Lady Gaga & Ariana Grande - "Rain On Me"

[kimberly]

Jul 18, 2020 4:23:12 GMT -5 degen said:

Jul 18, 2020 4:07:44 GMT -5 kimberly said:

ever heard of sarcasm?

The song isn’t that good tho. So that’s why I was a little confused by ur sarcasm.

it wasn't even my sarcasm gurl! you severely lack reading comprehension, it seems. some helpful links:

www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/reading-comprehension-improvement-strategies
blog.prepscholar.com/how-to-improve-reading-comprehension
www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/adult-literacy/
www.oxfordlearning.com/how-to-improve-reading-comprehension/

[Au$tin]

Jul 18, 2020 3:45:41 GMT -5 degen said:

Jul 17, 2020 19:07:00 GMT -5 @silver16 said:

The song isn’t good. I’m dying. Yes, the song isn’t good. It only debuted at #1 because of Ariana, has had good longevity, went #10 on Pop, and has smashed globally. All the success is Ariana. Damn, Ari, at this rate, jump on everyone’s bad songs and you’ll make em a HIT!

Gaga, your days are over, pack your bags!!!

Why didn’t “Don’t Call Me Angel” debut at #1 then?

Macster is being sarcastic.

[Az Paynter]

Why is that radio ignores the s**t callout for other songs on radio for like, ever, but they're so quick to dump Gaga at the FIRST hint? :sip2:

POP:
11 10 LADY GAGA & ARIANA GRANDE Rain On Me 10359 10104 255 43.847

-25 Spins
-103 Bullet
-0.598 Audience

HOT AC:
7 7 LADY GAGA & ARIANA GRANDE Rain On Me 4400 4130 270 22.752

+21 Spins
-8 Bullet
+0.016 Audience




SPINS:
1766 Spins from #8, Doja Cat (+270)
206 Spins from #9 Lewis Capaldi (-8)

[leonagwen]

I hope Sour Candy is the next single.

[Enigma.]

SC would do nothing on pop but it would get nice Youtube numbers if there was a video.

[spiritboy]

Jul 17, 2020 21:45:32 GMT -5 Au$tin said:

Jul 17, 2020 20:36:29 GMT -5 Kinney said:

I mean, the album is down to #24 this week (in it's 7th week) so it's not like that's going so hot either.

It's doing fine. #24 in its 7th week is good for a pop album with no major smash hit. There are albums by artists getting hits that were either completely out or close to it by their 7th week.

I wouldn't call Chromatica that, ROM is a major smash hit.

But some people don't understand the fact that Pop radio is ageist and sexist as hell. Once you're over 30, you have a mountain to climb instead of a hill. Madonna has fought ageism on radios all throughout her career and those days radios were most important way to make your music heard. Now Gaga, Katy, Taylor are all suffering from ageism and all pop girls will suffer from this sadly.

[Enigma.]

#4 on iTunes combined. Hope it softens the airplay loss a bit.

[Rose "Payola" Nylund]

Pop radio is one measure of popularity/success among many many measures of popularity/success.

[Koochie]

Jul 17, 2020 19:07:00 GMT -5 @silver16 said:

The song isn’t good. I’m dying. Yes, the song isn’t good. It only debuted at #1 because of Ariana, has had good longevity, went #10 on Pop, and has smashed globally. All the success is Ariana. Damn, Ari, at this rate, jump on everyone’s bad songs and you’ll make em a HIT!

Gaga, your days are over, pack your bags!!!

tea 😌

[Kologne]

This has done very well considering its sound. European artists like Dua and Harry might have better success right now, but their current hit songs here are not as that dancey and in-your-face as this one so I don't think they are comparable. 

