Week of January 29, 2022 - Lil Nas X (1)

Well, this is one of the best weeks we've had in a while, and it's not just because of the very obvious reason. All of our Countdown debuts are amazing, we finally say goodbye to one of the worst songs I've ever heard, and most of our Hit-Bound debuts are great too. Here are our exits for this week!

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish (#30) [#18] {19 weeks} [x2]

STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber (#29) [6 weeks at #1] {28 weeks}

U Gurl - Walker Hayes (#27) [#20] {9 weeks}

Wandered To LA - Juice WRLD/Justin Bieber (#24) [#19] {6 weeks}

Last Week's #1: Shivers - Ed Sheeran (14)

#30: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish (-4) [#23] {8 weeks}

#29: Enemy - Imagine Dragons (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#28: Big Energy - Latto (DEBUT) [6 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#27: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli (+1) [#25] {6 weeks}

#26: Woman - Doja Cat (-4) [#22] {3 weeks}

#25: Light Switch - Charlie Puth (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#24: I Hate U - SZA (-4) [#20] {3 weeks}

#23: WYD Now? - Sadie Jean (-) [#23] {3 weeks}

#22: Need to Know - Doja Cat (-4) [#8] {22 weeks}

#21: For Tonight - Giveon (-4) [#17] {16 weeks}

#20: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY (+1) [#14] {16 weeks}

#19: I Feel Good - Pitbull/Anthony Watts/DJ White Shadow (-3) [#13] {8 weeks}

#18: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone (-3) [#15] {8 weeks}

#17: Moth To A Flame - Swedish House Mafia/The Weeknd (-6) [#9] {13 weeks}

#16: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith (+9) [#16] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#15: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic (+4) [#14] {12 weeks}

#14: Easy On Me - Adele (-4) [#2] {15 weeks}

#13: Sacrifice - The Weeknd (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#12: Bite Me - Avril Lavigne (+1) [#10] {10 weeks}

#11: feel like s**t - Tate McRae (+1) [#11] {8 weeks} *new peak*

#10: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd (+4) [#10] {12 weeks}

#9: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift (-1) [#7] {10 weeks}

#8: Oh My God - Adele (-1) [#7] {8 weeks}

#7: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU (-2) [#2] {19 weeks}

#6: Shivers - Ed Sheeran (-5) [14 weeks at #1] {18 weeks}

#5: abcdefu - GAYLE (+4) [#5] {8 weeks} *new peak*

#4: Ghost - Justin Bieber (-) [#4] {18 weeks}

#3: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G (-) [#3] {14 weeks}

#2: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran (+4) [#2] {11 weeks} *new peak*

#1: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X (+1) [1st week at #1] {18 weeks} *new peak*

Last Year's #1: Levitating - Dua Lipa [1/3 weeks at #1]

Countdown Extra: don't miss me - Claire Rosinkranz

This first song, by Imagine Dragons, has started to become quite the hit. This song's called Enemy, and it was released in October, but is just starting to gain traction now. It's the theme song for the show Arcane, and it's a great song. Now, if you're new here, you probably don't know that Imagine Dragons are my favourite artists of all-time, so, yeah... I like this song quite a bit. I think Dan Reynolds sounds great here, the production's pretty cool, and the chorus is extremely catchy. Hits 1 has been playing the version without JID, which kinda sucks, because I thought he added a nice level of freshness that the song needs, but it's okay, I still like Dan's rap. Anyways, I'm really happy that this debuted this week, and I'd love to see it hit #1 sometime in the future.

Immediately after that, coming in at #28, we have newcomer Latto with her song Big Energy. This song's a rap song that has an extremely upbeat, funky beat that's a sample of a song that Mariah Carey sampled in her song Fantasy. Yeah, it's a little confusing, but trust me, it's a great song. Latto's flow is really good, the chorus, even though it doesn't have any actual notes, is pretty catchy, and, as I mentioned before, the production is pretty upbeat and fun. I'm glad this song is here, and I'd like to see it become a hit here. (Editor's note: I just realized that Latto used to be called Mulatto, and I actually do know who she is.)

Next up is a song that I'm convinced is gonna be a huge hit, Charlie Puth's new one, Light Switch. This is one of my absolute favourite songs right now, mostly due to how catchy it is. I honestly have had trouble getting it out of my head this past week. Everything about this song just works so well. Charlie sounds amazing, as he usually does, the light switch sound effect is a little gimmicky, but fun, and the way the tempo pulls right before the chorus hits is really cool. I love this song, and I'm super excited for it to be a hit.

