Bruno Mars (1) - Week Of April 22, 2017

I hope you all had a great Easter Sunday last weekend and had a great week this past week. Countdown-wise, this was a step down from last week's craziness, but was definitely not free from any. We had another large drop out from the #1 spot, and a large jump into the #1 spot. This was my birthday weekend countdown. It wasn't a great one, but it certainly wasn't awful. Tomorrow, I will be fifteen years old. Before we get to this week's fresh 45 songs, here's the one song we're bidding goodbye this week.

• The Weeknd/Daft Punk - Starboy (#41)

Last Week's #1 Song: Ed Sheeran -  Castle On The Hill

#1 Song This Week 1 Year Ago: Twenty One Pilots - Stressed Out

The Chart

45. Lady Gaga - Million Reasons (#25)
44. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor (#44)
43. Rihanna - Love On The Brain (#45)
42. Shawn Mendes - Treat You Better (#28) [2 Weeks At #1]
41. Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj - Side To Side (#43)
40. Niall Horan - This Town (#42)
39. James Hersey - Miss You (#39)
38. Twenty One Pilots - Heathens (#38) [2 Weeks At #1]
37. Flo Rida/99 Percent - Cake (DEBUT)
36. Halsey - Now Or Never (#40)
35. Snakehips & MØ - Don't Leave (#36)
34. MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low (#37)
33. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic (#29)
32. Maroon 5 - Don't Wanna Know (#33) [3 Weeks At #1]
31. Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello - Bad Things (#16)
30. Adele - Water Under The Bridge (#30)
29. Steve Aoki & Louis Tomlinson - Just Hold On (#26)
28. Jon Bellion - All Time Low (#21)
27. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever (#32)
26. Hailee Steinfeld & Grey/Zedd - Starving (#20) [4 Weeks At #1]
25. Harry Styles - Sign Of The Times (#35)
24. Calvin Harris/Frank Ocean/Migos - Slide (#34) 
23. The Vamps/Matoma - All Night (#22)
22. Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap (#17)
21. Katy Perry/Skip Marley - Chained To The Rhythm (#23)
20. Train - Play That Song (#19)
19. The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This (#31)
18. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy (#5)
17. AJR - Weak (#24)
16. Panic! At The Disco - L.A. Devotee (#27)
15. Julia Michaels - Issues (#18)
14. Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul (#11)
13. The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer (#14) [8 Weeks At #1]
12. Maroon 5 - Cold (#13)
11. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - I Feel It Coming (#10)
10. Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill (#1) [1 Week At #1]
9. Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye (#12)
8. Imagine Dragons - Believer (#15)
7. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me (#4)
6. James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go (#3)
5. The Chainsmokers - Paris (#6)
4. Shawn Mendes - Mercy (#7)
3. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay (#2)
2. Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You (#9) [9 Weeks At #1]
1. Bruno Mars - That's What I Like (#8) [1st Week At #1]

Biggest DROP!!!... Of The Week: Lady Gaga - Million Reasons (#25 -> #45, -20 spots)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This (#31 -> #19, +12 spots)

New Music Alert:

LISTEN NOW- Shawn Hook/Vanessa Hudgens - Reminding Me
PROCEED WITH CAUTION- Sigrid - Plot Twist 
SKIP IT- Paramore - Hard Times

Instead of continuing to give recommendations, I will give you suggestions on what songs to listen to and which ones not to listen to. This will consist of one song in each category, while off to the side, there will be a bit more of bulky review of the new songs that came along this week. :) If you liked what I previously did, let me know down below. If you liked that more, I will continue to do it, but if you think this is a good idea, then just tell me. I'll keep what most of you all like.

New Entrants

~ We only have one new song here this week. The song is Flo Rida/99 Percent - Cake. You're probably asking yourself, "how can a song be old when it first debuts on the countdown?". The answer would be that this song has spent what seems like forever on HitBound. I enjoyed it for some reason for a few weeks. Then, I just kind of started ignoring it was there and thought of it as a "whatever" song for awhile. In the past few weeks though, this song has been progressively getting worse due to its stupid premise and awful set of lyrics. I would prefer if it didn't stay here, but knowing Hits 1's obsession with the overrated Flo Rida, this song will likely stay for what seems like forever.

