Week of March 19, 2022 - Ed Sheeran (5)

Hi, everybody! Welcome back to yet another Weekend Countdown. I'd say this week was pretty good, I have quite a few things to talk about, at least. Let's not waste any more time, here are the exits for this week!

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

Attention - Omah Lay/Justin Bieber (#28) [#28] {1 week}

I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli (#27) [#25] {12 weeks}

Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift (#20) [#3] {16 weeks}

For Tonight - Giveon (#19) [#17] {22 weeks}

Last Week's #1: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran (4)

#30: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran (-) [#30] {3 weeks}

#29: WYD Now? - Sadie Jean (RE-ENTRY) [#16] {6 weeks}

#28: Sweetest Pie - Megan Thee Stallion/Dua Lipa (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#27: emo girl - Machine Gun Kelly/WILLOW (+2) [#21] {6 weeks}

#26: I Hate U - SZA (-) [#16] {10 weeks}

#25: Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin (-) [#25] {4 weeks}

#24: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R. (-3) [#19] {5 weeks}

#23: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran (+1) [#23] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#22: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone (-12) [#10] {15 weeks}

#21: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X (-4) [3 weeks at #1] {25 weeks}

#20: We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast (DEBUT) [4 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#19: Woman - Doja Cat (-4) [#15] {10 weeks}

#18: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith (-) [#12] {9 weeks}

#17: Big Energy - Latto (-5) [#12] {8 weeks}

#16: Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#15: Oh My God - Adele (+1) [#3] {15 weeks}

#14: High - The Chainsmokers (-) [#13] {7 weeks}

#13: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron (+10) [#13] {3 weeks} *new peak*

#12: COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer (+10) [#12] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#11: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae (-) [#10] {6 weeks}

#10: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd (-1) [#4] {19 weeks}

#9: abcdefu - GAYLE (-3) [#4] {15 weeks}

#8: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max (-1) [#7] {6 weeks}

#7: Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear (+6) [#7] {7 weeks} *new peak*

#6: When I'm Gone - Alesso/Katy Perry (-4) [#2] {4 weeks}

#5: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold (+3) [#5] {5 weeks} *new peak*

#4: Sacrifice - The Weeknd (+1) [#4] {8 weeks} *new peak*

#3: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID (+1) [#3] {8 weeks}

#2: Light Switch - Charlie Puth (+1) [#2] {8 weeks}

#1: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran (-) [5th week at #1] {18 weeks}

Last Year's #1: drivers license - Olivia Rodrigo [4/4 weeks at #1]

Countdown Extra: Stupid Song - Hot Chelle Rae

So before we get into any of our debuts this week, we see the return of our One to Watch song before the current one, WYD Now? by Sadie Jean. I'm definitely not upset that this is back, the song's pretty good, just a little confused is all.

So our first and lowest debut of the week, at #28, is the big release from last weekend, Sweetest Pie by Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa. I said this last week, and I'll say it again, I'm kinda disappointed by this one. Coming from two artists who have proven that they know how to make a bop, you'd expect this to really be a bop. But instead, it's just alright. Don't get me wrong, there's a lot to like here, all the verses are great, the production is well-made, and the song as a whole is extremely fun, but I think I've found what I don't like about this, and it's the hook. It's nothing particularly special, even though it's kinda catchy, and it comes back way too often for me to remember much about the rest of the song. Even though I know I like Megan's verses, I find it kinda hard to remember what they sound like. Plus, who's idea was it to make the hi-hats THAT LOUD. The hi-hats aren't so important that they need me to focus on them more than I do Dua's voice. Anyways, I'm just nitpicking at this point, it's still a good song, and I'd be okay with it being a hit here.

Well, everyone. We have a Disney song on the Weekend Countdown. The surprise smash hit from the movie Encanto has finally debuted at a very high #20 this week. I've actually really grown into We Don't Talk About Bruno, and I find it pretty great now. Elephant in the room, it's from a movie, so you do need a bit of context, or else the lyrics are pretty confusing (and also makes for some strange lines, but usually a bunch of other stuff is happening at the same time, so it's easy to ignore those ones), but other than that, the song is great. I genuinely think everybody sounds good here, especially Rhenzy Feliz and Diane Guerrero, which is pretty surprising, considering this is just the cast from a movie, but I'm very happy that that's the case. Anyways, the song is structured so that every verse is similar, but also all very unique (which makes for a great moment at the end, but I'll get to that later). I particularly enjoy how the chords switch up to major chords during Diane Guerrero's verse. The production here is excellent, and embraces the Columbian style very well, while also mixing with some more pop-ish production elements. Then, at the end, there's a big build right before everybody sings their verses at the same time. Which sounds chaotic on paper, but it's actually really cool. I'm unsure why this became such a big hit, but I'm very happy that it did, because it's a great song, and I'd love to see it last for a bit here. Lin-Manuel Miranda really is a musical genius.

Lastly, we have another song that I've grown into quite a bit recently, Kygo's newest, Dancing Feet featuring Joe Jonas' band from 2015, DNCE. I only remember a couple songs from DNCE, which are Cake By The Ocean and Kissing Strangers, but I remember loving both, so I was pretty excited when I saw that they were back. Now, I'm not sure if I would actually consider this a DNCE song, because the band isn't very prominent here, it's pretty much just Kygo featuring Joe Jonas, but I don't care. I think Kygo's a really talented producer when he makes upbeat songs, and he really lets that shine in this song. His buildup and drop during the chorus is really good, and I love the mix of his production with Joe Jonas' voice. The upbeat, trumpet-heavy production adds to the super fun vibe of this song, and I love it. Speaking of the chorus, the melody in the chorus is really great, and I'm literally obsessed with it. It's so catchy, and it's perfect for Joe Jonas' register. The only part of the song that I'm not a huge fan of is the bridge, with the, "da-da-da-da-dancing feet" part, because Joe sounds kinda nasally, but it's fine. It doesn't ruin the song. I'd love to see this do well here.

Best Debut: Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE

Biggest Drop: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone (-12): Okay, yeah, I didn't expect that jump last week to last very long, and I was right. It seems as though this is this song's last week here, which I'm fine with, because it was good, but not too memorable.

