#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Charlie Puth – Attention (1^st And Only Week At #1)

Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: Alessia Cara – Growing Pains (–17)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Dan + Shay – Tequila (+10)

New Entrants
– Wow. We have seven (Yes, SEVEN) debuts that I’ll be talking about this week. So, buckle up everyone. First up, we have the return of George Ezra with his latest single titled Shotgun. For those who don’t know him, I’ll just simply tell you the story. He went mainstream back in 2015 when he had Budapest, which was a good song. I remember first listening to it and I thought that he has a unique voice. That was one of the reasons why I liked the song. His new single is really no different. Once again, his voice stands out here for the most part. The production here is nice, and I like the use of the guitars throughout the song. It sounds great and it fits well for an alternative song. Overall, it’s a nice comeback single for George Ezra. I do hope it can last long.

– For our next debut, we have the return of Train, who collaborate with Cam and Travie McCoy in their latest single titled Call Me Sir. The last time we saw them was last year when they had Play That Song, which I still detest even to this day. Call Me Sir is not any better. In fact, the song is basically Play That Song 2.0. I don’t see anything good about this whatsoever. Pat Monahan’s voice sounds grating. I’d say that’s the worst aspect of the song. I’m also not a fan of the contribution we get from Cam and Travie McCoy. They sound good in parts of the song, but they don’t stand out. So yeah, I’m not fond of this at all. Hopefully it doesn’t stay for too long like its predecessor.

– While we have Dan + Shay with their current representation on the countdown, there’s also another country duo that makes its debut this week. Brown & Gray, who consist of Kaci Brown and Sam Gray, have their debut single titled Top Down. Right off the bat, it’s one of the better country songs around, along with Tequila. The production here is very well done. These guys put forth the effort in working the song. I love how their vocals blend together. They sound really good all throughout the song. Simply put, this was a great first impression for the country duo. I would like for it to stick around.

– I was not looking forward to having Weezer making an appearance on the countdown. But alas, here they are with the song title Africa, which is the cover of the 1982 song from Toto. I first took a listen of this song and I thought to myself that it’s not good. Although the production is okay, my problem here is the vocals we get from Rivers Cuomo. It’s underwhelming, especially in the verses he sings. To put it easy, this is nowhere near as good as the original version. It’s just a weak cover of a song and Weezer did a poor job of executing the song. NEXT!

– Next, we have newcomer Dennis Lloyd with a song titled Nevermind. I did talk about this one when it debuted on the American Top 40. But let’s recap what I said. I do think the production is decent, especially with the use of guitars. But I’m not too big on his vocals. I feel like he didn’t really stand out for much of the song. Also, the song is repetitive, especially when looking at the lyrical content. Personally, I think more could’ve been done with the songwriting. So yeah, it’s not really a bad song, but I most likely won’t remember it in a year or so.

– Charlie Puth has yet another new single from his latest album Voicenotes, this time he has chosen The Way I Am. As I explained quite a few times, Charlie has improved from the dreck that was Nine Track Mind when he released Voicenotes. It was praised by many YouTube critics in contrast to its predecessor, which they panned because the songs were too generic. It showed basically a different side of Charlie with songs such as Attention, How Long, and Done For Me. As for The Way I Am…well I can say it’s not quite as good as what he’s been releasing lately. But still, it shows Charlie’s growth in terms of his songwriting and his vocals. What the song talks about is dealing with anxiety and social insecurities. We have times where we can be shy and not as confident and this is something most of us can relate to. Parts of the song kinda remind me of the Michael Jackson song Smooth Criminal, especially with what it sounds like. When I listen to that song, I often compared to Charlie’s single. Anyway, it’s a pretty good song from Voicenotes, though not as good as the others. We’ll see if it ends up getting big.

– Ariana Grande has just released her brand new album Sweetner this month. One of the songs from that album, titled God Is A Woman, makes its highest debut this week. Now I haven’t really listened to her entire album as of yet, but I’m willing to bet it’s a good album all around. God Is A Woman is definitely an amazing song in my opinion. I love Ariana’s voice all throughout the song. Although there’s not really much to the production, her vocals easily make up for it. I’m sure some people can be turned off by the song title itself given that it can be controversial. But I’m not among that crowd. It’s definitely a great follow-up to its predecessor. I’m looking forward to seeing that one do well.

