Hello, fam! The calendar has officially turned to December! We’re now in the final month of the decade! My goodness, time just continues to fly by faster and faster. It seemed like yesterday that we were beginning the 2010’s. Now, we’re getting closer to 2020. Anyway, I’m still hard at work on my Year-End posts. I’m hoping to get it ready by the end of the week. But first, I have this countdown post. Before we get to this week’s fresh 45, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• The Chainsmokers featuring Bebe Rexha – Call You Mine (#30)
• Kygo featuring Whitney Houston – Higher Love (#36)
• Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber – I Don’t Care (#44)
• Jonas Brothers – Cool (#45) [Spent 1 Week At #1]

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved
45. Liam Payne featuring A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie – Stack It Up (#39) [–6]
44. Halsey – Nightmare (#43) [–1]
43. AJR – Dear Winter (#42) [–1]
42. Camila Cabello – Liar (#34) [–8]
41. Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely (#31) [–10]
40. Fall Out Boy featuring Wyclef Jean – Dear Future Self (Hands Up) (#40) [=]
39. Harry Styles – Watermelon Sugar (DEBUT)
38. Jonas Brothers – Sucker (#33) [–5] [Spent 13 Weeks At #1]
37. Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat (DEBUT)
36. Alec Benjamin – If We Have Each Other (#35) [–1]
35. Kesha featuring Big Freedia – Raising Hell (#32) [–3]
34. Hot Chelle Rae – I Hate (Love) LA (DEBUT)
33. Billie Eilish – All The Good Girls Go To Hell (#38) [+5]
32. Louis Tomlinson – We Made It (#29) [–3]
31. Arizona Nervas – Roxanne (DEBUT)
30. Harry Styles – Lights Up (#37) [+7]
29. Taylor Swift – You Need To Calm Down (#28) [–1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
28. Why Don’t We – What Am I (#21) [–7]
27. Tones & I – Dance Monkey (#41) [+14]
26. Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello – Señorita (#26) [=]
25. NF – Time (#25) [=]
24. Selena Gomez – Look At Her Now (#24) [=]
23. PUBLIC – Make You Mine (#27) [+4]
22. TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – The Hype (#14) [–8]
21. Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers – Lonely (#23) [+2]
20. SHAED – Trampoline (#22) [+2]
19. Shawn Mendes – If I Can’t Have You (#19) [=] [Spent 9 Weeks At #1]
18. Maroon 5 – Memories (#18) [=]
17. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right (#20) [+3]
16. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me (#15) [–1]
15. Charlie Puth – Mother (#16) [+1]
14. Lizzo – Truth Hurts (#17) [+3]
13. Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber – 10,000 Hours (#13) [=]
12. Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep? (#11) [–1]
11. The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer – Who Do You Love (#12) [+1] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
10. Taylor Swift – Lover (#9) [–1]
9. Halsey – Graveyard (#10) [+1]
8. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier (#4) [–4] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
7. Post Malone – Circles (#7) [=]
6. Jonas Brothers – Only Human (#8) [+2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
5. Lizzo – Good As Hell (#3) [–2]
4. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth (#6) [+2] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
3. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People (#5) [+2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
2. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved (#1) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
1. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya (#2) [+1] [1^st Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: 5 Seconds Of Summer – Youngblood (5^th And Final Week At #1)

Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely (–10)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Tones & I – Dance Monkey (+14)

New Entrants:
– We have some interesting debuts here for this week. To begin, we get more of Harry Styles here with his second song on the countdown. And guess what? He’s about to give us a treat by bringing us some Watermelon Sugar. Tasty! What’s more? He even has yet another new song debuting on Hit-Bound. But we’ll get to that later on. In terms of how the song goes, I initially didn’t care for it at first. But I came around to it. In fact, my thought process was the same when Lights Up first came around. I quite like the production here and the trumpets sound good. Harry does well with his voice and I like the chorus. Yeah, this is quite solid.

– Following that, we have musical duo Sofi Tukker making their first appearance on the countdown with their newest single titled Purple Hat. If you don’t know who these guys are, allow me to refresh your memory for a sec. Two years ago, they had a song in the form of Best Friend. I thought that one was pretty cool. Too bad it was stranded on Hit-Bound and we haven’t heard from them since then. But now here we are.  Hopefully, they start selling purple hats.  They look cool on me.  Anyway, I like the production and the beat here.  I think it sounds cool.  Sophie has a unique voice and she showcases it here.  It’s definitely a song that I can dance to.  Let’s hope it sticks around.

– Next, we get the comeback single from the band Hot Chelle Rae.  They bring us their new single in the form of I Hate (Love) LA.  I’m not exactly familiar with most of their music.  But I thought Tonight Tonight was pretty good.  As far as their new single goes, it doesn’t quite live up to that.  But I still kinda like it regardless.  Although I’m not necessarily huge on the lyrics, I am quite fond of everything else.  The chorus sounds pretty good and the instrumentation is nice.  I don’t really have much else to say.  I think it’s a pretty good song.  But I don’t picture myself coming back to this in a few years.

– Last and definitely least, we have newcomer Arizona Zervas with Roxanne.  I’m not getting the appeal to this song.  I first heard this while I was out driving and I remember not liking it.  My thoughts have not changed.  His voice is no good as he is heavily drowned in auto-tune.  In addition, the lyrics are terrible and so is the production.  It lacks substance of any kind whatsoever.  Yeah, I’m not a fan of this song at all and the fact that we’re letting it become a huge hit only makes matters worse.  This is not something I want to see gaining momentum heading into 2020.  Hopefully, it dies out fast.

Best Debut Of The Week: Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat

Watermelon Blurbs
– We’ll begin with our exits. First off, it’s good to see that we bid adieu to Cool. That was a horrific follow-up to Sucker. I’m glad it didn’t stay for too long. I Don’t Care soured on me after a while. I wasn’t exactly wowed by it, but it was nothing I hated in the end. The only two songs that I’ll be missing are Higher Love and Call You Mine. The former deserved much better, and it’s a shame that Kygo is underrated in the US. The latter had a good countdown run and I enjoyed it during its tenure. It may not have hit #1, but I’m glad Hits 1 treated it well.

– It’s about time that Nice To Meet Ya got the nod at #1.  Even though it’s not a huge hit elsewhere, this is still Hits 1.  They love any and all things from One Direction.  I’m perfectly cool with this since this song rocks.  I’m definitely here for it holding the top spot for as long as it likes.

– Well, it doesn’t look like The Hype won’t be with us for too long as it is dropping like flies here.  In addition, it doesn’t appear to be taking off elsewhere.  I’m glad Hits 1 was able to pick up on this song.  Along with Jumpsuit, this is one of the best Trench has to offer.

– After having a rocky start to the countdown, Dance Monkey finally takes a big jump into the Top 30 this week.  I’ve decided I like the song after a while.  It’s gaining momentum elsewhere, too.  I’m looking forward to seeing it become a hit in the US.

Hit-Bound:

• Lil Nas X – Panini
• Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan
• 88Rising featuring Joji & Jackson Wang, Swae Lee, and Major Lazer – Walking (DEBUT)
• Blackbear – Hot Girl Bummer (DEBUT)
• Ed Sheeran featuring Camila Cabello and Cardi B – South Of The Border
• The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck
• Harry Styles – Adore You (DEBUT)
• Meghan Trainor featuring Mike Sabath – Wave
• Lewis Capaldi – Hold Me While You Wait
• Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted
• Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
• Panic! At The Disco – Into The Unknown
• Camila Cabello – Living Proof (DEBUT)
• OneRepublic – Wanted
• Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want

Entrant Reviews:
– Up first is a collaboration between four different artists (Joji & Jackson Wang, Swae Lee, and Major Lazer) in Walking.  Not a lot I can say about this one.  There’s nothing really going on in terms of the production and I’m not feeling the verses we get from them.  My opinion could change, but right now I’m not impressed.

– Immediately following that is my new least favorite song at the moment.  It’s from Blackbear with Hot Girl Bummer.  I did a full-on rant on my AT40 review when it debuted.  But to sum it all up, I don’t like what it’s going for at all.  Blackbear sounds terrible and the production is no good.  And the shitty lyrics only make matters even more asinine.  Yeah, this is a mess.  I’m hoping it doesn’t debut, but I have my doubts.

– We get Harry Styles with another new single in its stead.  It’s called Adore You.  Unlike his last two singles, I actually fell in love with this one right from the start.  The groove is nice and I really like his voice here.  I’ll save most of my words for when it debuts.

– Finally, we have more of Camila Cabello with Living Proof from her new album, Romance.  I wasn’t a big fan of this at the first listen, mostly because of Camila’s vocal performance.  I don’t like her voice here and the rest of the song isn’t too interesting for me.  That’s all I have to say about this one.

Best Hit-Bound Entrant Of The Week: Harry Styles – Adore You

Hit-Bound Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
15. Blackbear – Hot Girl Bummer
14. Meghan Trainor featuring Mike Sabath – Wave

1 – Bad:
None!

2 – Mediocre:
13. Camila Cabello – Living Proof

3 – Decent:
12. Lewis Capaldi – Hold Me While You Wait
11. OneRepublic – Wanted
10. 88Rising featuring Joji & Jackson Wang, Swae Lee, and Major Lazer – Walking
9. Lil Nas X – Panini

4 – Good:
8. Ed Sheeran featuring Camila Cabello and Cardi B – South Of The Border

5 – Great:
7. Panic! At The Disco – Into The Unknown
6. Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan
5. The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck
4. Harry Styles – Adore You
3. Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted
2. Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On Hit-Bound:
1. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now

Overall Grade: 54/75 = 72% (B)

Most Missed Hit-Bound Dropout: Disturbed – The Sound Of Silence

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks
1. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
2. Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want
3. Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted
4. Harry Styles – Adore You
5. The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck

Hits 1 Weekend Countdown Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
20. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right
19. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved
18. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier

1 – Bad:
17. Maroon 5 – Memories
16. The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer – Who Do You Love

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
15. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth
14. Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep?

4 – Good:
13. Post Malone – Circles

5 – Great:
12. Jonas Brothers – Only Human
11. Lizzo – Truth Hurts
10. Halsey – Graveyard
9. Charlie Puth – Mother
8. Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber – 10,000 Hours
7. SHAED – Trampoline
6. Shawn Mendes – If I Can’t Have You
5. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya
4. Lizzo – Good As Hell
3. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People
2. Taylor Swift – Lover

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me

Overall Grade: 73/100 = 73% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Bruce Hornsby & The Range – The Way It Is (1986)

Most Missed Countdown Song: The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey – Closer

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Ally Brooke – No Good

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Dan + Shay – Tequila (#9)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me
2. Taylor Swift – Lover
3. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People
4. Lizzo – Good As Hell
5. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right
2. Halsey – Nightmare
3. Arizona Zervas – Roxanne
4. AJR – Dear Winter
5. Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
None!

Hello, fam! We’ve now entered December, and Christmas is almost upon us! This week, I posted a review on My Worst Songs Of 2019. You can check it out in case you missed it. More Year-End posts are on the way. As a matter of fact, I have one that is almost ready. I’ll have it posted by next week. Also, there’s one last thing I want to say before I get started. Fellow blogger Adrian has officially decided to say goodbye after six years of blogging. He is such an inspiration and I looked forward to his posts each and every week. I wish him the best at his future endeavors. It’s been a fun ride, Adrian. Thank you for inspiring me to start this blog. I do plan on continuing my blogging journey heading into 2020. So, with that, let’s get on to this week’s countdown.  Before we get to this week’s fresh 40, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (#40)

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Circles by Post Malone
40. Wow. by Post Malone (#38) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
39. Writing On The Wall by French Montana featuring Post Malone, Cardi B, and Rvssian (#39) [=]
38. Teeth by 5 Seconds Of Summer (#37) [–1]
37. Hey Look Ma, I Made It by Panic! At The Disco (#35) [–2]
36. Highest In The Room by Travis Scott (DEBUT)
35. Sucker by Jonas Brothers (#32) [–3] [Spent 8 Weeks At #1]
34. Slow Dance by AJ Mitchell featuring Ava Max (#33) [–1]
33. Dancing With A Stranger by Sam Smith featuring Normani (#30) [–3] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
32. Raising Hell by Kesha featuring Big Freedia (#34) [+2]
31. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers (#31) [=]
30. If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes (#26) [–4]
29. Liar by Camila Cabello (#16) [–13]
28. Hot Girl Bummer by Blackbear (#36) [+8]
27. My Type by Saweetie (#29) [+2]
26. What Am I by Why Don’t We (#27) [+1]
25. Talk by Khalid (#24) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
24. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan (#23) [–1]
23. Dance Monkey by Tones & I (#25) [+2]
22. Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa (#28) [+6]
21. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish (#20) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
20. All The Good Girls Go To Hell by Billie Eilish (#22) [+2]
19. Lover by Taylor Swift (#21) [+2]
18. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug (#18) [=]
17. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber (#14) [–3] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
16. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown (#19) [+3]
15. 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber (#15) [=]
14. Graveyard by Halsey (#17) [+3]
13. Panini by Lil Nas X (#13) [=]
12. Time by NF (#11) [–1]
11. Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez (#12) [+1]
10. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello (#8) [–2] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
9. Memories by Maroon 5 (#9) [=]
8. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith (#10) [+2]
7. Truth Hurts by Lizzo (#6) [–1] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
6. Trampoline by SHAED (#8) [+1]
5. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid (#5) [=]
4. Only Human by Jonas Brothers (#4) [=]
3. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi (#2) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
2. Circles by Post Malone (#1) [–1] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
1. Good As Hell by Lizzo (#3) [+2] [1^st Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Happier by Marshmello featuring BΔSTILLE (2^nd of 5 Weeks At #1)

Biggest Fall Of The Week: Liar by Camila Cabello (–13)

Biggest Rise Of The Week: Hot Girl Bummer by Blackbear (+8)

New Entrants:
– We have more of Travis Scott here, and he gives us Highest In The Room.  Me, personally, I’m not a huge fan of his music.  He hasn’t really impressed me outside of a few songs from ASTROWORLD.  It’s about a toxic relationship and wanting to get out of it.  We’ve seen a lot of songs about those nowadays.  There’s really not a whole lot about the song that’s worth caring about.  The production is pretty lackluster and I’m not feeling the beat.  Travis sounds okay, but he didn’t really shine in any part of the song.  What more can I say?  Yeah, I’m not feeling this overall.