Biggest Jump: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron & COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer (+10): I'm glad that both of these jumped into the top 15. Both are pretty good, and they're pushing out older songs, so I'm happy. Oh, wait a minute... nope, they just pushed out two rap songs. Come on, Hits 1.

Countdown Ranking

0 - Awful:

#30: Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin

1 - Bad:

NONE!

2 - Mediocre:

#29: emo girl - Machine Gun Kelly/WILLOW

3 - Decent:

#28: Oh My God - Adele

#27: I Hate U - SZA

#26: Woman - Doja Cat

#25: WYD Now? - Sadie Jean

#24: High - The Chainsmokers

#23: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran

#22: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran

4 - Good:

#21: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone

#20: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran

#19: COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer

#18: Sweetest Pie - Megan Thee Stallion/Dua Lipa

#17: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron

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

#15: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max

5 - Great:

#14: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#13: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

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

#11: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.

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

#9: abcdefu - GAYLE

#8: Big Energy - Latto

#7: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold

#6: We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast

#5: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#4: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#3: Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE

#2: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#1: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae

Overall Score: 121/150 = 81%

5 Oldest Songs

#5: I Hate U - SZA & Woman - Doja Cat {10 weeks}
#4: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone, Oh My God - Adele & abcdefu - GAYLE {15 weeks}

#3: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran {18 weeks}
#2: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd {19 weeks}
#1: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X {25 weeks}

#1 Recommendation for Hits 1: Less Than Zero - The Weeknd

My Top 10 Songs Last Year

#10: Save Your Tears - The Weeknd (#6)

#9: Anyone - Justin Bieber (#16)

#8: forget me too - Machine Gun Kelly/Halsey (#13)

#7: drivers license - Olivia Rodrigo (#1)

#6: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf (#30)

#5: WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI (#18)

#4: Overdrive - Conan Gray (#14)

#3: My Head & My Heart - Ava Max (#8)

#2: Way Less Sad - AJR (#25)

#1: Lasting Lover - Sigala/James Arthur (#19)

Most Missed Song: Sucker for Pain - Lil Wayne/Wiz Khalifa/Imagine Dragons/Logic/Ty Dolla $ign

Hit-Bound

MF - Bailey Bryan/24kGoldn [1]

Stupid Song - Hot Chelle Rae [3]

Don't Forget My Love - Diplo/Miguel [1]

Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence [2]

luv starved - GAYLE [1]

Bones - Imagine Dragons [1]

I'm Tired - Labrinth/Zendaya [2]

Remind Me - Tom Grennan [1]

F U Anthem - Leah Kate [1]

Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat [3]

House On Fire - Mimi Webb [5]

Sunroof - Nicky Youre/dazy [5]

Another Man's Jeans - Ashe [3]

Checkmate - Jena Rose [3]

Abyss

Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli

I Love You So - The Walters

iPad - The Chainsmokers

love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay

Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR

24kGoldn has struggled to score a follow-up hit to Mood, but he's stayed pretty active despite that. Will this be the song to become his second hit? We'll see. It's MF by Bailey Bryan and 24kGoldn, and I think the song's pretty good. Both Bailey Bryan and 24kGoldn sound great here, and the production is pretty groovy, which is fun, but nothing about it is all that interesting. It feels like it's dragging a bit throughout, especially in the chorus, which kinda sucks, because 24kGoldn works best with quick, to-the-point bops. This might grow on me, it's probably just a matter of time. But for now, this just isn't really doing it for me, even if I still think it's good.

When Diplo isn't working on any of his fifteen separate side projects, he can make a pretty great song, and that really shows with this new one, Don't Forget My Love, with Miguel. I'm not too familiar with Miguel, as I believe this is his first song on Hits 1 despite having a few smaller pop hits here and there. But, if this song is any indication, I think he has a pretty good voice. It fits especially well with Diplo's chill EDM production here. The chorus is pretty simple, with just one line, and a guitar riff that builds up into a drop (in which it kinda sounds like Miguel is saying "donkey" over and over again), but I think it works. Overall, this song is just enjoyable, and I'd love for it to be a hit.

GAYLE tries once again to score a follow-up to abcdefu, with another single from her debut EP, this one being called luv starved. I think this is my least favourite song that I've heard from her so far, but I still think it's good. It's definitely less gimmicky than the last couple of songs, and actually makes an attempt at making a serious song, which I definitely appreciate. GAYLE sounds pretty great here, but I do have a couple issues with this. First of all, the song isn't too memorable. But, it's okay, it might just take a couple more listens. The other issue I have with this one is that GAYLE's production has never been that well-mixed, and that's certainly still prominent here. Other than that, though, the song's fine. 

I think I've made it pretty clear that Imagine Dragons are my favourite artist, so I was pretty excited when I saw the Act 1 label on their last album, Mercury, because it meant we were likely getting a Mercury - Act 2 in 2022, and well... here we have the first single from it, Bones! This song definitely sticks to the Imagine Dragons single formula, but it's a little more experimental than songs like Natural, Believer or Enemy. The lyrics are a little nonsensical, but the song makes up for it sonically. It has a really cool sound to it, being kinda darker, and I think Dan Reynolds' voice works really well with it. The pre-chorus is a little strange, with there being some very weird vocal effects on Dan's voice, but when they bring that back in the bridge, it makes for a really cool intensity-building moment, because they get rid of the vocal effect, and I like how well it builds up the final chorus. Yeah. Not my favourite Imagine Dragons single ever, Bad Liar is still the best single to reach Hits 1, but it's definitely great.

Next up, we have Best Song Ever by One Direction, except... nine years later and by that guy Tom Grennan, who had a couple songs on Hits 1 last year, Little Bit of Love and By Your Side with Calvin Harris. Anyways, this song is called Remind Me, and yeah, it's pretty much just Best Song Ever. The whole concept of the song is trying to remember a song, and the hook is like the whole, "woah, I'm gonna sing the melody of the song I can't remember, except without the lyrics" thing, and it even goes as far to take a line right out of Best Song Ever, "I think it went, oh-oh-oh". All that being said, though, Best Song Ever is a great song, and this is a great song too, so I'm not annoyed in the slightest. I've always been a fan of Tom Grennan's voice (although I can see how you could make a case for the other side of things, too), and I think he does well here. The chorus is pretty catchy, and I think the production is really well-done too. I'd be more than okay with this becoming a hit.

