Hello, fam! I feel like summer is going by too quickly. Normally, this would be the point where the summer lull would start to set in. But this week’s countdown doesn’t really reflect that as there were a lot of interesting moves. In addition, Ryan Seacrest is back on the job this week after a while. I’m working on my Q&A post and I should have it out before the month ends. We’ll see what ends up happening. Before we get to this week’s fresh 40, here are the songs leaving the countdown this week:

• All My Friends by AJ Mitchell (#23)
• Walk Me Home by P!NK (#27)
• So Close by NOTD, Felix Jaehn, & Captain Cuts featuring Georgia Ku (#35)
• Youngblood by 5 Seconds Of Summer (#40)

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Talk by Khalid
40. Look Back At It by A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie (DEBUT)
39. Happier by Marshmello featuring BΔSTILLE (#37) [–2] [Spent 5 Weeks At #1]
38. Paradise by Bazzi (DEBUT)
37. Close To Me by Ellie Goulding featuring Diplo (#34) [–3]
36. Summer Days by Martin Garrix featuring Macklemore and Patrick Stump (DEBUT)
35. Sunflower by Post Malone featuring Swae Lee (#32) [–3]
34. Chlorine by TWENTY ØNE PILØTS (#38) [+4]
33. ME! by Taylor Swift featuring Brendon Urie (#12) [–21]
32. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi (DEBUT)
31. Better by Khalid (#30) [–1]
30. Find U Again by Mark Ronson featuring Camila Cabello (#39) [+9]
29. High Hopes by Panic! At The Disco (#28) [–1] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
28. Call You Mine by The Chainsmokers featuring Bebe Rexha (#36) [+8]
27. Eastside by Benny Blanco featuring Halsey and Khalid (#25) [–2] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
26. Love Me Less by MAX featuring Quinn XCII (#33) [+7]
25. Wake Up by Travis Scott featuring The Weeknd (#29) [+4]
24. Without Me by Halsey (#20) [–4] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
23. Just Us by DJ Khaled featuring SZA (#31) [+8]
22. Speechless by Dan + Shay (#24) [+2]
21. Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored by Ariana Grande (#17) [–4]
20. La La Land by Bryce Vine featuring YG (#21) [+1]
19. 7 Rings by Ariana Grande (#16) [–3] [Spent 5 Weeks At #1]
18. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello (#26) [+8]
17. Truth Hurts by Lizzo (#19) [+2]
16. Easier by 5 Seconds Of Summer (#18) [+2]
15. Sweet But Psycho by Ava Max (#11) [–4]
14. Cross Me by Ed Sheeran featuring Chance The Rapper and PnB Rock (#15) [+1]
13. Nightmare by Halsey (#14) [+1]
12. You Need To Calm Down by Taylor Swift (#22) [+10]
11. Never Really Over by Katy Perry (#13) [+2]
10. Cool by Jonas Brothers (#10) [=]
9. Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (#5) [–4]
8. Dancing With A Stranger by Sam Smith featuring Normani (#7) [–1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
7. Hey Look Ma, I Made It by Panic! At The Disco (#9) [+2]
6. Wow. by Post Malone (#3) [–3] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
5. If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes (#8) [+3]
4. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish (#6) [+2]
3. Sucker by Jonas Brothers (#2) [–1] [Spent 8 Weeks At #1]
2. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber (#4) [+2]
1. Talk by Khalid (#1) [=] [2^nd Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Mine by Bazzi (1^st And Only Week At #1)

Biggest Fall Of The Week: ME! by Taylor Swift featuring Brendon Urie (–21)

Biggest Rise Of The Week: You Need To Calm Down by Taylor Swift (+10)

New Entrants:
– To start things off in our new round of arrivals, we have A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie with Look Back At It. The American Top 40 has been late to the party when it comes to picking this song up, seeing as it has been out for a while. Coming into the song, I wasn’t really expecting much. But after hearing it, I was actually impressed a little. I kinda like his voice here for the most part. Although I do question the lyrics, the production here is decent, mainly because of the dark atmosphere. Overall, this is pretty good, but I doubt this’ll stick with me in the big picture.

– Up next, Bazzi makes his return with his latest single titled Paradise. Unlike some people here in the blogging community, I actually did like what Bazzi had to offer in Mine (which was the #1 song this time last year as you can see) and some other singles from Cosmic. As for his new single…I can say I was a little underwhelmed. The first verse is a little weird, at least for me. The rest of the song is okay, both in terms of the production and his vocal performance. Looking deeper into the song, I actually found out that it’s about a feeling and not a place, which I can say does make sense to some degree when people really analyze it. Overall, I’m not necessarily a big fan and I much prefer his singles from Cosmic.

– Martin Garrix also makes his return, and he’s teamed up with Macklemore and Fall Out Boy singer Patrick Stump in their new single titled Summer Days. Now, Martin Garrix is an EDM artist that’s isn’t relevant in mainstream music. But he does have good songs as his disposal, such as In The Name Love, which was a huge favorite back in 2016. His new song is very different compared to what he’s done in the past, and it’s pretty cool. I love the groove here and I think he put together some form of art as a producer. I like the verses we get from Macklemore and Patrick Stump. The chorus is awesome when combined with the groove I just mentioned and I like the drop as well. This is a good song that’ll give people summery vibes.

