Billboard Hot 100: 03/09/13

[Deleted]

+ the benefit of Gangnam Style so it can have the longest run ever

[Rose "Payola" Nylund]

I feel like we're underestimating just HOW popular Harlem Shake was/is though. Not even looking at Billboard but just looking through social media and blogs and everyday discussion. Even though people are watching for the video, they're still hearing the song every time the video plays and most people who watch the videos are watching more than one so they're hearing the song multiple times at a time. When was the last time a song had that sort of repeat-power - even if it is for the video?

[Rodze]

Feb 28, 2013 9:38:51 GMT -5 @2m said:

I still have to say I consider the 30 second clips to be the 'official version' and therefore there isn't a problem with declaring Harlem Shake #1 (I see it as a good thing)

Even if it isn't, without it, we would not be talking about it right now without the 30 second version.

The 30 second version helped drive the sales numbers of the itunes version (which has seemed to have peaked)

The itunes version was released last summer and fell flat

I see Harlem Shake as an anomoly rather than the rule. You won't see random 30 second clips being this popular every day.

"Born This Way" (album) being sold for $0.99 was an anomaly and Billboard still reacted to it to prevent it from becoming a thing.

The song is minutes long. It is not a thirty seconds song. It's irrelevant if that 30s is what made it popular (many songs are popular because of a sentence or two repeated in their chorus for 10s or so). We Are Young became popular because of a 30 seconds ad, but I didn't see Billboard considering every 30 seconds of the song as a complete play.

[Rose "Payola" Nylund]

Feb 28, 2013 11:12:07 GMT -5 Rodze said:

"Born This Way" (album) being sold for $0.99 was an anomaly and Billboard still reacted to it to prevent it from becoming a thing.

The album chart is a whole different entity though. The Billboard 200's purpose isn't to show the most popular albums of any given week. It's to show the most sold.
Though, I think when it comes to cumulative numbers, even 99 cent albums should count. Though it presents an unfair advantage. I don't know why Billboard doesn't implement a chart that shows a paid-chart, combining money made rather than units sold. I know there have been times when I've been torn between albums and ended up going for the cheaper one or when I've opted to not buy something because it was priced too high, or when I've bought a CD on a whim because it was super cheap.

[Deleted]

What if Billboard counted the 30 second clips as a seperate song? It would still be #1 from youtube views, but the full vesrion would also be in the top 10 from sales... I think you guys should be happy that Billboard combined them. ;)

[Quixotic Music Lover]

Feb 28, 2013 10:11:10 GMT -5 @2m said:

The stream difference between #1 and #2 is a factor of 10, in my opinion that is huge.

Whether there was any manipulation or not to benefit this song, given the hige difference, it seems they picked the right #1

You are assuming that people are streaming the 30 second video clips that are made by YouTubers because of the song, not because of the antics of the participants. I personally don't think there is anyway for Billboard to know this. That is why it makes sense to me to have a much lower weighting for the 30 second streams.

Going forward, if these rules are maintained by Billboard, it will make sense for artists that desperately want a #1 song to be very generous in letting Youtubers to use the song in their video.

The main reason why "Harlem Shake" is #1 is that the record company and artist allowed just about everyone that asked, permission to use a snippet from the song in their video.

I figure the only way to kill off this virus is to have a group of highly unpopular people make a "Harlem Shake" video, say members of the US Congress? That will kill the "cool" factor for sure.

[Deleted]

Whatever it is, the impact is clear.

The full song is on the itunes chart because of the 30 second clip.

This is the popularity driver.


Will it be this way all the time? Likely not. I assume this will be rare event.

Videos of a boy and his dog or whatever with some random song go viral all the time but rarely to this magnitude

[Deleted]

Feb 28, 2013 11:25:12 GMT -5 Quixotic Music Lover said:

Feb 28, 2013 10:11:10 GMT -5 @2m said:

The stream difference between #1 and #2 is a factor of 10, in my opinion that is huge.

Whether there was any manipulation or not to benefit this song, given the hige difference, it seems they picked the right #1

You are assuming that people are streaming the 30 second video clips that are made by YouTubers because of the song, not because of the antics of the participants. I personally don't think there is anyway for Billboard to know this. That is why it makes sense to me to have a much lower weighting for the 30 second streams.

Going forward, if these rules are maintained by Billboard, it will make sense for artists that desperately want a #1 song to be very generous in letting Youtubers to use the song in their video.

The main reason why "Harlem Shake" is #1 is that the record company and artist allowed just about everyone that asked, permission to use a snippet from the song in their video.

I figure the only way to kill off this virus is to have a group of highly unpopular people make a "Harlem Shake" video, say members of the US Congress? That will kill the "cool" factor for sure.

They make revenue from fan videos so I'm pretty sure they already allow it. ??? I haven't seen any songs taken down lately that weren't leaks.

[SPRΞΞ]

Who watches full videos that are 5-10 minutes long ALL THE TIME anyways? YouTube introduced an "audience retention" algorithm last last year, so they know people's attention spans are low.