Our last Hit-Bound debut (key work being Hit-Bound) of the week is F U Anthem by somebody named Leah Kate. This is a pop-punk song, which... I mean, you could probably gather that from the title alone. Anyways, I don't really like this one. The lyrics aren't very creative, the production is a little all over the place, and it's honestly just too loud. It doesn't need to be that loud. I guess Leah Kate sounds fine here, but that's the only redeemable thing about this song.

The Chainsmokers release another song from their upcoming album this week, with this one called iPad. It didn't actually reach Hit-Bound this weekend, but it's being played on the station, and it was on the most recent survey I did, so I'm pretty sure it's officially part of the rotation. Now, I've been growing into High a little bit recently, but honestly, I think this song is better. Alex Taggart's voice has definitely gotten better since a couple years ago, so while I'm sad that they don't tend to collaborate anymore, it's okay. The production here is probably the highlight, though (aside from that awful, weirdly-pitched post-chorus). It's really well-made, and I think there's a lot that I still need to unpack, which is always a great feeling from a song.

We lost dying on the inside, ROOM FOR 2, PS5 and How Long, plus Celebrity Skin and Have Mercy from the Abyss. dying on the inside was great, but kinda forgettable so I'm fine with it going. ROOM FOR 2 was great, and should've been a follow-up hit for Benson Boone. PS5 was never destined to do well here, so I'm not surprised in the slightest that it's gone. How Long was extremely forgettable, and I'm sure I'll completely forget about it in a week or two. Freaky Deaky is much better than Celebrity Skin, so I'm not sad at all that it's gone. As for Have Mercy, I didn't really expect it to re-enter, so it's okay.

Best Hit-Bound Debut: Bones - Imagine Dragons

Hit-Bound/Abyss Ranking

0 - Awful:

#20: Another Man's Jeans - Ashe

#19: I Love You So - The Walters

1 - Bad:

#18: F U Anthem - Leah Kate

2 - Mediocre:

#17: I'm Tired - Labrinth/Zendaya

3 - Decent:

#16: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli

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

4 - Good:

#14: luv starved - GAYLE

#13: iPad - The Chainsmokers

#12: MF - Bailey Bryan/24kGoldn

#11: Checkmate - Jena Rose

#10: Stupid Song - Hot Chelle Rae

5 - Great:

#9: Don't Forget My Love - Diplo/Miguel

#8: Remind Me - Tom Grennan

#7: Sunroof - Nicky Youre/dazy

#6: Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence

#5: Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

#4: Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR

#3: House On Fire - Mimi Webb

#2: Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat

#1: Bones - Imagine Dragons

Overall Score: 74/100 = 74%

We Don't Talk About Blurb-o, No, No, No, We Don't Talk About Blurb-oooooo, BUT!

We lost Attention, I AM WOMAN, Message In A Bottle and For Tonight this week. It's kinda funny that Attention only lasted one week here, and I'm very glad that it did, because it wasn't very good. I AM WOMAN didn't really do anything here, so I'm not disappointed that it's gone. Message In A Bottle was great, and did really well here, so I'm not sad that it's gone, and For Tonight didn't even crack the top 15 despite being here for 20+ weeks, so it was just taking up space at this point, even though I still love it.

Yeah, I've decided that I really don't like Weatherman. It's super annoying.

Y'know, I've probably heard THATS WHAT I WANT 100+ times now, but I still really love it. Just shows how great of a song it actually is.

Both Woman and Big Energy were pushed out of the top 15 this week, which sucks for both of them, because they're both actually doing quite well on pop radio right now, and they're both good, especially the latter.

Love It When You Hate Me jumped back up to #7, which is great!

When I'm Gone dropped all the way back down to #6 this week, which I'm happy about, because the song wasn't that good.

Numb Little Bug is in the top five now, which is awesome! It's a fantastic song, and I love seeing it do well here.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this more high-effort post, I enjoyed writing it. We'll see how long I can keep this up, though. No promises.

How Hits 1 Songs Are Doing on the Hot 100

#1: Heat Waves - Glass Animals

#2: We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast

#4: abcdefu - GAYLE

#5: STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber

#6: Easy On Me - Adele

#7: Ghost - Justin Bieber

#8: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

#9: Shivers - Ed Sheeran

#10: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

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

#12: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#13: Need to Know - Doja Cat

#14: Big Energy - Latto

#15: Woman - Doja Cat

#16: Levitating - Dua Lipa

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

#18: pushin P - Gunna/Future/Young Thug

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

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

#22: I Hate U - SZA

#23: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran

#27: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#29: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd

#30: Fancy Like - Walker Hayes

#31: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

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

#35: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#39: Essence - WizKid/Justin Bieber/Tems

#42: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron

#48: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold

#49: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae

#50: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY

#53: I'm Tired - Labrinth/Zendaya

#56: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

#57: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran

#64: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic

#65: Circles Around This Town - Maren Morris

#67: Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat

#71: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max

#76: High - The Chainsmokers

#84: Oh My God - Adele

#85: I Love You So - The Walters

#95: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish

#99: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.

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

Hunger Games Countdown Top 10

#10: Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

#9: Crisis - Joshua Bassett

#8: I'm Tired - Labrinth/Zendaya

#7: Present - Khalid

#6: Paralyzed - Sueco

#5: More Than Friends - 24kGoldn

#4: It's You, Not Me (Sabotage) - Masked Wolf/Bebe Rexha

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

#2: Jigsaw - Conan Gray

#1: Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE

If the Countdown Made Sense Top 10

#10: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.

#9: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

#8: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#7: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#6: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#5: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#4: Woman - Doja Cat

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

#2: Big Energy - Latto

#1: abcdefu - GAYLE

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

Week of March 12, 2022 - Ed Sheeran (4)

Hey, all! So I forgot to mention that I would be away for the majority of last week, so that's why this post is so late. But no worries! I'm here now, and I've done ten more reveals for the Rankdown! So make sure you go and check that out, we only have twenty more songs to go! Here are the exits for this week.