HitBound

• ONE OK ROCK - American Girls
• Shawn Mendes - There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back (DEBUT)
• ZAYN/PARTYNEXTDOOR - Still Got Time
• Lady Gaga - The Cure (DEBUT)
• G-Eazy & Kehlani - Good Life
• Hey Violet - Break My Heart
• Aaron Carter - Sooner Or Later
• Erin Bowman - Good Time Good Life
• Jason Derulo/Ty Dolla $ign/Nicki Minaj - Swalla
• Charlie Puth - Attention (DEBUT)
• Jon Bellion - Overwhelming
• DNCE - Kissing Strangers
• Ocean Park Standoff - Good News
• Mansionz/G-Eazy - Wicked

My Top 5 HitBound Picks

1. Ocean Park Standoff - Good News

2. Aaron Carter - Sooner Or Later

3. Jon Bellion - Overwhelming

4. Hey Violet - Break My Heart

5. Lady Gaga - The Cure

Sign Of The Blurbs

~ We had another week with a pretty reasonable sized jump up to the top spot. This week, the song that performed the stunt was Bruno Mars - That's What I Like. Although, it's a good song, I don't know if this was the best choice for my birthday weekend. I would have enjoyed even Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You, but Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay would have been nice up there. At least it wasn't as bad as last year, due to the almost extremely good looking top 20.

~ Shawn Mendes - Mercy made a little bit of a leap back up to #4. I would prefer if this song leave the top 10, just because I am losing interest in it, and it really shouldn't have stayed here long, due to it being not extremely popular.

~ Imagine Dragons - Believer took a reasonable jump into the top 10 pretty quickly this week. I'm almost joyful about this. I'm getting there. It's a good song.

~ Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill took a drop from the top spot this week, as we got a large jump into the top spot. Everyone knew that this song wasn't going to last long there, and frankly, it was quite strange it jumped several spots to get there in the first place.

~ After a slow start, Panic! At The Disco - L.A. Devotee is finally catching on. I know it will annoy me eventually, but right now, it's a pretty good jam of mine. Not gonna lie, I was dancing to this in the shower yesterday.

~ AJR - Weak is finally in the top 20, to my delight. This song really is one of the best songs on mainstream radio right now. Even though it's not that popular there, it's a very good tune, with great vocals, and a very weird, but good production.

~ Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy needs to make up its mind. Or maybe the "voters" do. This song needs to stop constantly having huge drops and jumps all over this countdown. It's the best song here, and frankly, I would like it if it stayed higher up on this countdown.

~ Calvin Harris/Frank Ocean/Migos - Slide and Harry Styles - Sign Of The Times both jumped up ten spots this week. That seems reasonable considering the pieces of work they are. I would have thought a jump into the top 20 would be less appropriate for their second week jumps.

~ Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello - Bad Things is starting to lose steam. I'm okay with it, just because there's better songs here. This one is still considered "great" by my color coding standards, even though it's pretty close to being "okay".

~ Okay, what is going on with MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low and Snakehips & MØ - Don't Leave? These songs need to make moves. They may just be late bloomers, though. I really hope so.

~ Halsey - Now Or Never clearly didn't make a good second week jump. I hope to see this one catch on soon, it's a catchy tune.

~ Lady Gaga - Million Reasons made a pretty decent decline this week. I am glad about this, because I'm hoping to see it leave next week, before I absolutely hate it. I like her new song, though, so maybe that will take its place.

Let's Do A Top 20 Review!

0-Garbage

NONE

1-Bad

20. Train - Play That Song

2-Mediocre

NONE

3-Decent

19. Shawn Mendes - Mercy

4-Good

NONE

5-Great

18. Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill

17. The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer

16. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - I Feel It Coming

15. James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go

14. Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul

13. Imagine Dragons - Believer

12. Panic! At The Disco - L.A. Devotee

11. Bruno Mars - That's What I Like

10. Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye

9. The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This

8. Maroon 5 - Cold

7. Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You

6. Julia Michaels - Issues

5. The Chainsmokers - Paris

4. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me

3. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay

2. AJR - Weak

1. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy

Score: 94% (A)

My Bottom 5 Countdown Picks

1. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic

2. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor

3. Niall Horan - This Town

4. Maroon 5 - Don't Wanna Know

5. Twenty One Pilots - Heathens

My Top 5 Countdown Picks

1. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy

2. AJR - Weak

3. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay

4. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me

5. MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low

Love you guys!

The Hot 45 Chart for the last two weeks will be out this week at some point.

~ Jack :)

Ed Sheeran (1) - Week Of April 15, 2017

So, this was undoubtedly one of the strangest weeks we've had in a while. This countdown was okay at times, but at others, the strange components got a little annoying. There were some random jumps and drops, a good class of debuts, a new #1 that is very odd, and four exits, two being long overdue, one being a bit aggravating, and one that made me furious beyond belief. Before we get to this week's top 45 songs, here's the four songs that are leaving us this week.