[Fears in the Fire]

Sorry to all the fanboys here but this song isn’t very liked as evidenced by its callouts

[Rose "Payola" Nylund]

Jul 18, 2020 12:26:51 GMT -5 Fears in the Fire said:

Sorry to all the fanboys here but this song isn’t very liked as evidenced by its callouts

Yeah because the call outs represent every person and group

[Fears in the Fire]

Jul 18, 2020 12:31:07 GMT -5 Rose "Payola" Nylund said:

Jul 18, 2020 12:26:51 GMT -5 Fears in the Fire said:

Sorry to all the fanboys here but this song isn’t very liked as evidenced by its callouts

Yeah because the call outs represent every person and group

Yeah because this forum is even more representative

[Rose "Payola" Nylund]

Jul 18, 2020 12:35:38 GMT -5 Fears in the Fire said:

Jul 18, 2020 12:31:07 GMT -5 Rose "Payola" Nylund said:

Yeah because the call outs represent every person and group

Yeah because this forum is even more representative

Not even. But look at literally every other metric it has performed well in.

[Fears in the Fire]

Jul 18, 2020 12:36:39 GMT -5 Rose "Payola" Nylund said:

Jul 18, 2020 12:35:38 GMT -5 Fears in the Fire said:

Yeah because this forum is even more representative

Not even. But look at literally every other metric it has performed well in.

If you want to go by that you’ll see that this is below No Guidance on AM and below Sunday Best on spotify, songs that everyone here complains about. You have to realize that because you like the song, you’re just looking for things that support that and ignoring everything that indicates it’s not that good.

[Enigma.]

But it is ABOVE Before You Go, Break My Heart and even motherf**king Circles on Spotify.

We can go on and on and on arguing about this but it's FACTS that this is doing amazingly in radio pretty much everywhere* except in the US, her home country.

*in my country it's a peculiar situation because Stupid Love is still top 30 too so she has two songs there but some stations clearly want to play SL or both

[NeRD]

Jul 18, 2020 12:42:01 GMT -5 Fears in the Fire said:

Jul 18, 2020 12:36:39 GMT -5 Rose "Payola" Nylund said:

Not even. But look at literally every other metric it has performed well in.

If you want to go by that you’ll see that this is below No Guidance on AM and below Sunday Best on spotify, songs that everyone here complains about. You have to realize that because you like the song, you’re just looking for things that support that and ignoring everything that indicates it’s not that good.

It doesn't matter what numbers and facts you bring out, they'll insist she's being victimized and we're haters for pointing things out they don't wanna hear.

[degen]

Jul 18, 2020 13:27:13 GMT -5 NeRD said:

Jul 18, 2020 12:42:01 GMT -5 Fears in the Fire said:

If you want to go by that you’ll see that this is below No Guidance on AM and below Sunday Best on spotify, songs that everyone here complains about. You have to realize that because you like the song, you’re just looking for things that support that and ignoring everything that indicates it’s not that good.

It doesn't matter what numbers and facts you bring out, they'll insist she's being victimized and we're haters for pointing things out they don't wanna hear.

Don’t forget they will claim you are ageist and homophobic too.

[Albie]

Let's keep it cute in here folks. More like this:

[Rose "Payola" Nylund]

Jul 18, 2020 12:42:01 GMT -5 Fears in the Fire said:

You have to realize that because you like the song, you’re just looking for things that support that and ignoring everything that indicates it’s not that good.

Take your own advice then because clearly you lack understanding of the bigger picture. Bye 🖐

[Au$tin]

Jul 18, 2020 12:42:01 GMT -5 Fears in the Fire said:

Jul 18, 2020 12:36:39 GMT -5 Rose "Payola" Nylund said:

Not even. But look at literally every other metric it has performed well in.

If you want to go by that you’ll see that this is below No Guidance on AM and below Sunday Best on spotify, songs that everyone here complains about. You have to realize that because you like the song, you’re just looking for things that support that and ignoring everything that indicates it’s not that good.

You're literally doing the exact same thing but in reverse. If you can't grasp that concept, it's best you stop talking because you're way in over your head.