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish (#27) [#23] {13 weeks}

Ghost - Justin Bieber (#26) [#4] {23 weeks}

The Joker And The Queen - Ed Sheeran/Taylor Swift (#23) [#23] {3 weeks}

Last Week's #1: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran (3)

#30: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran (-) [#30] {2 weeks}

#29: emo girl - Machine Gun Kelly/WILLOW (-5) [#21] {5 weeks}

#28: Attention - Omah Lay/Justin Bieber (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#27: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli (+2) [#25] {12 weeks}

#26: I Hate U - SZA (-1) [#16] {9 weeks}

#25: Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin (+3) [#25] {3 weeks} *new peak*

#24: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#23: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron (-1) [#22] {2 weeks}

#22: COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer (DEBUT) [1 week in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#21: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R. (-2) [#19] {4 weeks}

#20: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift (-4) [#3] {16 weeks}

#19: For Tonight - Giveon (+2) [#17] {22 weeks}

#18: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith (-4) [#12] {8 weeks}

#17: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X (-6) [3 weeks at #1] {24 weeks}

#16: Oh My God - Adele (-4) [#3] {14 weeks}

#15: Woman - Doja Cat (-) [#15] {9 weeks}

#14: High - The Chainsmokers (-1) [#13] {6 weeks}

#13: Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear (-5) [#8] {6 weeks}

#12: Big Energy - Latto (+5) [#12] {7 weeks} *new peak*

#11: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae (-1) [#10] {5 weeks}

#10: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone (+8) [#10] {14 weeks} *new peak*

#9: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd (-4) [#4] {18 weeks}

#8: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold (-2) [#6] {4 weeks}

#7: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max (+13) [#7] {5 weeks} *new peak*

#6: abcdefu - GAYLE (-2) [#4] {14 weeks}

#5: Sacrifice - The Weeknd (+4) [#5] {7 weeks} *new peak*

#4: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID (-1) [#3] {7 weeks}

#3: Light Switch - Charlie Puth (-1) [#2] {7 weeks}

#2: When I'm Gone - Alesso/Katy Perry (+5) [#2] {3 weeks} *new peak*

#1: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran (-) [4th week at #1] {17 weeks}

Last Year's #1: drivers license - Olivia Rodrigo [3/4 weeks at #1]

Countdown Extra: PS5 - salem ilese/TOMORROW X TOGETHER/Alan Walker

All of our debuts this week are coming in after only one week in Hit-Bound, starting with this new one at #28, Attention by Omah Lay and Justin Bieber. I'm not a huge fan of this one. Omah Lay sounds good here, and the production is decent, but Justin Bieber sounds really bad in his lower register, and the song as a whole is kinda boring. Yeah, I don't really have much else to say on this one, it's probably not gonna do very well here, and it'll just be taking up space for its entire run.

At #24, we have Camila Cabello's newest, Bam Bam featuring Ed Sheeran. I think this song's pretty good. I'd say it's about on par with Don't Go Yet, pretty fun, but not memorable in the long run. Ed Sheeran fits surprisingly well here, and both him and Camila sound great here. The song as a whole is pretty fun, and I like the production, but my one problem is that the song as a whole isn't very memorable at all. I can definitely see myself easily forgetting about this one, and I don't think it'll take that long either. But, since Ed Sheeran's on this, it'll probably hit #1 here. So...

Because of how much Hits 1 stans 5 Seconds of Summer, it makes me underestimate how big they actually are. They've had quite a few big songs, from She Looks So Perfect to Youngblood, and even songs like Easier and Teeth had decent pop radio runs. So, it surprised me when I saw how well this song had been doing right from the start, but it probably shouldn't have. Anyways, their new song, COMPLETE MESS debuts at #22 this week, and it's pretty good. It's definitely far from their best, I think the production's kinda lacking a bit, and the song is a little slow for my liking, but that's honestly my only problem with it. Everything else about the song is completely fine (pun intended), and honestly kinda good. I'd be okay with this doing well here, but I don't want it to do too well here, because I can see myself getting sick of it.

Best Debut: COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer

Biggest Drop: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X (-6): Well, that sucks. I was hoping that this song would be able to stick around for a bit, but seeing it already sink to #17 doesn't make me too hopeful. I'd give it one more week here, tops.

Biggest Jump: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max (+13): I'm pretty happy to see this song all the way in the top 10, it's a very solid song, and I'd like to see it do well here.

Countdown Ranking

0 - Awful:

NONE!

1 - Bad:

#30: Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin

#29: Attention - Omah Lay/Justin Bieber

2 - Mediocre:

#28: emo girl - Machine Gun Kelly/WILLOW

3 - Decent:

#27: I Hate U - SZA

#26: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli

#25: Oh My God - Adele

#24: Woman - Doja Cat

#23: High - The Chainsmokers

#22: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran

#21: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran

4 - Good:

#20: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone

#19: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron

#18: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran

#17: COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer

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

#15: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max

5 - Great:

#14: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

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

#12: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.

#11: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

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

#9: For Tonight - Giveon

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

#7: Big Energy - Latto

#6: abcdefu - GAYLE

#5: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold

#4: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#3: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#2: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#1: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae

Overall Score: 119/150 = 79%

5 Oldest Songs

#5: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift {16 weeks}
#4: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran {17 weeks}
#3: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd {18 weeks}
#2: For Tonight - Giveon {22 weeks}
#1: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X {24 weeks}

#1 Recommendation for Hits 1: Bones - Imagine Dragons

My Top 10 Songs Last Year

#10: Anyone - Justin Bieber (#13)

#9: drivers license - Olivia Rodrigo (#1)

#8: forget me too - Machine Gun Kelly/Halsey (#15)

#7: Save Your Tears - The Weeknd (#3)

#6: Astronaut In The Ocean - Masked Wolf (#30)

#5: Overdrive - Conan Gray (#23)

#4: WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI (#22)

#3: Lasting Lover - Sigala/James Arthur (#12)

#2: My Head & My Heart - Ava Max (#14)

#1: Way Less Sad - AJR (#29)

Most Missed Countdown Song: The Hills - The Weeknd

Hit-Bound

Sweetest Pie - Megan Thee Stallion/Dua Lipa [1]

dying on the inside - Nessa Barrett [2]

Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat [2]

Sunroof - Nicky Youre/dazy [4]

Stupid Song - Hot Chelle Rae [2]

Another Man's Jeans - Ashe [2]

House On Fire - Mimi Webb [4]

