– Okay, so this was a big week in terms of entrants. We’ll begin with G-Eazy making his return to the countdown. And guess what? He decided to collaborate with his girlfriend, Halsey, who currently has a representation (Bad At Love) on the countdown which has spent 2 weeks at #1. Their new single is titled Him & I. My initial reaction wasn’t necessarily the greatest at first listen. But after a while, I’ve started to grow into it. I do think the production, while not necessarily the best, is pretty solid all around. Halsey’s vocals are on point for the most part. I do think G-Eazy is one of the best rappers in this current music climate. My main concern is that they somewhat lack the personality and charisma to make this a better song for me. Maybe I’m over-exaggerating a bit here, and I could be wrong. I do kinda like this for now, but I can see myself getting sick of this soon.

– So, if you are into the new Bruno Mars like I am, then you’re probably looking forward to hearing more new music from him. It’s unfortunate that there’s people here who are still too jaded by Uptown Funk being overplayed on radio to give him a chance. But that’s not the biggest reason people loathe his new style of work. It’s because he seemingly comes off as a brag rapper that talks about nonsense and what not. When he made his return back in 2016 with the release of 24K Magic, most people here in the blogging community started to turn on him. But some people, including myself, YouTube critics, and others defended it, saying that he has the talent to back it all up. Ever since then, no one really wanted to hear from Bruno anymore. And unfortunately for some, he makes his return to the countdown once again. This time around, he’s bringing us some Finesse. Many fans, including myself and others, were begging for him to push this or Chunky to be the next single off of 24K Magic. We all thought that Chunky was going to be the single he’s chosen, given that it made its arrival on Hit-Bound back in October. Unfortunately, we were proven wrong as it didn’t graduate Hit-Bound. As it would turn out, it was never released as the next single. Little did we know that he would instead decide to release a remix of a song that many wanted him to push as the next single off of the near-masterpiece of the album. The remix of the song titled Finesse features upcoming hip-hop artist Cardi B., whose single Bodak Yellow became a big hit in the U.S. And it’s pretty safe to say that she may have another hit on her hands, as the remix of Finesse is taking off in terms of sales, streaming, and radio. Anyway, let’s get onto the reviewing the song. Not just the original version, but the remix as well. Bruno definitely showcases that his vocal talent all throughout the song. My goodness, he has the charisma to pull it off. As for the production, I like the 90’s vibe to it, mainly because it has the new jack swing that I’ve adored for years ever since I was a kid. All of this alone is the reason why I’m in love with the original version. But making things MUCH better is that Cardi B. added more life to the song in the remix. I criticized her for trying to be like Nicki Minaj in Bodak Yellow. I still feel this way because I think Nicki Minaj is better than her. However, in this song, I think that she has improved a little bit. She actually made a good contribution in parts of the song, especially at the beginning. The music video reminds me of the TV show, In Living Color, which I watched since I was a child and it brought back so many memories. I love everything about the song, not only the original, but the remix as well. From the production on down to Bruno’s vocal talent, it’s safe to say that this song is a definite candidate for my Top 10 or even my Top 5 songs of 2018. Sure, it may be too early in the year and there’s still more music to come. But anyway, I’m absolutely in love with this song, and there’s talk that this could potentially be #1 on Billboard. That which I’ll be very pleased to see it happen. I’m definitely looking forward to this being massively overplayed on the radio when I get in my car.