[kanimal]

I know many people here hate this notion (because it often gets applied to the "main pop girls"), but the reality is that expectations and context DO matter when evaluating songs. A summer dance-pop collaboration involving two of the biggest pop stars on the planet is SUPPOSED to make a big pop culture impact and post outstanding consumption numbers. And it hasn't done either.

The numbers are solid, maybe even "good," by typical single standards, but they'd be unremarkable for a solo "summer banger" from either artist, let alone a collaboration that received tons of media hype, elite playlist positioning, TV sync deals, etc (this is especially true for something involving Grande, who is one of the pop stars with massive streaming appeal). And the buzz DEFINITELY isn't where it should be. COVID of course played a role in that, but still.

You can't call this a "flop" in the grand scheme of things, but you can't sincerely say these numbers live up to the expectations for a commercially minded single from Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande. You just can't. And so if you're a radio programmer who expects them to chart well on Spotify and iTunes by default, you're not looking at these numbers and thinking "wow - this song is connecting beyond their core fanbases."

Comparing it to stuff like "Sunday Best" or "Falling" is ridiculous - they're not heavily hyped singles from the biggest acts on the planet. Name value alone guarantees Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande respectable numbers. It doesn't guarantee Surfaces much of anything.

A comparison to "Watermelon Sugar" is probably more logical given the profile of the artists and the sound. But, frankly, "Rain On Me" arguably should have done better due to Grande's vastly bigger track record of hot, streaming-friendly pop singles.

And it's not like THIS SONG is the only one that's running into some trouble at this point on the chart. It's been the case for a lot of big name pop releases - whether from the Jonas Brothers, Halsey, Justin Bieber ("Yummy"), etc. Fairly or not, there's an expectation that these types of songs should be doing massive numbers when they approach the Top 10 at pop radio - especially if they're not going to have good callouts.

Now I am open to the idea that some artists are unfairly benefiting from this "grading on a curve." Dua Lipa is big enough to where the middling "Break My Heart" numbers should be held against its pop run. But she's still less established than Gaga and Grande - and she is coming off a legitimate smash that had monster callouts for months.

Granted, the charts have been weird due to all the stagnation at the top - it's still possible that "Rain On Me" could end up going Top 5 or to #1. But if it did stop here, I don't think you can say it's SHOCKING based on how it's been doing on other metrics.

[Deleted]

Since some of ya'll bitches clearly are misguided by thinking this song is doing poorly outside of radio too, I'm here to bring ya'll the stats since it's been a hot minute

#12 on iTunes, dark green
#25 on iTunes with the Purple Disco remix
#41 on Spotify, this is with Juice still taking up the majority of the top 50 AND is higher than Intentions, Break My Heart, Circles, Before You Go, Adore You, etc
#73 on YouTube
#75 on Apple Music, which is higher than many other songs on pop radio right now and is also heavily bumped down for the Juice takeover

You bitches need to get some damn glasses, contacts, a magnifying glass, SOMETHING to fix your terrible eyesight if your deluded yo thinking that this is in ANY way an underperformance

The song has done well in all the metrics above since release and bas maintained consistency since then.

End of discussion  

[NeRD]

Jul 18, 2020 17:14:59 GMT -5 kanimal said:

I know many people here hate this notion (because it often gets applied to the "main pop girls"), but the reality is that expectations and context DO matter when evaluating songs. A summer dance-pop collaboration involving two of the biggest pop stars on the planet is SUPPOSED to make a big pop culture impact and post outstanding consumption numbers. And it hasn't done either.

The numbers are solid, maybe even "good," by typical single standards, but they'd be unremarkable for a solo "summer banger" from either artist, let alone a collaboration that received tons of media hype, elite playlist positioning, TV sync deals, etc (this is especially true for something involving Grande, who is one of the pop stars with massive streaming appeal). And the buzz DEFINITELY isn't where it should be. COVID of course played a role in that, but still.

