Billboard Hot 100: 06/27/2020

[owenlovesmusic]

Lil Baby is probably the biggest artist on US Apple Music or at least to the audience. He released “Sum 2 Prove” nearly 6 months ago and its still in the top 10 despite not being a huge hit.

[degen]

Jun 16, 2020 13:39:12 GMT -5 ddlz said:

Btw, big pop stars who have massive radio deals and 100 million playlist reach on streaming platforms and still have to resort to gimmicks to grab a #1 look much worse than 6ix9ine and Nicki.

This is true, the fact that they can achieve this with virtually no radio support the first week doesn’t make this look as desperate. Taylor’s efforts to get “Me!” to #1 last year (and coming short) appeared more desperate to me.

[kimberly]

Jun 16, 2020 13:58:29 GMT -5 owenlovesmusic said:

Lil Baby is probably the biggest artist on US Apple Music or at least to the audience. He released “Sum 2 Prove” nearly 6 months ago and its still in the top 10 despite not being a huge hit.

It got a small nudge thanks to "The Bigger Picture" that bumped it back into the Top 10, but yeah it's held up insanely well so far. Unclear if Billboard will let it back on to the Hot 100, but I think it might have a chance?

[degen]

Have these bundle sales that big artists have been doing lately revived digital sales at all in the last year? I wonder how much digital single sales are up this year compared to a year ago. It seems big A listers have cracked the code with these bundle sales, allowing their fans to go crazy and buy multiple versions, while they make a good coin and earn a high chart placement.

[kimberly]

Jun 16, 2020 14:27:45 GMT -5 degen said:

Have these bundle sales that big artists have been doing lately revived digital sales at all in the last year? I wonder how much digital single sales are up this year compared to a year ago. It seems big A listers have cracked the code with these bundle sales, allowing their fans to go crazy and buy multiple versions, while they make a good coin and earn a high chart placement.

bundles weren't invented this year

[kierz7]

Jun 16, 2020 14:27:45 GMT -5 degen said:

Have these bundle sales that big artists have been doing lately revived digital sales at all in the last year? I wonder how much digital single sales are up this year compared to a year ago. It seems big A listers have cracked the code with these bundle sales, allowing their fans to go crazy and buy multiple versions, while they make a good coin and earn a high chart placement.

They rise one week (thanks to the bundles) and then completely plummet/freefall the next.

A Digital sales revival without stability?

No.

💀

[kierz7]

The multiple versions of specific songs charting in the top ten of iTunes reminds me of how it was circa. 2005-2007. 💀

At this point also, much like then, they may as well bring back or reinstate:

MSN Music, REAL Music, Walmart Digital Store. ☠️

Those were the days.

[inverse]

On the topic of Lil Baby why did the godawful We Paid shoot up to 34 last week and is that sustainable? I thought he was pushing Emotionally Scarred as the next single (before The Bigger Picture)

[strongerq]

Regarding the digital sales. Here are the average sales for the top 10 positions in 2020 vs 2019 the last 5 years.

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

All the data is from "Weekly Top 10 Digital Songs Sales Thread" which is pinned.

[Myth X]

Sadly the desperate TROLLZ will be #1

[thelegends]

Jun 16, 2020 11:38:38 GMT -5 saltnpeppa said:

Party Girl is a classic it reminds me of a certain era of Drake I can’t quite put my finger between 2011 to 2015. Maybe Nothing was the same? Idk but it’s clearly resonated with the people through tik tok and Spotify so I don’t get the confusion it’s much catchier than it’s one hit wonder viral counterparts.

Ah yes, it feels like Marvin’s Room by Drake

[thelegends]

Jun 16, 2020 13:39:12 GMT -5 ddlz said:

Btw, big pop stars who have massive radio deals and 100 million playlist reach on streaming platforms and still have to resort to gimmicks to grab a #1 look much worse than 6ix9ine and Nicki.

Remember how Spotify heavy pushed Scorpion? Multiple songs were on each big playlist and Drake was on the face of 90% of those playlists for that week.

[chebad]

Jun 16, 2020 15:19:24 GMT -5 Myth X said:

Sadly the desperate TROLLZ will be #1

Based on what? Because I see multiple people predicting that Rockstar will stay on top.

[wavey.]

Jun 16, 2020 15:31:06 GMT -5 thelegends said:

Jun 16, 2020 13:39:12 GMT -5 ddlz said:

Btw, big pop stars who have massive radio deals and 100 million playlist reach on streaming platforms and still have to resort to gimmicks to grab a #1 look much worse than 6ix9ine and Nicki.

