Hey, all! We're out of the holiday slump of nothing happening on the Countdown, and with that, the reveals for the Rankdown have started! So make sure you check that out. This week was decently interesting, so I won't waste any more time.
Songs We're Saying Goodbye To
SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY (Remix) - Amaarae/Kali Uchis/Moliy (#30) [#30] {4 weeks}
Male Fantasy - Billie Eilish (#28) [#27] {4 weeks}
traitor - Olivia Rodrigo (#24) [#8] {19 weeks}
Last Week's #1: Shivers - Ed Sheeran (12)
#30: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli (-4) [#25] {4 weeks}
#29: Who's In Your Head - Jonas Brothers (-2) [#4] {17 weeks}
#28: I Hate U - SZA (DEBUT) [5 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}
#27: STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber (+2) [6 weeks at #1] {27 weeks}
#26: WYD Now? - Sadie Jean (DEBUT) [5 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}
#25: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish (-2) [#23] {6 weeks}
#24: Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish (-6) [#18] {18 weeks}
#23: Woman - Doja Cat (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}
#22: U Gurl - Walker Hayes (-) [#20] {8 weeks}
#21: For Tonight - Giveon (-) [#18] {14 weeks}
#20: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY (-) [#14] {14 weeks}
#19: Wandered To LA - Juice WRLD/Justin Bieber (+6) [#19] {5 weeks} *new peak*
#18: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone (-2) [#15] {6 weeks}
#17: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic (+2) [#14] {10 weeks}
#16: Need to Know - Doja Cat (-1) [#8] {20 weeks}
#15: feel like s**t - Tate McRae (-2) [#12] {6 weeks}
#14: I Feel Good - Pitbull/Anthony Watts/DJ White Shadow (+3) [#13] {6 weeks}
#13: Oh My God - Adele (-2) [#11] {6 weeks}
#12: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd (-) [#10] {10 weeks}
#11: Bite Me - Avril Lavigne (+3) [#10] {8 weeks}
#10: Moth To A Flame - Swedish House Mafia/The Weeknd (-1) [#9] {11 weeks}
#9: abcdefu - GAYLE (+1) [#8] {6 weeks}
#8: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift (-) [#7] {8 weeks}
#7: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G (-1) [#6] {12 weeks}
#6: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran (+1) [#6] {9 weeks} *new peak*
#5: Easy On Me - Adele (-) [#2] {13 weeks}
#4: Ghost - Justin Bieber (-) [#4] {16 weeks}
#3: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU (-) [#2] {17 weeks}
#2: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X (-) [#2] {16 weeks}
#1: Shivers - Ed Sheeran (-) [13th week at #1] {16 weeks}
Last Year's #1: Monsters - All Time Low/Demi Lovato/blackbear [3/4 weeks at #1]
Countdown Extra: Big Energy - Latto
Our first debut, at #28, is R&B singer SZA with her new single, I Hate U. This song's decent. I think the melodies are really good here, probably even better than the ones in Good Days, but the production's a little lacking. SZA more than makes up for it with her voice, though, as she's nothing short of a fantastic singer. The chorus is pretty catchy too, and I like the kinda background "I do" that's thrown in the chorus.
Next up is our new One to Watch, that's been hanging around in Hit-Bound for way too long, and is finally debuting this week at #26. This song's by Sadie Jean, and it's called WYD Now?. This song's pretty good. It's definitely not our best One to Watch ever, but the writing's great, Sadie sounds good, and while the production could use a few more layers, it's not that big of a problem. Yeah, so overall, this is a decent, yet forgettable, song.
Debuting fairly quickly at #23 is the new Doja Cat single from Planet Her, Woman. This song's okay. I still find the chorus quite annoying, which sucks, because the rest of the song's pretty good. Doja sounds good in the verses, especially in the rapping part, and the production's pretty cool. I'm more okay with this being here than I am with Need to Know still being here, so I wouldn't mind if this was a hit.
Best Debut: WYD Now? - Sadie Jean
Biggest Drop: Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish (-6): Aw, that sucks. I was hoping that this would last for a little bit longer in the top 20. It's been here for a while, though, so it's okay.
Biggest Jump: Wandered To LA - Juice WRLD/Justin Bieber (+6): Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that... Can't say I'm happy, but I'm far from disappointed about this jumping.
Countdown Ranking
-5 - Possibly the Worst Song I've Ever Heard:
#30: U Gurl - Walker Hayes
0 - Awful:
#29: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish
#28: Need to Know - Doja Cat
#27: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU
1 - Bad:
NONE!
