Billboard Hot 100: 01/12/13

[HolidayGuy]

^Yes- when has a purely-country track gained so much? And this will only be its 12th week on the Hot 100 (16th on Country Airplay), so not like it's benefiting hugely from year-end-countdown airplay.

[Rocky]

Jan 2, 2013 8:06:19 GMT -5 nivekwriter1 said:

Hot 100:
Now: Bruno Mars - Locked Out Of Heaven (1st wk @ #1)

Maybe third week at #1?

[areyoureadytojump]

Jan 2, 2013 8:59:06 GMT -5 HolidayGuy said:

^Yes- when has a purely-country track gained so much? And this will only be its 12th week on the Hot 100 (16th on Country Airplay), so not like it's benefiting hugely from year-end-countdown airplay.

Zac Brown is #1 at Country radio. It's probably benefiting from the country radio stations that switched to all Xmas music and are now going back to their country music..

[Au$tin]

Jan 2, 2013 1:24:44 GMT -5 vantiboy3 said:

Bruno will obviously blast through that 200 AI mark. It still has steam going, so after the freeze, he is gonna surprise alot of you.

How do you figure? He's already done at pop. He should gain back a little there, but it's not going to peak higher than it alreay has on pop. Unless Hot AC gives him a big push at the right time as pop's small increase it could barely get to 200, but I personally think it's fallen too much to do so. I see him performing similarly to "Sexy and I Know It" after the freeze.

[kingofpain]

I guess Taylor's label isn't interested in getting another #1 single. Without streaming she has no shot at it.

[Au$tin]

Jan 2, 2013 11:35:35 GMT -5 kingofpain said:

I guess Taylor's label isn't interested in getting another #1 single. Without streaming she has no shot at it.

She does have a shot, but it has to be at the right time. For example, in order to get it this week, she needs to sell roughly 220k more than Bruno to get to #1, which is something that could be doable for Christmas Rush sales. If her sales continue to stay high while her airplay increases, then #1 definitely is in reach without streaming, but it is a lot more difficult without it.

I really wish her label would just drop this tactic and release the album to streaming. It's already been proven that streaming is not affecting sales because the people who purchase music aren't the same people who stream music. The demographics of the two are pretty different. There's a little overlapping, but not enough to really warrant the need to hold off from streaming.

Rihanna's in the same boat. "Diamonds" is the only Unapologetic track available for streaming and that ticks me off.

[HolidayGuy]

Billboard reported that Mars' track probably would remain No. 1 this week (even with a 200K or so sales difference between it and Swift's track), but the final numbers will tell the tale. :)

[jebsib]

I'm telling you; If Streaming explodes and the labels continue pull this crap, it will be just like the 90s and early 00s when they withheld singles and hit radio songs charted lower or more oddly than they should have.

[KeepDeanWeird]

Jan 2, 2013 12:07:08 GMT -5 jebsib said:

I'm telling you; If Streaming explodes and the labels continue pull this crap, it will be just like the 90s and early 00s when they withheld singles and hit radio songs charted lower or more oddly than they should have.

So what? Unlike the 90s when singles were taken away, which eventually backfired because of downloading, streaming doesn't really produce revenue. And, again, unlike the mid-90s when so many songs didn't chart, that's not happening now. I don't think a few spots will matter to certain artists/labels if it gets them higher sales, if that's their belief. I'm sure Taylor & the label are quite happy with Red's sales and the reception of the Pop singles.

[areyoureadytojump]

^Yes. It's called the music business for a reason.

[Deleted]

If it doesn't generate revenue then why is it such a big part of the formula?

[jebsib]

"So what?" Were you a chart fan from 1994 - 2005???

[Deleted]

Streaming doesn't produce revenue but neither does radio airplay. What they both do is generate exposure for the song and get people to buy it

[Au$tin]

They both generate revenue, though. Royalties from radio airplay. Then of course streaming pays for every time the song is played. It's not a whole lot, but even at .5 cents per play, that's still nearly $5000 for the number one streamed song.