Remember how Spotify heavy pushed Scorpion? Multiple songs were on each big playlist and Drake was on the face of 90% of those playlists for that week.

He was on a GOSPEL Playlist like skskskksks

[strongerq]

The discussion was about songs that get insane push first week just to snatch #1 an then free fall.

As an album 'Scorpion' doesn't belong in this category. Because it had great longevity. It sold 1,249,000 in 2019(second year). It is the best selling album in the last 4 years in total activity (2017-2020).

Albums that belong here are gimmicky #1s like SuperM for example.

[rosalina4812]

Jun 16, 2020 15:36:34 GMT -5 chebad said:

Jun 16, 2020 15:19:24 GMT -5 Myth X said:

Sadly the desperate TROLLZ will be #1

Based on what? Because I see multiple people predicting that Rockstar will stay on top.

That was before the new bundles taken into account.

[rosalina4812]

Jun 16, 2020 15:59:41 GMT -5 strongerq said:

The discussion was about songs that get insane push first week just to snatch #1 an then free fall.

As an album 'Scorpion' doesn't belong in this category. Because it had great longevity. It sold 1,249,000 in 2019(second year). It is the best selling album in the last 4 years in total activity (2017-2020).

Albums that belong here are gimmicky #1s like SuperM for example.

SuperM is actually being considered for Best New Artist in the Grammys lol. Not that bad of a fluke.

[iHype.]

Jun 16, 2020 14:11:53 GMT -5 degen said:

Jun 16, 2020 13:39:12 GMT -5 ddlz said:

Btw, big pop stars who have massive radio deals and 100 million playlist reach on streaming platforms and still have to resort to gimmicks to grab a #1 look much worse than 6ix9ine and Nicki.

This is true, the fact that they can achieve this with virtually no radio support the first week doesn’t make this look as desperate. Taylor’s efforts to get “Me!” to #1 last year (and coming short) appeared more desperate to me.

It's funny because the same people calling 6ix9ine desperate were the same ones excusing Me!/Stuck With U, and suddenly there was nothing wrong with caring about going #1 lol. 

This is all Billboard's fault/encouragement more than it is these artists being desperate (there was some clear desperation in all instances though).

[strongerq]

Jun 16, 2020 16:02:16 GMT -5 iHype. said:

Jun 16, 2020 14:11:53 GMT -5 degen said:

This is true, the fact that they can achieve this with virtually no radio support the first week doesn’t make this look as desperate. Taylor’s efforts to get “Me!” to #1 last year (and coming short) appeared more desperate to me.

It's funny because the same people calling 6ix9ine desperate were the same ones excusing Me!/Stuck With U, and suddenly there was nothing wrong with caring about going #1 lol. 

This is all Billboard's fault/encouragement more than it is these artists being desperate. 

Bundling and all of the gimmicks are bad if another artist does them. If the artist that the fans like does it. It is FINE.

 example: Views on bundling by the Barbz when she was blocked on BB200 by Travis Scott and views on bundling now.

[chebad]

Jun 16, 2020 16:00:36 GMT -5 rosalina4812 said:

Jun 16, 2020 15:36:34 GMT -5 chebad said:

Based on what? Because I see multiple people predicting that Rockstar will stay on top.

That was before the new bundles taken into account.

No. As of today, they’re giving Rockstar the edge. Trollz has virtually zero radio play and hasn’t cracked top 10 on Spotify. It peaked at 15 and has trended downward since.

So I’m curious as to whether strong merch sales will be enough to overcome major deficits in other areas that Billboard considers in their calculations.

[chebad]

Jun 16, 2020 16:02:16 GMT -5 iHype. said:

Jun 16, 2020 14:11:53 GMT -5 degen said:

This is true, the fact that they can achieve this with virtually no radio support the first week doesn’t make this look as desperate. Taylor’s efforts to get “Me!” to #1 last year (and coming short) appeared more desperate to me.

It's funny because the same people calling 6ix9ine desperate were the same ones excusing Me!/Stuck With U, and suddenly there was nothing wrong with caring about going #1 lol. 

This is all Billboard's fault/encouragement more than it is these artists being desperate (there was some clear desperation in all instances though).

People are calling out 6ix9ine and Nicki Minaj for their blatant hypocrisy. 6ix9ine was just calling Ariana a cheater for including her merch sales; Nicki Minaj has long since criticized other artists for using bundles to boost sales (despite doing so herself on more than one occasion.) That caustic attitude only increased the toxicity of her fanbase, with them harassing and criticizing other artists of cheating at every available opportunity.