You can't call this a "flop" in the grand scheme of things, but you can't sincerely say these numbers live up to the expectations for a commercially minded single from Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande. You just can't. And so if you're a radio programmer who expects them to chart well on Spotify and iTunes by default, you're not looking at these numbers and thinking "wow - this song is connecting beyond their core fanbases."

Comparing it to stuff like "Sunday Best" or "Falling" is ridiculous - they're not heavily hyped singles from the biggest acts on the planet. Name value alone guarantees Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande respectable numbers. It doesn't guarantee Surfaces much of anything.

A comparison to "Watermelon Sugar" is probably more logical given the profile of the artists and the sound. But, frankly, "Rain On Me" arguably should have done better due to Grande's vastly bigger track record of hot, streaming-friendly pop singles.

And it's not like THIS SONG is the only one that's running into some trouble at this point on the chart. It's been the case for a lot of big name pop releases - whether from the Jonas Brothers, Halsey, Justin Bieber ("Yummy"), etc. Fairly or not, there's an expectation that these types of songs should be doing massive numbers when they approach the Top 10 at pop radio - especially if they're not going to have good callouts.

Now I am open to the idea that some artists are unfairly benefiting from this "grading on a curve." Dua Lipa is big enough to where the middling "Break My Heart" numbers should be held against its pop run. But she's still less established than Gaga and Grande - and she is coming off a legitimate smash that had monster callouts for months.

Granted, the charts have been weird due to all the stagnation at the top - it's still possible that "Rain On Me" could end up going Top 5 or to #1. But if it did stop here, I don't think you can say it's SHOCKING based on how it's been doing on other metrics.

Very well said.

This song had a massive rollout and top notch playlisting. Blaming Corona and no promo is not an excuse considering several songs are excelling with the pandemic and zero traditional promo.

[kimberly]

Jul 18, 2020 17:14:59 GMT -5 kanimal said:

I know many people here hate this notion (because it often gets applied to the "main pop girls"), but the reality is that expectations and context DO matter when evaluating songs. A summer dance-pop collaboration involving two of the biggest pop stars on the planet is SUPPOSED to make a big pop culture impact and post outstanding consumption numbers. And it hasn't done either.

When's the last time a dance-pop song by a female duo smashed, let alone hit #1? I don't recall anyone expecting this to hit #1 and some saying it wouldn't outperform "Stupid Love." No one was expecting this.

The numbers are solid, maybe even "good," by typical single standards, but they'd be unremarkable for a solo "summer banger" from either artist, let alone a collaboration that received tons of media hype, elite playlist positioning, TV sync deals, etc (this is especially true for something involving Grande, who is one of the pop stars with massive streaming appeal). And the buzz DEFINITELY isn't where it should be. COVID of course played a role in that, but still.

Clearly you have no idea what "context" means because at this point in her career, a summer banger isn't easy for Lady Gaga. And Ariana Grande is notorious for her features flopping or underperforming. This got no live performances, not even many interviews. Neither did "Stupid Love." Both Gaga and Ariana chose to put their energy and their fans' attention into social causes.

You can't call this a "flop" in the grand scheme of things, but you can't sincerely say these numbers live up to the expectations for a commercially minded single from Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande. You just can't. And so if you're a radio programmer who expects them to chart well on Spotify and iTunes by default, you're not looking at these numbers and thinking "wow - this song is connecting beyond their core fanbases."

??? what were the expectations again?

Comparing it to stuff like "Sunday Best" or "Falling" is ridiculous - they're not heavily hyped singles from the biggest acts on the planet. Name value alone guarantees Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande respectable numbers. It doesn't guarantee Surfaces much of anything.

"Falling" and "Sunday Best" are both perfect examples of white men having mediocre vocals and mid-to-bad lyrics and still getting a hit for whatever reason. You're fooling yourself if you don't see that. 

A comparison to "Watermelon Sugar" is probably more logical given the profile of the artists and the sound. But, frankly, "Rain On Me" arguably should have done better due to Grande's vastly bigger track record of hot, streaming-friendly pop singles.