[Deleted]

oops - you're correct

[KeepDeanWeird]

Jan 2, 2013 13:05:25 GMT -5 jebsib said:

"So what?" Were you a chart fan from 1994 - 2005???

I was, but this is not the same instance. Many songs didn't chart because of BB rules (and labels trying to milk the consumer). In this case, there are no bans on songs charting with 90%+ points available. Just because a song is available for streaming, doesn't mean it will rack up a lot of points - especially if it charts low. Do you think Kid Rock cared that ASL charted low on H100, when the refusal to allow it be sold as a single download, ended up pushing his CD back to Top 10 for four months after a long absence? I doubt it. With his latest release, he switched strategies.

Additionally, between 2005-2009, BB's overweighing of digital sales, clearly manipulated the charts. Look at the Glee travesties, Miley Cyrus, etc. Certainly all those songs "blocked" others from charting higher. Or how about suppressing downloads? Record companies soon realized that they were losing megabucks because consumers weren't going to wait weeks for them to release hits for chart placement. Charts are never going to be "fair" unless your favorites benefit from them.

Record companies and artists are going to find whatever ways the can to maximize revenue. If they determine that streaming will do that for them, trust me, they will be all in, but it won't be because of chart placement.

[Adonis the DemiGod!]

Team denverdean!

[jebsib]

Sorry, just don't want to go through another long era when a song that is #1 on Hot 100 airplay and will be remembered far after other songs above it on the Hot 100 can't even get in the top 5, just because the record company is arbitrarily withholding it from the format that the maximum number of people want.

[slayZ]

I hate that "Trouble" might miss the #1 spot even with massive sales. It's upsetting.

[kingofpain]

Hey look at what happened to Psy. He got screwed by AirPlay... And Taylor's gonna get screwed by streaming. But like everyone in this thread keeps reiterating, the labels apparently aren't interested in chart positions!

[Au$tin]

Why is this even an issue? All three formats are vital to making an artist a success. All three bring in revenue. All three cover literally every demographic other than the Amish. It's completely absurd to avoid one format when going to all three is what makes an artist and a song a smashing success. I'm not even talking about chart positions here. Profit is maximized when it reaches as many people as possible. Airplay covers those who refuse to move forward with technology. Digital sales cover those who like to own their music so they listen to it whenever, wherever. Streaming covers those who listen to music on their phone and computers whenever Internet is around, but don't feel the need to pay to own music. All three bring in revenue and all three contribute to helping album sales.

Hear a song on the radio you like? Want to listen to it whenever you want to, but only have a CD player? Go out and buy the album!

You know that song you liked that you downloaded from online? Yeah, well the album it's from is on sale! With the Complete My Album feature, you can get it for a much cheaper price than you could at any physical retail store!

Wow, this album that I'm streaming is really good! I think I want to buy it so I can listen to it on the road!

None of them steal from the other, and all of them are important!

[WotUNeed]

Jan 2, 2013 19:54:54 GMT -5 Au$tin said:

None of them steal from the other

Are you sure there?

I doubt that labels making the decisions to withhold releases from streaming availability are doing so without some sort of research or something backing the decision. Plus, the fact that the album can't be streamed now doesn't mean that it won't ever be made available; is it possible that delayed streaming availability helps maximize best-selling albums' sales during their periods of being most commercially viable, thereby helping to ensure no potential sales are lost to streaming, and that releasing the album to streaming at a later point to then get a new dribs-and-drabs stream of revenue is actually more effective? I don't know if that's the thinking or not, but, without knowing what research went into the decision being made, I don't think we can confidently say that streaming, airplay, and sales all act independently and don't cut into one another. In fact, I'd think the fact that people make decisions to withhold albums from streaming availability would let us confidently say at least some research suggests that they do affect one another.

[Au$tin]

Jan 2, 2013 20:05:03 GMT -5 WotUNeed said:

Jan 2, 2013 19:54:54 GMT -5 Au$tin said:

None of them steal from the other

Are you sure there?

Not enough to warrant the need to stay away from one all together.

