Best Selling Digital Songs - Digital Era

[Deleted]

Separating this out from the YTD list, since it doesn't really fit.

I will update this as new data comes in each week

Here is this weeks current list

If there is a date next to the number, this represents the last Billboard chart date that I have data for that song, otherwise, everything is current

1 LOW FLO RIDA FEATURING T-PAIN 4,937,553
2 APOLOGIZE TIMBALAND 4,269,587
3 CRANK THAT(SOULJA BOY) SOULJA BOY 4,182,704
4 I'M YOURS JASON MRAZ 4,004,561
5 JUST DANCE LADY GAGA FEATURING COLBY O'DONNIS 3,997,203
6 VIVA LA VIDA COLDPLAY 3,771,044
7 BLEEDING LOVE LEONA LEWIS 3,665,987 4/18/2009
8 HOT N COLD KATY PERRY 3,619,771
9 STRONGER KANYE WEST 3,603,129
10 HEY THERE DELILAH PLAIN WHITE T'S 3,481,586
11 LOLLIPOP LIL WAYNE 3,477,307
12 LOVE STORY TAYLOR SWIFT 3,473,674
13 I KISSED A GIRL KATY PERRY 3,437,416
14 DISTURBIA RIHANNA 3,422,275
15 LIVE YOUR LIFE T.I. FEATURING RIHANNA 3,339,881
16 WHATEVER YOU LIKE T.I. 3,332,236
17 SO WHAT PINK 3,325,432
18 RIGHT ROUND FLO RIDA 3,223,125
19 LET IT ROCK KEVIN RUDOLF FEATURING LIL' WAYNE 3,222,749
20 UMBRELLA RIHANNA FEATURING JAY-Z 3,216,934 3/7/2009
21 BIG GRLS DON'T CRY FERGIE 3,148,000 1/10/2009
22 HOW TO SAVE A LIFE THE FRAY 3,115,641
23 SEXYBACK JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE 3,037,000 1/10/2009
24 ROCKSTAR NICKELBACK 3,016,797
25 NO ONE ALICIA KEYS 3,000,000 2/21/2009
26 POKER FACE LADY GAGA 2,978,166
27 HEARTLESS KANYE WEST 2,964,069
28 GIVES YOU HELL ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS 2,895,763
29 LOVE SONG SARA BAREILLES 2,876,052 2/28/2009
30 PAPER PLANES M.I.A. 2,866,034
31 BUBBLY COLBIE CAILLAT 2,847,858 2/28/2009
32 NO AIR JORDIN SPARKS 2,830,711 2/28/2009
33 BAD DAY DANIEL POWTER 2,756,106 1/24/2009
34 SMACK THAT AKON FEATURING EMINEM 2,742,000 2/14/2009
35 SINGLE LADIES(PUT A RING ON IT) BEYONCE 2,717,911
36 WOMANIZER BRITNEY SPEARS 2,695,430
37 BEFORE HE CHEATS CARRIE UNDERWOOD 2,682,246 4/4/2009
38 GIRLFRIEND AVRIL LAVIGNE 2,681,810 7/12/2008
39 DON'T STOP THE MUSIC RIHANNA 2,675,331 4/18/2009
40 DON'T STOP BELIEVIN' JOURNEY 2,669,681
41 LOVE LOCKDOWN KANYE WEST 2,654,602
42 IRREPLACABLE BEYONCE 2,588,000 2/14/2009
43 THE WAY I ARE TIMBALAND 2,562,000 4/11/2009
44 POCKETFUL OF SUNSHINE NATASHA BEDINGFIELD 2,491,745 4/25/2009
45 4 MINUTES MADONNA 2,471,692 2/28/2009
46 PARALYZER FINGER ELEVEN 2,457,058 1/10/2009
47 THE SWEET ESCAPE GWEN STEFANI FEATURING AKON 2,447,466 4/19/2008
48 KISS KISS CHRIS BROWN 2,428,910 1/24/2009
49 FERGALICIOUS FERGIE 2,427,377 2/16/2008
50 CRAZY GNARLS BARKLEY 2,419,022 8/30/2008

[beyoncethebest]

Where did you find single ladies number?