– And now, we have the all important debut of the week. For those of you who’ve either been living under a rock or just simply have not heard by now, Justin Timberlake made his official return to music last week. I’m sure many know by now that he would be performing at the Super Bowl for the second time. Upon hearing the news, rumors began to swirl that he would release new music around that time and sure enough, he did. The first time he performed at the Super Bowl was back in 2004, when there was a controversy regarding Janet Jackson in which there was a “wardrobe malfunction” incident. I won’t get into that detail. Let’s talk about Justin Timberlake’s return to music. The last time we saw him was all the way back in summer of 2016, when he brought us Can’t Stop The Feeling!, which was #1 for 10 weeks and thus, became one of the biggest summer hits of 2016. That one was a favorite of mine, and it made me want to dance, dance, dance. Now this week, he returns to the countdown with his brand new song titled Filthy, the lead single off of his upcoming album, Man Of The Woods. Most people’s initial reaction wasn’t really great when I paid attention to their takes on the song. Once I took a listen, I could see where people were getting at. I think the biggest reason is the production of the song, which is pretty weird for the most part. It starts out with arena rock music, and then morphs into the weird-like bombastic funk that goes all throughout the song. Justin’s vocals sound a lot different when compared to his other singles. There’s not a whole lot of actual singing going on. He’s basically doing a rap breakdown in most parts of the song. And then, there’s the music video, which is basically him trying to be Steve Jobs. He’s showing off a robot that does a lot of dancing and what not. As for my overall thoughts on the song, I’ll just say that I don’t really hate the song. Sure, I may still be mixed on this seeing as there’s some weird stuff going on in terms of the production, but there may be something about it that could make it a guilty pleasure of mine. When I hear Justin singing, it kinda reminds of Prince who was able to sing like that. It’s not just his vocals; the song does have some Prince vibes to it. It seems that he’s been listening to a lot of his music lately, hence why he decided to make a song that has elements similar to what we hear in some of Prince’s singles. Anyway, it’s a pretty weird song that I don’t really hate at all. But let’s be honest here, it’s nowhere near his best work. I do, however, like how he tries to be creative and starts experimenting on new sounds. Whether this song grows on me or not, we’ll just have to see. Only time will tell on that.

– So, we have only two entrants this week. First, we have more Kesha. This time, she brings us Woman, which is the next single off of the masterpiece of a album that is Rainbow. Although I prefer Learn To Let Go at this point, this will do for now. Woman does have that vibe that gets you going. Those who like this can explain it better than I can. But yeah, I’m in love with this and I hope it debuts soon.

– If you remember Troye Sivan, then you probably know that he brought us Youth back in 2016. That one did well peaking in the Top 5. This week, he makes is return with the single, My My My!. I do like the chorus in this one, and he showcase his vocal talent pretty well. I’ll have more words should it eventually make its debut.

– Honestly, I’m so sick of AJR is not even funny. Sober Up is only getting more annoying after each listen. And I don’t just say that because of Weak either. Actually, yes I did. Let’s just leave it at that. But the point is, this better leave Hit-Bound and NOT graduate to the Weekend Countdown, because if it does, hooooo boy.

– On the note of mediocrity, forget what I said earlier when I thought Spencer – Whatever was a good song. Yeah, after repeated listens, I’m starting to find that his vocals aren’t really good at all. Plus, I’m not a fan of the production. And no, creating a music video with your iPhone is not cool at all. I’m hoping it doesn’t debut either, but if it does, I’ll talk more about it.

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks

4 – Good:
14. Kelly Clarkson – Love So Soft
13. Niall Horan – Too Much To Ask
12. G-Eazy featuring Halsey – Him & I

Throwback Pick Of The Week: The Jackson 5 – I’ll Be There (1970)

Most Missed Countdown Song: Bruno Mars – Treasure

Most Missed Hit-Bound Drop-Out: Disturbed – The Sound Of Silence

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Liam Payne featuring Rita Ora – For You

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Shawn Mendes – Mercy

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Machine Gun Kelly featuring Camila Cabello – Bad Things: My biggest problem with this song is that Camila doesn’t sound too good in most parts of the song, and Machine Gun Kelly doesn’t show too much of a personality and charisma. It’s premise is pretty dull across the board, hence why some people don’t like this
Ed Sheeran – Shape Of You: It was one year ago today that Ed Sheeran made his official return to music. I like what this song has to offer, and it’s quite a different sound for him when compared to his previous singles.

QOTW: What is your #1 favorite song from these artists mentioned below and why?

Coldplay
Ellie Goulding
Taylor Swift
Ariana Grande
Mariah Carey
Michael Jackson
Madonna
P!NK
Justin Timberlake
Adele