Best Debut Of The Week: Ariana Grande – God Is A Woman

Blurbs Down In Africa
– As always we’ll begin with our exits, and boy we cleaned house! First off, the departure of Mine was expected, especially since it performed pretty poorly on this countdown as opposed to everywhere else. Babe was underrated for a country song. Colour wasn’t destined to last long especially after that big drop last week. That leaves us with three big songs. One Foot had a nice tenure here even though the song itself didn’t get as big as Shut Up And Dance. Walk The Moon has another song on Hit-Bound and we’ll get to that later. But I’m pleased with its countdown run. Pray For Me also did well, too. It was a nice collaboration between The Weeknd and Kendrick Lamar and I enjoyed its presence. That one will be missed by me. And finally, let us celebrate as Meant To Be has officially left the countdown! This was a horrible mix of county and pop, and Bebe Rexha has done better. At least it’s finally gone. Good riddance.

– It’s very pleasing to see I Like Me Better drop all the way down to the bottom of the countdown. I will never understand the appeal to this song. It won’t be long until it leaves hopefully.

–  Before introducing Alone, Spyder Harrison mentioned that G-Eazy and Halsey appeared to be getting back together again. Looks like they may end up becoming a couple again, but only time will tell on that.

– Spyder Harrison mentioned during the introduction for On The Loose that Niall Horan was spotted kissing Hailee Steinfeld. I have a feeling that he may have a thing for Hailee. Could they end up being a couple in the near future? We’ll have to wait and see for ourselves.

– The music video for Side Effects just recently came out and it actually features Camila Mendes from the TV series, Riverdale. Although I don’t really watch that show, I did see the music video and she turned out to be a very good dancer. She has some groove. That said, I’m not thrilled to see the song drop out of the Top 20. I hope it gets back up there like real soon and doesn’t lose its momentum.

– Before introducing Tequila, Spyder Harrison mentioned that Dan + Shay celebrated by throwing a street party. I’ll bet they probably had a lot of fun with their friends and all. I’ll bet one of these guys was a party animal.

– I Wanna Know took quite a drop out of the Top 10. I was starting to lose interest in the song, though I’ll admit it did quite well during its countdown run.

– This is the first time The Middle is not in the Top 5 since I don’t know how long. It’s been quite a ride. For some reason I still love, love, LOVE this song even though it’s been out for a long while. I’m very thankful for the success that it has. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing it become #1 of the year on Hits 1’s Top 45 Of 2018.

– Girls Like You has now entered the Top 5 after spending quite a while outside of that region. I’m sure it’ll probably end up hitting #1 here as well.

– So, the music video for High Hopes just came out, and I was quite impressed with how Brendon Urie was able to walk on buildings like that just to get to the top. Did he had some magic shoes or something like that?

– Finally, we’ve come to our brand new #1 for this week! The Last Of The Real Ones took a surprise jump into the Top 5 and then take the #1 spot. I definitely did not see that coming. Hits 1 has been kind to Fall Out Boy for sometime, since their previous singles have hit #1. The Last Of The Real Ones is easily the best song off of MANIA and I’m glad these guys chose it as a single.

Hit-Bound:

• DJ Khaled featuring Justin Bieber, Chance The Rapper, and Quavo – No Brainer
• Marshmello featuring Bastille – Happier (DEBUT)
• Sabrina Carpenter – Almost Love
• Zedd featuring Elley Duhé – Happy Now
• The Vamps – Just My Type (DEBUT)
• LSD – Thunderclouds (DEBUT)
• Panic! At The Disco – Hey Look Ma, I Made It (DEBUT)
• NF – Lie
• Clean Bandit featuring Demi Lovato – Solo (DEBUT)
• Bazzi featuring Camila Cabello – Beautiful
• Walk The Moon – Kamikaze (DEBUT)
• Calvin Harris featuring Sam Smith – Promises (DEBUT)
• Anne-Marie – 2002
• AJR – Burn The House Down
• Bryce Vine – Drew Barrymore (DEBUT)

– Alright, everyone. We have a bunch of new songs entering Hit-Bound this week, so let’s cover them all!

– I’ve been pretty mixed with Marshmello’s music lately. Songs such as Wolves and Every Day were both amazing, but Friends was annoying all around. His new single kinda lands somewhere in the middle as far as my opinion goes. I do like the vocals, but the production here is still relatively mediocre, especially for Marshmello. It’s a step up from Friends, but it’s still pales in comparison to his two predecessors.

