listen below.

Way Less Sad (Remix) - AJR/Cash Cash

This is a fun remix. I love the original song, but Cash Cash make it a little more upbeat and add a pretty decent drop. I do like the original production quite a bit, so I'm a little sad that Cash Cash didn't keep any of it, but then again, that's what makes it fresh. The one downside is that it removes the bridge, which is fantastic. Overall, I'd say that the original is better, but this a fun alternate version that I might revisit from time to time.

My Opinion: 5/5 = Great

So, Taylor Swift has a new song, but it's actually not a single from Red (Taylor's Version). It's a collaboration with rock band Big Red Machine called Renegade. Have a listen below.

Renegade - Big Red Machine/Taylor Swift

I'm not 100% sure that Big Red Machine has a vocalist, as Taylor Swift's really the only one that sings here, and it sounds like a solo song from folklore/evermore. Oh, okay, I just looked it up, and apparently Big Red Machine is a band consisting of Justin Vernon (from Bon Iver) and Aaron Dessner, both of whom worked on folklore and evermore. Overall, this is a solid song. I like the production here, and Taylor sounds great as always. The song's not too memorable, but I don't really care.

My Opinion: 4/5 = Good

Finally, we have a new song from jxdn, a collaboration with Machine Gun Kelly, WANNA BE. Have a listen below.

WANNA BE - jxdn/Machine Gun Kelly

I've been enjoying pop-punk a decent amount lately, so I got kind of excited when I saw that this collaboration was coming out. Both jxdn and Machine Gun Kelly sound really good here, and the instrumentation is also really good. The chorus is decently catchy and I enjoy the verses. I'd like to see this on Hits 1 sometime, and I have almost no doubts that it'll make it there.

My Opinion: 4/5 = Good

My favourite new release of the week is easily Wrecked by Imagine Dragons. There's no contest.

My pick of the week this week goes to Dua Lipa, who just keeps milking her album Future Nostalgia, as it seems that she's pushing Love Again as a single. Have a listen below.

Love Again - Dua Lipa

Yeah, this is just another great Dua Lipa song. I'm not sure what that sample is, but it works really well with the song. Dua sounds great here, and the song is ridiculously catchy. Both the hook and the verses' melodies are really well-constructed and I love them. I really hope that this song can manage to become another hit from Dua, because it's really good.

Well, that's it! I'll try to get one more New Music Friday post in next week before I leave for a few weeks. Kwaheri, everybody and see you all in the next one.