Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: Taylor Swift – Delicate (–22) (…..)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Zedd featuring Elley Duhé – Happy Now (+10) (!!!!!!)

New Entrants
– To kick off our new entrants for the week, we have a new duo by the name of Silk City. The duo actually consists of Diplo and Mark Ronson, the latter who was behind one of the biggest hits of this decade (And I’m sure you guys can guess what it is). They are collaborating with Dua Lipa in their debut single titled Electricity. First off, I like how Silk City put forth the effort in producing the song. The piano mixed with the EDM sound makes the production really good. It works well together. We also get some good vocals from Dua Lipa. As I said many times, she has a unique voice and she’s taking advantage of that in the song. To put it short, I’m in love with the song. Silk City made a nice first impression here.

– Shawn Mendes has finally released his next official single off of his self-titled album, and it’s the song that I’ve been awaiting for some time. The song is Lost In Japan. Of course, he would wound up doing the remix with Zedd in order to make it happen. However, I’ll be reviewing the original version of the song itself. I love the groove in the song. Shawn shows that he has a smooth voice and when combined with the groove, it pulls me in. Looking at the lyrics, the song is basically about love and romance. It talks about planning to go out with a special someone for a date. This is the best song off of his self-titled album. While I do like the remix with Zedd, it’s nothing compared to the original version. I’m glad he chose it as a single. I’m sure it’ll do well.

– If you’re like me and you’re looking forward to anything from The Chainsmokers, then I’ve got some good news for you. They’ve collaborated with country singer Kelsea Ballerini in their latest single titled This Feeling. After a string of mediocre songs from earlier this year, they’ve gotten back on track with Side Effects. But they managed to continue their improvement with the release of This Feeling. Yeah, this song is just amazing. First off, I absolutely love the contribution we get from Kelsea. She has a great voice and she uses it well throughout the song. We also get an improvement in Drew’s voice. Both of them sound amazing together, especially in the chorus. I love the production we get from these guys. They definitely put forth the effort in making the song. I’d say this is probably their best release since Closer. As much as I love Side Effects, I like this even more. Here’s to hoping it ends up doing well.

Best Debut Of The Week: The Chainsmokers featuring Kelsea Ballerini – This Feeling

I Can’t Seem To Get Blurbs Off My Mind
– As always, we’ll begin with our exits. To start, Solo would make its exit after only two weeks. I’m not surprised about this since that one didn’t gain any ground. I thought it was another good song for Clean Bandit. They deserve better. Also, there’s IDGAF which last quite a while here even though it wasn’t successful elsewhere either. While not quite as good as her predecessor, I still enjoy the song and I never got sick of it. That one will be missed by me. Finally, good riddance to Call Me Sir. This was Train’s worst release since Hey, Soul Sister, but at least it’s finally gone. I’m glad it didn’t become the next Play That Song in terms of success on the countdown.

– So, Taylor Swift is supposedly going to perform her new single at the American Music Awards. The single in question is I Did Something Bad from Reputation. Personally, I think there are better single choices from that album. Anyway, it’s disappointing to see Delicate take a huge drop this week. It has been around for a while and it was destined to happen eventually. But I still do love the song, so I’m not all that thrilled about the drop.

– On that note, that huge spark from Tequila didn’t last long, because right now it’s back to square one. Too bad this is getting pretty underrated here on Hits 1. Also, Spyder Harrison mentioned during the introduction of the song that Dan + Shay both have some serious dance moves. I wonder did they try to emulate Michael Jackson’s moonwalker or something. Whatever they did, I’d like to try those moves out.

– Looks like the end may finally be near for The Middle now that it’s dropped out of the Top 10, for good this time. I’m sure some here will be attending a be-gone party for that one sooner or later, but not me. I still love it no matter what.

– Blech. We have Africa jumping back into the Top 20 and with it, we get a new entrant in Thunderclouds. Ugh. I don’t know anybody who supports these two songs, especially the latter.

– Shotgun, on the other hand, is definitely welcomed in the Top 20. I didn’t think it would get so far, but I was wrong. We’ll see how long this lasts.

– It’s really, really nice to see Happy Now not only getting the biggest jump of the week, but also enter the Top 10! I know this is an unpopular opinion to many people here, but I enjoy this song a lot, mainly because I love Elley Duhé’s voice. Though I don’t think it’ll last long in that territory, mainly due to Zedd’s remix of Lost In Japan looking to take its place pretty soon.

– Although I’m very happy that we’re getting songs like Happy Now in the Top 10, I’m not thrilled to see Happier in that region and ultimately enter the Top 5. I was never that fond of it from the jump, but now I’ve had it. The song is just not all that good overall and it shows Marshmello has gotten lazier as a EDM artist. Not even Bastille could save the song. I’ll say that it’s better than Friends, but that’s not saying much. Unfortunately, I expect it to stick around for a while since it’s gaining momentum elsewhere.

– The Way I Am has also entered the Top 5. I’ll certainly take that over our #5 any day. Sure, it’s not the best off of Voicenotes per se, but it shows how much Charlie has improved from Nine Track Mind. I wouldn’t really mind seeing it at #1 sometime soon.

– Back To You is now back in the Top 5. That song has remained consistent on this countdown despite it starting to drop off elsewhere. Not that I’m complaining though since I still enjoy it, though I doubt it’ll be #1 given that our current Top 2 is popular elsewhere. Yes, even our current #1 High Hopes is actually gaining momentum right now.