ROOM FOR 2 - Benson Boone [4]

Checkmate - Jena Rose [2]

I'm Tired - Labrinth/Zendaya [1]

Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence [1]

PS5 - salem ilese/TOMORROW X TOGETHER/Alan Walker [2]

How Long - Tove Lo [2]

Abyss

Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

Celebrity Skin - Doja Cat

Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE

Have Mercy - Chlöe

I Love You So - The Walters

love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay

Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR

We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast

WYD Now? - Sadie Jean

So, Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa collaborated, which is without a doubt the biggest release of the week. Their song is called Sweetest Pie, and if I'm being honest, I'm a little disappointed. Don't get me wrong, it's super fun, Dua Lipa sounds great, Megan has solid verses, but I don't know. There's something about it that I'm just not feeling. I don't know, I just feel like it had the potential to be so much more of a bop than it is. Kind of like a One Right Now situation, where the collaboration should've been incredible, but instead it's just fine. I guess I'd be fine with this becoming a hit, it's still a good song, it just could've been great.

Sunroof is back after dropping out last week, which I'm very happy about. I hope that this song is given a shot, because it's great.

Next up is yet another song from the show Euphoria, I'm Tired by Labrinth and Zendaya. I genuinely can't decide how I feel about this song. Labrinth sounds good here, even though he's oversinging a bit, and Zendaya's definitely solid here. The production's a little empty, but it kinda works with the song, so I'm not sure how I feel about that. But, most of all, the song's just weird. It's going for this very haunting vibe, which really isn't made for radio, and I'm unsure why it's becoming a pop hit. I don't know. I seriously have no clue whether I love or hate this song. Which I guess puts it in the dark green "no opinion" tier for now. Maybe just keep an eye on it for the next few posts while I sort out how I feel about it.

Lastly, we have a duo called Lawrence with their new song, Don't Lose Sight. This song is great. It's so much fun. I'm not a huge fan of Gracie Lawrence's voice here, it sounds like it's pitched up a bit, although it probably isn't, but I love Clyde Lawrence's voice. So I guess it balances out a bit. The chorus is super catchy, the production is really well-made and fun, and the song as a whole is just a bop. I'd love to see this become a hit here.

Oh yeah, also, WYD Now? is back in the Abyss, so it might re-enter soon, but... it's in the Abyss, so like... probably not.

As for dropouts, we lost Every Summertime, Dancing Feet and Wandered To LA from the Abyss. I liked Every Summertime, so I'm kinda sad that it's gone. Dancing Feet finds itself in the Abyss, and I have a good feeling that it'll debut soon, so I'm not worried about that one. As for Wandered To LA, I never really expected it to re-enter the Countdown, so I'm not disappointed that it's gone.

Best Hit-Bound Debut: Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence

Hit-Bound/Abyss Ranking

? - IDK Man:

#??: I'm Tired - Labrinth/Zendaya

0 - Awful:

#21: Another Man's Jeans - Ashe

#20: I Love You So - The Walters

1 - Bad:

NONE!

2 - Mediocre:

#19: How Long - Tove Lo

#18: Celebrity Skin - Doja Cat

3 - Decent:

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

#16: WYD Now? - Sadie Jean

4 - Good:

#15: Stupid Song - Hot Chelle Rae

#14: Checkmate - Jena Rose

#13: Sweetest Pie - Megan Thee Stallion/Dua Lipa

5 - Great:

#12: PS5 - salem ilese/TOMORROW X TOGETHER/Alan Walker

#11: Have Mercy - Chlöe

#10: dying on the inside - Nessa Barrett

#9: ROOM FOR 2 - Benson Boone

#8: Sunroof - Nicky Youre/dazy

#7: House On Fire - Mimi Webb

#6: Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

#5: Don't Lose Sight - Lawrence

#4: We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast

#3: Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR

#2: Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat

#1: Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE

Overall Score: 82/110 = 75%

You Make Me Complete, You Make Me a Complete Blurb

Our Countdown exits this week were Do It To It, Ghost and The Joker And The Queen. I'm very glad to see Do It To It gone, because it's just an awful song in every way. Ghost should've lasted for a bit longer here, so I'm sad to see it gone. As for The Joker And The Queen, I'm very grateful that Hits 1 realized that this wasn't really a radio song.

Okay, good, emo girl dropped to #29. The sooner we can get rid of this, the better.

Yeah, I've decided that I don't like Weatherman. It's super annoying.

My guess is that this is Message In A Bottle's last week here, which I'm fine with, because it did pretty well here.

For whatever reason, Love It When You Hate Me took a bit hit this week. Not sure why this happened, but I'm sure the song will rebound sooner rather than later.

Big Energy is up at #12, which I definitely didn't expect from Hits 1, but I'm super happy that it's there, because the song is great.

GHOST TOWN jumped way up to #10 too, which is surprising, because I thought it was done. I'm fine with this being here, though.

Sacrifice is in the top five, which is pretty cool. The song's pretty forgettable, but it's still good.

For whatever reason, When I'm Gone is already at #2. The song's good, but it's not that good. This especially sucks when the songs that it knocked down to #3 and #4 are really good.

How Hits 1 Songs Are Doing on the Hot 100

#1: Heat Waves - Glass Animals

#2: We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast

#3: abcdefu - GAYLE

#5: STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber

#6: Easy On Me - Adele

#7: Ghost - Justin Bieber

#8: Shivers - Ed Sheeran

#9: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

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

#11: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#12: Need to Know - Doja Cat

#13: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#14: pushin P - Gunna/Future/Young Thug

#15: Levitating - Dua Lipa

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

#17: Big Energy - Latto

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

#21: Woman - Doja Cat

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

#25: I Hate U - SZA

#28: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#29: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

#31: Fancy Like - Walker Hayes

#32: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd

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

#36: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#38: Essence - WizKid/Justin Bieber/Tems

#40: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY

#43: Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat

#47: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic

#49: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

#54: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold

#55: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron

#57: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae

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

#61: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran

#62: Oh My God - Adele

#68: High - The Chainsmokers

#69: Circles Around This Town - Maren Morris

#73: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max

#75: The Joker And The Queen - Ed Sheeran/Taylor Swift

#76: I'm Tired - Labrinth/Zendaya

#78: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish

#80: I Love You So - The Walters

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

#98: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.