Again, circling back, but Gaga isn't a streaming artist and neither is this genre of dance-pop. Yet this song has remained consistent on all platforms, even Apple Music where pop always takes a backseat.

And it's not like THIS SONG is the only one that's running into some trouble at this point on the chart. It's been the case for a lot of big name pop releases - whether from the Jonas Brothers, Halsey, Justin Bieber ("Yummy"), etc. Fairly or not, there's an expectation that these types of songs should be doing massive numbers when they approach the Top 10 at pop radio - especially if they're not going to have good callouts.

"X" was dropped because no one cared. The song debuted at #150-something on Spotify and fell of in less than two weeks.
"Yummy" was disliked widely, and Scooter Braun could not save it. It was a bad song. "Intentions" did much better because it had a good showing on streaming, being one of the most streamed songs released this year on Spotify.
Halsey is a whole another situation of pop radio treating women like shit if you ask me. 
"Stupid Love" was also dropped around here, but it really did not have any staying power on streaming or sales, so it made more sense.

Now I am open to the idea that some artists are unfairly benefiting from this "grading on a curve." Dua Lipa is big enough to where the middling "Break My Heart" numbers should be held against its pop run. But she's still less established than Gaga and Grande - and she is coming off a legitimate smash that had monster callouts for months.

"Break My Heart" was #1 positive on the callouts when it first appeared in the report, so I don't know what your point here is. Songs that become inescapable usually start getting more negative callout scores after a while and the song has been climbing the chart for 4 months now, so obviously they look more "middling" than how they initially looked.

Granted, the charts have been weird due to all the stagnation at the top - it's still possible that "Rain On Me" could end up going Top 5 or to #1. But if it did stop here, I don't think you can say it's SHOCKING based on how it's been doing on other metrics.

I don't think it's possible for "Rain on Me" to go #1 at all. Even if you don't take into account the misogyny and ageism on pop radio, "Rain on Me" is clearly beginning to stabilize and has already peaked on the Hot 100, so there's really no push necessary to get it up the charts. It is absolutely shocking and disgraceful that a #1 hit by a pop veteran and a main pop girl is dropped exactly at the same rank where Gaga's last single was dropped.

[Deleted]

Jul 18, 2020 19:04:54 GMT -5 kimberly said:

Jul 18, 2020 17:14:59 GMT -5 kanimal said:

I know many people here hate this notion (because it often gets applied to the "main pop girls"), but the reality is that expectations and context DO matter when evaluating songs. A summer dance-pop collaboration involving two of the biggest pop stars on the planet is SUPPOSED to make a big pop culture impact and post outstanding consumption numbers. And it hasn't done either.

When's the last time a dance-pop song by a female duo smashed, let alone hit #1? I don't recall anyone expecting this to hit #1 and some saying it wouldn't outperform "Stupid Love." No one was expecting this.

The numbers are solid, maybe even "good," by typical single standards, but they'd be unremarkable for a solo "summer banger" from either artist, let alone a collaboration that received tons of media hype, elite playlist positioning, TV sync deals, etc (this is especially true for something involving Grande, who is one of the pop stars with massive streaming appeal). And the buzz DEFINITELY isn't where it should be. COVID of course played a role in that, but still.

Clearly you have no idea what "context" means because at this point in her career, a summer banger isn't easy for Lady Gaga. And Ariana Grande is notorious for her features flopping or underperforming. This got no live performances, not even many interviews. Neither did "Stupid Love." Both Gaga and Ariana chose to put their energy and their fans' attention into social causes.

You can't call this a "flop" in the grand scheme of things, but you can't sincerely say these numbers live up to the expectations for a commercially minded single from Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande. You just can't. And so if you're a radio programmer who expects them to chart well on Spotify and iTunes by default, you're not looking at these numbers and thinking "wow - this song is connecting beyond their core fanbases."