That’s Just The Way It Blurbs
– It’s about time we said goodbye to Old Town Road.  Lil Nas X does have some talent.  He just doesn’t show it in this song and everything else about it (including Billy’s verse) is mediocre all around.  So yeah.

– Well, we won’t see Camila get another huge hit heading into 2020 as Liar takes a big drop.  That one doesn’t look like it’ll be much longer with us.

– Ugh, why in the hell are we letting Hot Girl Bummer gain momentum???  We are looking for better music heading into next year and this isn’t what I want.  Again, his voice is obnoxious and the rest of the song sucks.  We don’t need it to become a much bigger hit.

– We do have Don’t Start Now moving upward.  Everything about this song is divine in every sense of the word.  It’s a nice comeback for Dua Lipa.  That’s the kind of song I want to see be successful in 2020.

– And then our #1.  Lizzo continues to ride the hot hand as she gets her second ever #1 on this countdown in the form of Good As Hell.  I think it better than Truth Hurts mostly because of the chorus and the production.  It’s nice to see her back at #1, this time with a different song.

Breakouts/On The Verge:

• I’m Lonely by Lauv featuring Anne-Marie
• Take What You Want by Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott
• Make It Right by BTS featuring Lauv
• Roxanne by Arizona Zervas

Extras/Optional Extras:

• Speechless by Dan + Shay
• Havana by Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug
• What Do You Mean? by Justin Bieber
• Close To Me by Ellie Goulding featuring Diplo and Swae Lee
• Higher Love by Kygo featuring Whitney Houston
• Good For You by Selena Gomez featuring A$AP Rocky
• Airplanes by B.o.B. featuring Hayley Williams
• Girls Like You by Maroon 5 featuring Cardi B
• Don’t Call Me Angel by Ariana Grande featuring Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey
• No Promises by Cheat Codes featuring Demi Lovato
• 7 Rings by Ariana Grande
• Rooting For You by Alessia Cara
• Ran$om by Lil Tecca
• Whatcha Say by Jason Derulo
• Love Lies by Khalid featuring Normani

Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Garbage:
20. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown
19. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi

1 – Bad:
18. Memories by Maroon 5

2 – Mediocre:
17. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber

3 – Decent:
16. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug
15. Time by NF
14. All The Good Girls Go To Hell by Billie Eilish
13. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith
12. Panini by Lil Nas X

4 – Good:
11. Circles by Post Malone

5 – Great:
10. Only Human by Jonas Brothers
9. Truth Hurts by Lizzo
8. 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber
7. Graveyard by Halsey
6. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello
5. Trampoline by SHAED
4. Good As Hell by Lizzo
3. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
2. Lover by Taylor Swift

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me

Total Score: 73/100 = 73% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: The Way It Is by Bruce Hornsby & The Range (1986)

Most Missed Song: Closer by The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey

#1 Recommendation For The American Top 40: No Good by Ally Brooke

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Breathin’ by Ariana Grande (#2)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez
2. Lover by Taylor Swift
3. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
4. Good As Hell by Lizzo
5. Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Hot Girl Bummer by Blackbear
2. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown
3. My Type by Saweetie
4. Writing On The Wall by French Montana featuring Post Malone, Cardi B, and Rvssian
5. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Close To Me by Ellie Goulding featuring Diplo and Swae Lee: While it doesn’t quite live up to Ellie’s best, it’s still a really good song all around.  She sounds divine as usual and Diplo did a fine job with his work here.

Hello, fam! So, we’ve finally reached the end of 2019. And with that comes the Year-End posts! During the month of December, I’ll be working on a series of Year-End posts that’ll cover several different topics. Because this year marks the end of the decade, I plan on doing the Decade-End posts as well. Those will be coming up later this month. But first, it is now time to do Year-End post #1!

The first post talks about my least favorite songs of 2019. Like every year, we have had plenty of good music. You’ll see some of my favorite songs as I countdown my Best Of The Year list. But there have also been plenty of putrid and downright terrible songs that I legitimately disliked for different reasons which I’ll talk about below. The list is primarily based on songs that made the Hits 1 Weekend Countdown and/or the American Top 40, both of which I review on a weekly basis. I’ll also talk about the ones that exclusively charted on the Billboard Hot 100, though that’ll be in another Year-End post. I will thoroughly describe as to why I legitimately disliked those songs.

Today, I’m going to talk about the songs that charted on Hits 1 and the American Top 40. I’ll begin with my dishonorable mentions. Those were songs that are bad, but weren’t able to make the final cut for my Bottom 10. This year, I’ll be going through my dishonorable mentions and I’ll explain why I dislike them. So with that in mind, I will now present to you my dishonorable mentions:

• 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier

Let’s kick things off with a band that has been around for much of the decade. These guys have made some songs that I enjoyed. But Easier is unfortunately not one of those songs. There’s no band here. Their vocal performance is mediocre and the rest of the song isn’t very interesting. But of course, it went to #1 because Hits 1 loves these guys. Yeah, I’m not a fan of this.

• AJR – 100 Bad Days
  

Speaking of acts in which Hits 1 seems to love, we have AJR here. They have not impressed me with what they’ve had to offer over the years. If you’ve read my blog back in 2018, then you probably know that Sober Up was my #1 least favorite song of that year. They also had Burn The House Down, which I’m not fond of either. Here, they give us 100 Bad Days. It’s really not that different compared to what they had before. The production isn’t too bad, but I don’t like their vocals and their songwriting is just horrible. I really don’t have anything else I can say beyond that. AJR are just not a good music group and this song gives me a reason to slowly step away.

• Alessia Cara – Trust My Lonely

Since Alessia made a breakthrough with Here back in 2015, she has made music that I loved, such as Scars To Your Beautiful, Growing Pains, and her contribution in Stay with Zedd. But Trust My Lonely is not one of those songs unfortunately. It’s really the weird production that kills the song for me. Alessia sounds okay, but she couldn’t really save the song from simply being mediocre at best. There are some questionable lyrics that I won’t get into right now. Overall, this is one of my least favorite singles from her so far. She can do better.

• Ally Brooke featuring Tyga – Low Key

Honestly, I expected more out of Ally Brooke when she made her solo debut. But overall, she did not meet my expectations with the song. Here, she sounds underwhelming in the chorus, and Tyga himself doesn’t make a good contribution either. I’m not feeling the lyrics and I don’t like the message that it sends. The production is okay, but for the most part it’s nothing special. I personally think she is a talented singer and she has shown me what she is capable of in songs like Higher and No Good. But here, she doesn’t show any of that. Yeah, this is just disappointing overall. Let’s move on.

• Ariana Grande featuring Social House – Boyfriend
  

Ariana has disappointed me this year with her latest music (save for a few songs that I won’t mention).  Boyfriend just shows how much she has evolved, and simply not for the better.  The beat is not very interesting.  Ariana barely showcases her vocal talent, and the members of Social House didn’t really contribute to anything.  I don’t like the lyrics here, either.  I think they send bad messages.  It’s one of the worst Ariana has had to offer.

• Benny Blanco featuring Tainy, Selena Gomez, and J. Balvin – I Can’t Get Enough

Since Benny Blanco impressed me with Eastside, his latest music hasn’t really been appealing to me. I Found You was pretty mediocre for the most part. Then, he gives us I Can’t Get Enough, which is easily one of the worst singles he’s released so far. Production-wise, it’s pretty obnoxious. I don’t like Benny’s work here and the beat sounds pretty bad. I don’t like the verses we get from either artist. Yeah, this is a mess. NEXT!

• Bryce Vine featuring YG – La La Land
  

It was around this time last year that Bryce Vine had his single titled Drew Barrymore.  I wasn’t a huge fan of that song.  La La Land is just as bad, if not worse than its predecessor.  His voice is not good whatsoever and YG does nothing to impress me.  What more can I say?  Overall, I’m not feeling this one.

• Chris Brown featuring Drake – No Guidance
  

I remember hearing this for the first time and I thought to myself, “this is not good”.  But of course, it ended up becoming a Top 10 hit for whatever reason still unbeknownst to me.  I don’t see the appeal to this song.  I think it’s pretty bad.  Chris sounds bad and he is drenched in auto-tune.  The beat is not interesting and I don’t like the lyrics here.  He didn’t really put forth the effort in his songwriting.  Drake makes a okay contribution here.  But even he couldn’t save the song from being mediocre at best.  So let’s move on.

• DJ Snake featuring Selena Gomez, Ozuna, and Cardi B – Taki Taki
  

I remember liking this song back when it was new and I thought it was pretty good. I honestly don’t know what the hell I was thinking. This is not EDM in the slightest. Neither artist sound good here and I don’t like the production. DJ Snake is so much better than this. I liked plenty of what he has to offer over the years. But this isn’t it.

• Halsey – Nightmare

It’s crazy just how much my opinion has changed since the song debuted. It’s pretty much the opposite of Without Me, which I kinda came around to unlike most people here. I really like Halsey and she’s a good singer in my opinion. She has made some stuff that I enjoyed. Nightmare is not one of them, unfortunately. She tried to go for something different when she released the song. But it just did not work out well to mine or anyone else’s liking. Here, she sounds so annoying with her yelling in the chorus. I’m not fond of the lyrical content here. The production is somewhat okay, but everything else brings it way down for me.  Halsey is capable of much better.  But this is terrible and I’m not so sure why I liked it at first.

• James Arthur – Empty Space

Unlike most YouTube critics and some in the blogging community, I never really hated Say You Won’t Let Go. I thought it was pretty decent for the most part. I liked the instrumentation and James sounded okay. But Empty Space is a different story. The song is not good overall. Here, his voice doesn’t sound good and the production is underwhelming. I like the lyrical content in this one, but that’s the only redeeming quality about the song. I may have kinda liked Say You Won’t Let Go, even though it didn’t stick with me in the long run. This one…not so much.

• Jonas Brothers – Cool

The Jonas Brothers have done a lot this year, what with their comeback single Sucker becoming their biggest hit of their career. But Cool was just not a good follow-up to its predecessor. Initially, I thought it was okay because I liked the guitar and their vocals were nice. But after a while, I started to realize just how mediocre the song truly is. Here, they’re bragging about being cool (hence the title) and what not. Personally, I think it sends a bad message. And Nick Jonas does not sound good here. These guys have made some good stuff. But this was not a good choice for a single.

• Kaskade featuring Meghan Trainor – With You

Unlike most people here, I think Meghan Trainor has made some good music. But I’m not very fond of this song. It sorta reminds me of I Wanna Know in a away, which didn’t stick with me. Kaskade is somewhat talented and he’s made some stuff I really like. But this was not a good display of talent. The drop is underwhelming and I don’t like the production work here. Meghan does not sound good at all here. Overall, it’s just not a good EDM song.

• Lil Tecca – Ran$om
  

Not much I can say about this song except it’s no good.   I don’t like Lil Tecca’s voice here.  The production and the beat are not very interesting at all.  The lyrics are pretty bad.  This is another in a long line of generic rap songs that are not very good.

• Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus – Old Town Road (Remix)

I’ll admit that I don’t really loathe this one that much as I did back when it was new, mostly because there were even worse songs that came along during the year and thus, it makes the song look better in comparison. It’s still not good though because I don’t like his voice and Billy Ray Cyrus doesn’t do anything to make it better. It does have some country elements, but it was poorly executed as it has a trap beat. It’s sad that this was the song to break the record for most weeks at #1.

• LSD featuring Lil Wayne – Genius (Remix)

LSD consists of a collaboration between three different artists (Labrinth, Sia, and Diplo).  It may be interesting on paper.  But when I heard their music, I was not impressed at all.  Thunderclouds was one of my least favorite songs of last year.  Genius isn’t quite as bad, but it’s still underwhelming and not very good as a whole.  I don’t like Lil Wayne’s verse and the rest of the song is not interesting to me.  Nothing about it really stands out.  So yeah, I’m not fond of this.  NEXT!

• Madison Beer featuring Offset – Hurts Like Hell

Last year, Madison Beer gave us Home With You. Even though it wasn’t anything special, I liked that song for the most part and I included it in my Honorable mentions for 2018. Hurts Like Hell is just bad in and of itself. Madison does not sound good in the chorus and the production is not interesting whatsoever. Offset hardly adds anything to the song. Overall, this is just bad. I want something more along the lines of Home With You, not this.

• Post Malone – Wow.

I’ve warmed up to Post Malone since last year and I think he is talented for the most part. Unfortunately, Wow. is not a good example of that. His voice sounds good here, but the production here is just underwhelming and virtually non-existent. That’s all I have to say about this one. While it’s better than Rockstar and Psycho, it’s not something I can get into. Sorry.

• Push Baby – Mama’s House
  

Formerly known as Rixton. I remember when they had Me And My Broken Heart and I loathed that one with a burning passion, mostly because it comes off as pissy. Mama’s House really isn’t any better. I’m not huge on their vocals and the lyrics are no good. I don’t have much else I can say beyond that.

• Taylor Swift – You Need To Calm Down
  

I’ve been a big fan of Taylor Swift for a while and Lover was a good album. But this was not a good single choice in my opinion. I get the message that it was going for. But it just didn’t work out for me from a vocal standpoint. The chorus is pretty irritating and not very pleasant to my ears, and the beat has no substance. Yeah, I’m not a fan of this. Taylor has had much better.

• Travis Scott featuring Drake – Sicko Mode

Surprise! You guys thought I was including this in My Bottom 10? Well, here’s the thing: there were worse songs that came along during the year and thus, it barely missed the cut. But that still doesn’t excuse the fact that this is just terrible in every way. The introduction makes me cringe and I knew from the very beginning that this would not be a pleasant listen. Sure enough, I was proven to be right. Not helping matters is the beat switch. And while the rest of the production isn’t as bad as the intro, the brittle trap beat is very unpleasant. Neither artist sound good in the song. And no, I don’t loathe the song because I don’t have faith in the rap genre. I loathe the song because it is a mess. I’ll never get the appeal to this whatsoever.

And that’ll do it for my dishonorable mentions. Those songs were bad, but they were not able to make the Bottom 10.  I can understand the appeal to some of these.  But for the most part, I just couldn’t get into them.  With that in mind, I am ready to present to you my Bottom 10 Songs Of 2019!  Let’s get on with it!

10. Ariana Grande – Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored
Thank U, Next was a very disappointing album in my eyes and it’s sad because I adore Ariana Grande. Her latest music has not been very appealing to me this year. Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored is one of those songs that I legitimately disliked. I guess Ariana sounds good in the song. But I loathe the lyrical content in the song and the message that it sends. I also dislike the production and the use of the trap skitters are annoying. So yeah, this is not good and I hope to never suffer through this again.

9. Ed Sheeran featuring Chance The Rapper and PnB Rock – Cross Me
On the note of other artists who’ve disappointed me this year, we have Ed Sheeran. You’re talking about a guy who has had a big year in 2017, what with Shape Of You being massive and his other singles from Divide following suit. This year, he gave us a new album in the form of No. 6 Collaborations Project. I don’t exactly loathe the album unlike some people. I was just a little indifferent towards the album. There’s some good stuff for sure. But there’s also some putrid songs, such as Cross Me. It just doesn’t really fit Ed Sheeran very well. I don’t really like the production and Chance The Rapper and Pnb Rock did nothing to impress me with their verses. This is the worst Ed has had to offer from his album.

8. Gesafflestein featuring The Weeknd – Lost In The Fire
I know it may seem like I did a complete 180 on this. But I just listened to it for the first time in a while and I did not like it at all. I enjoyed a lot of what The Weeknd has had to offer over the years. Songs such as The Hills, Can’t Feel My Face, In The Night, Starboy, and Pray For Me were some of my favorites from him. But hearing this again, it actually put me in the shoes of those who were not very fond of it at first in large part because of the content it contains. Gesafflestein’s work is no good. He didn’t really impress me here. In addition, the lyrics really bring the song down for me. I find them very cringe-worthy and there’s virtually no depth. It’s supposed to be a diss track aimed at Drake. But it was poorly executed in almost every way possible. Yeah, this is just shit and I don’t know what in the nine hells I was thinking when I liked it before. Sigh. I hate being negative towards The Weeknd, especially since he’s done a lot to impress me over the years. But as a music critic, I have to be honest.

7. Lauv featuring Troye Sivan – I’m So Tired…
This song reminds me of why I’m not sold on Lauv overall. I’ll say that it is better than I Like Me Better, which was also one of my least favorite songs of last year and even me saying this is a step up isn’t saying much. First off, Lauv’s voice is drenched in auto-tune. I can’t think of single part where he sounds good in the song. The production is asinine and I don’t like the beat here. I originally thought Troye made a decent contribution. But hearing this again, I find that he adds virtually nothing to the song whatsoever. Yeah, this is just an unfinished product that is bad on so many levels. NEXT!

6. Jordan McGraw – Flexible
A.K.A. the son of Dr. Phil. I remember not caring for this one very much. But this has only gotten worse every time I heard it. Yeah, everything about this song is a mess. The lyrics to the song make me cringe. I feel like he should’ve taken a different approach because it is poorly-written all around. Production is obnoxious as well, especially after the chorus which I find to be extremely underwhelming in large part because his voice is DRENCHED in auto-tune. Jordan does not sound good in any other part in the song. I can’t think of anyone at this moment that sounds worse than Jordan McGraw. His falsetto is grating. This is insufferable and thus, it’s something I’ll never come back to again. NEXT!

5. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right
It’s pretty damn sad to see just how low Marshmello has gone lately. I remember when he collaborated with Selena Gomez in Wolves and I ranked it as my #2 best song of 2018. But then, he gave us the huge mess that was of Friends with Anne-Marie. Ever since then, things really went downhill for him. The quality of his music has been slowly degrading and almost every single release has been shit. Now we have One Thing Right. I initially found it to be just underwhelming as fuck and it has only gotten worse with each and every additional listen. I’ll make this plain and simple: this is NOT EDM in the slightest. This is LAZINESS! He did not put forth any effort in producing the song whatsoever. There’s not a single aspect in this song in which he has impressed me. It just shows how much he has evolved for the worse.  I had high hopes for Kane Brown since he’s a good country singer.  But he sounds like shit throughout the song.  And him being drowned in auto-tune just makes matters worse.  And then there’s the asinine lyrics, which talks about a woman being with a guy that does all the wrong things.  Simply put, this is just a mess and it’s another new low for Marshmello.  I was rooting for him following the success of Wolves.  Now, I’m not so sure anymore.

4. Imagine Dragons – Machine
Kudos to fellow blogger Adrian for accurately describing my thoughts on the song when it debuted on the Hits 1 Weekend Countdown at the beginning of this year. It was around this time last year that Imagine Dragons gave us a follow-up to Evolve, by the name of Origins. That album was not very outside of a few songs. Machine is easily my least favorite single off of the album and my least favorite single from these guys. I knew from the very beginning that it turn out to not be a good song and sure enough, I was proven right. Dan Reynolds sounds good yelling in certain songs. But here, he sounds so obnoxious with the yelling and I can’t stand it. The guitar is woefully out of place. They attempted to make a rock song out of it. But it was badly executed as Dan’s obnoxious yelling and putrid instrumentation made this not a fun listen. Simply put, this song is a mess and I’m extremely disappointed to have to say that about Imagine Dragons. And to think this is the same band that made songs such as Radioactive, Demons, and On Top Of The World. Compare this to their older singles and this just makes you wonder, “what happened?”.

3. MAX featuring Quinn XCII – Love Me Less
What in the hell is this??? I remember first hearing the song when it debuted on the Weekend Countdown and I didn’t exactly cared for it at first. But it has gotten worse with each and every additional listen. But the fact that it overstayed its welcome on the countdown for way too damn long really pissed me off. Simply put, this song is TRASH. MAX sounds terrible here. I know he has potential of being good, but boy he did not put on a good performance here. His verses have no momentum and the lyrics are terrible.  That, coupled with the production that just blows in more ways than one makes this unbearable.  And don’t even get me started on Quinn XCII’s verse.  It is just GRATING in every sense of the word.  Even though I didn’t liked his predecessor, Lights Down Low back in 2017, at least I kinda saw the appeal to the song.  This is just complete and utter shit.  What even pisses me off more is how overplayed it was.  I’ll never understand the appeal to this whatsoever.

2. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved
I really did not want to hate this song. I tried my best not to hate it because I actually found it okay at first. But it has slowly been getting worse with each and every additional listen and as it continued to gain momentum, it just made it harder and harder until I absolutely couldn’t take it anymore. I’m usually a sucker for piano ballads. So naturally, I have high expectations for these kind of songs. But a good piano ballad requires a decent singer and this one certainly does not. Simply put, Lewis’s voice is terrible. He sounds okay in the first verse. But then it all goes to absolute shit when we get to the chorus. My goodness, does he sound awful there. I legitimately cannot stand it. And not helping matters is that there’s a severe lack of lyrical depth.  Despite me not including this in My Bottom 5 picks every week, it is still a putrid song in almost every way.  Lewis attempted to make a good first impression and the end result was a disaster of a song both in terms of the vocals and the lyrics.  But of course, this was a #1 hit, which shows just how shitty the quality of music has gone.  Hopefully, if Lewis comes with more music in the near future, it’ll be a lot better than this.

1. Ariana Grande – 7 Rings
Every time I hear this song (because trust me, it was not pleasant), I sit here every day and think to myself, “what the hell happened to Ariana Grande?” I really like her ever since she made a breakthrough with Problem. Almost every single she has released up to this point has impressed me. In fact, I recently counted down My Top 10 favorite songs from her back in the summer Love Me Harder and Into You were huge favorites of mine back then and they’re probably one of my favorite songs I’ve heard from Ariana. I fell in love with those songs. But unfortunately, 7 Rings is a much different story. I listened to it for the very first time and I was simply not impressed in the slightest. But of course, this ended up becoming a #1 song because of her overexposure. This song really tested my patience for most of the year and it was absolutely unbearable. Ariana’s attempt at rapping sucks. She’s basically bragging about her material stuff and all that other shit. That, combined with the shitty trap beat and how it poorly interpolates The Sound Of Music just makes this not a fun listen at all. Whatever the hell she was going for did not work out to mine or anyone else’s liking. But what’s even more astounding is just how big it got. She is so much better than this. I’ve had enough of this song. It’s overrated and the worst thing she’s ever put out all fucking year.