Hunger Games Countdown Top 10

#10: Present - Khalid

#9: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.

#8: Infinity - Jaymes Young

#7: Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

#6: ROOM FOR 2 - Benson Boone

#5: Lifestyle - Jason Derulo/Adam Levine

#4: PS5 - salem ilese/TOMORROW X TOGETHER/Alan Walker

#3: Jigsaw - Conan Gray

#2: Another Man's Jeans - Ashe

#1: TWINNEM - Coi Leray

If the Countdown Made Sense Top 10

#10: High - The Chainsmokers

#9: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#8: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#7: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

#6: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#5: Big Energy - Latto

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

#3: Woman - Doja Cat

#2: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#1: abcdefu - GAYLE

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

Week of March 5, 2022 - Ed Sheeran (3)

Hello, folks! How's everyone doing? We had a pretty interesting week this week, but that's mostly due to the insane amount of Hit-Bound debuts we got. Although, there were also some pretty big movements on the Countdown. Before we get into anything, though, I've revealed #40-#31 for the Hit-Bound Dropouts Rankdown! My plan is to finish that by this time in two weeks. Anyways, here are our exits for this week.

Songs We're Saying Goodbye To

Have Mercy - Chlöe (#28) [#28] {4 weeks}

Anxiety - Coi Leray (#26) [#24] {3 weeks}

Last Week's #1: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran (2)

#30: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran (DEBUT) [4 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#29: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli (-2) [#25] {11 weeks}

#28: Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin (+1) [#28] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#27: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish (-3) [#23] {13 weeks}

#26: Ghost - Justin Bieber (-15) [#4] {23 weeks}

#25: I Hate U - SZA (-3) [#16] {8 weeks}

#24: emo girl - Machine Gun Kelly/WILLOW (-1) [#21] {4 weeks}

#23: The Joker And The Queen - Ed Sheeran/Taylor Swift (+2) [#23] {3 weeks} *new peak*

#22: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron (DEBUT) [2 weeks in Hit-Bound] {1 week}

#21: For Tonight - Giveon (-1) [#17] {21 weeks}

#20: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max (-3) [#17] {4 weeks}

#19: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R. (+11) [#19] {3 weeks} *new peak*

#18: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone (-2) [#12] {13 weeks}

#17: Big Energy - Latto (-2) [#15] {6 weeks}

#16: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift (-8) [#3] {15 weeks}

#15: Woman - Doja Cat (+3) [#15] {8 weeks} *new peak*

#14: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith (-2) [#12] {7 weeks}

#13: High - The Chainsmokers (-) [#13] {5 weeks}

#12: Oh My God - Adele (-6) [#3] {13 weeks}

#11: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X (-4) [3 weeks at #1] {23 weeks}

#10: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae (+4) [#10] {4 weeks} *new peak*

#9: Sacrifice - The Weeknd (-) [#8] {6 weeks}

#8: Love It When You Hate Me - Avril Lavigne/blackbear (+2) [#8] {5 weeks} *new peak*

#7: When I'm Gone - Alesso/Katy Perry (+12) [#7] {2 weeks} *new peak*

#6: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold (+15) [#6] {3 weeks} *new peak*

#5: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd (-1) [#4] {17 weeks}

#4: abcdefu - GAYLE (+1) [#4] {13 weeks} *new peak*

#3: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID (-) [#3] {6 weeks}

#2: Light Switch - Charlie Puth (-) [#2] {6 weeks}

#1: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran (-) [3rd week at #1] {16 weeks}

Last Year's #1: drivers license - Olivia Rodrigo [2/4 weeks at #1]

Countdown Extra: ROOM FOR 2 - Benson Boone

Our first debut this week is... *sighs* more Ed Sheeran. It's a song coming out of the Abyss, that weird state where a song is still on the station but not on either show, his remix of Peru by Fireboy DML. Honestly, I don't hate this song. It's got a really cool sound, it's pretty chill, but still has an interesting beat, and both Fireboy DML and Ed Sheeran sound pretty good here. Their voices blend together surprisingly well despite having complete different sounds, which is great. The song as a whole gets a little boring, but it doesn't drag on, so it doesn't bother me too much. I'd be totally fine with this one sticking around for a bit.

Our other debut this week comes in at #22, Boyfriend by Dove Cameron. I still kinda enjoy this one, it hasn't really faded on me since it debuted in Hit-Bound a couple weeks ago. It genuinely sounds like a Bond theme, which is a style that I honestly don't mind. Dove Cameron sounds decent throughout the song, even if she gets a little quiet at times. The production is super grandiose and suave (hence, the Bond vibe), and it's super well-constructed. The mix between the quieter verses and the huge, booming chorus creates a really nice contrast that's fun to listen to. This song is kinda blowing up, and I'm totally fine with that. I'd be happy to see this do well here.

Best Debut: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron

Biggest Drop: Ghost - Justin Bieber (-15): For whatever reason, this song is already in the bottom five, despite still being #2 on the pop charts. Seriously, Hits 1, you don't have to let go of songs that quickly.

Biggest Jump: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold (+15): Oh, wow. I definitely didn't expect this song to reach #6 on its third week. I'm definitely happy though, because it's a great little song (see what I did there?).

Countdown Ranking

0 - Awful:

#30: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish

1 - Bad:

#29: The Joker And The Queen - Ed Sheeran/Taylor Swift

2 - Mediocre:

#28: emo girl - Machine Gun Kelly/WILLOW

#27: Weatherman - Eddie Benjamin

3 - Decent:

#26: I Hate U - SZA

#25: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli

#24: Oh My God - Adele

#23: Woman - Doja Cat

#22: High - The Chainsmokers

#21: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran

#20: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran

4 - Good:

#19: GHOST TOWN - Benson Boone

#18: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron

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

#16: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max

5 - Great:

#15: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#14: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

#13: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.