[Taylor.]

Thanks for this!

12 LOVE STORY TAYLOR SWIFT 3,473,674

Should make the top 10! :)

[onyxspears]

thank you so much for doing this!

[when the pawn...]

lol/holy s*** @ Don't Stop Believin!

[area51]

Thanks 2m, I love your charts.

[Rodze]

Low was already certified 5xPlatinum two weeks ago, even though we don't have leaked SoundScan numbers.

[HEAT]

Hopefully Circus can crack the Top 50 by year end.

[c0ldasfire]

May 23, 2009 21:36:18 GMT -5 HEAT said:

Hopefully Circus can crack the Top 50 by year end.

I think it can, it is around 2.2 million!
I hope "Womanizer" can make it passed the 3 million mark eventually!

[Whi$tlin' Pete]

Thank you VERY much for this list 2m! Was kind of wondering about the status of hits such as "The Way I Are" and "Paralyzer." Now I know where they stand. Why does the old Journey hit sell so well week after week?

[Deleted]

Constant TV exposure.

The current culprit is 'Glee'

[jj99$ - - LeLe]

it was also used a lot during the presidential primaries all the way to the elections...

[when the pawn...]

Didn't it go #1 after being used on the Sopranos finale?

[Acid Eyes]

^I think it went top 10, but it went #1 after it was used on Laguna Beach I think?

[Moneyman202]

Wow. Four songs with over 4 million downloads, and another one on the way. That is just amazing.

[Black Jesus]

'Low' should surpass 5 million soon

[Quixotic Music Lover]

Of the 25 songs that have sold 3 million plus, I counted only two, "I'm Yours" and "Rockstar" that did not reach the top 5 of the HOT 100. 18 of the 25 hit #1.

The sales of "I'm Yours" are pretty amazing.

[c0ldasfire]

BTW I am surprised to see Nelly Furtado not on this list, she had a few big hits a couple years ago and would have guessed they would be on this list (Say it Right and Promisicious Girl)

[Deleted]

Experts answer your questions. For May 22, 2009
Ask Billboard is updated every Friday. Submit your burning music questions to Gary Trust at [e-mail]. Please include your first and last name, as well as your city, state and country, if outside the U.S.



CAN'T STOP 'DON'T STOP'

Hi Gary,

I'm trying to dig deeper on the continuing success of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'." It seems to have done surprisingly well on Billboard's Hot Digital Songs chart. I know it has ranked among iTunes' top 100 for more than two years now, longer than any other song I've noticed. It is, of course, a classic (and awesome) song, but what makes it so enduring? Obviously, it received a boost from being featured on the TV show "The Sopranos," but that was more than a year ago. What is keeping the song so popular, so consistently?

Thanks,
Michael Cyr
Cape Coral, Florida


Hi Michael,

Here is what the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 looked like in the issue dated Dec. 19, 1981, when "Don't Stop Believin' " reached its peak of No. 9:

No. 1, "Physical," Olivia Newton-John
No. 2, "Waiting for a Girl Like You," Foreigner
No. 3, "Let's Groove," Earth, Wind & Fire
No. 4, "Oh No," Commodores
No. 5, "Young Turks," Rod Stewart
No. 6, "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)," Daryl Hall John Oates
No. 7, "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," Diana Ross
No. 8, "Harden My Heart," Quarterflash
No. 9, "Don't Stop Believin'," Journey
No. 10, "Leather and Lace," Stevie Nicks with Don Henley

Compared with some weeks in the early '80s, several titles in the top 10 listed above have aged quite well, with songs like those at Nos. 3, 5, 6 and 8 through 10 still staples on adult contemporary and classic hits radio stations.