Okay, so that’ll do it. What you’ve just read was me tearing apart my least favorite songs of the year. I hope everyone here enjoyed reading this list. But my work is far from done! There will be more Year-End posts in the weeks or even days to come. So, stay tuned! I hope everyone here has a good week as we approach the new decade! Thank you all for reading! Have a good day! 🙂

Hello, fam! So, here’s the Thanksgiving Edition of the Hits 1 Weekend Countdown post.  Not a whole lot of interesting things really happened this week.  But we did get the return of a certain act while he replaces a song that’s been here for what seems like forever.  I’ll have more on it later in the post.  It’s almost time for me to do Year-End posts.  I’m halfway through with one of them.  It should be ready within the next week or so.  Before we get to this week’s fresh 45, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• Panic! At The Disco – Hey Look Ma, I Made It (#35) [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth
45. Jonas Brothers – Cool (#43) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
44. Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber – I Don’t Care (#45) [+1]
43. Halsey – Nightmare (#42) [–1]
42. AJR – Dear Winter (#36) [–6]
41. Tones & I – Dance Monkey (#41) [=]
40. Fall Out Boy featuring Wyclef Jean – Dear Future Self (Hands Up) (#40) [=]
39. Liam Payne featuring A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie – Stack It Up (#23) [–16]
38. Billie Eilish – All The Good Girls Go To Hell (#38) [=]
37. Harry Styles – Lights Up (DEBUT)
36. Kygo featuring Whitney Houston – Higher Love (#37) [+1]
35. Alec Benjamin – If We Have Each Other (#34) [–1]
34. Camila Cabello – Liar (#33) [–1]
33. Jonas Brothers – Sucker (#25) [–8] [Spent 13 Weeks At #1]
32. Kesha featuring Big Freedia – Raising Hell (#31) [–1]
31. Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely (#29) [–2]
30. The Chainsmokers featuring Bebe Rexha – Call You Mine (#28) [–2]
29. Louis Tomlinson – We Made It (#39) [+10]
28. Taylor Swift – You Need To Calm Down (#26) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
27. PUBLIC – Make You Mine (#30) [+3]
26. Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello – Señorita (#27) [+1]
25. NF – Time (#44) [+19]
24. Selena Gomez – Look At Her Now (#22) [–2]
23. Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers – Lonely (#32) [+9]
22. SHAED – Trampoline (#24) [+2]
21. Why Don’t We – What Am I (#18) [–3]
20. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right (#21) [+1]
19. Shawn Mendes – If I Can’t Have You (#20) [+1] [Spent 9 Weeks At #1]
18. Maroon 5 – Memories (#16) [–2]
17. Lizzo – Truth Hurts (#17) [=]
16. Charlie Puth – Mother (#15) [–1]
15. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me (#14) [–1]
14. TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – The Hype (#19) [+5]
13. Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber – 10,000 Hours (#12) [–1]
12. The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer – Who Do You Love (#11) [–1] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
11. Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep? (#13) [+2]
10. Halsey – Graveyard (#3) [–7]
9. Taylor Swift – Lover (#10) [+1]
8. Jonas Brothers – Only Human (#8) [=] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
7. Post Malone – Circles (#4) [–3]
6. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth (#1) [–5] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
5. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People (#5) [=] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
4. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier (#6) [+2] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
3. Lizzo – Good As Hell (#9) [+6]
2. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya (#2) [=]
1. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved (#7) [+6] [3^rd Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Panic! At The Disco – High Hopes (8^th And Final Week At #1)

Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: Liam Payne featuring A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie – Stack It Up (–16)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: NF – Time (+19)

New Entrants:
– Within the past month, we’ve saw the return of One Direction, one-by-one.  First off, it was Niall Horan who made his comeback with Nice To Meet Ya.  Second, Liam Payne began to stack things up with…well, Stack It Up.  Then Louis Tomlinson finally made it back to the countdown with We Made It after songs such as Two Of Us and Kill My Mind were both stranded on Hit-Bound. And now, we get the comeback single from Harry Styles after almost two years, titled Lights Up.  The only person that’s missing now is ZAYN, who was also a member of One Direction.  But it doesn’t look like we’ll get new music from him anytime soon.  I guess he didn’t realize that his band members were making their comeback this year.  I wonder what was his reasoning?  We’ll probably never know for sure.  Anyway, onto Harry Styles.  Now a few years after One Direction went on hiatus as a band, each of the band members have been putting out solo music.  I thought Harry Styles had the most impressive debut out of all them, what with him deciding to go for glam rock of the 70’s & 80’s.  Sign Of The Times was a huge favorite of mine and the rest of his self-titled album was pretty damn solid.  So naturally, I would expect him to take the same approach for his new album.  But after hearing Lights Up, it doesn’t appear to be the case.  I wasn’t exactly fond of this at the first listen, but I’ve came around to it with time.  Although a good song, it’s nothing compared to what he had before.  Harry put on a fine vocal performance here, and the instrumentation is…pretty decent to say the least.  My concern, however, is there’s not much in terms of the lyrical depth.  I feel like more could’ve been done in that aspect.  I’m sold on this for the most part.  Do I see myself revisiting the song in the future?  Not exactly.  He’s had better.  But I’m interested to see what else he brings for his new album.

All The Blurbs Couldn’t Put Out The Dark
– I’ll begin with our one exit.  Hey Look Ma, I Made It, one of the longest-tenured song in the history of the Hits 1 Weekend Countdown, is officially no more.  With that, we do not have a song from Panic! At The Disco on the countdown for the very first in what feels like forever.  It seemed like yesterday that Brendon Urie and company had three songs in the countdown.  They were riding high with High Hopes this time last year.  Little did we know that it would go on to become a huge hit, surpassing the peak I Write Sins, Not Tragedies reached from a decade ago, which if I’m correct was #7.  These guys had a great run while it lasted.  Farewell, Hey Look Ma, I Made It.  It’s been real.

– Before introducing Señorita, Spyder Harrison mentioned that Harry Styles pronounced Shawn Mendes’s name wrong while on SNL doing a skit.  And believe it or  not, Shawn himself is okay with it.  I’m glad he’s not that type of guy, because not everyone can get his name right.  Heck, nobody gets my name right the first time, and I’m cool with that too.

– Time ends up making a massive comeback as it jumps big to #25 this week.  I’m not exactly sure how I feel about this because I’m starting to lose interest in the song.  I don’t know how much longer it’ll stick with me.  But I can’t picture myself disliking this in the future.

– Well, this didn’t last long.  Graveyard is right back to square one after hitting #3 last week.  This look destined to be #1 after last week.  I guess it’s wasn’t meant to be.

– But in its place, Good As Hell rose to #3.  Hits 1 is showing Lizzo a lot of love here.  I wonder does this have a potential to be #1 anytime soon?  Let us hope!

– And then we get to our #1, ugh.  Someone You Loved has no business being at #1.  That’s certainly not something to be thankful for.  I’ll take any other song in the Top 10 (sans Easier) over this any day.

Hit-Bound:

• Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat
• Panic! At The Disco – Into The Unknown
• Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want
• Arizona Zervas – Roxanne
• OneRepublic – Wanted
• Harry Styles – Watermelon Sugar (DEBUT)
• Lewis Capaldi – Hold Me While You Wait
• Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
• Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted
• Ed Sheeran featuring Camila Cabello and Cardi B – South Of The Border
• Meghan Trainor featuring Mike Sabath – Wave
• The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck
• Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan
• Hot Chelle Rae – I Hate (Love) LA
• Lil Nas X – Panini

Entrant Reviews:
– Well, whaddya know?  Harry Styles has another new single making its way to Hit-Bound, this time with Watermelon Sugar.  So, right off the bat, I don’t really find it interesting.  His voice is okay, but I think the production lacks some kind of substance.  Then again, that was my initial reaction when Lights Up first came around.  It might grow on me.  We’ll see.

Hit-Bound Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
15. Meghan Trainor featuring Mike Sabath – Wave
14. Arizona Zervas – Roxanne

1 – Bad:
None!

2 – Mediocre:
None

3 – Decent:
13. Lewis Capaldi – Hold Me While You Wait
12. OneRepublic – Wanted
11. Harry Styles – Watermelon Sugar
10. Lil Nas X – Panini

4 – Good:
9. Ed Sheeran featuring Camila Cabello and Cardi B – South Of The Border

5 – Great:
8. Hot Chelle Rae – I Hate (Love) LA
7. Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat
6. Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan
5. The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck
4. Panic! At The Disco – Into The Unknown
3. Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted
2. Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On Hit-Bound:
1. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now

Overall Grade: 57/75 = 76% (B)

Most Missed Hit-Bound Dropout: Alesso featuring Nico & Vinz – I Wanna Know

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks
1. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
2. Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want
3. Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted
4. Panic! At The Disco – Into The Unknown
5. The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck

Hits 1 Weekend Countdown Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
20. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right
19. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier

1 – Bad:
18. Maroon 5 – Memories
17. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved
16. The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer – Who Do You Love

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
15. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth
14. Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep?

4 – Good:
None!

5 – Great:
13. Post Malone – Circles
12. Jonas Brothers – Only Human
11. Lizzo – Truth Hurts
10. Halsey – Graveyard
9. Charlie Puth – Mother
8. TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – The Hype
7. Lizzo – Good As Hell
6. Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber – 10,000 Hours
5. Shawn Mendes – If I Can’t Have You
4. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya
3. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People
2. Taylor Swift – Lover

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me

Overall Grade: 75/100 = 75% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Coldplay – Clocks (2003)

Most Missed Countdown Song: Demi Lovato – Confident

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Ally Brooke – No Good

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Dan + Shay – Tequila (#11)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me
2. Taylor Swift – Lover
3. SHAED – Trampoline
4. Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello – Señorita
5. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right
2. Jonas Brothers – Cool
3. Halsey – Nightmare
4. AJR – Dear Winter
5. Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Lauv featuring Julia Michaels – There’s No Way: I know I disliked this back when it was new.  But after it left the countdown, I’ve kinda came around to it.  This is probably the only decent song Lauv has put out.  Although I can’t really get behind the vocals, the production and the lyrics make up for that.

Little Mix featuring Nicki Minaj – Woman Like Me: This is quite an interesting collaboration in my book.  Sure, I much prefer Black Magic.  But everything about this just works out well.  Between good vocal chemistry and the cool reggae vibe, this exceeds on almost every level one can think of.

David Guetta featuring Anne-Marie – Don’t Leave Me Alone: It’s nowhere close to David Guetta’s best.  He’s had better, but I do like how he sticks to his roots and not sell out like some other EDM acts.  Anne-Marie put on a good vocal performance here.  It’s one of the better performances she has had since Rockabye.

Ariana Grande – Thank U, Next: This one kinda came out of nowhere while Breathin’ was still gaining momentum. Although disliked by some here, it’s definitely something I can get behind.  It’s catchy in a way and I like Ariana’s voice.

Hello, fam!  Welcome to the Thanksgiving Weekend edition of the American Top 40.  So as I mentioned before, I plan on hopefully doing reveals for my 2012 Billboard Year-End Rankdown sometime within the next week or so.  While I’m at it, I’ll be focusing on my Year-End posts.  You’ll likely see those soon.  Before we get to this week’s fresh 40, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• Don’t Call Me Angel by Ariana Grande featuring Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey (#25)
• Ran$om by Lil Tecca (#29)
• Rooting For You by Alessia Cara (#35)
• Higher Love by Kygo featuring Whitney Houston (#39)

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Circles by Post Malone
40. Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (#40) [=]
39. Writing On The Wall by French Montana featuring Post Malone, Cardi B, and Rvssian (DEBUT)
38. Wow. by Post Malone (#37) [–1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
37. Teeth by 5 Seconds Of Summer (#38) [+1]
36. Hot Girl Bummer by Blackbear (DEBUT)
35. Hey Look Ma, I Made It by Panic! At The Disco (#34) [–1]
34. Raising Hell by Kesha featuring Big Freedia (DEBUT)
33. Slow Dance by AJ Mitchell featuring Ava Max (#36) [+3]
32. Sucker by Jonas Brothers (#32) [=] [Spent 8 Weeks At #1]
31. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers (#33) [+2]
30. Dancing With A Stranger by Sam Smith featuring Normani (#28) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
29. My Type by Saweetie (#31) [+2]
28. Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa (DEBUT)
27. What Am I by Why Don’t We (#27) [=]
26. If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes (#26) [=]
25. Dance Monkey by Tones & I (#30) [+5]
24. Talk by Khalid (#22) [–2] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
23. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan (#24) [+1]
22. All The Good Girls Go To Hell by Billie Eilish (#23) [+1]
21. Lover by Taylor Swift (#20) [–1]
20. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish (#15) [–5] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
19. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown (#21) [+2]
18. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug (#13) [–5]
17. Graveyard by Halsey (#17) [=]
16. Liar by Camila Cabello (#16) [=]
15. 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber (#19) [+4]
14. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber (#11) [–3] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
13. Panini by Lil Nas X (#14) [+1]
12. Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez (#18) [+6]
11. Time by NF (#12) [+1]
10. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith (#9) [–1]
9. Memories by Maroon 5 (#10) [+1]
8. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello (#7) [–1] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
7. Trampoline by SHAED (#8) [+1]
6. Truth Hurts by Lizzo (#4) [–2] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
5. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid (#5) [=]
4. Only Human by Jonas Brothers (#3) [–1]
3. Good As Hell by Lizzo (#6) [+3]
2. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi (#2) [=] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
1. Circles by Post Malone (#1) [=] [2^nd Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Happier by Marshmello featuring BΔSTILLE (1^st of 5 Weeks At #1)

Biggest Fall Of The Week: Tie between Bad Guy by Billie Eilish and Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug (–5)

Biggest Rise Of The Week: Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez (+6)

New Entrants:
– We have a new round of arrivals on this Thanksgiving weekend.  Let’s begin with the return of French Montana.  He is collaborating with Cardi B, Post Malone, and Ryssian in their new single titled Writing On The Wall.  A couple years back, he gave us Unforgettable and I fell in love with that song.  But his latest single is a much different story.  I’m not exactly sure what he’s going for here because everything about the song just doesn’t work out to my liking.  The production is no good here.  French Montana doesn’t put on a good vocal performance and none of the artists made a good contribution here.  There’s no charisma whatsoever.  So yeah, this is a huge misfire and such a waste of French Montana’s talent.  NEXT!