2 - Mediocre:
#26: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic
#25: Woman - Doja Cat
3 - Decent:
#24: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli
#23: I Hate U - SZA
#22: WYD Now? - Sadie Jean
#21: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran
#20: Oh My God - Adele
4 - Good:
#19: Easy On Me - Adele
#18: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd
#17: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone
#16: Who's In Your Head - Jonas Brothers
#15: I Feel Good - Pitbull/Anthony Watts/DJ White Shadow
5 - Great:
#14: feel like s**t - Tate McRae
#13: Wandered To LA - Juice WRLD/Justin Bieber
#12: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY
#11: Bite Me - Avril Lavigne
#10: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G
#9: Shivers - Ed Sheeran
#8: For Tonight - Giveon
#7: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift
#6: abcdefu - GAYLE
#5: Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish
#4: Ghost - Justin Bieber
#3: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X
#2: STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber
#1: Moth To A Flame - Swedish House Mafia/The Weeknd
Overall Score: 104/150 = 69%
5 Oldest Songs
#5: Ghost - Justin Bieber, THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X & Shivers - Ed Sheeran {16 weeks}
#4: Who's In Your Head - Jonas Brothers & Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU {17 weeks}
#3: Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish {18 weeks}
#2: Need to Know - Doja Cat {20 weeks}
#1: STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber {27 weeks}
#1 Recommendation for Hits 1: Scarlett - Holly Humberstone
My Top 10 Songs Last Year
#10: Go Crazy - Chris Brown/Young Thug (#28)
#9: Anyone - Justin Bieber (#29)
#8: my ex's best friend - Machine Gun Kelly/blackbear (#6)
#7: Monsters - All Time Low/Demi Lovato/blackbear (#1)
#6: Bang! - AJR (#19)
#5: HOLIDAY - Lil Nas X (#18)
#4: Levitating - Dua Lipa/DaBaby (#2)
#3: Monster - Shawn Mendes/Justin Bieber (#11)
#2: positions - Ariana Grande (#5)
#1: Lasting Lover - Sigala/James Arthur (#27)
Most Missed Countdown Song: Cold Water - Major Lazer/Justin Bieber/MØ
Hit-Bound
After You - Gryffin/Jason Ross/Calle Lehmann [2]
LAst dAy oN EaRTh - Tai Verdes [1]
Sacrifice - The Weeknd [2]
Infinity - Jaymes Young [1]
Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran [2]
Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR [5]
Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith [1]
Enemy - Imagine Dragons [2]
The Weekend - BIBI [13]
Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear [1]
Circles Around This Town - Maren Morris [1]
Big Energy - Latto [6]
I Love You So - The Walters [1]
Abyss
edamame - bbno$/Rich Brian
Have Mercy - Chlöe
It'll Be Okay - Shawn Mendes
Life Goes On - Oliver Tree
love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay
SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY (Remix) - Amaarae/Kali Uchis/Moliy
The Outside - Twenty One Pilots
First up is Tai Verdes, with his brand new song, LAst dAy oN EaRTh (well, that's gonna be a pain). This song is... pretty much just the title. It's just talking about what Tai would do if it was his last day on Earth, which is a decent concept, and Tai executes it fairly well. My problem with the song, though, is that the production's quite boring. There's not much happening, even if the trumpets are fun, and it leaves me not remembering much about the song after listening to it. Let's go to Hell was better.
Next up is a song that's been doing quite well on streaming recently, Infinity by Jaymes Young. This song's pretty good. I really like the melodies here, and the production's pretty cool too. I don't think Jaymes Young has the most interesting voice, but it works with the song. It's a touch on the long side, I could do without it being almost four minutes long, but it's okay. I'd be fine with this becoming a hit.
Record Player came back this week, which is awesome. I probably would've prefered having The Good Part here, but I'm alright with AJR pushing their most recent song versus a song from 2017. Unfortunately, this means that it's technically not eligible for the Rankdown anymore, but there's nothing I can do about it because we've already started.
Lauren Spencer-Smith, everyone. Remember that name, because if I came away with anything from this next song, it's that she's sticking around for a while. This song's called Fingers Crossed, and it's becoming quite the hit. It's a slower song, but with a tempo that's right in the sweet spot. Lauren Spencer-Smith sounds really good here, and sounds better as the song evolves. The production does a similar thing, progressing as the song goes on. Plus, the writing's really great. This is already becoming a really big hit, and I'm totally fine with that.
Avril Lavigne brings us the second single from her upcoming album this week. This new song, Love It When You Hate Me, is a collaboration with blackbear, and I think you know what that means. Yeah, this song's gonna be huge on Hits 1. Which I'm totally fine with, because this is an awesome song. I've always been a sucker for pop punk, and Avril's one of the best. Throw in some blackbear, who's more than proven he works well in a pop punk song, and you have a song that works extremely well. Travis Barker's instrumentation is awesome, both artists sound great here, and the chorus is pretty catchy. Also, for some reason, blackbear's voice has the least effects on it in this song than it has in any song I've heard from him, which is pretty refreshing. I'd love to see this become a hit everywhere else other than here, too.
I think you guys all know that I'm not a huge fan of country music. So when I saw that Circles Around This Town by Maren Morris debuted Hit-Bound, I was... less than thrilled. Thankfully, Maren Morris is one of the more tolerable country artists, but that definitely doesn't mean this is good. I don't like Maren Morris' voice, the production's annoying, and the verses are super boring. I guess the chorus is decent, which is good, but definitely not enough to save this song too much. I'd rather not have this stick around.