• Ariana Grande/Future - Everyday (#30) [Are you freaking kidding me Hits 1?!?!]
• Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful (#32)
• Coldplay/SeeB - Hymn For The Weekend (#42)
• Bebe Rexha - I Got You (#43) [Really?!?!]

Last Week's #1 Song: Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You

#1 Song This Week 1 Year Ago: DNCE - Cake By The Ocean

The Countdown

45. Rihanna - Love On The Brain (#45)
44. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor (#44)
43. Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj - Side To Side (#41)
42. Niall Horan - This Town (#38)
41. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - Starboy (#39)
40. Halsey - Now Or Never (DEBUT)
39. James Hersey - Miss You (#27)
38. Twenty One Pilots - Heathens (#31) [2 Weeks At #1]
37. MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low (#40)
36. Snakehips/MØ - Don't Leave (#37)
35. Harry Styles - Sign Of The Times (DEBUT)
34. Calvin Harris/Frank Ocean/Migos - Slide (DEBUT)
33. Maroon 5 - Don't Wanna Know (#36) [3 Weeks At #1]
32. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever (#21)
31. The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This (DEBUT)
30. Adele - Water Under The Bridge (#28)
29. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic (#35)
28. Shawn Mendes - Treat You Better (#29) [2 Weeks At #1]
27. Panic! At The Disco - L.A. Devotee (#33)
26. Steve Aoki & Louis Tomlinson - Just Hold On (#25)
25. Lady Gaga - Million Reasons (#19)
24. AJR - Weak (#23)
23. Katy Perry/Skip Marley - Chained To The Rhythm (#20)
22. The Vamps/Matoma - All Night (#34)
21. Jon Bellion - All Time Low (#22)
20. Hailee Steinfeld & Grey/Zedd - Starving (#12) [4 Weeks At #1]
19. Train - Play That Song (#15)
18. Julia Michaels - Issues (#17)
17. Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap (#3)
16. Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello - Bad Things (#24)
15. Imagine Dragons - Believer (#11)
14. The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer (#6) [8 Weeks At #1]
13. Maroon 5 - Cold (#9)
12. Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye (#10)
11. Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul (#18)
10. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - I Feel It Coming (#16)
9. Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You (#1) [9 Weeks At #1]
8. Bruno Mars - That's What I Like (#2)
7. Shawn Mendes - Mercy (#7)
6. The Chainsmokers - Paris (#14)
5. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy (#26)
4. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me (#8)
3. James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go (#5)
2. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay (#4)
1. Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill (#13) [1st Week At #1]

Biggest DROP!!!... Of The Week: Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap (-14)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy (+21)

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Aquilo - Silhouette 

#1 Recommendation For You: Kungs/Ephemerals - I Feel So Bad

New Entrants

~ First up this week, we have returning countdown artist, Halsey, with her new single, Now Or Never. Last weekend, I first heard this song. Sure, it was pretty good as I was expecting, but nothing near the masterpiece Colors was, or even the very catchy New Americana. This song, however, does have a lot of repetition, which may become annoying in the long run. It's certainly good, but it's unclear to me how long it will stick with me. For now, though, it's a good single, and a pretty good taste on what we're looking to hear from her new album coming in a couple of months. I hope to see this one do well here.

~ Next up, we have One Direction member Harry Styles venturing out on his own for his first solo endeavor. Sign Of The Times is definitely one of the more calm and collected songs we're used to hearing nowadays. It took me a few listens to grow into it last weekend, but I now have a strong opinion that I like it. Is it better than the other One Direction members's debut solo singles? No. ZAYN's Pillowtalk definitely was the best of them all. For now, though, I am absolutely liking the calm feel of his voice, and the production of the song is decent. The production is a little weird, but, at least it's working for me. I don't doubt this song will do well here, so I don't think I need to wish it luck.

~ Our third debut this week comes in the form of Calvin Harris/Frank Ocean/Migos - Slide. First off, I'm glad this song left HitBound last weekend and didn't just disappear. Second, I am very surprised that Hits 1 didn't cut Migos from this song, considering it would probably be something they'd do. The weird high-pitched voice is the only main issue with this song. I mean, it's not that awful, but it gets annoying at times. Other than that, the chorus is the best part, and Migos's parts flow better than I had expected. All in all, I would like to see this song do well here.

~ Our final entrant this week comes from The Chainsmokers & Coldplay. The song is Something Just Like This. Never had it crossed my mind that these two groups would collide for a song. I had my doubts diving into the listen, but in the end I found myself being really impressed. The vocals on this song are very calming and well done. The drop is very cool, and something I've been waiting to hear in a song like this for a while. Although the song may be long, this one's a keeper. Hits 1 better treat it well.

