Hello, fam! So Tom Brady has won yet another Super Bowl. What else is new? I mean, they dominated Kansas City from start to finish. My goodness! But knowing Kansas City, I’m sure they’ll be back. March Madness is coming up soon, and so is baseball. I’m hoping to see the Braves make the playoffs again and eventually win the World Series. I’ll be looking forward to that. Before we get to this week’s fresh 40, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:
- Holiday by Lil Nas X (#27)
- Lemonade by Internet Money featuring Gunna, Don Toliver, and Nav (#34)
- Hawái by Maluma featuring The Weeknd (#37)
The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Positions by Ariana Grande
40. ROCKSTAR by Dababy featuring Roddy Ricch (#40) [=]
39. Break My Heart by Dua Lipa (#38) [–1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
38. Best Friend by Saweetie featuring Doja Cat (DEBUT)
37. Watermelon Sugar by Harry Styles (#35) [–2] [Spent 8 Weeks At #1]
36. Goosebumps (Remix) by Travis Scott featuring HVME (DEBUT)
35. Before You Go by Lewis Capaldi (#33) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
34. Lasting Lover by Sigala featuring James Arthur (DEBUT)
33. Dynamite by BTS (#30) [–3]
32. Dakiti by Bad Bunny featuring Jhay Cortez (#39) [+7]
31. Savage Love by Jawsh 685 featuring Jason Derulo (#28) [–3] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
30. Monsters by All Time Low featuring Blackbear (#32) [+2]
29. SO DONE by The KID LAROI (#31) [+2]
28. Prisoner by Miley Cyrus featuring Dua Lipa (#26) [–2]
27. ily (i love you baby) by Surf Mesa featuring Emilee (#25) [–2]
26. Body by Megan Thee Stallion (#36) [+10]
25. Blinding Lights by The Weeknd (#23) [–2] [Spent 5 Weeks At #1]
24. What You Know About Love by Pop Smoke (#24) [=]
23. I Hope by Gabby Barrett featuring Charlie Puth (#18) [–5]
22. Willow by Taylor Swift (#21) [–1]
21. Save Your Tears by The Weeknd (#22) [+1]
20. Laugh Now Cry Later by Drake featuring Lil Durk (#14) [–6]
19. Anyone by Justin Bieber (#19) [=]
18. Golden by Harry Styles (#17) [–1]
17. My Ex’s Best Friend by Machine Gun Kelly featuring Blackbear (#20) [+3]
16. Afterglow by Ed Sheeran (#15) [–1]
15. Take You Dancing by Dancing by Jason Derulo (#13) [–2]
14. Driver’s License by Olivia Rodrigo (#29) [+15]
13. Put Your Records On by Ritt Momney (#16) [+3]
12. Kings & Queens by Ava Max (#10) [–2]
11. You Broke Me First by Tate McRae (#12) [+1]
10. Diamonds by Sam Smith (#11) [+1]
9. Therefore I Am by Billie Eilish (#9) [=]
8. Bang! by AJR (#7) [–1]
7. Levitating by Dua Lipa featuring DaBaby (#5) [–2]
6. Go Crazy by Chris Brown featuring Young Thug (#6) [=]
5. 34+35 by Ariana Grande (#8) [+3]
4. Lonely by Justin Bieber featuring Benny Blanco (#4) [=]
3. Mood by 24KGoldn featuring Iann Dior (#2) [–1] [Spent 10 Weeks At #1]
2. Holy by Justin Bieber featuring Chance The Rapper (#3) [+1]
1. Positions by Ariana Grande (#1) [=] [4th Week At #1]
#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez (2nd And Final Week At #1)
Biggest Fall Of The Week: Laugh Now Cry Later by Drake featuring Lil Turk (–6)
Biggest Rise Of The Week: Driver’s License by Olivia Rodrigo (+15)
New Entrants:
– Yeah…I’m not very thrilled by this week’s debuts. Up first is more of Saweetie (Ugh…) who collaborates with Doja Cat (also ugh…) in their new single Best Friend. I’m not very fond of Doja Cat’s singles, and the same can certainly be said for Saweetie. I wasn’t expecting to like this song at all and sure enough, I was right. Upon hearing it at the first listen, I find that it is very poorly produced with trap elements and a horrendous beat that are not to my liking. The verses we get from them are shit because they show no charisma or any sort of personality. I’m not even going to comment on the rest of the song because this song just isn’t worth my time. It blows on so many levels and given that they haven’t been impressing me with their music, it’s no shock that these two coming together would end up with this shitty song. NEXT!