Earlier this month, The Weeknd released his newest album, Dawn FM, and with it came this next single, Sacrifice, which debuts all the way up at #13 this week. I'm slightly confused as to why this was chosen to be the single from the album. Personally, I think that Less Than Zero would've been a much better choice, but it's okay, this song is still great. Abel's voice shines throughout the song, the production is pretty upbeat and fun, and the chorus is catchy enough. I'm fine with this being here, but I'd much rather have Less Than Zero or Out of Time be released as singles.

Best Debut: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

Biggest Drop: Moth To A Flame - Swedish House Mafia/The Weeknd (-6): Aw. I was kinda hoping that this would be a song that kinda flopped on pop radio, but Hits 1 gave a shot, but I guess not. I'm glad it made it to the top 10, though.

Biggest Jump: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith (+9): Cool.

Countdown Ranking

0 - Awful:

#30: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish

#29: Need to Know - Doja Cat

#28: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU

1 - Bad:

NONE!

2 - Mediocre:

#27: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic

#26: Woman - Doja Cat

3 - Decent:

#25: WYD Now? - Sadie Jean

#24: I Hate U - SZA

#23: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli

#22: Oh My God - Adele

#21: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran

4 - Good:

#20: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone

#19: Easy On Me - Adele

#18: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd

#17: I Feel Good - Pitbull/Anthony Watts/DJ White Shadow

5 - Great:

#16: feel like s**t - Tate McRae

#15: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#14: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY

#13: Bite Me - Avril Lavigne

#12: Shivers - Ed Sheeran

#11: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

#10: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G

#9: Ghost - Justin Bieber

#8: Big Energy - Latto

#7: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift

#6: For Tonight - Giveon

#5: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#4: Moth To A Flame - Swedish House Mafia/The Weeknd

#3: abcdefu - GAYLE

#2: Enemy - Imagine Dragons

#1: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

Overall Score: 115/150 = 77%

5 Oldest Songs

#5: Easy On Me - Adele {15 weeks}
#4: For Tonight - Giveon & Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY {16 weeks}
#3: Shivers - Ed Sheeran, Ghost - Justin Bieber & THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X {18 weeks}

#2: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU {19 weeks}
#1: Need to Know - Doja Cat {22 weeks}

#1 Recommendation for Hits 1: Rain - grandson/Jessie Reyez

My Top 10 Songs Last Year

#10: Go Crazy - Chris Brown/Young Thug (#28)

#9: Anyone - Justin Bieber (#26)

#8: Save Your Tears - The Weeknd (#19)

#7: my ex's best friend - Machine Gun Kelly/blackbear (#5)

#6: Lie Lie Lie - Joshua Bassett (#20)

#5: Levitating - Dua Lipa/DaBaby (#1)

#4: My Head & My Heart - Ava Max (#27)

#3: positions - Ariana Grande (#7)

#2: Monsters - All Time Low/Demi Lovato/blackbear (#2)

#1: Lasting Lover - Sigala/James Arthur (#24)

Most Missed Countdown Song: Juice - Lizzo

Hit-Bound

The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max [3]

Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear [3]

The Weekend - BIBI [15]

Boys Don't Cry - Anitta [1]

Beg For You - Charli XCX/Rina Sawayama [1]

I Love You So - The Walters [3]

When I'm Gone - Alesso/Katy Perry [1]

To All The Boys I've Loved Before - Jax [2]

Infinity - Jaymes Young [3]

Delorean - Walker Hayes [1]

High - The Chainsmokers [1]

Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran [4]

don't miss me - Claire Rosinkranz [2]

Every Summertime - NIKI [1]

Anxiety - Coi Leray [1]

ur just horny - GAYLE [2]

Abyss

Have Mercy - Chlöe

It'll Be Okay - Shawn Mendes

Life Goes On - Oliver Tree

love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay

Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR

SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY (Remix) - Amaarae/Kali Uchis/Moliy

26 - Lauv

The Motto by Tiësto and Ava Max re-entered Hit-Bound this week, which poses... a bit of a bigger problem to the Rankdown than Record Player re-entering did, but it's fine, it's not a ridiculously big problem. Anyways, I'm fine with this song being back. It's pretty good, and it's actually becoming a hit, so this makes sense. I'd be fine with it debuting.

Well, if there was one artist I never expected to do an 80s song, it was Anitta. But, little did I know, she would do it with this brand new song, Boys Don't Cry. Anitta's certainly proving to be someone who's capable of making pop songs, and this is my favourite so far. The production is super upbeat and fun, Anitta sounds great, and the chorus is quite catchy. I really love this song, and I'd super love for it to become a pop hit. It should at least do better than Faking Love did on the Countdown.