Best Debut Of The Week: The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This

HitBound

• Mansionz/G-Eazy - Wicked
• DNCE - Kissing Strangers (DEBUT)
• Kungs/Ephemerals - I Feel So Bad
• Erin Bowman - Good Time Good Life
• Flo Rida/99 Percent - Cake
• Ocean Park Standoff - Good News
• Jon Bellion - Overwhelming
• COIN - Talk Too Much
• Hey Violet - Break My Heart (DEBUT)
• G-Eazy & Kehlani - Good Life (DEBUT)
• ONE OK ROCK - American Girls
• ZAYN/PARTYNEXTDOOR - Still Got Time (DEBUT)
• Aaron Carter - Sooner Or Later
• Jason Derulo/Ty Dolla $ign/Nicki Minaj - Swalla

Top 5 HitBound Songs

1. Hey Violet - Break My Heart

2. Ocean Park Standoff - Good News

3. Jason Derulo/Ty Dolla $ign/Nicki Minaj - Swalla

4. Jon Bellion - Overwhelming

5. ONE OK ROCK - American Girls

Something Just Like Blurbs

~ First off, I would like to say that I am very glad by the departures of Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful and Coldplay/SeeB - Hymn For The Weekend. These two songs were really overdue for those exits, and I'm glad it finally happened. What I am not happy about is the departure of Bebe Rexha - I Got You. That song deserved a lot more here, yet it got short lived success, and dropped to the butt of the countdown in just a matter of a few weeks. Finally, what really made me irritated was the departure of Ariana Grande/Future - Everyday. I understand that this song has dropped off of the Billboard chart already, but that doesn't mean you carry songs like Niall Horan - This Town, that lost it's fame months ago and even Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor, which isn't even an official freaking single, and that I'm not sure if charted on Billboard for months on end. The point is, Hits 1 needs to get over their unhealthy obsessions with artists and give newer songs, like the two good ones that left this week, time to shine. It's really annoying, and this is one of the few things I hate about this station.

~ Well, veering away from rant time, we had a very large jump to #1 from Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill. This was really weird. Don't get me wrong, this song is good, but the one that was here for nine weeks is undeniably better and should have stayed here over this one, but I don't expect this song to last here for a long time, so hopefully everything returns to the way it was.

~ Wow. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay really caught on quick. When we got down to the top 2, I was really thinking this was going to be #1, but I got a huge surprise. Hopefully this one can pull it off in the near future.

~ Okay, even though Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy is the best song here, and I'm glad it made a jump into the top 5, these weird jumps and drops all over the place are really confusing me. Are you staying, or are you leaving. Please stay here, you're very welcome, but if you have to go, know that we'll miss you.

~ With the new #1, Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You dropped a few spots. I hope to see this recover a little bit, because I'm not ready for it to leave the top 10 just yet.

~ After over half of a year in the top 10, The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer finally broke its streak and left. Although it won't be the same there without it, it's good to let it roam free just outside the top 10, just so it doesn't prevent the newer music from shining.

~ Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap took a bit of a tumble this week. Maybe this is the end, but maybe not. I am hoping so right now, just because the song is starting to fade on me a bit.

~ The Vamps/Matoma - All Night clearly had a good second week. Hopefully we can see it in the top 20 next week.

~ I cannot say how long it has felt that Shawn Mendes - Treat You Better has been in the #25-#30 area. It's starting to get on my nerves. This one really needs to get itself together and leave.

~ On the note of songs that need to leave, Bruno Mars - 24K Magic took a jump this week back into the top 30. This is the worst song here right now and it seriously needs to drop out. This song has been on my nerves for some time now, and it's too old, it better not start to be successful again.

~ Okay then. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever doesn't look like it has a bright future ahead of it. This song is starting to decline, and I don't necessarily like it. Last week was a tumble, but it just did it again this week. If it were back in the top 20, even at the bottom, I would be happy, below the top 30 just isn't okay right now.

~ Well two of our debuts clearly didn't have much success on their second weeks. Snakehips/MØ - Don't Leave and MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low both had very small inclines in spaces this week. I really hope this doesn't define their futures here.

~ James Hersey - Miss You cannot catch a break. Every time it jumps up, it just drops back down. I really didn't want this kind of tenure for this song.

~ Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj - Side To Side is still hanging on. I, with all honesty, would have been just fine if this one had left this week, rather than her other song. It probably will leave next week, but just saying.

~ I apologize for The Hot 45 Chart being late these past few weeks. I've been busy with a lot of things. Such as, on Thursday, I went to New York City for my Advanced Placement Global and English field trip to the Metropolitan Museum Of Art, and my 15th Birthday is coming up next Monday, but I am on spring break right now, so hopefully I will have more time to get things out this week.