Sure streaming may affect digital sales slightly, but that's it. Really, that's all streaming is going to affect. Album sales have not changed in the slightest since streaming became popular. Digital sales affect album sales, not streaming. Streaming hasn't really done anything to digital sales, though.

[Deleted]

digitalmusic.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/MusicSubscriptionFactSheet.pdf

[Deleted]

Despite the digialmusic.org article (which was very interesting btw, thanks!) some of these labels must be convinced that streaming is a disadvantage sometimes. Scott Borchetta, right or wrong, certainly believes it. If we assumed Scott was right, there is still a middle ground though. Rihanna for example only has her single available for streaming, and IDJ obviously did this for charting purposes. When she chooses her next singles they'll likely be released for streaming too. I don't see why Borchetta won't do the same thing with IKYWT. I got it with WANEGBT because that debuted at #1; for peak purposes streaming was rendered moot after that.

Also, whether or not streaming is useful to a label or artist also depends on the 'game' being played. With Red, Borchetta's goal was to make sure it debuted with 1 million+. In this case, streaming may have hurt its demand in the short run. IDJ and Rihanna are in the singles race so they can't afford to not stream any of Rihanna's singles. I'm not sure what the reason is for holding back Unapologetic, but whatever it is having the whole album on Spotify or Rhapsody doesn't serve their immediate goals so they're not concerned. And I wouldn't be surprised if there some stats re: demographics that the above article doesn't mention, and so in that case a label may react a certain way because overall streaming patterns don't fit their specific situation.

I kind of understand jebsib's concern. This may seem like a minor quibble now but I imagine back in '95 it didn't seem like a big deal that non-commercial singles couldn't chart. It eventually snowballed into a mess, and the same thing could happen again. On a site where we regularly see people getting their panties in a bunch over "disappointing" #2 peaks, I would have thought more people would have agreed. That said I personally believe the current formula is still the foremost problem. Radio (the more passive listening component) needs to weigh less, and sales and streaming (the active listening components) need to weigh more.

[Ballroom Blitzed]

When there's readily available software that allows listeners to rip songs from Spotify (ie. when streaming develops its own form of piracy), then streaming will become contentious. Now, such technology is available already, but it tends to be somewhat expensive and (according to people who have tried it) unreliable and difficult to use. That being said, it might become an issue in the future.

[nivekwriter1]

I just made a thread for the Pulse Music awards
from the 90's.
It's in the category 'games'.
You can vote for it if you want.
The instructions are in the thread :)

[HolidayGuy]

Isn't the streaming that contributes to On-Demand Songs from pay-for-streaming sites? I mean, I downloaded Spotfiy some time back and could listen to songs there, but did not pay. How does all of this work?

[Enigma.]

You must listen to the ads though?

[HolidayGuy]

Billboard.com:

www.billboard.com/column/chartbeat#/news/bruno-mars-locked-at-no-1-on-hot-100-taylor-1008067362.story

Bruno Mars 'Locked' at No. 1 on Hot 100, Taylor Swift Closing In
by Gary Trust, N.Y. | January 03, 2013

Bruno Mars holds atop the Billboard Hot 100, as "Locked Out of Heaven" spends a fourth week at No. 1. Taylor Swift's "I Knew You Were Trouble.," meanwhile, continues its play for the top, pushing 4-2, and PSY's "Gangnam Style" re-enters the top 10.

As it maintains its command over the Hot 100, "Heaven" spends a second week at No. 1 on Radio Songs, logging a less than 1% increase to 140 million all-format audience impressions, according to Nielsen BDS. "Heaven" relinquishes its three-week rule on Digital Songs, falling 1-2 despite a 120% gain to 497,000 downloads sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. As previously reported , sales during the Dec. 24-30 tracking week soared as consumers cashed in on digital retailers' gift cards, a tradition of the decade-old digital era; all titles but three in the Digital Songs top 50 this week gain by at least 100%.

"Heaven" likewise slips 1-2 on On-Demand Songs after two weeks on top, decreasing by 5% to 1.03 million on-demand streams, according to BDS.