I've never been a huge fan of Charli XCX, so I'm never too keen on listening to new stuff from her. This week, she brings us a collaboration with Rina Sawayama, called Beg For You. I've gotta admit, this song is solid. This is also a super upbeat song, which is great, and Charli sounds alright here, which is good. I think the "drop" in the chorus is kinda underwhelming, but it's fine. Overall, this song's good, certainly better than most Charli XCX songs, but it's not great.

Katy Perry has... struggled to be relevant as of late, as none of her stuff since PRISM has really blown up. But, recently, this song's been on the rise, a collaboration with Alesso called When I'm Gone. It's really catchy, Katy Perry sounds quite good here, and the song as a whole has a dark-ish vibe, which is really cool. Overall, this is just a solid song. Will this make Katy Perry relevant again? Probably not, but it'll help if she can manage to release another song that makes it to pop radio.

*sighs* Well, guess who scored a new song on Hits 1 this week? Walker Hayes... yaaaaaaaay... Yeah, so I definitely wasn't excited to hear this new song, Delorean, but it's by far the best song I've heard from him yet. So y'know... it's pretty bad. I'm still not a fan of Walker Hayes' voice, and the country production mixed with some more EDM-type elements doesn't sound that good, and the sexual lyrics mixed with Back to the Future references is... awkward, to say the least, but there's one thing that makes this better than Fancy Like and U Gurl. There's nothing about it that annoys me. The other two songs were extremely obnoxious and annoying, but this song's just kinda forgettable. I'd still rather not have it debut, though.

One of Hits 1's favourite artists, The Chainsmokers, returned this week with their new single, High, and after hearing it multiple times, I'm still not convinced that The Kid LAROI swaps in his voice with Drew Taggart's sometimes. Anyways, the song itself is decent. It's kinda forgettable, the chorus isn't that catchy, but the production's pretty good, and I think Drew sounds decent here. One actual problem I have with it, though, is that it sounds like the last drop was the drop in an earlier demo of the song, and they just decided to throw it in at the end in the final version. It... doesn't fit at all. Other than that, though, this song's fine.

So, this song and the next one did a thing that I remember only happening twice in 2020. This song, Every Summertime by NIKI aired on Hit-Bound twice, but was then replaced by the next song, Anxiety by Coi Leray. The first time I remember this happening was when Paper Rings by Taylor Swift was replaced by the actual Lover single, The Man. The next time I remember this happening was when Bang! by AJR and Be Kind by Marshmello and Halsey took turns airing on Hit-Bound. Will Every Summertime return to Hit-Bound next week? Maybe. I'd say it's probably 50/50, especially considering Every Summertime is actually gaining on pop radio, whereas Anxiety is... not.

Anyways, now onto the actual songs, we have Every Summertime by NIKI first up. This song's honestly pretty great. It's kinda jazzy, which is really fun, and NIKI makes it work really well. This song feels like a much better version of a Silk Sonic song. The chorus is a little slower, but the contrast between it and the verses works really well. Yeah, not much else to say on this one, it's just a really solid song.

Now onto Coi Leray's second song to make it to Hit-Bound, Anxiety. This song's much better than TWINNEM. It's significantly less annoying, which is great. Coi Leray sounds pretty good, and has good flow in her rapping verse, and the beat is actually kinda interesting. Plus, the writing's really good. I honestly really enjoyed listening to the song, and I'd love to see it become a hit.

This next song played on the station twice this past week, which qualifies it for the Abyss. It's definitely possible Hits 1 will never play this again, but I'll review 26 by Lauv anyways. This song's on the slower side without being too slow, which is nice. I think Lauv sounds decent here, and the melodies are decent, but the production feels really empty. It doesn't have much substance to it, and I really wish that it did, because it would make the song much better.

We have a few Hit-Bound dropouts this week, Billie Bossa Nova, Jigsaw, LAst dAy oN EaRTh and It'll Be Okay. For the first three, they were mediocre, so I really don't care that they're gone. As for It'll Be Okay, it didn't really take off on pop radio, so it'll be okay.

Best Hit-Bound Debut: Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

Hit-Bound/Abyss Ranking

0 - Awful:

#23: I Love You So - The Walters

#22: SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY (Remix) - Amaarae/Kali Uchis/Moliy

1 - Bad:

#21: Delorean - Walker Hayes

#20: Life Goes On - Oliver Tree

2 - Mediocre:

NONE!