But perhaps none has remained as relevant as "Don't Stop Believin'." Last year, the song became the first catalog track to sell more than 2 million digital downloads. Its current total stands at 2.65 million, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The song is the oldest title, by both date of release and total chart weeks (65), on this week's Hot Digital Songs survey, where it rebounds 63-56. Only three other titles have spent more time on the Digital Songs chart: Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" and Usher's "Yeah!" (74 weeks each) and the Pussycat Dolls' "Don't Cha" (68 weeks).

As noted in this week's Chart Beat, the newly-released version of "Don't Stop Believin' " by the cast of Fox-TV's "Glee" could blast in atop the Digital Songs tally next week, likely spurring yet another jump for the original recording.

The song's placement in "Glee" is just another element of its recent rebirth. On the Hot Digital Songs chart dated Aug. 13, 2005, the cut made its first appearance, debuting at No. 36 after it was featured in Fox's "Family Guy" and MTV's "Laguna Beach." It peaked at No. 13 two weeks later. The song remained on the chart through December 2005, further buoyed by its use as the theme song for the Chicago White Sox' 2005 World Series championship.

It re-entered at No. 21 the week of June 30, 2007, after providing the soundtrack for the closing scene of the finale of HBO's "The Sopranos."

Not only has the song appeared in several other TV shows and movies, but freestyle singer George Lamond also recorded a version that spent a week at No. 20 on Billboard's Hot Dance Airplay chart a year ago this week.

Just last month (April 7), the '80s-centered musical "Rock of Ages," featuring Journey's song, opened at Broadway's Brooks Atkinson Theatre in New York, adding yet another medium for the composition to conquer.

[Deleted]

May 24, 2009 23:04:36 GMT -5 c0ldasfire said:

BTW I am surprised to see Nelly Furtado not on this list, she had a few big hits a couple years ago and would have guessed they would be on this list (Say it Right and Promisicious Girl)

Promiscuous was at 2.07 million on 7/21/07
Say It Right was at 1.9 million on 1/26/08

Promiscuous would need to have average 2500 per week over the 2 years to make the bottom of the list

I guess its possible, but unless there is an updated number somewhere, we won't know for sure.

This list is not official, by any means. It just gives us a good idea of rankings, given theinformation we do have

[Deleted]

Digital chart run of Don't Stop Believin

1 36 8/13/2005
2 17 8/20/2005
3 13 8/27/2005
4 38 9/3/2005
5 46 9/10/2005
6 53 9/17/2005
7 61 9/24/2005
8 64 10/1/2005
9 64 10/8/2005
10 65 10/15/2005
11 38 10/22/2005
12 48 10/29/2005
13 49 11/5/2005
14 35 11/12/2005
15 45 11/19/2005
16 56 11/26/2005
17 61 12/3/2005
18 73 12/10/2005
19 21 6/30/2007
20 34 7/7/2007
21 41 7/14/2007
22 53 7/21/2007
23 53 7/28/2007
24 59 8/4/2007
25 67 8/11/2007
26 65 8/18/2007
27 71 8/25/2007
28 75 10/6/2007
29 74 10/20/2007
30 72 11/3/2007
31 65 11/10/2007
32 73 11/17/2007
33 65 11/24/2007
34 72 3/15/2008
35 60 3/22/2008
36 62 3/29/2008
37 67 4/19/2008
38 64 4/26/2008
39 71 5/3/2008
40 68 5/10/2008
41 65 5/17/2008
42 51 5/24/2008
43 62 5/31/2008
44 56 6/14/2008
45 60 6/21/2008
46 63 6/28/2008
47 65 7/5/2008
48 73 8/2/2008
49 69 1/10/2009
50 63 1/17/2009
51 67 1/24/2009
52 63 1/31/2009
53 71 2/7/2009
54 57 2/14/2009
55 61 2/21/2009
56 74 2/28/2009
57 70 3/7/2009
58 72 3/21/2009
59 56 4/18/2009
60 70 4/25/2009
61 69 5/2/2009
62 55 5/9/2009
63 54 5/16/2009
64 63 5/23/2009
65 56 5/30/2009

[Deleted]

Update - as before, if there is date next to the total, it is the last date of known sales that I have, if no date then it is current