Let's Do A Top 20 Review!

0-Crap
NONE

1-Bad
20. Train - Play That Song

2-Mediocre
NONE

3-Decent
19. Shawn Mendes - Mercy
18. Hailee Steinfeld & Grey/Zedd - Starving

4-Good
17. Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap

5-Great
16. Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill
15. The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer
14. Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello - Bad Things
13. James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go
12. Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul
11. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - I Feel It Coming
10. Julia Michaels - Issues
9. The Chainsmokers - Paris
8. Imagine Dragons - Believer
7. Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye
6. Maroon 5 - Cold
5. Bruno Mars - That's What I Like
4. Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You
3. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay
2. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me
1. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy

Score: 91% (A-)

Bottom 5 Countdown Songs
1. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic
2. Niall Horan - This Town
3. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor
4. Twenty One Pilots - Heathens
5. Train - Play That Song

Top 5 Countdown Songs
1. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy
2. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me
3. AJR - Weak
4. MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low
5. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay

Love you guys!

~ Jack :)

Ed Sheeran (9) - Week Of April 8, 2017

This week wasn't exactly the most normal week we've ever had. I mean, it started off with a few big drops and carried on as usual, but then when we got into the twenties, we started to have several drops out of the upper end of the countdown. When we finally got to the top 10, things had changed quite a bit, seeing as most of the songs from last week had taken a tumble. But, before we get to this week's countdown, here's the songs we're saying goodbye to:

• Noah Cyrus/Labrinth - Make Me (Cry) (#40)
• DJ Snake/Justin Bieber - Let Me Love You (#43)
• Daya - Words (#45)

Last Week's #1 Song: Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You

#1 Song This Week 1 Year Ago: DNCE - Cake By The Ocean

The Chart
45. Rihanna - Love On The Brain (#31)
44. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor (#24)
43. Bebe Rexha - I Got You (#41)
42. Coldplay/SeeB - Hymn For The Weekend (#44)
41. Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj - Side To Side (#39)
40. MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low (DEBUT)
39. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - Starboy (#37)
38. Niall Horan - This Town (#42)
37. Snakehips/MØ - Don't Leave (DEBUT)
36. Maroon 5/Kendrick Lamar - Don't Wanna Know (#38) [3 Weeks At #1]
35. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic (#35)
34. The Vamps/Matoma - All Night (DEBUT)
33. Panic! At The Disco - L.A. Devotee (#36)
32. Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful (#34)
31. Twenty One Pilots - Heathens (#26)
30. Ariana Grande/Future - Everyday (#28)
29. Shawn Mendes - Treat You Better (#30) [2 Weeks At #1]
28. Adele - Water Under The Bridge (#29)
27. James Hersey - Miss You (#33)
26. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy (#10)
25. Steve Aoki & Louis Tomlinson - Just Hold On (#27)
24. Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello - Bad Things (#6)
23. AJR - Weak (#32)
22. Jon Bellion - All Time Low (#25)
21. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever (#9)
20. Katy Perry/Skip Marley - Chained To The Rhythm (#16)
19. Lady Gaga - Million Reasons (#19)
18. Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul (#18)
17. Julia Michaels - Issues (#21)
16. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - I Feel It Coming (#20)
15. Train - Play That Song (#17)
14. The Chainsmokers - Paris (#11)
13. Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill (#5)
12. Hailee Steinfeld & Grey/Zedd - Starving (#8) [4 Weeks At #1]
11. Imagine Dragons - Believer (#22)
10. Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye (#23)
9. Maroon 5 - Cold (#15)
8. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me (#12)
7. Shawn Mendes - Mercy (#3)
6. The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer (#2) [8 Weeks At #1]
5. James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go (#13)
4. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay (#14)
3. Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap (#7)
2. Bruno Mars - That's What I Like (#4)
1. Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You (#1) [9th Week At #1]

Biggest DROP!!!... Of The Week: Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor (-20)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye (+13)

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Calvin Harris/Young Thug/Pharrell Williams/Ariana Grande - Heatstroke

#1 Recommendation For You: Maggie Lindemann - Pretty Girl

New Entrants

~ Our first entrant this week comes from former countdown alum, MAX featuring another former countdown alum, Gnash. They teamed up for the track, Lights Down Low. For a while, I really wasn't all that attracted to this song. After repeated listens, it didn't seem to get all that better, and up until a couple of weeks ago, that was my opinion. Last weekend, when I listened to it on HitBound, I was just instantly just in love. So, now it is legitimately one of the best songs on the countdown. I hope it does well here, and I'm not sure that will entirely happen based on Hits 1 standards.