I think the 30s should count. What I think this also means is we'll see (hopefully) less videos that are painfully too long. Like those drawn out 10 minute videos. *cough* *cough*

[Deleted]

Everyone skips the intro and talking parts on long music videos anyway lol

[Quixotic Music Lover]

Feb 28, 2013 10:42:56 GMT -5 Rose "Payola" Nylund said:

I feel like we're underestimating just HOW popular Harlem Shake was/is though. Not even looking at Billboard but just looking through social media and blogs and everyday discussion. Even though people are watching for the video, they're still hearing the song every time the video plays and most people who watch the videos are watching more than one so they're hearing the song multiple times at a time. When was the last time a song had that sort of repeat-power - even if it is for the video?

I am still waiting for the evidence that this song is as popular as Billboard thinks it is.

Sales? #5 on Itunes Pop Bars and dropping;

Airplay? Negligible.

If the song "Harlem Shake" is as popular as it supposedly is, then sales should be at #1 by a wide margin, and Top40 radio stations should be deluged by listener requests to play the song.

At the very least its' sales should be increasing, and its' airplay should be going up dramatically. Lacking these signs, I can only conclude that the video's are popular, the song less so.

[Arabella21]

I think the 30s should count. What I think this also means is we'll see (hopefully) less videos that are painfully too long. Like those drawn out 10 minute videos. *cough* *cough*

Hehe, I see what you did there.

In the days when the Hot 100 was essentially an airplay chart, the songs were really promotional tools from labels to sell albums. In many cases the labels were *ahem* indirectly *cough* paying radio to play the songs for the exposure. So the labels were using airplay as a loss leader, or advertising for an album, yet that level of high airplay was able to count towards an artist's Hot 100 tally.

The Harlem Shake phenomenon isn't totally different...the 30 second videos are serving as ads for the song itself, driving its sales, but in this case it wasn't really generated by the label. In some ways it's probably a better indicator of popularity with "the people", though it can be argued that the Harlem Shake wouldn't have become the thing that it has, if the original viral video had been 3 minutes long as opposed to half a minute. But there have been full-length songs that have become viral video sensations, too, like Single Ladies or Forever when it was in that wedding dance video.

Also, there are all kinds of motivations for buying a song. Take charity singles: they can be bad or majorly depressing and people might buy them without actually ever listening to them, but there's not much of an argument for excluding them from the Hot 100. So I can see why Billboard probably won't wade into the "we can't determine why people are listening to/buying this song so it shouldn't count toward the chart" debate.

[Deleted]

Feb 28, 2013 12:01:05 GMT -5 Quixotic Music Lover said:

Feb 28, 2013 10:42:56 GMT -5 Rose "Payola" Nylund said:

I feel like we're underestimating just HOW popular Harlem Shake was/is though. Not even looking at Billboard but just looking through social media and blogs and everyday discussion. Even though people are watching for the video, they're still hearing the song every time the video plays and most people who watch the videos are watching more than one so they're hearing the song multiple times at a time. When was the last time a song had that sort of repeat-power - even if it is for the video?

I am still waiting for the evidence that this song is as popular as Billboard thinks it is.

Sales? #5 on Itunes Pop Bars and dropping;

Airplay? Negligible.

If the song "Harlem Shake" is as popular as it supposedly is, then sales should be at #1 by a wide margin, and Top40 radio stations should be deluged by listener requests to play the song.

At the very least its' sales should be increasing, and its' airplay should be going up dramatically. Lacking these signs, I can only conclude that the video's are popular, the song less so.

I would consider youtube streaming a natural extension of airplay and a better measure of popularity than radio airplay.

With youtube the individual makes the personal choice as to what video to view. With radio, it is the PD that decides what is played.

In any case, the song is being worked to radio so airplay should increase in the coming weeks.

[SPRΞΞ]

No way, it's all about callout scores and requests!!

lol

[Deleted]

Lol - yeah but there is more individual control over what is popular via youtube than your random radio station, therefore in my opion a better measure of what is popular

[Rodze]

Anyone contending Harlem Shake's popularity is silly.

It's also silly to count snippets of songs towards the Hot 100.

Do they consider a full stream if someone goes to Spotify and just press repeat for the same song each 30s? What if they do it for 15s? 5s? Is there a limit?

[Quixotic Music Lover]

Feb 28, 2013 12:47:43 GMT -5 Rodze said:

Anyone contending Harlem Shake's popularity is silly.

It's also silly to count snippets of songs towards the Hot 100.

Do they consider a full stream if someone goes to Spotify and just press repeat for the same song each 30s? What if they do it for 15s? 5s? Is there a limit?

"Harlem Shake" is popular, even very popular. In Europe it is #3 in sales, in the UK the same. In Canada it is #6 (but #3 in sales I believe). I personally think it should be either #2 or #3 on the HOT 100.

It would be ironic if Billboard kept this methodology and had to announce the following for the May 25th HOT 100:

"Harlem Shake" maintains its' stranglehold on the HOT 100 with its' 13th consecutive week at #1. The YouTube sensation was streamed 70 million times this past week which ensured it a comfortable 2 to 1 lead over the #2 song "Stay".