1 LOW FLO RIDA FEATURING T-PAIN 4,965,778
2 APOLOGIZE TIMBALAND 4,294,929
3 CRANK THAT(SOULJA BOY) SOULJA BOY 4,198,491
4 JUST DANCE LADY GAGA FEATURING COLBY O'DONNIS 4,097,366
5 I'M YOURS JASON MRAZ 4,083,165
6 VIVA LA VIDA COLDPLAY 3,814,509
7 BLEEDING LOVE LEONA LEWIS 3,665,987 4/18/2009
8 HOT N COLD KATY PERRY 3,658,267
9 STRONGER KANYE WEST 3,623,896
10 LOVE STORY TAYLOR SWIFT 3,532,561
11 LOLLIPOP LIL' WAYNE 3,493,496
12 HEY THERE DELILAH PLAIN WHITE T'S 3,481,586 5/30/2009
13 I KISSED A GIRL KATY PERRY 3,458,031
14 DISTURBIA RIHANNA 3,452,391
15 SO WHAT PINK 3,375,708
16 LIVE YOUR LIFE T.I. FEATURING RIHANNA 3,366,801
17 WHATEVER YOU LIKE T.I. 3,350,575
18 RIGHT ROUND FLO RIDA 3,328,057
19 BIG GRLS DON'T CRY FERGIE 3,285,684 6/6/2009
20 LET IT ROCK KEVIN RUDOLF FEATURING LIL' WAYNE 3,255,964
21 UMBRELLA RIHANNA FEATURING JAY-Z 3,216,934 3/7/2009
22 POKER FACE LADY GAGA 3,190,082
23 HOW TO SAVE A LIFE THE FRAY 3,132,487
24 SEXYBACK JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE 3,037,000 1/10/2009
25 ROCKSTAR NICKELBACK 3,032,491
26 HEARTLESS KANYE WEST 3,023,409
27 NO ONE ALICIA KEYS 3,000,000 2/21/2009
28 GIVES YOU HELL ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS 2,969,502
29 PAPER PLANES M.I.A. 2,890,600
30 LOVE SONG SARA BAREILLES 2,876,052 2/28/2009
31 BUBBLY COLBIE CAILLAT 2,847,858 2/28/2009
32 NO AIR JORDIN SPARKS 2,830,711 2/28/2009
33 SINGLE LADIES(PUT A RING ON IT) BEYONCE 2,760,099
34 BAD DAY DANIEL POWTER 2,756,106 1/24/2009
35 DON'T STOP BELIEVIN' JOURNEY 2,745,464
36 SMACK THAT AKON FEATURING EMINEM 2,742,000 2/14/2009
37 WOMANIZER BRITNEY SPEARS 2,717,638
38 BEFORE HE CHEATS CARRIE UNDERWOOD 2,682,246 4/4/2009
39 GIRLFRIEND AVRIL LAVIGNE 2,681,810 7/12/2008
40 DON'T STOP THE MUSIC RIHANNA 2,675,331 4/18/2009
41 LOVE LOCKDOWN KANYE WEST 2,654,602 5/30/2009
42 IRREPLACABLE BEYONCE 2,588,000 2/14/2009
43 THE WAY I ARE TIMBALAND 2,562,000 4/11/2009
44 POCKETFUL OF SUNSHINE NATASHA BEDINGFIELD 2,491,745 4/25/2009
45 4 MINUTES MADONNA 2,471,692 2/28/2009
46 PARALYZER FINGER ELEVEN 2,457,058 1/10/2009
47 THE SWEET ESCAPE GWEN STEFANI FEATURING AKON 2,447,466 4/19/2008
48 KISS KISS CHRIS BROWN 2,428,910 1/24/2009
49 FERGALICIOUS FERGIE 2,427,377 2/16/2008
50 CRAZY GNARLS BARKLEY 2,419,022 8/30/2008

[Keelzit]

Pls Womanizer, go triple platinum.