– Oh, great. We have more of Travis Scott, and he collaborates with producer HVME in the remix of Goosebumps. Yes, this is the remix of the song from 2017, which had Kendrick Lamar. I was very mixed on the original overall, but at least it was tolerable thanks to Kendrick. The remix on the other hand…blech. The production is extremely basic, the beat is watered down and the rest is not very interesting. Travis just sounds terrible with his vocals and Kendrick’s verse is omitted in the song. Was it really necessary to leave him out? I’d think not. I hope it dies out really fast because this blows in more ways than one. NEXT!
– Finally, we have EDM producer Sigala and singer James Arthur with their single titled Lasting Lover. I’ve been pretty familiar with Sigala’s music for a while and he’s pretty good for the most part. James Arthur is mostly remembered for his 2016 hit Say You Won’t Let Go, which many YouTube critics hated. Believe it or not, this was actually written by Lewis Capaldi, whose song has lasted a full year on the countdown. We’ll get to that in just a bit. As far as Lasting Lover goes, I’m a little indifferent on this song. James has a good voice and I like the chorus. He’s a pretty decent singer. My only problem is that the production is a little too generic and the beat is okay. Sigala has done better in the past with songs like Lullaby in my opinion. But this isn’t his best work here. So yeah, it’s a decent song. But not something I’ll remember in about a year or so.
Best Debut Of The Week: Lasting Lover by Sigala featuring James Arthur
Lasting Blurber
– We’ll begin with our exits. To start, it’s about time we bid adieu to the monstrosity that is of Lemonade. What a fucking mess that song was. I’m glad I don’t have to deal with it anymore. As for Holiday, I didn’t necessarily cared for it. But it wasn’t something I hated. Finally, there’s Hawái which I’m sad to see it drop off. But I knew it wasn’t going to last very long given that it died down elsewhere.
– We did see the big jump from Body this week. I don’t mind Body for the most part, even though I much prefer Savage over that song any day. We’ll see how long it can keep up its momentum.
– Before introducing Monsters, Ryan Seacrest mentioned that Demi has been friends with the band All Time Low and that they’ve been working on the song for about ten years. Wait, 10 Years?!?! Wow, that’s a pretty long time to work on a song. I guess they were working on trying to make this as perfect as possible.
– On the mote of jumps, Driver’s License got a massive boost this week by no surprise given the song’s imennse success elsewhere. It won’t be much longer until the song reaches the Top 5. I already know it’s going to be here for a long while, so brace yourselves everyone.
– So yeah, Put Your Records On is now my new least favorite song on the countdown. I legitimately cannot stand this song. His voice is just awful and the production is no good at all. This is just a terrible cover of the 2006 single from Corinne Bailey Rae. We don’t need this to become a hit in 2021. It needs to drop soon.
– On the flip side, Therefore I Am is my new favorite song. Billie Eilish has been impressing me with her music lately. I’m sure she has better songs objectively. But I like Therefore I Am enough to put it in purple. I’ve been enjoying this song a lot lately. I’m glad the song’s momentum is still going strong. We’ll see if it ends up in the Top 5 in the near future.
– Diamonds entering the Top 10 on the countdown is nice to see, despite it losing momentum elsewhere. Obviously, it’s not quite as good as Dancing With A Stranger, which is easily Sam Smith’s best song. But Diamonds is still a bop in and of itself. Sam has a good voice and it’s well-produced. So I’m happy that it’s still hanging around.