And yeah, it reeks of desperation. They’ve discounted all 4 versions of the song on ITunes (2 of which were recently released), and are offering CDs, vinyls, autographed CDs, and 40 different pieces of merch, on top of Nicki Minaj offering to create an Onlyfans account is the song goes number 1, paying tic toc creators, and 6ix9ine begging his fans in multiple live streams, to purchase 4 copies of the song. (I distinctly remember him falsely accusing Ariana’s team of purchasing multiple copies of the records with 4 black cards...well I guess he now believes that only 4 can be purchased per card.)

What other artist has went to this extreme length to get a number one, in recent history?

[Choco]

I'm guessing the 4-per credit card limit doesn't apply to all the multiple versions, which is why they are dropping so many.

Either it misses #1 and I laugh or it drops 1-29 next week and I still laugh.

[rosalina4812]

Has getting a #1 on Billboard decreased in value?

[Choco]

Jun 16, 2020 16:32:29 GMT -5 rosalina4812 said:

Has getting a #1 on Billboard decreased in value?

Yes and no.

It's an achievement, for sure, but the gimmicks used this year prove that it's easier than ever.

And when your song falls from #1 to outside top 10 within a week, was it really that big of a hit? Nah.

[iHype.]

Jun 16, 2020 16:25:00 GMT -5 chebad said:

Jun 16, 2020 16:02:16 GMT -5 iHype. said:

It's funny because the same people calling 6ix9ine desperate were the same ones excusing Me!/Stuck With U, and suddenly there was nothing wrong with caring about going #1 lol. 

This is all Billboard's fault/encouragement more than it is these artists being desperate (there was some clear desperation in all instances though).

People are calling out 6ix9ine and Nicki Minaj for their blatant hypocrisy. 6ix9ine was just calling Ariana a cheater for including her merch sales; Nicki Minaj has long since criticized other artists for using bundles to boost sales (despite doing so herself on more than one occasion.) That caustic attitude only increased the toxicity of her fanbase, with them harassing and criticizing other artists of cheating at every available opportunity.

And yeah, it reeks of desperation. They’ve discounted all 4 versions of the song on ITunes (2 of which were recently released), and are offering CDs, vinyls, autographed CDs, and 40 different pieces of merch, on top of Nicki Minaj offering to create an Onlyfans account is the song goes number 1, paying tic toc creators, and 6ix9ine begging his fans in multiple live streams, to purchase 4 copies of the song. (I distinctly remember him falsely accusing Ariana’s team of purchasing multiple copies of the records with 4 black cards...well I guess he now believes that only 4 can be purchased per card.)

What other artist has went to this extreme length to get a number one, in recent history?

6ix9ine accused them of cheating by submitting a bunch of unverified sales last minute. Unless he also does that, then how is he being hypocritical? 

Everyone who isn't a Barb universally agrees Nicki Minaj is a hypocritical/delusional person, and nothing that comes out of her mouth has any logic and has solely to do with how it makes her look in the moment. 

Bottomline all of this mess has been done with Say So, Me!, Yummy, Stuck With U, and the likes and plenty of people had reasons each time on why it is suddenly acceptable. All of it is a joke and desperate, and it overall is Billboard's fault for allowing/encouraging this culture.

Say So literally had like 35 versions too, yet the stans were screaming how it was such a win for female rap and happy for Doja when it went #1. It's all the same.

[nak]

Roddy Ricch is laughing with his 11 weeks at #1 with a non-single with minimum promotion.

[chebad]

Jun 16, 2020 16:40:06 GMT -5 iHype. said:

Jun 16, 2020 16:25:00 GMT -5 chebad said:

People are calling out 6ix9ine and Nicki Minaj for their blatant hypocrisy. 6ix9ine was just calling Ariana a cheater for including her merch sales; Nicki Minaj has long since criticized other artists for using bundles to boost sales (despite doing so herself on more than one occasion.) That caustic attitude only increased the toxicity of her fanbase, with them harassing and criticizing other artists of cheating at every available opportunity.

And yeah, it reeks of desperation. They’ve discounted all 4 versions of the song on ITunes (2 of which were recently released), and are offering CDs, vinyls, autographed CDs, and 40 different pieces of merch, on top of Nicki Minaj offering to create an Onlyfans account is the song goes number 1, paying tic toc creators, and 6ix9ine begging his fans in multiple live streams, to purchase 4 copies of the song. (I distinctly remember him falsely accusing Ariana’s team of purchasing multiple copies of the records with 4 black cards...well I guess he now believes that only 4 can be purchased per card.)

What other artist has went to this extreme length to get a number one, in recent history?