– So, who remembers Blackbear?  Anyone?  No?  Well, he makes his comeback this week with my new least favorite song on the countdown.  It’s titled Hot Girl Bummer.  I remember when he gave us Do Re Mi back in 2017, which I legitimately disliked with a burning passion.  But dear Odin, Hot Girl Bummer is even worse.  Blackbear sounds like absolute shit from the very first line all the way to the end, and everything from a production standpoint is weak as hell.  It’s like he didn’t put forth any effort in trying to work on the song.  And don’t even get me started on the lyrics, because they’re just unbearable.  Who would’ve thought it was a good idea to try and attempt what Megan Thee Stallion did?  Her cut is much better than what Blackbear is trying to offer.  This is just a horrific song that fails on any level you can think of.  NEXT!

– Now onto the good stuff.  We have the return of Kesha, and she give us her comeback single in the form of Raising Hell, which is from her new album High Road.  It was around this time back in 2017 when she made her comeback with Praying. Those who have been following my blog from the beginning should know that I fell madly in love with the song and it was ranked as my #1 favorite song of 2017.  Her last album Rainbow was just divine on all levels.  I loved songs such as Learn To Let Go, Woman, and some other singles I won’t mention.  As far as Raising Hell goes, I’m in love with this one as well.  It looks like she’s taking the approach of going back to her fun, party days.  I wasn’t huge on the drop at first, but now I’ve come around to it.  The rest of the production works well here and I like Kesha’s voice as usual.  Yeah, this is pretty divine and I’m interested to see what she has in store for her new album.

– Finally, with the highest debut of the week, we get the return of Dua Lipa!  She gives us her brand new single titled Don’t Start Now.  She had a big year in 2018 with the success of New Rules, which was a 4-time #1 song on the American Top 40 and would eventually go on to be the #1 of the year on last year’s Year-End countdown.  Hearing this new single of hers…look, this isn’t quite what I was expecting from her.  New Rules had a tropical vibe that fits well with Dua’s voice, which I thought sounded good.  But here, she’s taking a different approach, and I was genuinely impressed with the way it turned out.  I really like the groove here and the rest of the production works well to perfection.  Dua put on a fine vocal performance.  She has shown that she is one of the best pop singers in my opinion.  I’m also fond of the lyrics as well.  Yeah, this is an upbeat song that makes me want to dance.  Dua made an impressive comeback with this single and I hope it does well.

Best Debut Of The Week: Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa

Don’t Blurb Now
– We’ll begin with our exits.  First off, Don’t Call Me Angel was pretty good and probably one of the best Ariana has put out this year.  Ran$om was no good and it should’ve never debuted.  Rooting For You was okay, but it was nowhere near Alessia Cara’s best.  Higher Love was an amazing song and it’s a shame that it didn’t get treated as such.  I’m pretty sad that Kygo will forever be a one-hit wonder with It Ain’t Me.

– Not much action as far as the Top 10 goes.  But we get get Good As Hell entering the Top 5 at #3.  I’m pretty sure that one will end up being #1 in the near future and I’ll be cool with it since it’s a really good song.  Lizzo will likely continue to ride her wave in popularity heading into next year.

– Before introducing Bad Guy, Ryan Seacrest mentioned that it took a bunch of takes to be able to get the word “duh”, to sound right.  I’ll bet Billie had a lot of practice working on her vocal technique.  I’m glad it turned out okay.

– Taylor Swift has recently released a remix to Lover, which features Shawn Mendes.  I think he adds quite a bit to the song and I like how they blend together in the chorus.  It’s pretty good, but I much prefer the solo version.

Breakouts/On The Verge:
I’m Lonely by Lauv featuring Anne-Marie
Take What You Want by Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott
Make It Right by BTS featuring Lauv
Highest In The Room by Travis Scott

Extras/Optional Extras:
God Is A Woman by Ariana Grande
Closer by The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey
What Lovers Do by Maroon 5 featuring SZA
In My Blood by Shawn Mendes
Give Me Everything by Pitbull featuring Ne-Yo and Afrojack
Bad Things by Machine Gun Kelly featuring Camila Cabello
Whatever It Takes by Imagine Dragons
I Like Me Better by Lauv
No Guidance by Chris Brown featuring Drake
Heathens by TWENTY ØNE PILØTS
Happier by Marshmello featuring BΔSTILLE
Good Things Fall Apart by ILLENIUM featuring Jon Bellion
Motivation by Normani

Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Garbage:
20. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown

1 – Bad:
19. Memories by Maroon 5
18. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi

2 – Mediocre:
17. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber

3 – Decent:
16. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug
15. Time by NF
14. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith
13. Liar by Camila Cabello
12. Panini by Lil Nas X

4 – Good:
None!

5 – Great:
11. Only Human by Jonas Brothers
10. Circles by Post Malone
9. Truth Hurts by Lizzo
8. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish
7. Graveyard by Halsey
6. 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber
5. Good As Hell by Lizzo
4. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello
3. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
2. Trampoline by SHAED

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me

Total Score: 75/100 = 75% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Clocks by Coldplay (2003)

Most Missed Song: Mirrors by Justin Timberlake

#1 Recommendation For The American Top 40: Tie between Lovers Never Die by Céline Dion and No Good by Ally Brooke

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Breathin’ by Ariana Grande (#7)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez
2. Lover by Taylor Swift
3. Trampoline by SHAED
4. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
5. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Hot Girl Bummer by Blackbear
2. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown
3. My Type by Saweetie
4. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers
5. Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Thank U, Next by Ariana Grande: This came out of nowhere last year, and though I liked it to an extent, it’s probably the weakest lead single she has put out.

Taki Taki by DJ Snake featuring Selena Gomez, Ozuna, and Cardi B: I’m not sure what I was thinking when I said I liked it at first.  Everything about it is no good.  The production is underwhelming and I don’t like the verses very much.  It’s the worst thing DJ Snake has released in my opinion.  That’s really all I have to say about this one for now.

Hello, fam! Just an update on what’s going on with my 2012 Billboard Year-End Rankdown.  Work has been really busy for me lately, which is why I haven’t started doing reveals yet.  Hopefully within the next week or so, I can be able to get started on those.  No promises, though.  We’ll just have to see what happens throughout next week.  Before we get to this week’s fresh 40, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• OneRepublic – Rescue Me (#21)
• Thomas Rhett – Look What God Gave Her (#23)
• Billie Eilish – Bad Guy (#45)

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth
45. Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber – I Don’t Care (#44) [–1]
44. NF – Time (#43) [–1]
43. Jonas Brothers – Cool (#41) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
42. Halsey – Nightmare (#42) [=]
41. Tones & I – Dance Monkey (#40) [–1]
40. Fall Out Boy featuring Wyclef Jean – Dear Future Self (Hands Up) (#39) [–1]
39. Louis Tomlinson – We Made It (#35) [–4]
38. Billie Eilish – All The Good Girls Go To Hell (DEBUT)
37. Kygo featuring Whitney Houston – Higher Love (#38) [+1]
36. AJR – Dear Winter (#31) [–5]
35. Panic! At The Disco – Hey Look Ma, I Made It (#32) [–3] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
34. Alec Benjamin – If We Have Each Other (#29) [–5]
33. Camila Cabello – Liar (#34) [+1]
32. Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers – Lonely (DEBUT)
31. Kesha featuring Big Freedia – Raising Hell (#36) [+5]
30. PUBLIC – Make You Mine (#37) [+7]
29. Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely (#33) [+4]
28. The Chainsmokers featuring Bebe Rexha – Call You Mine (#26) [–2]
27. Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello – Señorita (#27) [=]
26. Taylor Swift – You Need To Calm Down (#25) [–1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
25. Jonas Brothers – Sucker (#22) [–3] [Spent 13 Weeks At #1]
24. SHAED – Trampoline (#28) [+4]
23. Liam Payne featuring A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie – Stack It Up (#24) [+1]
22. Selena Gomez – Look At Her Now (#30) [+8]
21. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right (DEBUT)
20. Shawn Mendes – If I Can’t Have You (#20) [=] [Spent 9 Weeks At #1]
19. TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – The Hype (#18) [–1]
18. Why Don’t We – What Am I (#19) [+1]
17. Lizzo – Truth Hurts (#15) [–2]
16. Maroon 5 – Memories (#16) [=]
15. Charlie Puth – Mother (#17) [+2]
14. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me (#14) [=]
13. Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep? (#12) [–1]
12. Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber – 10,000 Hours (#13) [+1]
11. The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer – Who Do You Love (#9) [–2] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
10. Taylor Swift – Lover (#10) [=]
9. Lizzo – Good As Hell (#7) [–2]
8. Jonas Brothers – Only Human (#11) [+3] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
7. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved (#3) [–4] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
6. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier (#5) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
5. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People (#6) [+1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
4. Post Malone – Circles (#2) [–2]
3. Halsey – Graveyard (#8) [+5]
2. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya (#4) [+2]
1. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth (#1) [=] [2^nd Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: 5 Seconds Of Summer – Youngblood (4^th of 5 Weeks At #1)

Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: Tie between AJR – Dear Winter and Alec Benjamin – If We Have Each Other (–5)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Selena Gomez – Look At Her Now (+8)

New Entrants:
– Not a good class of debuts we have here.  Let’s start things off with more of Billie Eilish, who replaces herself on the countdown.  She gives us All The Good Girls Go To Hell.  Billie has made herself known this year following the success of her album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?.  One of the songs from that album, Bad Guy, recently went to #1 back in August dethroning Old Town Road, which spent a record-breaking 19 weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.  I’ve been a big fan of what she has to offer throughout the course of the year.  I liked songs such as Bury A Friend, When The Party’s Over, and Bad Guy.  But I can’t really say that for All The Good Girls Go To Hell.  I think Billie sounds okay here.  But in terms of the production, it lacks some kind of substance that her other singles had.  The beat isn’t too interesting.  In addition, there are some lyrics that I can’t seem to get on board with.  So yeah, this isn’t my cup of tea.  But in a week with a weak class of debuts, I’ll take it over any of those two songs debuting.  She recently released her newer single which debuted on Hit-Bound, and I’ll get to that later on.

– Up next, we have more of Diplo, and he collaborates with the Jonas Brothers in their latest single titled Lonely.  Diplo has made himself a name for the past several years and I liked a lot of what he had to offer (save for his time with LSD).  I still think he’s pretty good as an EDM artist.  But this was not a good display of talent here.  I kinda like the guitar at the beginning.  But then it all goes downhill when the drop comes in.  The Jonas Brothers are pretty good singers for the most part.  But they did not impress me with their vocal performance.  So yeah, I’m not a fan of the song.  These guys are capable of much better.

– Oh boy.  Last and definitely least, we have more of Marshmello, and he teams up with country singer Kane Brown in One Thing Right.  I haven’t really been a big fan of what Marshmello has had to offer recently (save for a few songs).  One Thing Right is another new low for him.  He didn’t put forth any effort in terms of the production.  The guitar isn’t good at all and the drop is underwhelming.  Kane Brown is a good country singer.  But he sounds terrible throughout the song and the bridge is awful.  I talked about this in full detail when it debuted on the AT40 a few months ago.  You can check it out in case you haven’t already.  But to put it short, this is my new least favorite song on the countdown and it just shows how much faith I’ve lost in Marshmello.  I know he is much more talented than this.

Best Debut Of The Week: Billie Eilish – All The Good Girls Go To Hell

I’ve Got One Blurb Right
– So, we have three exits; two of which left from a relatively high position, and one which lasted as long as it did.  Rescue Me and Look What God Gave Her both had a nice run, and I liked those songs for a while.  But I knew their respective tenures would come to an end eventually.  I just didn’t quite expect it to happen so soon.  Bad Guy was another one of Billie Eilish’s songs that I fell in love with and I’m glad it was a huge hit.  I’ll definitely be revisiting the song when it comes time to do my Year-End posts.

– Nice To Meet Ya hits a new peak at #2.  I figured it would happen since Hits 1 loves all things One Direction.  But I don’t mind because it’s a really good song.  I would like for it to be #1 at some point soon.