Swift's "Trouble" leaps 4-2 with the Hot 100's top Digital Gainer award for a third week. The song reaches a new peak, having bounded onto the Hot 100 at No. 3 nine weeks ago as a then-preview cut to her album "Red," arriving that week (Oct. 27) at No. 1 on Digital Songs (416,000). The second pop radio single from the set returns to the Digital Songs apex with a 164% gain to 582,000 downloads sold, marking the fourth-best weekly sales sum of the digital era, two of which belong to Swift: "Trouble" trails only Flo Rida's "Right Round" (636,000, Feb. 28, 2009), Swift's "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" (623,000, Sept. 1, 2012) and Ke$ha's "TiK ToK" (610,000, Jan. 9, 2010). With its latest frame, "Trouble" passes 2 million downloads sold to date.

"Trouble" retreats 11-12 on Radio Songs, although with a 5% uptick to 67 million. (It's not available to subscription streaming services and, thus, does not appear on On-Demand Songs.)

Despite Swift's swell in sales momentum, "Heaven" boasts a lead of more than 10,000 overall Hot 100 chart points over "Trouble." The latter title, however, gains by more than twice as much (up 113%) as the former (up 49%), pushing Swift closer to her potential second No. 1, following "Together" (which reaches 3 million in total digital sales).

Rihanna's former three-week Hot 100 No. 1 "Diamonds," atop R&B/Hip-Hop Songs for a 13th week, descends 2-3. It returns (2-1) for a sixth week atop On-Demand Songs with 1.07 million on-demand streams (up 2%) and 1.29 million streams overall; holds at No. 2 on Radio Songs (132 million, down 2%), which it led for three weeks; and is a non-mover at No. 5 on Digital Songs, although up 159% to 365,000) after ruling the ranking the week of Dec. 1. It, too, crosses the 2-million sold-to-date barrier.

The Lumineers' "Ho Hey" regresses 3-4 on the Hot 100, while leading the Rock Songs chart for a fifth consecutive week, and Justin Bieber's "Beauty and a Beat," featuring Nicki Minaj, holds at No. 5 on the Hot 100. With 372,000 downloads sold last week (up 212%), "Beauty" passes 1 million in sales to date (1.29 million).

Powered by consumers purchasing some of 2012's most buzzworthy hits and radio airplay recounting the same in year-end retrospectives, PSY's "Gangnam Style" gallops back into the Hot 100's top 10 (17-6). The song peaked at No. 2 for seven weeks in October and November and had last ranked in the top 10 the week of Dec. 15. "Style" soars 8-3 on Digital Songs with a 245% gain to 400,000 downloads sold, marking its best weekly total. (It's sold 3.6 million since its release.)

Rounding out the Hot 100's top 10, Ke$ha's No. 2-peaking "Die Young" drops 6-7 (and is the top bracket's third title to pass 2 million downloads sold), followed by Maroon 5's "One More Night" (7-8); Phillip Phillips' "Home" (9-9); and Macklemore and Ryan Lewis' "Thrift Shop" (10-10), which sold 304,000 downloads last week (up 116%), pushing it past 1 million in to-date sales.

Among highlights below the Hot 100's top 10, rapper A$AP Rocky's "F**kin Problems," featuring Drake, 2 Chainz and Kendrick Lamar, claims top Streaming Gainer honors, despite descending 24-26. The track vaults 24-13 on On-Demand Songs (553,000, up 11%).

In addition to PSY benefiting from nostalgia-fueled year-end airplay and sales surges, the top two songs of 2012 rebound on the Hot 100. Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know," featuring Kimbra, last year's top Hot 100 title, rises 49-48 (in its 52nd week) with top Airplay Gainer kudos, roaring 45-24 on Radio Songs (up 63% to 41 million). 2012's runner-up song, Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe," charges 43-27 on the Hot 100, up 65-36 on Radio Songs (33 million, up 61%).

Check Billboard.com later today (Jan. 3), when all rankings, including the Hot 100 and On-Demand Songs in their entirety and Digital Songs and Radio Songs, will be refreshed, as they are each Thursday; due to the New Year's holiday, all charts are updating later than usual today (around 6 p.m.)