1. Panic! At The Disco – High Hopes (#1) [=] [2^nd Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Shawn Mendes – There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back (4^th of 5 Weeks At #1)

Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: MNEK featuring Hailee Steinfeld – Colour (–17)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: The Chainsmokers featuring Emily Warren – Side Effects (+18)

New Entrants
– To kick off this week’s new debuts, we have a new group by the name of PNAU, who makes their first appearance on the countdown with the single Go Bang. To say the least, I think the song is decent for the most part. What I like about it is the production. The piano here is great. But my main problem is the vocals we get from these guys. They sound too childish. So yeah, it’s an okay song. Not really something I’ll remember in a year or two.

– Next up, we have country duo Dan + Shay making their debut with the song titled Tequila. The country music genre has been a pretty mixed bag for me lately, mainly due to terrible songs like Body Like A Back Road (which as you can recall was my #1 least favorite song of last year). But we did have some good songs however, and Tequila fits into that category. This is definitely the type of song I want to hear from the country genre. I love their vocals all throughout the song. These guys sound great together. The production isn’t as lazy and they put forth the effort in making this song. The lyrical content is pretty good as well. Simply put, this is probably one of the best the country genre has to offer this year. I hope it stays for a while.

– Finally, we have Bebe Rexha who has her second song on the countdown this week with her latest single called I’m A Mess. I talked about this song when it debuted on the AT40 earlier this month. But let’s just recap what I said. I can say it’s a step up from her predecessor. I like the production throughout the song and it’s nice that it doesn’t sound something like Meant To Be, which was actually a bad mix of country and pop altogether. Bebe’s vocals are pretty good for the most part. So yeah, I’d like to see that one be a success.

Best Debut Of The Week: Dan + Shay – Tequila

Get Into The Blurbs
– We sadly say good-bye to three songs this week. Familiar was not destined to last long. It’s a shame because I like that song better than Liam’s other singles (save for For You, which didn’t really take off anywhere either). James Dean was a really good song and I’m sad to see that one go. But no exit hurt me more than Jumpsuit. It’s a shame to see that one last only four weeks. It was an amazing comeback single from TWENTY ØNE PILØTS. That song will definitely be missed by me. I do hope they follow-up with a hit soon.

– Nothing really has changed in the Top 5 other than Back To You making it back into that region. That one is looking at the #1 spot, but I can definitely see a song like Youngblood take the crown soon given it’s growing popularity.

– The guest DJ that introduced I Wanna Know talked about the city Janesville with many Jane’s who live in it. I’ve never been to a city like that, but I’m sure it sounds unique.

– Sure, I’ll gladly take the fact that One Kiss is now in the Top 10. Though it’s starting to fade elsewhere, at least it’s still going pretty strong on this countdown.

– No Tears Left To Cry made a nice recovery after that big drop last week. I can’t really say I’m surprised about this given that her recent album, Sweetener, just came out yesterday.

– However, I’m most pleased about Side Effects taking a massive jump into the Top 20 this week. Honestly, this is easily one of the best The Chainsmokers have to offer in a while. I do have high hopes (no pun intended) that this will end up sticking around a little longer.

– How the heck is Never Be The Same still here, let alone jumping?! I was infuriated with the jump from I Like Me Better last week. Now, we have songs like Never Be The Same doing just that? Come on, people. That song should’ve left a while ago.

– As far as some big drops go, Love Is Bigger Than Anything In Its Way was bound to drop sooner or later given that it’s not huge elsewhere. Colour is right back to where it was once more after another big drop. Looks like that one won’t last too long.

Hit-Bound:

• Justin Timberlake – SoulMate
• George Ezra – Shotgun (DEBUT)
• NF – Lie
• Anne–Marie – 2002 (DEBUT)
• Train featuring Cam and Travie McCoy – Call Me Sir
• Bazzi featuring Camila Cabello – Beautiful (Remix)
• Zedd featuring Elley Duhé – Happy Now
• Weezer – Africa
• DJ Khaled featuring Justin Bieber, Quavo, and Chance The Rapper – No Brainer
• Charlie Puth – The Way I Am
• Sabrina Carpenter – Almost Love
• AJR – Burn The House Down
• Noah Cyrus featuring MAX – Team
• Dennis Lloyd – Nevermind
• Brown & Gray – Top Down

– Who remembers George Ezra? It’s been a while since we heard from him, since 2015 when he ad Budapest which was a sleeper hit. Today, he’s back with his latest single titled Shotgun. Although I won’t quite say it’s as good as its predecessor, this one is still enjoyable. I like his vocals for the most part, and the production is good to some degree.

– Next up, we have more of Anne-Marie with her latest single titled 2002 (not the year, but the song itself). Right off the bat, I find this to be a huge step up from her feature in Friends, which was terrible. She showcases her vocals more here, and the production is not as lazy. I’ll talk more about this when it debuts.

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks
1. Zedd featuring Elley Duhé – Happy Now
2. Bazzi featuring Camila Cabello – Beautiful (Remix)
3. Brown & Gray – Top Down
4. Charlie Puth – The Way I Am
5. Noah Cyrus featuring MAX – Team

Top 20 Review:
0 – Putrid:
20. Marshmello featuring Anne-Marie – Friends

1 – Bad:
None!

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
19. NOTD featuring Bea Miller – I Wanna Know
18. Foster The People – Sit Next To Me
17. Maroon 5 featuring Cardi B. – Girls Like You

4 – Good:
16. lovelytheband – Broken

5 – Great:
15. Post Malone – Better Now
14. Imagine Dragons – Natural
13. Imagine Dragons – Whatever It Takes
12. Khalid featuring Normani – Love Lies 
11. Selena Gomez – Back To You
10. Panic! At The Disco – Say Amen (Saturday Night)
9. Panic! At The Disco – High Hopes
8. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Youngblood
7. Taylor Swift – Delicate
6. Ariana Grande – No Tears Left To Cry
5. Fall Out Boy – The Last Of The Real Ones
4. Calvin Harris featuring Dua Lipa – One Kiss
3. Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
TIE: 1. Backstreet Boys – Don’t Go Breaking My Heart
TIE: 1. The Chainsmokers featuring Emily Warren – Side Effects

Overall Grade: 90/100 = 90% (A–)

Throwback Picks Of The Week: Aretha Franklin – Chain Of Fools (1968) and Madonna – Into The Groove (1985) (Happy 60th Birthday to her this week!)

Most Missed Countdown Song: TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – Jumpsuit (Already)

Most Missed Hit-Bound Dropout: Steve Aoki & Boehm featuring Walk The Moon – Back 2 U

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Shawn Mendes featuring Khalid – Youth

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Kesha – Praying (#23)

My Top 5 Picks
TIE: 1. The Chainsmokers featuring Emily Warren – Side Effects
TIE: 1. Backstreet Boys – Don’t Go Breaking My Heart
3. Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle
4. Calvin Harris featuring Dua Lipa – One Kiss
5. Fall Out Boy – The Last Of The Real Ones

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Lauv – I Like Me Better
2. Marshmello featuring Anne-Marie – Friends
3. Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line – Meant To Be
4. Camila Cabello – Never Be The Same
5. Drake – In My Feelings

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Hey Violet – Hoodie: This was a more likable song among the blogging community last year, after the group’s previous singles weren’t really to anyone’s liking. Their vocals sound much better and I like the production. I do wish it had success.
P!NK – What About Us: Although I can’t say that this is one of her best songs, it still shows just how talented P!NK is vocals-wise. It was nice to see this become a minor hit late last year.

QOTW: What is your favorite song from Aretha Franklin?