~ The next entrance into the countdown this week is Snakehips/MØ - Don't Leave. From the very start, this song has been amazing. The production on this song is very much a step up from this duo's past songs. MØ contributes amazing vocals without flaw to this song, and I know most of you will disagree with me, but I don't care. The chorus is where I get the most emotional feeling, just because it's very personal and quite emotional. I really hope this song stays a while, and has success in the process.

~ The final admittance into the countdown this week is from returning artist The Vamps featuring Matoma. This song has been good from the start. I believe Matoma did a very nice job on the production for this song, and although the vocals from these guys aren't as good as they were in their previous work, they are still very much tolerable throughout the song. I hope to see this one do well here. I'm glad we had a very nice week of debuts.

Best Debut Of The Week: MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low

HitBound

• Jason Derulo/Nicki Minaj/Ty Dolla $ign - Swalla
• Harry Styles - Sign Of The Times (DEBUT)
• ONE OK ROCK - American Girls
• The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This
• Mansionz/G-Eazy - Wicked (DEBUT)
• Erin Bowman - Good Time Good Life
• Halsey - Now Or Never (DEBUT)
• Kungs/Ephemerals - I Feel So Bad (DEBUT)
• Aaron Carter - Sooner Or Later (DEBUT)
• COIN - Talk Too Much
• Jon Bellion - Overwhelming
• Lorde - Green Light
• Ocean Park Standoff - Good News 
• Flo Rida/99 Percent - Cake

Top 5 HitBound Picks

1. Lorde - Green Light

2. Jason Derulo/Nicki Minaj/Ty Dolla $ign - Swalla

3. Ocean Park Standoff - Good News

4. ONE OK ROCK - American Girls

5. The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This

• BLURBS AND TOP 20 REVIEW WILL RETURN NEXT POST. I'M SORRY THIS WAS SO LATE!

Bottom 5 Countdown Songs

1. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic

2. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor

3. Coldplay/SeeB - Hymn For The Weekend

4. Niall Horan - This Town

5. Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful

Top 5 Countdown Songs

1. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy

2. Ariana Grande/Future - Everyday

3. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me

4. AJR - Weak

5. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever

Love you guys!

The post will 100% be out tomorrow on time!

~ Jack :)

Ed Sheeran (8) - Week Of April 1, 2017

Hey guys! If you haven't already checked out last weekend's countdown review that I posted just last night, then I recommend you check it out! This week wasn't really all that active, it should have been considering today is the exact day of April Fool's Day, but it also marks that we have made it one quarter of the way through 2017! Also, April is my birthday month, and my birthday is in about three weeks! I'll be 15 years old, and we, likewise, have Easter Sunday and spring break. So, I've rambled long enough about this magnificent month. Before we get to this week's fresh 45 songs, here's the only song we're finally bidding good day to.

• X Ambassadors - Unsteady (#44)

Last Week's #1 Song: Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You

#1 Song This Week 1 Year Ago: Flo Rida - My House

The Chart

45. Daya - Words (#45)

44. Coldplay/SeeB - Hymn For The Weekend (#42)

43. DJ Snake/Justin Bieber - Let Me Love You (#41)

42. Niall Horan - This Town (#36)

41. Bebe Rexha - I Got You (#43)

40. Noah Cyrus/Labrinth - Make Me (Cry) (#40)

39. Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj - Side To Side (#37)
38. Maroon 5 - Don't Wanna Know (#38) [3 Weeks At #1]
37. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - Starboy (#33)
36. Panic! At The Disco - L.A. Devotee (#34)
35. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic (#35)
34. Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful (#32)
33. James Hersey - Miss You (#39)
32. AJR - Weak (#26)
31. Rihanna - Love On The Brain (#28)
30. Shawn Mendes - Treat You Better (#29) [2 Weeks At #1]
29. Adele - Water Under The Bridge (#18)
28. Ariana Grande/Future - Everyday (DEBUT)
27. Steve Aoki & Louis Tomlinson - Just Hold On (#19)
26. Twenty One Pilots - Heathens (#20) [2 Weeks At #1]
25. Jon Bellion - All Rime Low (#22)
24. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor (#25)
23. Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye (#31)
22. Imagine Dragons - Believer (#27)
21. Julia Michaels - Issues (#21)
20. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - I Feel It Coming (#24)
19. Lady Gaga - Million Reasons (#16)
18. Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul (#30)
17. Train - Play That Song (#14)
16. Katy Perry/Skip Marley - Chained To The Rhythm (#15)
15. Maroon 5 - Cold (#12)
14. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay (#13)
13. James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go (#23)
12. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me (#17)
11. The Chainsmokers - Paris (#11)
10. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy (#10)
9. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever (#7)
8. Hailee Steinfeld & Grey/Zedd - Starving (#5) [4 Weeks At #1]
7. Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap (#8)
6. Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello - Bad Things (#2)
5. Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill (#6)
4. Bruno Mars - That's What I Like (#9)
3. Shawn Mendes - Mercy (#3)
2. The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer (#4) [8 Weeks At #1]
1. Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You (#1) [8th Week At #1]