– Graveyard has jumped into the Top 5 this week.  I find this to better than what Halsey has had to offer recently.  I did say the same when Nightmare was brand new, but I feel like that one will end up sticking with me longer.

– Who Do You Love has finally dropped out of the Top 10.  It’s about time that happened.  It’s been there for a long time now.  Hopefully, it continues its downward trajectory.

Hit-Bound:

• Arizona Zervas – Roxanne (DEBUT)
• Lewis Capaldi – Hold Me While You Wait
• Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
• Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want
• Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan
• Ed Sheeran featuring Camila Cabello and Cardi B – South Of The Border
• Panic! At The Disco – Into The Unknown (DEBUT)
• Harry Styles – Lights Up
• Lil Nas X – Panini
• Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted (DEBUT)
• Meghan Trainor featuring Mike Sabath – Wave
• Hot Chelle Rae – I Hate (Love) LA
• OneRepublic – Wanted
• Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat
• The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck (DEBUT)

Entrant Reviews:
– Up first is newcomer Arizona Zervas with Roxanne.  Right off the bat, it’s not a good song at all.  I’m not fond of the beat, his voice is auto-tuned and the lyrics are terrible.   It’s poorly-produced and it has no substance whatsoever.  NEXT!

– We have more of what Panic! At The Disco has to offer here, and they give us their latest single taken from the Frozen 2 movie soundtrack, titled Into The Unknown.  First off, I want to say that the first Frozen movie was amazing and I enjoyed watching it.  I do plan on seeing the sequel sometime soon.  As far as the song goes, I pretty much like it.  Brendon Urie sounds good here and the production is interesting.  I’ll have more on this when it inevitably debuts.

– As one song from Billie Eilish enters the Weekend Countdown, another has come to take its place on Hit-Bound.  She gives us her newest single in the form of Everything I Wanted.  I like this quite a lot, actually.  It has more substance in terms of the production and the beat sounds good.  Plus, Billie showcases her unique vocal talent.  I do hope to see this one debut soon.

– Finally, we have more of The Chainsmokers, and they give us Push My Luck.  I was really fond of Takeaway, which sadly failed to graduate to the Hits 1 Weekend Countdown.  While Push My Luck isn’t quite as good as its predecessor, there’s still plenty to like about the song.  The production is pretty neat and I like Drew’s vocals here.  He put on a fine performance in that aspect.  Overall, it’s a nice song.

Best Hit-Bound Entrant Of The Week: Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted

Hit-Bound Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
15. Meghan Trainor featuring Mike Sabath – Wave
14. Arizona Zervas – Roxanne

1 – Bad:
None!

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
13. Lewis Capaldi – Hold Me While You Wait
12. OneRepublic – Wanted
11. Lil Nas X – Panini

4 – Good:
10. Ed Sheeran featuring Camila Cabello and Cardi B – South Of The Border
9. Harry Styles – Lights Up

5 – Great:
8. Hot Chelle Rae – I Hate (Love) LA
7. Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat
6. Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan
5. The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck
4. Panic! At The Disco – Into The Unknown
3. Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted
2. Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On Hit-Bound:
1. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now

Overall Grade: 58/75 = 77% (B)

Most Missed Hit-Bound Dropout: Bruno Mars – Chunky

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks
1. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
2. Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want
3. Billie Eilish – Everything I Wanted
4. Panic! At The Disco – Into The Unknown
5. The Chainsmokers – Push My Luck

Hits 1 Weekend Countdown Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
20. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier

1 – Bad:
19. Maroon 5 – Memories
18. The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer – Who Do You Love
17. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
16. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth
15. Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep?

4 – Good:
14. Why Don’t We – What Am I

5 – Great:
13. Post Malone – Circles
12. Jonas Brothers – Only Human
11. Lizzo – Truth Hurts
10. Halsey – Graveyard
9. Charlie Puth – Mother
8. TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – The Hype
7. Lizzo – Good As Hell
6. Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber – 10,000 Hours
5. Shawn Mendes – If I Can’t Have You
4. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya
3. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People
2. Taylor Swift – Lover

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me

Overall Grade: 79/100 = 79% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Bon Jovi – Bad Medicine (1988)

Most Missed Countdown Song: Kongos – Come At Me Now

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Céline Dion – Courage

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Ariana Grande – Breathin’ (#14)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me
2. Taylor Swift – Lover
3. SHAED – Trampoline
4. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People
5. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right
2. Jonas Brothers – Cool
3. Halsey – Nightmare
4. AJR – Dear Winter
5. Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Alec Benjamin – Let Me Down Slowly: I may have disliked this back when it was new.  But now looking back on it, I’m not exactly sure what I was thinking.  I’ll have more on this when I do my Year-End posts.

Shawn Mendes – Nervous: Probably one of the weakest of what he had to offer for his self-titled album.  It’s not really bad, but there’s not a lot I find too interesting.  I think his performance was underwhelming here.

Post Malone featuring Swae Lee – Sunflower: One of Post Malone’s best songs.  I like the beat here and both of these guys sound pretty good here.  Again, I’ll have more on this next month on my Year-End posts.

Camila Cabello – Consequences: While Camila isn’t exactly my favorite singer, this is a nice ballad.  I like how she doesn’t try to hard to hit those high notes and the piano is solid.

Hello, fam!  I hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving.  Hopefully within the next couple of weeks, I plan on posting my Year-End review for 2019.  I’m about half-way through with one of them, so I should have it ready soon.  In the meantime, I have the AT40 countdown post.  Before we get to this week’s fresh 40, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• No Guidance by Chris Brown featuring Drake (#29)
  
• Good Things Fall Apart by ILLENIUM featuring Jon Bellion (#36)
  

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi
40. Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (#39) [–1]
39. Higher Love by Kygo featuring Whitney Houston (#32) [–7]
38. Teeth by 5 Seconds Of Summer (DEBUT)
37. Wow. by Post Malone (#37) [=] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
36. Slow Dance by AJ Mitchell featuring Ava Max (#40) [+4]
35. Rooting For You by Alessia Cara (#35) [=]
34. Hey Look Ma, I Made It by Panic! At The Disco (#33) [–1]
33. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers (#34) [+1]
32. Sucker by Jonas Brothers (#31) [–1] [Spent 8 Weeks At #1]
31. My Type by Saweetie (#38) [+7]
30. Dance Monkey by Tones & I (DEBUT)
29. Ran$om by Lil Tecca (#26) [–3]
28. Dancing With A Stranger by Sam Smith featuring Normani (#27) [–1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
27. What Am I by Why Don’t We (#30) [+3]
26. If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes (#25) [–1]
25. Don’t Call Me Angel by Ariana Grande featuring Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey (#22) [–3]
24. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan (#23) [–1]
23. All The Good Girls Go To Hell by Billie Eilish (#24) [+1]
22. Talk by Khalid (#20) [–2] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
21. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown (#19) [–2]
20. Lover by Taylor Swift (#18) [–2]
19. 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber (#21) [+2]
18. Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez (#28) [+10]
17. Graveyard by Halsey (#18) [+1]
16. Liar by Camila Cabello (#15) [–1]
15. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish (#14) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
14. Panini by Lil Nas X (#17) [+3]
13. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug (#11) [–2]
12. Time by NF (#12) [=]
11. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber (#9) [–2] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
10. Memories by Maroon 5 (#13) [+3]
9. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith (#10) [+1]
8. Trampoline by SHAED (#7) [–1]
7. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello (#5) [–2] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
6. Good As Hell by Lizzo (#8) [+2]
5. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid (#6) [+1]
4. Truth Hurts by Lizzo (#3) [–1] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
3. Only Human by Jonas Brothers (#4) [+1]
2. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi (#1) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
1. Circles by Post Malone (#2) [+1] [1st Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: God Is A Woman by Ariana Grande (3rd And Final Week At #1)

Biggest Fall Of The Week: Higher Love by Kygo featuring Whitney Houston (–7)

Biggest Rise Of The Week: Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez (+10)

New Entrants:
– We have more of 5 Seconds Of Summer here, and they give us their latest single in the form of Teeth, which is taken from the soundtrack of 13 Reasons Why for season three.  Since the start of 2018, they’ve been a pretty big name in music, what with Youngblood become their biggest hit of their career so far.  In terms of their new single, I think it’s pretty decent.  I do quite like the rock vibe it’s going for and the instrumentation is fine.  But what brings the song down for me a little bit is their vocal work.  I feel like they didn’t really impress me with the chorus.  It doesn’t live up to what they had to offer in the past, but it’s a lot better than Easier, which was not very good because there was no band there and their performance was pretty bad there.  I’m okay with it sticking around, though I really don’t care either way.

– We have a newcomer making her first appearance on the countdown.  It’s from Australian act Tones & I with a song titled Dance Monkey.  I remember when I first heard the song initially that I didn’t like it, in part because it was annoying from a vocal standpoint.  But within the past month or so, it has done a complete 180 on me.  I think her voice is unique and I kinda like the beat here.  The rest of the production is pretty damn solid too.  It’s a catchy song overall.  It was a huge hit overseas and now it looks destined to try to do the same in the United States and I’m here for it.

Best Debut Of The Week: Dance Monkey by Tones & I

Bad Blurbs Is What I Need
– On the note of exits, Good Things Fall Apart was pretty good vocally because Jon Bellion is a good singer and I like ILLENIUM’s work here.  But it was not destined to last.  Good riddance to No Guidance.  That one thankfully didn’t stick around for too long.  But since it did well on the Billboard Hot 100 (only because of Drake), I know it’ll be on their Year-End list, which is bad news.

– We get a new #1 in the form of Circles.  I saw it coming from about 10,000 miles away.  Post Malone is still relevant, so it was bound to happen at some point.  I do like the song, so I’m perfectly fine with it taking the top spot over the mediocre at best Someone You Loved.

– And of course, we get the Top 10 entry from Memories by Maroon 5.  I knew it was going to happen because people still can’t get enough of these guys.  But this is not interesting in the slightest and Adam sounds unenthusiastic.  This is for sure going to stick around for a while, and that’s not good.

– We do get the big rise of Lose You To Love Me in the Top 20, which is very good news.  I think the song is amazing.  Selena really impressed me here with her voice.  I’m glad this one is gaining momentum.

Breakouts/On The Verge:

• Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa
• Lonely by Lauv featuring Anne-Marie
• Take What You Want by Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott
• Raising Hell by Kesha featuring Big Freedia
• Writing On The Wall by French Montana featuring Post Malone, Cardi B, and Rvssian

Extras/Optional Extras:

• Never Be The Same by Camila Cabello
• Let You Down by NF
• Sugar by Maroon 5
• Sweet But Psycho by Ava Max
• Delicate by Taylor Swift
• Scars To Your Beautiful by Alessia Cara
• Something Just Like This by The Chainsmokers featuring Coldplay
• How Long by Charlie Puth
• Sunflower by Post Malone featuring Swae Lee
• Clarity by Zedd featuring Foxes
• No Tears Left To Cry by Ariana Grande
• It Ain’t Me by Kygo featuring Selena Gomez

 

Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Garbage:
None!

1 – Bad:
20. Memories by Maroon 5
19. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi

2 – Mediocre:
18. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber

3 – Decent:
17. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug
16. Time by NF
15. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith
14. Liar by Camila Cabello
13. Panini by Lil Nas X

4 – Good:
None!

5 – Great:
12. Only Human by Jonas Brothers
11. Circles by Post Malone
10. Truth Hurts by Lizzo
9. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish
8. Graveyard by Halsey
7. 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber
6. Good As Hell by Lizzo
5. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello
4. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
3. Trampoline by SHAED
2. Lover by Taylor Swift

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me

Total Score: 80/100 = 80% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Bad Medicine by Bon Jovi (1988)

Most Missed Song: Come At Me Now by Kongos

#1 Recommendation For The American Top 40: Everything I Wanted by Billie Eilish

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Breathin’ by Ariana Grande (#9)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez
2. Lover by Taylor Swift
3. Trampoline by SHAED
4. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
5. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown
2. My Type by Saweetie
3. Ran$om by Lil Tecca
4. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers
5. Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Trust My Lonely by Alessia Cara: This is one of my least favorite singles Alessia has put out.  The awkward production and some questionable lyrics doesn’t make this a fun listen for me.  Alessia has had much better.

Be Alright by Dean Lewis: It’s nothing I loathe, really.  I do like what it’s going for lyrically and I kinda like Dean’s voice, but it didn’t stick with me in the big picture.

Better by Khalid: The follow-up to Love Lies.  It’s another one of Khalid’s best solo singles to date.  It’s a shame that Talk had to be his biggest hit and not this, because there’s quite a bit I like about the song.