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

#11: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold

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

#9: For Tonight - Giveon

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

#7: Big Energy - Latto

#6: Ghost - Justin Bieber

#5: abcdefu - GAYLE

#4: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#3: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#2: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#1: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae

Overall Score: 117/150 = 78%

5 Oldest Songs

#5: Message In A Bottle (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift {15 weeks}
#4: Overpass Graffiti - Ed Sheeran {16 weeks}
#3: One Right Now - Post Malone/The Weeknd {17 weeks}
#2: For Tonight - Giveon {21 weeks}
#1: Ghost - Justin Bieber & THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X {23 weeks}

#1 Recommendation for Hits 1: Less Than Zero - The Weeknd

My Top 10 Songs Last Year

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

#9: drivers license - Olivia Rodrigo (#1)

#8: Anyone - Justin Bieber (#12)

#7: Save Your Tears - The Weeknd (#3)

#6: Overdrive - Conan Gray (#27)

#5: Lasting Lover - Sigala/James Arthur (#14)

#4: WITHOUT YOU - The Kid LAROI (#20)

#3: My Head & My Heart - Ava Max (#18)

#2: Love Story (Taylor's Version) - Taylor Swift (#15)

#1: Way Less Sad - AJR (#29)

Most Missed Song: Sunflower - Post Malone/Swae Lee

Hit-Bound

dying on the inside - Nessa Barrett [1]

Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran [1]

How Long - Tove Lo [1]

Attention - Omah Lay/Justin Bieber [1]

Every Summertime - NIKI [6]

Stupid Song - Hot Chelle Rae [1]

COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer [1]

Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE [2]

Another Man's Jeans - Ashe [1]

PS5 - salem ilese/TOMORROW X TOGETHER/Alan Walker [1]

Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat [1]

House On Fire - Mimi Webb [3]

ROOM FOR 2 - Benson Boone [3]

Checkmate - Jena Rose [1]

Abyss

Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

Celebrity Skin - Doja Cat

Have Mercy - Chlöe

I Love You So - The Walters

love nwantiti (ah ah ah) - CKay

Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR

Wandered To LA - Juice WRLD/Justin Bieber

We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast

Our first of ten Hit-Bound debuts this week is the return of Nessa Barrett, as she brings her third song to Hits 1, with this one being called dying on the inside. While I don't immediately love this as much as i hope ur miserable until ur dead, it's got a little more depth to it than the other song, so I think it might be a grower. For starters, the lyrics are great, it's all about the unfair expectations put on women to look their best, which is a great message. Pair that with some dark pop-punk production, and you get a really good song. Nessa sounds great, and the instrumentation is more than just power chords, which is always nice for a pop-punk song (*cough* emo girl *cough*). I'd be fine with this sticking around for a bit.

Welp, looks like we finally got a Camila Cabello breakup song after Shawn Mendes released his a while back. This song's called Bam Bam, and it features *sighs* Ed Sheeran. I've never actually been that into Camila's music, but I've been kinda enjoying the vibe she's been going for lately. It works quite well with her voice. This song's fun, I enjoy the chorus, and for whatever reason, Ed fits in well here, but the song isn't that memorable, and I can see myself forgetting about this in a year or so. Oh, well, I'm fine with this while it's here.

Apparently there's this show called "Euphoria" that's really popular right now for whatever reason. I don't know, I've never seen it, and I probably never will, because it doesn't seem like my style of show, but this next song is from the show's soundtrack. The song is by... no, this can't be right... Tove Lo? Wow, it's been a long time since I've heard that name. Anyways, the song's called How Long, and it's pretty okay. I don't remember too many songs from Tove Lo, but I know that I hate Talking Body, and I find Habits pretty good. There's nothing wrong with this song. It does everything that it sets out to do, and I don't hate it, but it feels really empty. Literally a minute after listening to it, I can hardly remember what it sounds like. I'm sure I'll find myself forgetting about this song a ton these next few weeks.

Nigerian artists have really been on the rise lately, which I find pretty cool, because they've been bringing this brand new sound to pop that I've never really heard before, and I'm totally here for it. This next song? I'm gonna be honest, I'm not really feeling it. It's Attention by Omah Lay and Justin Bieber, and it's pretty boring. Omah Lay sounds pretty good here, but Justin Bieber doesn't sound that good in his lower register. As for the beat, it's alright, but I don't feel like it's driving the song forward at all, which sucks. Overall, this song's not awful, but it's far from good.

Next up is Hot Chelle Rae, and if you don't know who that is, I don't really blame you. Their most popular song is Tonight Tonight from 2011, but they had a song on Hits 1 a few years ago called I Hate LA, which did... okay. Anyways, this new song is called Stupid Song, and it's pretty good. The guy here sounds great, and the instrumentation all fits together really well. Yeah, overall, it's quite a good song, even if it's not too memorable. I'd be happy with it sticking around for a bit.

5SOS bring us another song, and it seems like this new one, COMPLETE MESS, might actually do something on radio, compared to 2011, which... didn't. The verses are pretty chill before the production just swells in the chorus, which makes for a pretty cool effect, and all the guys sound great here. I'm not a huge fan of the "you make me complete, you make me a complete mess" line, even though that's pretty much the entire chorus, but it doesn't ruin the song or anything. I'm not so sure this song is great, because I find it to be a little slow, but it's definitely solid.

Up next, we have Ashe, who I still believe is only a Hits 1 favourite because Niall Horan remixed Moral of the Story, but whatever. She brings her new song, Another Man's Jeans to Hit-Bound this week, and I... don't like this one. I've never been a huge fan of Ashe's voice, but now she's doing that weird talk-sing thing that doesn't sound good with anyone. Plus, the production feels kinda messy, with the guitars sounding straight-up bad. The chorus isn't bad, but other than that, I really don't like this one.

Remember that song Mad at Disney from 2020 that was popular for, like, three weeks? Yeah, well, the artist behind that song, salem ilese partners up with k-pop group TOMORROW X TOGETHER and DJ Alan Walker on a new song, PS5. Yup. That's not a joke. The worst part is that the song is kind of a bop? The concept is... interesting, with a couple arguing over the fact how the guy's spending too much time playing video games, but it kinda works. salem ilese sounds great here, and while the TXT guys don't sound great in the chorus, they don't ruin the song. Alan Walker's production is honestly really cool, too. I feel like I should hate this song, but I really don't, so... do with that what you will.