3 - Decent:

#19: 26 - Lauv

#18: love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay

#17: High - The Chainsmokers

#16: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran

4 - Good:

#15: Beg For You - Charli XCX/Rina Sawayama

#14: don't miss me - Claire Rosinkranz

#13: Infinity - Jaymes Young

#12: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max

5 - Great:

#11: Have Mercy - Chlöe

#10: ur just horny - GAYLE

#9: Every Summertime - NIKI

#8: Anxiety - Coi Leray

#7: Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

#6: To All The Boys I've Loved Before - Jax

#5: Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear

#4: When I'm Gone - Alesso/Katy Perry

#3: The Weekend - BIBI

#2: It'll Be Okay - Shawn Mendes

#1: Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR

Overall Score: 85/115 = 74%

I Can Tell You Got Big Blurb Energy

We lost four songs from the Countdown this week, Happier Than Ever, STAY, U Gurl and Wandered To LA. I really loved Happier Than Ever and STAY, but they've been here for a while, so I'm fine with them going. Wandered To LA faded on me, so I'm fine with it leaving. As for U Gurl, FINALLY! It was awful, and shouldn't have even debuted in the first place.

Alright, I'm just gonna jump to the chase, our new #1 is... THATS WHAT I WANT!!! Wooh!!! It's super deserving for Lil Nas X to hit #1 on the Weekend Countdown, and I'm really glad that it's with this song, because this song is amazing. Shivers spent way too long at #1 here, and I'm extremely glad that it's not there anymore. I would also just like to point out that Lil Nas X is the first Black artist to hit #1 solo since Blinding Lights hit #1. I also just looked into this next thing after the Countdown aired, because I was curious to see the answer. Take a wild guess as to how many Black women have hit #1 on the Weekend Countdown... 1. Janelle Monáe. As a feature on We Are Young by fun.. What. the. actual. fuck, Hits 1. This honestly just isn't okay. Lizzo? Doja Cat? Rihanna? Nicki Minaj? Cardi B? Fuck you, Hits 1, do better.

Anyways, on a happier note, Do It To It dropped to #30 this week, which is awesome. I hope it doesn't stick around for too long.

Woman and I Hate U both dropped four spots this week, which kinda sucks, because I'm starting to grow into both of them.

One Right Now's in the top 10 again, which is cool.

Oh yeah, also, Shivers didn't just drop to #2. It dropped to #6, which is great. That means it might not stick around for too much longer.

abcdefu is up at #5! Yay!

Guess what our #2 is, though. Yeah, that's right. Overpass Graffiti. If this hits #1 on the Countdown next week, I'm gonna have some words to say.

How Hits 1 Songs Are Doing on the Hot 100

#1: Easy On Me - Adele

#3: Heat Waves - Glass Animals

#4: STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber

#6: Shivers - Ed Sheeran

#8: abcdefu - GAYLE

#9: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU

#11: Need to Know - Doja Cat

#12: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

#13: INDUSTRY BABY - Lil Nas X/Jack Harlow

#14: Ghost - Justin Bieber

#15: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic

#16: Levitating - Dua Lipa

#18: Oh My God - Adele

#19: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

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

#21: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

#22: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd

#23: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

#26: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G

#27: love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay

#28: I Hate U - SZA

#29: Kiss Me More - Doja Cat/SZA

#30: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#32: Fancy Like - Walker Hayes

#34: Essence - WizKid/Justin Bieber/Tems

#35: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd

#37: Happier Than Ever - Billie Eilish

#38: Big Energy - Latto

#39: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY

#48: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#50: Way 2 Sexy - Drake/Future/Young Thug

#52: Woman - Doja Cat

#57: Girls Want Girls - Drake/Lil Baby

#66: Take My Breath - The Weeknd

#69: For Tonight - Giveon

#73: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift

#76: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish

#77: Have Mercy - Chlöe

#81: Circles Around This Town - Maren Morris

#92: My Universe - Coldplay/BTS

Top 10 on the Hunger Games Countdown

#10: Faking Love - Anitta/Saweetie

#9: let you - iann dior

#8: ur just horny - GAYLE

#7: Paralyzed - Sueco

#6: Let's go to Hell - Tai Verdes

#5: Infinity - Jaymes Young

#4: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran

#3: Permission to Dance - BTS

#2: Big Energy - Latto

#1: Chasing Stars - Alesso/Marshmello/James Bay

Top 10 If the Countdown Made Sense

#10: Oh My God - Adele

#9: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd

#8: Cold Heart (Remix) - Elton John/Dua Lipa/PNAU

#7: Need to Know - Doja Cat

#6: Better Days - NEIKED/Mae Muller/Polo G

#5: abcdefu - GAYLE

#4: Ghost - Justin Bieber

#3: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#2: Shivers - Ed Sheeran

#1: Easy On Me - Adele

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