??? what were the expectations again?

Comparing it to stuff like "Sunday Best" or "Falling" is ridiculous - they're not heavily hyped singles from the biggest acts on the planet. Name value alone guarantees Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande respectable numbers. It doesn't guarantee Surfaces much of anything.

"Falling" and "Sunday Best" are both perfect examples of white men having mediocre vocals and mid-to-bad lyrics and still getting a hit for whatever reason. You're fooling yourself if you don't see that. 

A comparison to "Watermelon Sugar" is probably more logical given the profile of the artists and the sound. But, frankly, "Rain On Me" arguably should have done better due to Grande's vastly bigger track record of hot, streaming-friendly pop singles.

Again, circling back, but Gaga isn't a streaming artist and neither is this genre of dance-pop. Yet this song has remained consistent on all platforms, even Apple Music where pop always takes a backseat.

And it's not like THIS SONG is the only one that's running into some trouble at this point on the chart. It's been the case for a lot of big name pop releases - whether from the Jonas Brothers, Halsey, Justin Bieber ("Yummy"), etc. Fairly or not, there's an expectation that these types of songs should be doing massive numbers when they approach the Top 10 at pop radio - especially if they're not going to have good callouts.

"X" was dropped because no one cared. The song debuted at #150-something on Spotify and fell of in less than two weeks.
"Yummy" was disliked widely, and Scooter Braun could not save it. It was a bad song. "Intentions" did much better because it had a good showing on streaming, being one of the most streamed songs released this year on Spotify.
Halsey is a whole another situation of pop radio treating women like s**t if you ask me. 
"Stupid Love" was also dropped around here, but it really did not have any staying power on streaming or sales, so it made more sense.

Now I am open to the idea that some artists are unfairly benefiting from this "grading on a curve." Dua Lipa is big enough to where the middling "Break My Heart" numbers should be held against its pop run. But she's still less established than Gaga and Grande - and she is coming off a legitimate smash that had monster callouts for months.

"Break My Heart" was #1 positive on the callouts when it first appeared in the report, so I don't know what your point here is. Songs that become inescapable usually start getting more negative callout scores after a while and the song has been climbing the chart for 4 months now, so obviously they look more "middling" than how they initially looked.

Granted, the charts have been weird due to all the stagnation at the top - it's still possible that "Rain On Me" could end up going Top 5 or to #1. But if it did stop here, I don't think you can say it's SHOCKING based on how it's been doing on other metrics.

I don't think it's possible for "Rain on Me" to go #1 at all. Even if you don't take into account the misogyny and ageism on pop radio, "Rain on Me" is clearly beginning to stabilize and has already peaked on the Hot 100, so there's really no push necessary to get it up the charts. It is absolutely shocking and disgraceful that a #1 hit by a pop veteran and a main pop girl is dropped exactly at the same rank where Gaga's last single was dropped.

Love you 

[kanimal]

Jul 18, 2020 19:04:54 GMT -5 kimberly said:

Jul 18, 2020 17:14:59 GMT -5 kanimal said:

I don't think it's possible for "Rain on Me" to go #1 at all. Even if you don't take into account the misogyny and ageism on pop radio, "Rain on Me" is clearly beginning to stabilize and has already peaked on the Hot 100, so there's really no push necessary to get it up the charts. It is absolutely shocking and disgraceful that a #1 hit by a pop veteran and a main pop girl is dropped exactly at the same rank where Gaga's last single was dropped.

But shouldn't part of that anger be directed at the market - not just pop radio? We all agree it had a great opening week, but your post didn't really suggest "Rain On Me" has ultimately been a blockbuster sales and streaming performer. It largely focuses on why one would have been wrong to have supremely high expectations for this track - not that it actually IS posting "Circles," "Blinding Lights," or even "Watermelon Sugar" numbers.