– Sigh….this is just great. Holy has hit a scary new peak at #2. I will be livid if this becomes a #1 hit. I have to hold out hope that Positions can hold at #1. I’ll glady take Mood at #1 again (not very likely, though). Hell, I’ll even have Lonely at #1 even though I don’t love it so long as it blocks Holy from getting there.
Breakouts/On The Verge:
- Girl Like Me by The Black Eyed Peas featuring Shakira
- My Head & My Heart by Ava Max
- Star by LOOΠΔ
- Skin by Sabrina Carpenter
- Lifestyle by Jason Derulo featuring Adam Levine
- WITHOUT YOU by The KID LAROI
Extras/Optional Extras:
- Lose Somebody by Kygo featuring OneRepublic
- Love On The Brain by Rihanna
- 7 Rings by Ariana Grande
- Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
- One Kiss by Calvin Harris featuring Dua Lipa
- Dance Monkey by Tones And I
- Nothin’ On You by B.o.B. featuring Bruno Mars
- Memories by Maroon 5
- Heather by Conan Gray
- Say So by Doja Cat
Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
20. Put Your Records On by Ritt Momney
19. Bang! by AJR
18. Holy by Justin Bieber featuring Chance The Rapper
17. Go Crazy by Chris Brown featuring Young Thug
1 – Bad:
16. Laugh Now Cry Later by Drake featuring Lil Turk
2 – Mediocre:
15. Lonely by Justin Bieber featuring Benny Blanco
3 – Decent:
14. Afterglow by Ed Sheeran
13. You Broke Me First by Tate McRae
12. 34+35 by Ariana Grande
11. Take You Dancing by Jason Derulo
4 – Good:
10. Positions by Ariana Grande
9. My Ex’s Best Friend by Machine Gun Kelly featuring Blackbear
5 – Great:
8. Anyone by Justin Bieber
7. Golden by Harry Styles
6. Diamonds by Sam Smith
5. Driver’s License by Olivia Rodrigo
4. Mood by 24KGoldn featuring Iann Dior
3. Kings & Queens by Ava Max
2. Levitating by Dua Lipa featuring DaBaby
BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Therefore I Am by Billie Eilish
Total Score: 64/100 = 64% (C)
Throwback Pick Of The Week: What’s Love Got To Do With It by Tina Turner (1984)
Most Missed Song: Renegades by X Ambassadors
#1 Recommendation For The American Top 40: Inside Out by Zedd featuring Griff
Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa (#4)
My Top 5 Picks
1. Therefore I Am by Billie Eilish
2. Levitating by Dua Lipa featuring DaBaby
3. Kings & Queens by Ava Max
4. Save Your Tears by The Weeknd
5. Mood by 24KGoldn featuring Iann Dior
My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Put Your Records On by Ritt Momney
2. Holy by Justin Bieber featuring Chance The Rapper
3. Bang! by AJR
4. Goosebumps (Remix) by Travis Scott featuring HVME
5. SO DONE by The KID LAROI
Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Yellow Hearts by Ant Saunders: This is easily forgettable, in large part because there’s no lyrical depth and the guy’s voice isn’t very interesting. Let’s move on.
Cuz I Love You by Lizzo: Yeah…this was not a good follow-up to her previous two hits (Truth Hurts and Good As Hell). The loud, noisy instrumentation and Lizzo screaming doesn’t sit well with me at all. I’m sorry, but I wasn’t impressed by this.
Make You Mine by PUBLIC: This song actually came out in 2014. But it gained a little bit of momentum last year because of a certain app I won’t mention. I hear this at work a lot, too. So at some point, I kinda started to get sick of it for a while. But despite this, pretty much everything about the song works well. I think the instrumentation is fine here and the vocals are solid. Not memorable on its own, but still a easy listen every now and then.
Before You Go by Lewis Capaldi: A little bit of a step up from its predecessor, but not by much. Lewis’s voice still irritates me, especially when he tries to hit those high notes, and the lyrics…eh. The only good thing I can say about this is it has good instrumentation.
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