Biggest DROP!!!... Of The Week: Adele - Water Under The Bridge (-11)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul (+12)

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Stargate/P!nk/Sia - Waterfall

#1 Recommendation For You: Hey Violet - Break My Heart

New Entrants

~ We again have only one entrant this week. That entrant would be Ariana Grande/Future - Everyday. Ariana Grande never fails to impress me with her music. However, this song was very questionable at first listen. Ariana's vocals were very repetitive, but I eventually started to develop a liking for it. I enjoy what Future has to offer and his section is very catchy. I'll admit the production isn't the most amazing thing I've ever heard, but it's good enough. I am absolutely loving this song right now. So, I hope to see this song do well here, and I don't doubt it will.

HitBound

• Snakehips/MØ - Don't Leave
• Ocean Park Standoff - Good News
• Erin Bowman - Good Time Good Life
• Calvin Harris/Frank Ocean/Migos - Slide
• Jon Bellion - Overwhelming (DEBUT)
• MAX/Gnash - Lights Down Low 
• Lorde - Green Light
• Flo Rida/99 Percent - Cake
• The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This
• The Vamps/Matoma - All Night
• ONE OK ROCK - American Girls
• Little Mix - Touch
• COIN - Talk To Much
• Jason Derulo/Nicki Minaj/Ty Dolla $ign - Swalla

My Top 5 HitBound Picks

1. Lorde - Green Light

2. Little Mix - Touch

3. The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This

4. The Vamps/Matoma - All Night

5. Jon Bellion - Overwhelming

Blurb Ain't Me

~ Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You continues to hold atop the countdown for an eighth week. By now, I'm almost entirely confident that this song will be at #1 for four more weeks, collecting a total of twelve, as no song has ever reached above that amount of #1's, but have only tied that number.

~ The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer is definitely not giving up. It has been up here for months now, and is still going strong at #2. I am still enjoying this song and I don't think overplay will ever kill it, so I hope it continues to have success.

~ Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill continues to rise up the chart, and is in the top 5 now. I am surprised that the Hits 1 rules have not been in play. I don't mind, but this is pretty cool that this station is deciding to, for once, switch things up.

~ James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go has been jumping all over the place lately. I just think it should stay put, as I honestly think it is at a good spot at the moment. It's a good song, and I would appreciate it if it stuck up here for a bit longer, but that probably won't happen.

~ Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul finally made its way back into the top 20. I am very glad that it had the biggest jump this week, and it may only be at #18, but it's a start. 

~ Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye had a reasonable second week jump. I hope to see it make its way into the top 20 next week, though.

~ Adele - Water Under The Bridge took a surprising decline this week. I guess all Adele songs to not need to be the main attention here, like usual.

~ Rihanna - Love On The Brain still has a weird tenure in my book. So far, this one has the strangest tenure of 2017. Next week we'll probably be seeing a jump into the teens or a drop all the way to the bottom of the countdown.

~ AJR - Weak hasn't been successful at all in these past weeks. I really had high expectations for this song, but when they finally have one amazing song, it can't do well. Just my luck. 

~ James Hersey - Miss You made some kind of comeback. I mean, it wasn't exactly at the height I had hoped for, but it'll do. At least it jumped.

~ Bruno Mars - 24K Magic is now the worst song on the countdown. I just thought I would point that out if you haven't noticed already.

~ Panic! At The Disco - L.A. Devotee is really not doing anything at all. I wish it would overtake the other song they have here, because this one is way better at the moment.

~ Daya - Words is still at the butt of the countdown. This song really didn't have much success here at all. So, I wouldn't recommend that it continues to try, as it is beginning to become old.

~ The delayed Hot 45 Charts will be out as soon as I can get them out to you. I have a very busy day planned tomorrow. So, maybe Monday will be the day.

Let's Do A Top 20 Review!