Anyway I think the biggest thing, and it's unfortunately why you and I are probably never going to see eye-to-eye on this type of issue, is that I like the idea of radio holding superstar singles to a significantly higher standard for sales/streams/callouts than releases from up-and-comers. I'd love an radio environment that blends the absolute biggest smashes with singles from promising newcomers, even if that means solid/good performers from established A-listers don't always go Top 5 or #1. I appreciate the mindset behind On The Verge, for example (it largely became ineffective since you could tell most programmers weren't eager to provide support once they hit the spin threshold, but the idea was good).

Forgive me if I'm misinterpreting, but the way you worded the bold part suggests you at least partially disagree. It seems you feel that A-listers should get support because they're stars (otherwise, why mention "a pop veteran and a main pop girl," especially if you feel the numbers themselves, including the Hot 100 #1, are sufficient).

I'd also love to see pop radio programmers more quickly embrace the accessible R&B/hip-hop type songs that clearly have pop appeal, yet don't get a chance until they're old news. Again, that airplay should come at the expense of A-list singles that are performing pretty well, but don't show a uniquely high connection rate.

Now, obviously that kind of approach should encourage diversity - the up-and-comers who get "boosted" shouldn't just be white male artists. The "high standards" should apply to all A-list pop stars, not exclusively women over 30. We agree there.

[kcdawg13]

Lmao every pop girl thread in the pop section is a trainwreck, I looked through all the threads from Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, and Lady Gaga since 2016 and they are all clusterfucks. 60+ pages of pure arguments.

These threads always go the same way, like clockwork. Single release > Single flies up the chart > Single loses and gains for 2 months > Single peaks between 8-15 > People argue whether the song was a flop or not > Repeat

[kimberly]

Jul 18, 2020 21:58:54 GMT -5 kanimal said:

Jul 18, 2020 19:04:54 GMT -5 kimberly said:

Forgive me if I'm misinterpreting, but the way you worded the bold part suggests you at least partially disagree. It seems you feel that A-listers should get support simply because they're stars (otherwise, why mention "a pop veteran and a main pop girl," especially if you feel the numbers themselves are sufficient).

I'd also love to see pop radio programmers more quickly embrace the accessible R&B/hip-hop type songs that clearly have pop appeal, yet don't get a chance until they're old news. Again, that airplay should come at the expense of A-list singles that are performing pretty well, but don't show a uniquely high connection rate.

Now, obviously that kind of approach should encourage diversity - the up-and-comers who get "boosted" shouldn't just be white male artists. The "high standards" should apply to all A-list pop stars, not exclusively women over 30. We agree there.

Nope! I'm saying that there's clearly something wrong with radio program directors if both "Stupid Love," a 1-week top ten hit that fell off the charts in 10? 11? weeks and "Rain on Me," a #1 hit with multiple weeks in the top ten & several more in the Top 15, with much more stable Spotify, Apple Music and sales, stall at the same rank. Especially in a climate where the higher ranks of the airplay chart is clogged with nearly year-old songs. My point in mentioning that was to show the influence of the age and gender element. There is really not much rationale behind pop radio's decision to support "Past Life" or "Before You Go" or "Falling" any harder than they're supporting "Rain on Me" besides the fact that Gaga is a woman, she is "past her prime" (I disagree with that idea), and the song is a dance-pop song.

It's also distasteful that pop radio leans more toward white male rap/singers with horrible voices like blackbear, Trevor Daniel and Surfaces more than it spins records by Black artists of that same genre whites keep ripping off. in an ideal scenario, pop radio would have jumped on songs like "Savage" and "Rockstar" sooner and took them to the top right around when everyone else was spinning them and streaming them, but the resistance to play rap songs by Black artists delays that. I understand pop radio usually follows trends and not sets them, but they are always slower with Black rappers vs whites. That's a whole different subject though, because we can also talk about how Billboard is complicit in their charts and how specific genres are treating Black people.

[Choco]

I-

I love you all but that argument is longer than the actual song.