Hello, fam!  So Thanksgiving Day is coming up, and with that comes the time to spend that special day with your loved ones.  Whether your family is going on vacation, or simply staying at home to eat dinner with the family, I hope everyone here enjoys this special week.  Here I am providing you with this late countdown post.  Before we get to this week’s fresh 45, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• Dominic Fike – 3 Nights (#43)
• Post Malone featuring Young Thug – Goodbyes (#45)

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved
45. Billie Eilish – Bad Guy (#44) [–1]
44. Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber – I Don’t Care (#39) [–5]
43. NF – Time (#36) [–7]
42. Halsey – Nightmare (#42) [=]
41. Jonas Brothers – Cool (#35) [–6] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
40. Tones & I – Dance Monkey (#38) [–2]
39. Fall Out Boy featuring Wyclef Jean – Dear Future Self (Hands Up) (#23) [–16]
38. Kygo featuring Whitney Houston – Higher Love (#34) [–4]
37. PUBLIC – Make You Mine (#37) [=]
36. Kesha featuring Big Freedia – Raising Hell (DEBUT)
35. Louis Tomlinson – We Made It (DEBUT)
34. Camila Cabello – Liar (#31) [–3]
33. Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely (#32) [–1]
32. Panic! At The Disco – Hey Look Ma, I Made It (#29) [–3] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
31. AJR – Dear Winter (#30) [–1]
30. Selena Gomez – Look At Her Now (#40) [+10]
29. Alec Benjamin – If We Have Each Other (#28) [–1]
28. SHAED – Trampoline (#41) [+13]
27. Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello – Señorita (#22) [–5]
26. The Chainsmokers featuring Bebe Rexha – Call You Mine (#25) [–1]
25. Taylor Swift – You Need To Calm Down (#21) [–4] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
24. Liam Payne featuring A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie – Stack It Up (#24) [=]
23. Thomas Rhett – Look What God Gave Her (#19) [–4]
22. Jonas Brothers – Sucker (#18) [–4] [Spent 13 Weeks At #1]
21. OneRepublic – Rescue Me (#17) [–4]
20. Shawn Mendes – If I Can’t Have You (#16) [–4] [Spent 9 Weeks At #1]
19. Why Don’t We – What Am I (#26) [+7]
18. TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – The Hype (#9) [–9]
17. Charlie Puth – Mother (#20) [+3]
16. Maroon 5 – Memories (#11) [–5]
15. Lizzo – Truth Hurts (#14) [–1]
14. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me (#33) [+19]
13. Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber – 10,000 Hours (#14) [+1]
12. Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep? (#27) [+15]
11. Jonas Brothers – Only Human (#8) [–3] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
10. Taylor Swift – Lover (#13) [+3]
9. The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer – Who Do You Love (#3) [–6] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
8. Halsey – Graveyard (#10) [+2]
7. Lizzo – Good As Hell (#6) [–1]
6. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People (#2) [–4] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
5. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier (#12) [+7] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
4. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya (#5) [+1]
3. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved (#1) [–2] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
2. Post Malone – Circles (#4) [+2]
1. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth [+6] [1^st Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Marshmello featuring BΔSTILLE – Happier (2^nd And Final Week At #1)

Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: Fall Out Boy featuring Wyclef Jean – Dear Future Self (Hands Up) (–16)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me (+19)

New Entrants:
– The return of Kesha is something that I’ve been anticipating for some time now.  This week, she makes her comeback with her new single titled Raising Hell, from her new album High Road.  The story for the past couple of years was that Kesha was involved in a battle with Dr. Luke.  Then, she would end up making her comeback in 2017 with a beautiful ballad in the form of Praying, which still remains as her best single in my opinion.  For her new song, it looks like she is going back to her fun days.  It took me a few listens, but now I’m grown into it.  Kesha is a good singer and she showcases her talent here.  She sounds good in the chorus.  I like the use of the horns and the rest of the production works well to perfection.  Overall, I think it’s a good song and I’m interested to see what her album has in store.

– We have the return of former One Direction member Louis Tomlinson after over a year.  He gives us his newer single titled We Made It.  He had two songs on Hit-Bound which didn’t graduate to the Weekend Countdown (Two Of Us and Kill My Mind).  But as they always say, the third time’s the charm with his new song.  I won’t quite say it’s as good as the other two.  But I still like it for the most part.  I like the instrumentation and Louis has a good voice.  The lyrics are nicely-written as well.  He is a good songwriter and this song shows it.  I’m hoping it can stick around for a while.

Best Debut Of The Week: Kesha featuring Big Freedia – Raising Hell

Raising Blurbs
– Yup, I started to slowly come around to Dominic Fike – 3 Nights, and of course this is the week that it leaves.  Just great.  Meanwhile, Goodbyes I was starting to get sick of, so I have no complaints about it exiting.

– And just like that, Teeth finishes its quick rise to #1 in its fourth week on the countdown.  I’ll definitely take that over  Someone You Loved any day.  But Teeth is still decent at best.  5 Seconds Of Summer have done a lot better in the past and Jet Black Heart is a favorite of mine from them.  Teeth doesn’t really live up to that, but it’s a lot better than Easier.

– Lover makes its arrival into the Top 10 this week.  A new remix of the song recently came out and it featured Shawn Mendes.  I do like that version overall, but I much prefer the original.  Still, I’m glad the song is finally catching on as we head towards the end of the year.

– For the first time in forever, the Jonas Brothers have no songs in the Top 10.  Feels like it was yesterday when these guys were dominating the countdown with Sucker.  Looks like their run might be coming to an end.

– Lose You To Love Me having the Biggest Jump Of The Week definitely pleases me.  Looks like people really missed having Selena on the countdown.  I think the song is amazing.  It is currently a huge favorite of mine at the moment.  I like to see it continue its momentum here.

– I didn’t quite envision Dear Future Self (Hands Up) taking a massive drop this week, especially since it debuted about a month ago.  Then again, it shouldn’t be surprising to me since Fall Out Boy can’t seem to get a huge hit lately.  I don’t think they’ve had a major hit since Uma Thurman.

Hit-Bound:

• Meghan Trainor featuring Mike Sabath – Wave
• Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan (DEBUT)
• Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat
• Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers – Lonely
• Lewis Capaldi – Hold Me While You Wait
• Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want
• Hot Chelle Rae – I Hate LA
• Billie Eilish – All The Good Girls Go To Hell
• Ed Sheeran featuring Camila Cabello and Cardi B – South Of The Border
• Lil Nas X – Panini
• OneRepublic – Wanted
• Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now (DEBUT)
• Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right
• Harry Styles – Lights Up
• Ariana Grande featuring Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey – Don’t Call Me Angel

Entrant Reviews:
– As Dear Future Self (Hands Up) appears to be on its way out, another song from Fall Out Boy is looking to take its place.  Enter Bob Dylan.  I find it interesting that they named their new song after the singer himself.  As far as the song goes, I think it’s pretty solid.  I like the rock vibe here and these guys sound good here.  I’ll have more on this when it debuts.

– Then, we have the comeback of Dua Lipa after a big year in 2018.  She brings us her new single titled Don’t Start Now.  There’s a lot I really like about this.  The pre-chorus is pretty damn solid and how it leads up to the chorus, which has a nice groove, makes for a enjoyable tune.  I’ll save most of my words for when it hopefully debuts.

Best Hit-Bound Entrant Of The Week: Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now

Hit-Bound Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
15. Meghan Trainor featuring Mike Sabath – Wave
14. Marshmello featuring Kane Brown – One Thing Right

1 – Bad:
13. Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers – Lonely

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
12. Lewis Capaldi – Hold Me While You Wait
11. Billie Eilish – All The Good Girls Go To Hell
10. OneRepublic – Wanted
9. Lil Nas X – Panini

4 – Good:
8. Ed Sheeran featuring Camila Cabello and Cardi B – South Of The Border
7. Harry Styles – Lights Up

5 – Great:
6. Hot Chelle Rae – I Hate LA
5. Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat
4. Ariana Grande featuring Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey – Don’t Call Me Angel
3. Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan
2. Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On Hit-Bound:
1. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now

Overall Grade: 52/75 = 69% (C)

Most Missed Hit-Bound Dropout: BØRNS – Electric Love

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks
1. Dua Lipa – Don’t Start Now
2. Post Malone featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott – Take What You Want
3. Fall Out Boy – Bob Dylan
4. Ariana Grande featuring Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey – Don’t Call Me Angel
5. Sofi Tukker – Purple Hat

Hits 1 Weekend Countdown Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Crap:
20. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier

1 – Bad:
19. The Chainsmokers featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer – Who Do You Love
18. Maroon 5 – Memories
17. Lewis Capaldi – Someone You Loved

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
16. Sam Smith – How Do You Sleep?
15. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Teeth

4 – Good:
14. Why Don’t We – What Am I

5 – Great:
13. Post Malone – Circles
12. Jonas Brothers – Only Human
11. Lizzo – Truth Hurts
10. Halsey – Graveyard
9. Charlie Puth – Mother
8. TWENTY ØNE PILØTS – The Hype
7. Lizzo – Good As Hell
6. Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber – 10,000 Hours
5. Shawn Mendes – If I Can’t Have You
4. Niall Horan – Nice To Meet Ya
3. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People
2. Taylor Swift – Lover

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me

Overall Grade: 79/100 = 79% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Maroon 5 – She Will Be Loved (2004)

Most Missed Countdown Song: Calvin Harris featuring Frank Ocean and Migos – Slide

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Lady Antebellum – What If I Never Get Over You

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Tie between Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle (#32) and The Chainsmokers featuring Kelsea Ballerini – This Feeling (#6)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me
2. Taylor Swift – Lover
3. Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello – Señorita
4. Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid – Beautiful People
5. SHAED – Trampoline

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Jonas Brothers – Cool
2. Halsey – Nightmare
3. AJR – Dear Winter
4. Lauv featuring Anne-Marie – I’m Lonely
5. 5 Seconds Of Summer – Easier

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
None!

Hello, fam!  I’ve hope you all have a good week as I’m working on catching up with my posts.  I’m also hard at work on my Year-End posts.  I’m hoping to get those out by the first or second week of December.  We’ll see what happens within the next few weeks.  Before we get to this week’s fresh 40, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• Motivation by Normani (#14)
• Sweet But Psycho by Ava Max (#40)

 

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi
40. Slow Dance by AJ Mitchell featuring Ava Max (#39) [–1]
39. Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (#38) [–1]
38. My Type by Saweetie (DEBUT)
37. Wow. by Post Malone (#35) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
36. Good Things Fall Apart by ILLENIUM featuring Jon Bellion (#36) [=]
35. Rooting For You by Alessia Cara (#37) [+2]
34. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers (#34) [=]
33. Hey Look Ma, I Made It by Panic! At The Disco (#32) [–1]
32. Higher Love by Kygo featuring Whitney Houston (#33) [+1]
31. Sucker by Jonas Brothers (#30) [–1] [Spent 8 Weeks At #1]
30. What Am I by Why Don’t We (#31) [+1]
29. No Guidance by Chris Brown featuring Drake (#25) [–4]
28. Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez (DEBUT)
27. Dancing With A Stranger by Sam Smith featuring Normani (#26) [–1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
26. Ran$om by Lil Tecca (#28) [+2]
25. If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes (#24) [–1]
24. All The Good Girls Go To Hell by Billie Eilish (#29) [+5]
23. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan (#27) [+4]
22. Don’t Call Me Angel by Ariana Grande featuring Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey (#22) [=]
21. 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber (#23) [+2]
20. Talk by Khalid (#19) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
19. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown (#21) [+2]
18. Lover by Taylor Swift (#20) [+2]
17. Panini by Lil Nas X (#18) [+1]
16. Graveyard by Halsey (#16) [=]
15. Liar by Camila Cabello (#17) [+2]
14. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish (#10) [–4] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
13. Memories by Maroon 5 (#15) [+2]
12. Time by NF (#13) [+1]
11. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug (#7) [–4]
10. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith (#11) [+1]
9. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber (#9) [=] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
8. Good As Hell by Lizzo (#12) [+4]
7. Trampoline by SHAED (#8) [+1]
6. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid (#6) [=]
5. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello (#3) [–2] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
4. Only Human by Jonas Brothers (#5) [+1]
3. Truth Hurts by Lizzo (#2) [–1] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
2. Circles by Post Malone (#4) [+2]
1. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi (#1) [=] [3^rd Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: God Is A Woman by Ariana Grande (2^nd of 3 Weeks At #1)

Biggest Fall Of The Week: Tie between No Guidance by Chris Brown featuring Drake, Bad Guy by Billie Eilish, and Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug (–4)

Biggest Rise Of The Week: All The Good Girls Go To Hell by Billie Eilish (+5)

New Entrants:
– We’ll kick things off with a song that should’ve never debuted.  It’s from Saweetie and she brings us My Type.  I don’t get the appeal to the song at all.  Everything about it sucks from the top down bottom up.  First off, I don’t like her voice here.  She sounds so annoying and the production is not interesting at all.  The lyrics are pretty dumb as well.  I’m not exactly sure what she is going for here, but it just didn’t work out to my liking in terms of the lyrics.  I’m guessing she thinks it’s my type of song I wanted to hear.  But nope, I don’t like it.  She attempted to make a good first impression with this song and the end result is excruciating to my ears.  Yeah, skip this.