– Finally, we get a newcomer in the form of Lewis Capaldi (a Scottish native) with a song that’s been around for a while, titled Someone You Loved. Unlike a good number of people in the blogging community, I don’t really hate the song. But there’s not a whole lot this song has to offer. I like the piano here and the first thirty or so seconds of the song. But I’m not huge on his voice. It sounds like he’s screeching and trying so hard to hit those high notes, which essentially bought the song down for me. The lyrics are okay, but I think it’s lacking in depth in some places. Yeah, this is simply mediocre mainly because his voice. But it’s not the worst thing I’ve heard.

Best Debut Of The Week: Summer Days by Martin Garrix featuring Macklemore and Patrick Stump

Blurb Back At It
– We’ll begin with our exits. To start, Youngblood finally makes its departure after a year of being on the countdown. So Close leaving wasn’t much of a surprise, and I’m okay with it. All My Friends was pretty good and I like what AJ Mitchell had to offer. But it was nothing for me to feel sad about. Finally, there’s Walk Me Home, which I kinda liked even though it wasn’t her best work. But I didn’t quite envision it dropping a little early. It looks like we won’t be getting anymore songs from P!NK on this countdown for a while.

– As expected, ME! takes a massive fall from #12 all the way down to #31. Yeah, this is very likely the end of the road for this one. It was only a month ago that this one was in the Top 10 and looked destined to take the #1 spot. But now? It has lost all of its momentum elsewhere.

– Can we not with Love Me Less gaining steam? This has been getting worse every time I hear it. I hope this doesn’t become a hit elsewhere because the last thing we need is this song to become the next Lights Down Low.

– It was only a matter of time until Señorita made its way into the Top 20. I already know it’s going to be here for a long while. I’m cool with this being tied the highest-peaking single on Billboard from Shawn Mendes.

– And we have Easier hanging around in the Top 20. I know my thoughts on the song have changed quickly. But like Love Me Less, I’m finding that there’s nothing about the song that’s seriously worth caring about. There’s no band here nor is there any melody. This is not as good as their other singles they’ve had recently.

– As one song from Taylor Swift drops big, another comes to take its place. You Need To Calm Down makes its unwelcome arrival to the Top 20. This song also doesn’t really have much to offer other than the concept itself. I do have a feeling that it may not last very long either. I hope I’m right.

– We get quite a fresh chance of pace in the Top 5 as two new songs enter the region this week. If I Can’t Have You and Bad Guy are both good songs that I still enjoy. I do hope to see one of them take the top spot pretty soon.

Breakouts/On The Verge:

• Trampoline by SHAED
• Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug
• Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
• Mother’s Daughter by Miley Cyrus

Extras/Optional Extras:

• Who Do You Love by The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer
• Cold Water by Major Lazer featuring Justin Bieber and MØ
• Habits by Tove Lo
• Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
• When The Party’s Over by Billie Eilish
• We Found Love by Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris
• The Middle by Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey
• Sicko Mode by Travis Scott featuring Drake
• I Like It by Cardi B featuring Bad Bunny and J. Balvin
• Stressed Out by TWENTY ØNE PILØTS
• Con Calma by Daddy Yankee & Katy Perry featuring Snow
• Hotline Bling by Drake
• No Tears Left To Cry by Ariana Grande

Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Garbage:
20. 7 Rings by Ariana Grande
19. La La Land by Bryce Vine featuring YG
18. Cross Me by Ed Sheeran featuring Chance The Rapper and PnB Rock
17. Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus

1 – Bad:
16. Cool by Jonas Brothers
15. Wow. by Post Malone
14. You Need To Calm Down by Taylor Swift
13. Easier by 5 Seconds Of Summer

2 – Mediocre:
12. Talk by Khalid

3 – Decent:
11. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber

4 – Good:
10. Sucker by Jonas Brothers

5 – Great:
9. Nightmare by Halsey
8. Hey Look Ma, I Made It by Panic! At The Disco
7. Truth Hurts by Lizzo
6. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello
5. Sweet But Psycho by Ava Max
4. Dancing With A Stranger by Sam Smith
3. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish
2. If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Never Really Over by Katy Perry

Total Score: 59/100 = 59% (F) (Not good.  :()

Throwback Pick Of The Week: In The End by Linkin Park (2001) (Two years since Chester Bennington passed)

Most Missed Song: Airplanes by B.O.B. featuring Hayley Williams

#1 Recommendation For The American Top 40: BLOW by Ed Sheeran featuring Chris Stapleton and Bruno Mars

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: One Kiss by Calvin Harris featuring Dua Lipa (#11)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Never Really Over by Katy Perry
2. If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes
3. Speechless by Dan + Shay
4. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish
5. Dancing With A Stranger by Sam Smith featuring Normani

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. 7 Rings by Ariana Grande
2. Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored by Ariana Grande
3. La La Land by Bryce Vine featuring YG
4. Cross Me by Ed Sheeran featuring Chance The Rapper and PnB Rock
5. Love Me Less by MAX featuring Quinn XCII

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Let You Be Right by Meghan Trainor: A step up from No Excuses. The production works well here and I like her voice. Shame this didn’t become a success.
Drew Barrymore by Bryce Vine: Sorry Bryce, but you didn’t make a good first impression here. If I was the actress herself, I probably would not take it kindly.
Remind Me To Forget by Kygo featuring Miguel: This is basically It Ain’t Me 2.0, although not quite as good. It shows how talented Kygo is as an EDM producer. It’s a shame that he’s not getting the success he deserves in the US.