Hit-Bound:

• Calvin Harris featuring Sam Smith – Promises
• Shawn Mendes – Nervous (RE-ENTRY)
• Tiësto & Dzeko featuring Preme and Post Malone – Jackie Chan
• Halsey – Without Me (DEBUT)
• Walk The Moon – Kamikaze
• Pitbull featuring Theron Theron – Free Free Free
• Ariana Grande – Breathin’
• The Struts featuring Kesha – Body Talks
• Jason Derulo & David Guetta featuring Nicki Minaj and Willy William – Goodbye
• Lady Gaga – I’ll Never Love Again (DEBUT)
• Benny Blanco featuring Halsey and Khalid – Eastside
• Alex Aiono – Big Mistake
• Twenty One Pilots – My Blood
• Loud Luxury featuring brando – Body

Entrant Reviews:
– As one song from Shawn Mendes enters the countdown, we get a re-entry from Nervous. So, that leaves us with two new songs entering Hit-Bound this week.

– First, we get the return of Halsey, who just recently celebrated her 24th Birthday this past week, so Happy Birthday to her! Anyway, she has her latest release titled Without Me. To put it short, I’m not in love with the song. I find Halsey’s vocals to be somewhat grating in the chorus. More on this when it inevitably debuts, but the song is closer to red for me than it is green.

– Second, we have Lady Gaga with her latest new single titled I’ll Never Love Again, which is taken from A Star Is Born movie soundtrack. It’s a slow, piano ballad that works well for Lady Gaga. The song is moving and mesmerizing. This is probably her best song from a lyrical standpoint. I’ll talk more about this when it debuts.

– You know what? I actually kinda like Body. Sure, I’m not going to go ahead and say it’s all that good. But There’s just something about it that makes it catchy. I guess you can consider it a guilty pleasure of mine.

Best Debut On Hit-Bound: Lady Gaga – I’ll Never Love Again

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks
1. Lady Gaga – I’ll Never Love Again
2. Ariana Grande – Breathin’
3. Benny Blanco featuring Halsey and Khalid – Eastside
4. The Struts featuring Kesha – Body Talks
5. TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – My Blood

YouTube 15:

• Maroon 5 featuring Cardi B. – Girls Like You
• Dinah Jane featuring Marc E. Bassy and Ty Dolla $ign – Bottled Up
• HRVY – I Wish You Were Here
• Juice WRLD – Lucid Dreams
• Alan Walker featuring AuRa and Tomine Harkett – Darkside
• Drake – In My Feelings
• Jess Glynne – 123
• Post Malone – Better Now
• Nick Jonas featuring Robin Schultz – Right Now
• Cardi B. featuring Bad Bunny and J. Balvin – I Like It
• Mike Posner – Song About You
• Khalid featuring Normani – Love Lies
• R3HAB featuring Sophia Carson – Rumors
• Marshmello featuring Bastille – Happier
• Tiffany Young – Teach You

Top 20 Review:
0 – Putrid:
20. Bebe Rexha – I’m A Mess
19. LSD – Thunderclouds
18. Weezer – Africa

1 – Bad:
None!

2 – Mediocre:
17. Marshmello featuring Bastille – Happier

3 – Decent:
None!

4 – Good:
16. Charlie Puth – The Way I Am
15. lovelytheband – Broken

5 – Great:
14. NF – Lie
13. Panic! At The Disco – Say Amen (Saturday Night)
12. Imagine Dragons – Natural
11. Selena Gomez – Back To You
10. Khalid featuring Normani – Love Lies
9. Panic! At The Disco – High Hopes
8. George Ezra – Shotgun
7. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Youngblood
6. Bazzi featuring Camila Cabello – Beautiful (Remix)
5. Fall Out Boy – The Last Of The Real Ones
4. The Chainsmokers featuring Emily Warren – Side Effects
3. Backstreet Boys – Don’t Go Breaking My Heart
2. Ariana Grande – God Is A Woman

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
TIE: 1. Zedd featuring Elley Duhé – Happy Now

Overall Grade: 81/100 = 81% (B–)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody (1975)

Most Missed Countdown Song: Bruno Mars – 24K Magic (Two years since it was released)

Most Missed Hit-Bound Dropout: Ellie Goulding – Still Falling For You

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Avril Lavigne – Head Above Water

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Kesha – Praying (#14)

My Top 5 Picks
TIE: 1. Zedd featuring Elley Duhé – Happy Now
TIE: 1. The Chainsmokers featuring Kelsea Ballerini – This Feeling
3. Shawn Mendes – Lost In Japan
4. Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle
5. Ariana Grande – God Is A Woman

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Bebe Rexha – I’m A Mess
2. AJR – Burn The House Down
3. LSD – Thunderclouds
4. Marshmello featuring Anne-Marie – Friends
5. Weezer – Africa

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Hailee Steinfeld & Alesso featuring Florida Georgia Line and watt – Let Me Go: This is basically Starving 2.0, except better. Hailee sounds amazing, the drop is not as annoying and the lyrical content is well written. It’s one of my favorite songs from Hailee thus far.
The Script – Rain: This was the first time I’ve heard from them since they had Hall Of Fame back in 2012. While it wasn’t as good as Breakeven, it was definitely a different sound for these guys.
Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug – Havana: Her best song thus far, and it tells a story about her hometown and it tells well. Her improved vocals are also another good thing about it.
Taylor Swift – …Ready For It?: This is less controversial than its predecessor, and Taylor does more singing here. Personally, I like this more than Look What You Made Me Do, despite me being somewhat of a major apologist for that song.

QOTW: Which performances are you looking forward to in the American Music Awards?