I've really had enough of these awful viral hits from the 2010s. For whatever reason, TikTok decided to make this next song, I Love You So by The Walters a hit. Yeah, this song isn't good at all. Whoever's singing here doesn't sound good at all, and the chorus is repetitive and annoying. I don't know why this is here, and I want it to go away already.
Oh yeah, also, our Hit-Bound dropouts this week are It'll Be Okay, You Problem, More Than Friends and Have Mercy. It'll Be Okay and Have Mercy both find themselves in the Abyss, so they're not actually gone. As for the other two, they were both great, but I didn't really expect either of them to be hits, so it's okay.
Best Hit-Bound Debut: Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear
Hit-Bound/Abyss Ranking
0 - Awful:
#20: I Love You So - The Walters
#19: SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY (Remix) - Amaarae/Kali Uchis/Moliy
1 - Bad:
#18: Circles Around This Town - Maren Morris
#17: Life Goes On - Oliver Tree
2 - Mediocre:
#16: LAst dAy oN EaRTh - Tai Verdes
3 - Decent:
#15: love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay
#14: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran
4 - Good:
#13: Infinity - Jaymes Young
#12: edamame - bbno$/Rich Brian
5 - Great:
#11: Have Mercy - Chlöe
#10: After You - Gryffin/James Ross/Calle Lehmann
#9: Big Energy - Latto
#8: Sacrifice - The Weeknd
#7: The Weekend - BIBI
#6: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith
#5: Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR
#4: Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear
#3: It'll Be Okay - Shawn Mendes
#2: The Outside - Twenty One Pilots
#1: Enemy - Imagine Dragons
Overall Score: 73/100 = 73%
And If You Wonder If I Hate Blurbs (I Do)
We had three Countdown exits this week, SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY, Male Fantasy and traitor. I'm glad SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY is gone, but it's currently in the Abyss, so I hope it doesn't return. I guess Male Fantasy wasn't actually a single, so this is fine. As for traitor, it faded on me, and it was here for a while, so I don't really care that it's gone.
Bruh, how is STAY still here? I'm not even complaining, I'm just curious.
Has Need to Know seriously been here for twenty weeks? Geez.
I Feel Good got a nice rebound, which is... you ready for this?... good.
Bite Me also jumped back up to #11, so that's nice.
...And with that, folks, Shivers has now tied Sucker's record for the most weeks at #1. Seriously? I mean, this is a great song, but it's been up there for way too long. It's blocked two different Lil Nas X songs from hitting #1. It's time for this to move out before it actually breaks the record.
How Hits 1 Songs Are Doing on the Hot 100
#1: Easy On Me - Adele
#2: STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber
#3: Heat Waves - Glass Animals
#4: Shivers - Ed Sheeran
#6: INDUSTRY BABY - Lil Nas X/Jack Harlow
#7: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU
#8: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran
#9: Need to Know - Doja Cat
#11: abcdefu - GAYLE
#12: Levitating - Dua Lipa
#13: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic
#15: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo
#16: Fancy Like - Walker Hayes
#17: Ghost - Justin Bieber
#18: Save Your Tears (Remix) - The Weeknd/Ariana Grande
#19: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA
#20: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X
#21: Essence - WizKid/Justin Bieber/Tems
#22: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd
#23: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G
#24: Oh My God - Adele
#25: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd
#26: Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish
#29: love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay
#30: I Hate U - SZA
#33: Way 2 Sexy - Drake/Future/Young Thug
#38: Beggin' - Måneskin
#39: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY
#41: MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) - Lil Nas X
#42: Big Energy - Latto
#44: Girls Want Girls - Drake/Lil Baby
#48: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID
#49: Leave The Door Open - Silk Sonic
#54: Have Mercy - Chlöe
#56: Woman - Doja Cat
#58: My Universe - Coldplay/BTS
#61: For Tonight - Giveon
#63: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift
#65: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish
#69: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith
#71: Life Goes On - Oliver Tree
#74: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli
#89: Wandered To LA - Juice WRLD/Justin Bieber
#95: Moth To A Flame - Swedish House Mafia/The Weeknd
#97: I Love You So - The Walters
Top 10 on the Hunger Games Countdown
#10: Crisis - Joshua Bassett
#9: Faking Love - Anitta/Saweetie
#8: Dinero - Trinidad Cardona
#7: It's You, Not Me (Sabotage) - Masked Wolf/Bebe Rexha
#6: Soft Landing - JP Saxe
#5: Chasing Stars - Alesso/Marshmello/James Bay
#4: Permission to Dance - BTS
#3: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli
#2: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G
#1: Run (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift/Ed Sheeran
Top 10 If the Countdown Made Sense
#10: abcdefu - GAYLE
#9: Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish
#8: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd
#7: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G
#6: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU
#5: Ghost - Justin Bieber
#4: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X
#3: Shivers - Ed Sheeran
#2: Need to Know - Doja Cat
#1: Easy On Me - Adele
Kwaheri, everybody! See you all in the next one.