– Next we have the return of The Vamps, by the name of Just My Type. Right off the bat, it’s quite a fun and enjoyable song all around. It’s a little more fast-paced than their previous singles. The production here is good and they sound better vocals-wise. I’ll have more on this when it debuts.

– A new group called LSD, consisting of three artists Labrinth, Sia, and Diplo, has a new song titled Thunderclouds. I’m sure some here are familiar with Sia, who had quite a few huge hits in recent years. Anyway, I cannot stand Sia’s vocals at all. She sounds scratchy in most parts of the song and the production is garbled many times. Simply put, this song is a mess. I do hope it doesn’t debut.

– Once more, Panic! At The Disco have another new single, this time it’s Hey Look Ma, I Made It. I’ll have more on this when it inevitably debuts. But let me just simply say that Brendon Urie and company have impressed me yet again.

– We have the return of Clean Bandit, who collaborates with Demi Lovato in their latest single titled Solo. I love the work Clean Bandit has done here, and Demi sounds amazing. I’ll have more on this should it debut.

– As one song from Walk The Moon leaves the countdown, another is coming to take its place. Their next single off of What If Nothing is called Kamikaze. It actually the same name of the song from MØ, that which I’m sure will bring back bad memories for those who don’t like it. The intro to the song pretty much resembles Happy Now when I first listened to it. The song is pretty enjoyable, though not quite as good as its predecessor.

– Next, we have Calvin Harris with his next single and it features Sam Smith, by the name of Promises. I can’t say it’s as good as One Kiss. But I do like Sam Smith’s contribution in this one. More on this if it debuts.

– Finally, Bryce Vine has a song that is somewhat gaining momentum, titled Drew Barrymore. I talked about this one when it debuted on the AT40. But to recap, it’s not really all that interesting for the most part. The production is decent, but I’m not too fond of his vocals. That’s all I have to say about it.

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks
1. Zedd featuring Elley Duhé – Happy Now
2. Bazzi featuring Camila Cabello – Beautiful
3. Panic! At The Disco – Hey Look Ma, I Made It
4. Clean Bandit featuring Demi Lovato – Solo
5. Walk The Moon – Kamikaze

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. Shawn Mendes – In My Blood

5 – Great:
15. lovelytheband – Broken
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. Calvin Harris featuring Dua Lipa – One Kiss
4. Fall Out Boy – The Last Of The Real Ones

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
TIE: 1. Ariana Grande – God Is A Woman
TIE: 1. Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle
TIE: 1. Backstreet Boys – Don’t Go Breaking My Heart

Overall Grade: 91/100 = 91% (A–)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Michael Jackson – Billie Jean (1983) (This week would’ve been his 60th Birthday, so Happy Birthday to the late Michael Jackson)

Most Missed Countdown Song: Demi Lovato – Heart Attack

Most Missed Hit-Bound Dropout: Lorde – Green Light

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Tori Kelly featuring Kirk Franklin – Never Alone

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Kesha – Praying (#20)

My Top 5 Picks
TIE: 1. Backstreet Boys – Don’t Go Breaking My Heart
TIE: 1. Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle
TIE: 1. Ariana Grande – God Is A Woman
4. The Chainsmokers featuring Emily Warren – Side Effects
5. Fall Out Boy – The Last Of The Real Ones

Honorable Mentions: Ariana Grande – No Tears Left To Cry, Meghan Trainor – Let You Be Right, and Alessia Cara – Growing Pains

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Lauv – I Like Me Better
2. Marshmello featuring Anne-Marie – Friends
3. Train featuring Cam and Travie McCoy – Call Me Sir
4. Weezer – Africa
5. Drake – In My Feelings

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Macklemore featuring Skylar Grey – Glorious: It was nice to see the return of Macklemore. And he bought along Skylar Grey. I was happy with how the collaboration turned out. I felt like this should’ve been bigger than it was.
Imagine Dragons – Thunder: Although the song itself is catchy, I’m starting to see why some here aren’t too fond of it. I’ll probably have more to say about this in my Year-End posts. But I’ll just say that Imagine Dragons have done better.

QOTW: What are your thoughts on Ariana Grande’s latest album, Sweetner? What is your favorite song? Least favorite? Why?