– Fortunately, we get the big return of a certain act who makes up for that nonsense.  It’s from Selena Gomez and she brings us her comeback single in the form of Lose You To Love Me.  Last year, she gave us two of her solo singles in the form of Wolves (with Marshmello) and Back To You, the former being my #2 song of 2018.  This time around, she brings us a ballad, something which I wasn’t really expecting out of her.  Basically, it talks about her long-ago relationship with Justin Bieber, who is currently married to Hailey Baldwin.  The lyrics are definitely something we can relate to.  As for the rest of the song itself, I think it’s divine on all levels.  I really like Selena’s voice here and she shines in the chorus.  The production is pretty neat as well.  I love the piano and the instruments are put to good use, such as the strings.  I really, really adore this song with a burning passion and I’m glad that this was Selena’s first-ever #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.  I’m hoping the same can ring true here.

Best Debut Of The Week: Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez

This Blurb Has Taken Its Toll
– In terms of our exits, Motivation sadly did not last very long.  I was for sure this would be a solo hit for Normani.  But it just didn’t work out that way.  Looks like her collaborations will remain as her only hits so far.  And then we have Sweet But Psycho, which had a good run.  I’m glad this was a hit in 2019.  Ava Max got the recognition she needed.  I enjoyed the song overall and it’s very likely you’ll see it come My Top 50 Songs Of 2019.

– In Top 10 news, Good As Hell makes its entry, swapping places with Goodbyes.  It’s nice to see Lizzo gaining recognition following the success of Truth Hurts.  I’m sure Good As Hell will be another huge hit for her in no time.  I’m in love with the song, so I’m pleased to see it in that region.

– How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith enters the Top 10 as well.  I’ve listened the song quite a lot for the past weeks and I don’t really dislike it.  I’ve come around to the song a little bit, although I’m still not a big fan of the drop.  Obviously, he’s had better, but this is definitely not as bad as I originally thought.

Breakouts/On The Verge:
Raising Hell by Kesha featuring Big Freedia
Lonely by Lauv featuring Anne-Marie
Teeth by 5 Seconds Of Summer
Dance Monkey by Tones & I

Extras/Optional Extras:
Without Me by Halsey
I’m The One by DJ Khaled featuring Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance The Rapper, and Lil’ Wayne
Me, Myself & I by G-Eazy featuring Bebe Rexha
Dangerous Woman by Ariana Grande
Don’t Wanna Know by Maroon 5 featuring Kendrick Lamar
Shameless by Camila Cabello
Natural by Imagine Dragons
Sicko Mode by Travis Scott featuring Drake
Feel It Still by Portugal. The Man
Same Old Love by Selena Gomez
Who Do U Love? by Monsta X featuring French Montana
With You by Kaskade featuring Meghan Trainor
Bad At Love by Halsey

Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Garbage:
20. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown

1 – Bad:
19. Memories by Maroon 5
18. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi

2 – Mediocre:
17. Talk by Khalid
16. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber

3 – Decent:
15. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug
14. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith
13. Time by NF
12. Liar by Camila Cabello
11. Panini by Lil Nas X

4 – Good:
None!

5 – Great:
10. Circles by Post Malone
9. Only Human by Jonas Brothers
8. Truth Hurts by Lizzo
7. Graveyard by Halsey
6. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish
5. Good As Hell by Lizzo
4. Trampoline by SHAED
3. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
2. Lover by Taylor Swift
1. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello

Total Score: 71/100 = 71% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: This Love by Maroon 5 (2004)

Most Missed Song: Slide by Calvin Harris featuring Frank Ocean and Migos

#1 Recommendation For The American Top 40: Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Tie between The Middle by Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey (#35) and Breathin’ by Ariana Grande (#9)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez
2. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello
3. Lover by Taylor Swift
4. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
5. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown
2. My Type by Saweetie
3. Ran$om by Lil Tecca
4. No Guidance by Chris Brown featuring Drake
5. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Body by Loud Luxury featuring Brando: This is pretty solid, mainly for the bassline and the drop.  The EDM duo made a good first impression here.

Sunflower by Post Malone featuring Swae Lee: Taken from the Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse movie soundtrack, this is probably the best thing Post Malone has put out in my opinion.  I’ll have more on this next month when I do my Year-End posts.

Hello, fam!  So, I know this is a late post and I virtually had no motivation to be able to get this out, like at all.  But there really wasn’t much to talk about for that week, so I’m just going to try and speed this through.  Before we get to this week’s fresh 40, here are the songs we’re saying goodbye to this week:

• Who Do U Love by Monsta X featuring French Montana (#28)
• 7 Rings by Ariana Grande (#40) [Spent 5 Weeks At #1]

The Countdown:
Last Week’s #1 Song: Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi
40. Sweet But Psycho by Ava Max (#37) [–3]
39. Slow Dance by AJ Mitchell featuring Ava Max (#39) [=]
38. Old Town Road (Remix) by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (#35) [–3]
37. Rooting For You by Alessia Cara (#38) [+1]
36. Good Things Fall Apart by ILLENIUM featuring Jon Bellion (#36) [=]
35. Wow. by Post Malone (#32) [–3]
34. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers (#34) [=]
33. Higher Love by Kygo featuring Whitney Houston (#33) [=]
32. Hey Look Ma, I Made It by Panic! At The Disco (#29) [–3]
31. What Am I by Why Don’t We (#31) [=]
30. Sucker by Jonas Brothers (#27) [–3] [Spent 8 Weeks At #1]
29. All The Good Girls Go To Hell by Billie Eilish (DEBUT)
28. Ran$om by Lil Tecca (#30) [+2]
27. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan (DEBUT)
26. Dancing With A Stranger by Sam Smith featuring Normani (#24) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
25. No Guidance by Chris Brown featuring Drake (#26) [+1]
24. If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes (#22) [–2]
23. 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber (#25) [+2]
22. Don’t Call Me Angel by Ariana Grande featuring Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey (#23) [+1]
21. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown (#21) [=]
20. Lover by Taylor Swift (#20) [=]
19. Talk by Khalid (#15) [–4] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
18. Panini by Lil Nas X (#19) [+1]
17. Liar by Camila Cabello (#17) [=]
16. Graveyard by Halsey (#18) [+2]
15. Memories by Maroon 5 (#16) [+1]
14. Motivation by Normani (#14) [=]
13. Time by NF (#13) [=]
12. Good As Hell by Lizzo (#12) [=]
11. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith (#11) [=]
10. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish (#10) [=] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
9. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber (#8) [–1] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]
8. Trampoline by SHAED (#9) [+1]
7. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug (#6) [–1]
6. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid (#7) [+1]
5. Only Human by Jonas Brothers (#4) [–1]
4. Circles by Post Malone (#5) [+1]
3. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello (#3) [=] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
2. Truth Hurts by Lizzo (#2) [=] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
1. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi (#1) [=] [2^nd Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: God Is A Woman by Ariana Grande (1^st of 3 Weeks At #1)

Biggest Fall Of The Week: Talk by Khalid (–4)

Biggest Rise Of The Week: Tie between Ran$om by Lil Tecca, 10,000 Hours by Dan + Shay featuring Justin Bieber, and Graveyard by Halsey (+2)

New Entrants:
– Billie Eilish has been a big name this year due to the success of her album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?. We’ve seen her get her first ever #1 with Bad Guy on the AT40 and the Billboard Hot 100 (after Old Town Road spent a record-breaking 19 weeks at #1). She brings us another song from her album, which is called All The Good Girls Go To Hell.  I do like the majority of what her album has to offer even though there are some who will disagree.   But I don’t think All The Good Girls Go To Hell was a good choice in my opinion.  It’s not a bad song by any means, but it’s not something I’ll actively seek out either.  She sounds okay here, but where the song lacks is the production and the beat.  I feel like they lack some kind of substance to make it interesting. There are some lyrics that I can’t seem to get into.  I know she is a good songwriter, but she doesn’t really show it here.  Overall, it’s not really my cup of tea.

– Who’s ready for the return of Niall Horan?  You are?  No worries, I am too.  It’s been a while since we’ve heard from him.  But now he makes his comeback with Nice To Meet Ya.  I talked about this song in full detail a month ago.  To recap, it’s a good song that really showcases Niall Horan’s abilities as a songwriter and a singer.  I like how he sounds so smooth when he sings.  It’s mainly because he tries to talk to a girl.  He really shows off his swagger here.  And let’s not forget about the nice guitar and the piano work.  Yeah, everything about the song works well to perfection.  I’m interested to see how Niall’s new album will turn out.

Best Debut Of The Week: Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan

Blurbs
– I’m sorry, but because this is a late post there won’t be many blurbs posted.  But it’s not like there was anything to talk about since nothing really happened on the countdown.  I will however, say that we can celebrate as 7 Rings has FINALLY left the countdown.  It’s about damn time!  Good riddance!  You will NEVER be missed by me.

Breakouts/On The Verge:

• My Type by Saweetie
• Teeth by 5 Seconds Of Summer
• I’m Lonely by Lauv featuring Anne-Marie
• Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez

Extras/Optional Extras:

• The Middle by Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey
• Paris by The Chainsmokers
• There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back by Shawn Mendes
• Starboy by The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk
• Hate Me by Ellie Goulding featuring Juice WRLD
• Location by Khalid
• Unforgettable by French Montana featuring Swae Lee
• Back To You by Selena Gomez
• Love On The Brain by Rihanna
• Stay by Zedd featuring Alessia Cara
• Nice For What by Drake
• Stressed Out by TWENTY ØNE PILØTS
• Wake Me Up by Avicii featuring Aloe Blacc

Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Garbage:
None!

1 – Bad:
20. Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi
19. Memories by Maroon 5

2 – Mediocre:
18. Talk by Khalid
17. I Don’t Care by Ed Sheeran featuring Justin Bieber
16. How Do You Sleep? by Sam Smith

3 – Decent:
15. Goodbyes by Post Malone featuring Young Thug
14. Time by NF
13. Liar by Camila Cabello
12. Panini by Lil Nas X

4 – Good:
None!

5 – Great:
11. Circles by Post Malone
10. Only Human by Jonas Brothers
9. Truth Hurts by Lizzo
8. Graveyard by Halsey
7. Motivation by Normani
6. Bad Guy by Billie Eilish
5. Good As Hell by Lizzo
4. Trampoline by SHAED
3. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello
2. Lover by Taylor Swift

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid

Total Score: 76/100 = 76% (B)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: She Will Be Loved by Maroon 5 (2004)

Most Missed Song: Roses by The Chainsmokers featuring ROZES

#1 Recommendation For The American Top 40: Don’t Start Now by Dua Lipa

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Tie between The Middle by Zedd featuring Maren Morris (#34) and Breathin’ by Ariana Grande (#14)

My Top 5 Picks
1. Beautiful People by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid
2. Lover by Taylor Swift
3. Señorita by Shawn Mendes featuring Camila Cabello
4. Trampoline by SHAED
5. Nice To Meet Ya by Niall Horan

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. One Thing Right by Marshmello featuring Kane Brown
2. No Guidance by Chris Brown featuring Drake
3. Ran$om by Lil Tecca
4. Old Town Road by Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus
5. Lonely by Diplo featuring Jonas Brothers

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Shallow by Lady Gaga featuring Bradley Cooper: Everything about the song is just divine from Lady Gaga’s vocals to the acoustic guitar.  I’m glad this became a massive hit after winning an award at the Oscars earlier this year.

This Feeling by The Chainsmokers featuring Kelsea Ballerini: Their best single since Closer.  Almost everything here works well to perfection.  It’s too bad this wasn’t a huge hit as I wanted it to be.

Consequences by Camila Cabello: I think this is a nice ballad.  I like how Camila doesn’t try hard to hit those high notes and the piano sounds good.  There were some better single choices off of her self-titled album, sure.  But at least it’s not Never Be The Same.

Don’t Matter To Me by Drake featuring Michael Jackson: I quite like this for the most part.  Production is nice and I like the Michael Jackson sample.  It was nice of Drake to make this, since he was a huge fan of him back in the day.