6ix9ine accused them of cheating by submitting a bunch of unverified sales last minute. Unless he also does that, then how is he being hypocritical? 

Everyone who isn't a Barb universally agrees Nicki Minaj is a hypocritical/delusional person, and nothing that comes out of her mouth makes any logic and has solely to do with how it makes her look in the moment. 


Bottomline all of this mess has been done with Say So, Me!, Yummy, Stuck With U, and the likes and plenty of people had reasons on why it is suddenly acceptable. All of it is a joke and desperate, and it overall is Billboard's fault for allowing/encouraging this culture.

Say So literally had like 35 versions too and was discounted, yet the stans were screaming how 'it was such a win for female rap'. It's all the same.

No, no. He also accused Ariana’s team of purchasing most of the copies between 4 credit cards...to which Scooter (Ariana’s manager) corrected him and said that would be an impossible feat considering you can only purchase 4 copies per card....So he leveled false accusations at another artist to discredit their win for the week and then turned around and used the same mechanisms that he once decried.

And no, all of this mess hasn’t been done with other records. I didn’t see Taylor Swift telling fans she would create an Onlyfans if her contending song went number 1; I haven’t seen other artists sell as many alternative versions of a single song across multiple formats either...Doja Cat released a remix of a song that was already top 5 on Billboard. I don’t like the woman, but, outside of offering to show her boobs, there wasn’t much “extra” that she did. If I’m not mistaken, her team didn’t even sell merchandise and a major reason behind it topping the charts had to do with strong radio play.

6ix9ine and Nicki have released the following:

4 DISCOUNTED versions (7 on 6ix9ine’s website) + over 40 items of merch + 8 vinyls + 4 cassettes + 2 CDs + autographed CDs.

Not even including the paid promotion on Tic Toc. What other artist has done this specifically? This mess certainly can’t be laid at Billboard’s doorstep either (outside of them not having stricter rules perhaps.) Billboard isn’t the one emotionally manipulating fans, that’s Nicki and 6ix9ine.

[Rose "Payola" Nylund]

The thing with a lot of these over the top promotional tactics is who they target. On one hand, you have things like Drake’s Apple Music playlist takeover, or radio deals, and then you have bundles and multiple versions of the same CD single made available. One group of tactics are meant to reach the widest audience possible, the other is meant to get the most from a minimal audience. The game is the game but don’t confuse the tactics that get a few people to buy in countless times from the tactics meant to get the most people in as possible.

[kimberly]

Jun 16, 2020 16:02:16 GMT -5 iHype. said:

Jun 16, 2020 14:11:53 GMT -5 degen said:

This is true, the fact that they can achieve this with virtually no radio support the first week doesn’t make this look as desperate. Taylor’s efforts to get “Me!” to #1 last year (and coming short) appeared more desperate to me.

It's funny because the same people calling 6ix9ine desperate were the same ones excusing Me!/Stuck With U, and suddenly there was nothing wrong with caring about going #1 lol. 

This is all Billboard's fault/encouragement more than it is these artists being desperate (there was some clear desperation in all instances though).

I agree, but this time around the desperation seems way more personal. This year we have seen Selena Gomez crying on Instagram stories saying "she's put so much effort into the album and it would be great if it went #1" to more extreme cases like 6ix9ine continuously complaining about Billboard "cheating him" of a #1. "Yummy" was almost as extreme, but they never blamed Billboard for anything. With "Stuck With U" and "ME!" the artists never even really mentioned a desire to go #1 themselves, if I recall correctly. (For SWU, they responded to 6ix9ine's claims, rightfully so.) Those felt like a corporate effort to grab a #1 single. 

Either way, the music industry has always had gimmicks to claim the #1 spot. That will never change. I think we're just seeing things through now thanks to social media, and stans fueling an unnecessary race between artists. As disgusting as he is, 6ix9ine knows this is the closest he will get to the top while alive and well, and is playing the game with the bundles. (IDK about the fake YouTube views, though. We'll get more insight soon, I bet.)

Anyway, to wrap it up, I'll say a #1 isn't valued as much anymore. "GOOBA" is already down to #43 on the Hot 100, and I don't think anyone will remember it as one of the big singles of the year. "Stuck With U" is holding up a little better, at #20, but it's also not looking good. I'd say "Don't Start Now," "Dance Monkey," "Adore You," and "ROXANNE" are bigger hits despite peaking lower. A #1 song with ZERO longevity isn't going to earn 6ix9ine the industry stamp of approval or respect from anyone who doesn't blindly listen to his "music" like he wishes.

[wavey.]

Lol at Say So having 35 remixes. It's gonna be a great Monday, I tell you that.