"Harlem Shake" did not place on the digital songs (12,000 downloads), HOT 100 airplay (3 million audience impressions), or on-demand stream charts (174,000 streams).

I am being facetious, but the above scenario is not out of the realm of possibilities considering the length of time "Gangnam Style" remained popular on YouTube.

[Rodze]

Feb 28, 2013 13:03:30 GMT -5 Quixotic Music Lover said:

"Harlem Shake" is popular, even very popular. In Europe it is #3 in sales, in the UK the same. In Canada it is #6 (but #3 in sales I believe). I personally think it should be either #2 or #3 on the HOT 100.

It would be ironic if Billboard kept this methodology and had to announce the following for the May 25th HOT 100:

"Harlem Shake" maintains its' stranglehold on the HOT 100 with its' 13th consecutive week at #1. The YouTube sensation was streamed 70 million times this past week which ensured it a comfortable 2 to 1 lead over the #2 song "Stay".

"Harlem Shake" did not place on the digital songs (12,000 downloads), HOT 100 airplay (3 million audience impressions), or on-demand stream charts (174,000 streams).

I am being facetious, but the above scenario is not out of the realm of possibilities considering the length of time "Gangnam Style" remained popular on YouTube.

Personally, I don't really have any problem with it being labeled as the most popular song. I don't think that is inaccurate just because the label didn't buy it doesn't get radio airplay. Maybe HS would be no. 2 if they didn't count the 30s. TS already had its weeks at no. 1 anyway.

I'm more interested in questioning the rules of what should constitute as 1 performance of a song, regardless of the song.

Billboard already has many rules to protect the sales data, I think the same must be done for streaming -- audio or video.

[badrobot]

Honestly I think everyone would have loved the YouTube component being added if it had not happened at the exact time that a massive and unexpected phenomenon showed up out of the blue.

[johnm1120]

So is Charlie Bit My Finger a top 40 hit yet?

[johnm1120]

Feb 28, 2013 7:20:48 GMT -5 Rodze said:

Yep 30s is great.

the no. 1 song on the country would have 700 million AI.

Sounds like something ClearChannel would do.

[Quixotic Music Lover]

Feb 28, 2013 14:26:06 GMT -5 badrobot said:

Honestly I think everyone would have loved the YouTube component being added if it had not happened at the exact time that a massive and unexpected phenomenon showed up out of the blue.

I still love it, I just think Billboard could have done a better job of implementation. Perhaps they should have started with including just the streaming of the "official" music videos and run test charts in the background that measured the impact of the Youtubers own videos that sample a song. Instead they jumped in with both feet.

And don't even get me started on their new website! Still "beta" after more than one month.

[SuperTrouper]

Feb 28, 2013 11:47:40 GMT -5 SPRΞΞ said:

I think the 30s should count. What I think this also means is we'll see (hopefully) less videos that are painfully too long. Like those drawn out 10 minute videos. *cough* *cough*

I think artists will continue to make 10 minute videos but they will release it as two-parters or even three-parters.

[Deleted]

"Somebody That I Used To Know" finally fell off the Hot 100 this week!

"Some Nights" is now the longest chart sitter at 53 weeks.

Other drop outs:

Flo Rida - I Cry
Gary Allan - Every Storm (Runs Out Of Rain)
Taylor Swift - Begin Again
Randy Houser - How Country Feels
Brad Paisley - Southern Comfort Zone
Joe Budden featuring Lil Wayne & Tank - She Don't Put It Down
Casey James - Crying On A Suitcase

[Deleted]

Power Trip is still there and Some Nights has 53 weeks

[imbondz]

Crying On A Suitcase is an underrated song. Thought maybe it could have caught on bigger

[imbondz]

Feb 28, 2013 12:01:05 GMT -5 Quixotic Music Lover said:

Feb 28, 2013 10:42:56 GMT -5 Rose "Payola" Nylund said:

I feel like we're underestimating just HOW popular Harlem Shake was/is though. Not even looking at Billboard but just looking through social media and blogs and everyday discussion. Even though people are watching for the video, they're still hearing the song every time the video plays and most people who watch the videos are watching more than one so they're hearing the song multiple times at a time. When was the last time a song had that sort of repeat-power - even if it is for the video?

it's hugely popular based on selling almost 300,000 downloads for 2 straight weeks.

I am still waiting for the evidence that this song is as popular as Billboard thinks it is.

Sales? #5 on Itunes Pop Bars and dropping;

Airplay? Negligible.

If the song "Harlem Shake" is as popular as it supposedly is, then sales should be at #1 by a wide margin, and Top40 radio stations should be deluged by listener requests to play the song.

At the very least its' sales should be increasing, and its' airplay should be going up dramatically. Lacking these signs, I can only conclude that the video's are popular, the song less so.

it's hugely popular based on selling almost 300,000 downloads for 2 straight weeks.

[cking33]

The Miami Heat released a Harlem Shake video that has piled up 5.6 million views in the past 2 days. Week #3 is a lock.