[Deleted]

1 LOW FLO RIDA FEATURING T-PAIN 4,979,279
2 APOLOGIZE TIMBALAND 4,303,877
3 CRANK THAT(SOULJA BOY) SOULJA BOY 4,206,208
4 JUST DANCE LADY GAGA FEATURING COLBY O'DONNIS 4,142,703
5 I'M YOURS JASON MRAZ 4,115,285
6 VIVA LA VIDA COLDPLAY 3,835,493
7 HOT N COLD KATY PERRY 3,678,394
8 BLEEDING LOVE LEONA LEWIS 3,665,987 4/18/2009
9 STRONGER KANYE WEST 3,634,346
10 LOVE STORY TAYLOR SWIFT 3,561,876
11 HEY THERE DELILAH PLAIN WHITE T'S 3,504,999
12 LOLLIPOP LIL' WAYNE 3,501,736
13 I KISSED A GIRL KATY PERRY 3,468,232
14 DISTURBIA RIHANNA 3,465,602
15 SO WHAT PINK 3,393,939
16 LIVE YOUR LIFE T.I. FEATURING RIHANNA 3,383,568
17 RIGHT ROUND FLO RIDA 3,378,613
18 WHATEVER YOU LIKE T.I. 3,359,425
19 POKER FACE LADY GAGA 3,286,219
20 BIG GRLS DON'T CRY FERGIE 3,285,684 6/6/2009
21 LET IT ROCK KEVIN RUDOLF FEATURING LIL' WAYNE 3,272,071
22 UMBRELLA RIHANNA FEATURING JAY-Z 3,216,934 3/7/2009
23 HOW TO SAVE A LIFE THE FRAY 3,140,524
24 HEARTLESS KANYE WEST 3,046,183
25 ROCKSTAR NICKELBACK 3,040,387
26 SEXYBACK JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE 3,037,000 1/10/2009
27 GIVES YOU HELL ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS 3,003,258
28 NO ONE ALICIA KEYS 3,000,000 2/21/2009
29 PAPER PLANES M.I.A. 2,901,953
30 LOVE SONG SARA BAREILLES 2,876,052 2/28/2009
31 BUBBLY COLBIE CAILLAT 2,847,858 2/28/2009
32 NO AIR JORDIN SPARKS 2,830,711 2/28/2009
33 SINGLE LADIES(PUT A RING ON IT) BEYONCE 2,781,305
34 DON'T STOP BELIEVIN' JOURNEY 2,775,336
35 BAD DAY DANIEL POWTER 2,756,106 1/24/2009
36 SMACK THAT AKON FEATURING EMINEM 2,742,000 2/14/2009
37 WOMANIZER BRITNEY SPEARS 2,727,721
38 BEFORE HE CHEATS CARRIE UNDERWOOD 2,682,246 4/4/2009
39 GIRLFRIEND AVRIL LAVIGNE 2,681,810 7/12/2008
40 DON'T STOP THE MUSIC RIHANNA 2,675,331 4/18/2009
41 LOVE LOCKDOWN KANYE WEST 2,654,602 5/30/2009
42 IRREPLACABLE BEYONCE 2,588,000 2/14/2009
43 BOOM BOOM POW BLACK EYED PEAS 2,586,400
44 THE WAY I ARE TIMBALAND 2,562,000 4/11/2009
45 POCKETFUL OF SUNSHINE NATASHA BEDINGFIELD 2,491,745 4/25/2009
46 4 MINUTES MADONNA 2,471,692 2/28/2009
47 PARALYZER FINGER ELEVEN 2,457,058 1/10/2009
48 THE SWEET ESCAPE GWEN STEFANI FEATURING AKON 2,447,466 4/19/2008
49 KISS KISS CHRIS BROWN 2,428,910 1/24/2009
50 FERGALICIOUS FERGIE 2,427,377 2/16/2008

[vasilykos]

is it possible for "just dance" to reach #1?

it's sales are steady and has not left the top 30 of billboard since it broke that barrier in december.

[Keelzit]

I think Just Dance will dethrone Low in a couple of months. I don't know though if that will happen before or after Low hits the 5 million mark.