0-Crap

NONE

1-Bad

NONE

2-Mediocre

NONE

3-Decent

20. Train - Play That Song

4-Good

19. Lady Gaga - Million Reasons

18. Shawn Mendes - Mercy

17. Hailee Steinfeld & Grey/Zedd - Starving

5-Great

16. Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap

15. Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul

14. The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer

13. Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill

12. James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go

11. The Chainsmokers - Paris

10. Maroon 5 - Cold

9. Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You

8. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - I Feel It Coming

7. Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello - Bad Things

6. Bruno Mars - That's What I Like

5. Katy Perry/Skip Marley - Chained To The Rhythm

4. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever

3. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy

2. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay

1. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me

Score: 95% (A)

Bottom 5 Countdown Songs

1. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic

2. Coldplay/SeeB - Hymn For The Weekend

3. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor

4. Niall Horan - This Town

5. Shawn Mendes - Treat You Better

Top 5 Countdown Song

1. Ariana Grande/Future - Everyday

2. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me

3. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay

4. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy

5. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever

Happy April Fool's Day everyone! If you want to see my special fool post, it's before this one! So, enjoy!

Love you guys!

~ Jack :)

The Chainsmokers (9) - Week Of April 1, 2017

Oh my god guys! This countdown definitely lived up to it's name! I don't have a lot of time, but this countdown was very outrageous! I can't write tons of blurbs because this was nuts! I'm really busy this weekend with homework and family commitments this weekend, so yeah. There will be a much more hefty post next weekend. I'm just going to list the countdown with my opinions. Hopefully it'll cool down next weekend. Here's our lone exit.

• Niall Horan - This Town (#36)

The Countdown
45. Shawn Mendes - Mercy (#3)
44. Lady Gaga - Million Reasons (#16)
43. X Ambassadors - Unsteady (#44)
42. Twenty One Pilots - Heathens (#20) [2 Weeks At #1]
41. DJ Snake/Justin Bieber - Let Me Love You (#41)
40. Jon Bellion - All Time Low (#22)
39. Fitz & The Tantrums - HandClap (#8)
38. Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful (#32)
37. Bruno Mars - 24K Magic (#35)
36. Maroon 5 - Don't Wanna Know (#38) [3 Weeks At #1]
35. AJR - Weak (#26)
34. Train - Play That Song (#14)
33. Steve Aoki & Louis Tomlinson - Just Hold On (#19)
32. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - Starboy (#33)
31. Ariana Grande/Nicki Minaj - Side To Side (#37)
30. Bruno Mars - That's What I Like (#9)
29. Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You (#1) [7 Weeks At #1]
28. Hailee Steinfeld & Grey/Zedd - Starving (#5) [4 Weeks At #1]
27. Julia Michaels - Issues (#21)
26. Katy Perry/Skip Marley - Chained To The Rhythm (#15)
25. Maroon 5 - Cold (#12)
24. James Hersey - Miss You (#39)
23. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor (#25)
22. Twenty One Pilots - Heavydirtysoul (#30)
21. Shawn Mendes - Treat You Better (#29) [2 Weeks At #1]
20. The Weeknd/Daft Punk - I Feel It Coming (#24)
19. Zayn & Taylor Swift - I Don't Wanna Live Forever (#7)
18. Machine Gun Kelly & Camila Cabello - Bad Things (#2)
17. Zedd & Alessia Cara - Stay (#13)
16. Adele - Water Under The Bridge (#18)
15. Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me (#17)
14. Imagine Dragons - Believer (#27)
13. Clean Bandit/Sean Paul/Anne-Marie - Rockabye (#30)
12. Ariana Grande/Future - Everyday (DEBUT)
11. The Chainsmokers - Paris (#11)
10. Linkin Park/Kiiara - Heavy (#10)
9. Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill (#6)
8. James Arthur - Say You Won't Let Go (#23)
7. Bebe Rexha - I Got You (#43)
6. Coldplay/SeeB - Hymn For The Weekend (#42)
5. Rihanna - Love On The Brain (#28)
4. Panic! At The Disco - L.A. Devotee (#34)
3. Daya - Words (#45)
2. Noah Cyrus/Labrinth - Make Me (Cry) (#40)
1. The Chainsmokers/Halsey - Closer (#4) [9 Weeks At #1]

Biggest DROP!!!... Of The Week: Shawn Mendes - Mercy (-42)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Daya - Words (+42)

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1: Taylor Swift - Punk Rock

#1 Recommendation For You: Rihanna - Serenade River

I'm sorry I didn't have more time guys! I'll try my best for next weekend, but I just have one reminder before I sign off.










APRIL FOOLS!


The real countdown will be out later today, and thanks for playing along.

*All colors in this post aren't entirely accurate.

Love ya fam!

~ Jack :)