Just two more, I promise. Next is Tyga and Doja Cat (heehee, they're both cats) collaborating on a song called Freaky Deaky *chuckles*. Best Hit-Bound debut of the week. It's just so much fun, Doja sounds fantastic here, and Tyga honestly doesn't sound bad either. The production's kinda vibey and fun, and the chorus is super catchy. Also, the song is over 3:30, which is definitely not something I expected from a song that's clearly geared towards TikTok. I'm not sure if this will be a hit or not, but I'd definitely love for it to be.

For our tenth and final Hit-Bound debut, we have a song that's been rising on pop radio recently, Checkmate by Jena Rose. The production is easily the highlight here. It's so cool, and really well put together, and just works in every way. The drop is genuinely really good. Jena Rose's voice is slightly underwhelming, but with production like that, you can't do much to ruin a song. Man, if somebody produced Dixie as well as this, she could actually become a thing.

...Aaaaaaand we have seven dropouts. Don't say you didn't see that coming. This week we lost pushin P, So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings, Sunroof, Fast Times, Celebrity Skin, We Don't Talk About Bruno and i h8 that i still feel bad for u. pushin P was awful, so I'm very glad it was never given a shot here. I actually grew into So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings, so I'm kinda disappointed that it's gone. Sunroof was really fun, and I wish it could've been a hit. I already forget what Fast Times sounds like, so naturally, I don't care that it's gone. Both Celebrity Skin and We Don't Talk About Bruno are in the Abyss, which I'm happy about for WDTAB, but with Celebrity Skin, I'd rather just have this move out completely so that Freaky Deaky can shine. As for i h8 that i still feel bad for u, I would've loved for it to become Claire's first Countdown song, so that sucks that it's gone.

Best Hit-Bound Debut: Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat

Hit-Bound/Abyss Ranking

0 - Awful:

#22: Another Man's Jeans - Ashe

#21: I Love You So - The Walters

1 - Bad:

#20: Attention - Omah Lay/Justin Bieber

2 - Mediocre:

#19: How Long - Tove Lo

#18: Celebrity Skin - Doja Cat

3 - Decent:

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

4 - Good:

#16: Wandered To LA - Juice WRLD/Justin Bieber

#15: Bam Bam - Camila Cabello/Ed Sheeran

#14: COMPLETE MESS - 5 Seconds of Summer

#13: Checkmate - Jena Rose

5 - Great:

#12: PS5 - salem ilese/TOMORROW X TOGETHER/Alan Walker

#11: Stupid Song - Hot Chelle Rae

#10: Have Mercy - Chlöe

#9: Every Summertime - NIKI

#8: dying on the inside - Nessa Barrett

#7: ROOM FOR 2 - Benson Boone

#6: House On Fire - Mimi Webb

#5: We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast

#4: Record Player - Daisy the Great/AJR

#3: Dancing Feet - Kygo/DNCE

#2: Freaky Deaky - Tyga/Doja Cat

#1: Boys Don't Cry - Anitta

Overall Score: 83/110 = 75%

I Could Be a Better Blurb-friend Than Him

Our Countdown exits this week were Have Mercy and Anxiety. Both songs are great, but kinda forgettable, so I'm not too sad that either is gone. Plus, Have Mercy is in the Abyss for now.

For whatever reason, The Motto dropped three spots this week. Seriously? Why has this not jumped big yet?

Okay, good, Closer jumped up 11 spots to #19 after dropping to #30 last week. I guess they will make this song a thing after all.

Looks like Message In A Bottle is good as gone, which I'm fine with, because it did pretty well here.

Oh My God also dropped a ton this week, which, again, I'm fine with.

she's all i wanna be jumped into the top 10 this week, which is awesome, because I've really been enjoying this one lately. It's such a good song.

Woah. When I'm Gone jumped all the way up to #7 this week. I definitely wasn't expecting that.

How Hits 1 Songs Are Doing on the Hot 100

#1: We Don't Talk About Bruno - Encanto Cast

#2: Heat Waves - Glass Animals

#3: abcdefu - GAYLE

#4: Easy On Me - Adele

#6: STAY - The Kid LAROI/Justin Bieber

#7: Ghost - Justin Bieber

#8: Shivers - Ed Sheeran

#9: Bad Habits - Ed Sheeran

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

#11: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#12: Need to Know - Doja Cat

#14: pushin P - Gunna/Future/Young Thug

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

#16: Levitating - Dua Lipa

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

#20: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#21: Big Energy - Latto

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

#24: Woman - Doja Cat

#27: good 4 u - Olivia Rodrigo

#28: I Hate U - SZA

#29: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#33: You Right - Doja Cat/The Weeknd

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

#35: Fancy Like - Walker Hayes

#37: Meet Me At Our Spot - THE ANXIETY

#39: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#40: Smokin Out The Window - Silk Sonic

#41: Essence - WizKid/Justin Bieber/Tems

#45: Oh My God - Adele

#48: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

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

#62: she's all i wanna be - Tate McRae

#64: The Joker And The Queen - Ed Sheeran/Taylor Swift

#65: Boyfriend - Dove Cameron

#68: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold

#69: High - The Chainsmokers

#70: Peru - Fireboy DML/Ed Sheeran

#76: Circles Around This Town - Maren Morris

#80: I Love You So - The Walters

#82: Do It To It - ACRAZE/Cherish

#85: The Motto - Tiësto/Ava Max

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

#96: Closer - Saweetie/H.E.R.

#98: Get Into It (Yuh) - Doja Cat

Hunger Games Countdown Top 10

#10: Lifestyle - Jason Derulo/Adam Levine

#9: Infinity - Jaymes Young

#8: Numb Little Bug - Em Beihold

#7: It's You, Not Me (Sabotage) - Masked Wolf/Bebe Rexha

#6: More Than Friends - 24kGoldn

#5: I AM WOMAN - Emmy Meli

#4: Faking Love - Anitta/Saweetie

#3: Circles Around This Town - Maren Morris

#2: Big Energy - Latto

#1: Celebrity Skin - Doja Cat

If the Countdown Made Sense Top 10

#10: Enemy - Imagine Dragons/JID

#9: High - The Chainsmokers

#8: Fingers Crossed - Lauren Spencer-Smith

#7: Sacrifice - The Weeknd

#6: Light Switch - Charlie Puth

#5: Big Energy - Latto

#4: Woman - Doja Cat

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

#2: THATS WHAT I WANT - Lil Nas X

#1: abcdefu - GAYLE

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