[CookyMonzta]

May 23, 2009 14:33:26 GMT -5 when the pawn... said:

lol/holy s*** @ Don't Stop Believin!

How many physical copies did Journey sell before it went digital? I thought I read that this song had gone platinum in the early-1980s; and back in 1981, the rules for platinum were two million copies; in which case, it would be double-platinum under 1989 rules.

That being the case, this song is on its way to selling 5 million copies altogether.

[Tea-why]

Jun 14, 2009 20:37:25 GMT -5 CookyMonzta said:

May 23, 2009 14:33:26 GMT -5 when the pawn... said:

lol/holy s*** @ Don't Stop Believin!

How many physical copies did Journey sell before it went digital? I thought I read that this song had gone platinum in the early-1980s; and back in 1981, the rules for platinum were two million copies; in which case, it would be double-platinum under 1989 rules.

That being the case, this song is on its way to selling 5 million copies altogether.

According to the RIAA website, it has only been certified gold, so I guess that would make it around 3.6 million.

[Deleted]

This weeks big moves on the cumulative chart

Flo Rida moves up 2 to #15 for Right Round
Poker Face moves up 1 to 18
Let It Rock move to #20 passing the last known sales of 'Big Girls Don't Cry'
'Don't Stop Believin' moves up 1 to #33
Boom Boom Pow moves up 9 to #34

Otherwise, the same chart as last week

[Deleted]

1 LOW FLO RIDA FEATURING T-PAIN 4,993,357
2 APOLOGIZE TIMBALAND 4,312,388
3 CRANK THAT(SOULJA BOY) SOULJA BOY 4,213,918
4 JUST DANCE LADY GAGA FEATURING COLBY O'DONNIS 4,185,945
5 I'M YOURS JASON MRAZ 4,145,380
6 BLEEDING LOVE LEONA LEWIS 4,000,000
7 VIVA LA VIDA COLDPLAY 3,856,182
8 HOT N COLD KATY PERRY 3,699,104

9 STRONGER KANYE WEST 3,645,086
10 LOVE STORY TAYLOR SWIFT 3,591,554
11 HEY THERE DELILAH PLAIN WHITE T'S 3,512,878
12 LOLLIPOP LIL' WAYNE 3,510,002
13 I KISSED A GIRL KATY PERRY 3,478,734
14 DISTURBIA RIHANNA 3,476,662
15 RIGHT ROUND FLO RIDA 3,426,944
16 SO WHAT PINK 3,409,904
17 LIVE YOUR LIFE T.I. FEATURING RIHANNA 3,399,755
18 POKER FACE LADY GAGA 3,382,520
19 WHATEVER YOU LIKE T.I. 3,368,241
20 LET IT ROCK KEVIN RUDOLF FEATURING LIL' WAYNE 3,286,709
21 BIG GRLS DON'T CRY FERGIE 3,285,684 6/6/2009
22 UMBRELLA RIHANNA FEATURING JAY-Z 3,216,934 3/7/2009
23 HOW TO SAVE A LIFE THE FRAY 3,148,815
24 HEARTLESS KANYE WEST 3,068,429
25 ROCKSTAR NICKELBACK 3,048,132
26 SEXYBACK JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE 3,037,000 1/10/2009
27 GIVES YOU HELL ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS 3,033,764
28 NO ONE ALICIA KEYS 3,000,000 2/21/2009
29 PAPER PLANES M.I.A. 2,913,276
30 LOVE SONG SARA BAREILLES 2,876,052 2/28/2009
31 BUBBLY COLBIE CAILLAT 2,847,858 2/28/2009
32 NO AIR JORDIN SPARKS 2,830,711 2/28/2009
33 DON'T STOP BELIEVIN' JOURNEY 2,803,280
34 BOOM BOOM POW BLACK EYED PEAS 2,802,286
35 SINGLE LADIES(PUT A RING ON IT) BEYONCE 2,801,125
36 BAD DAY DANIEL POWTER 2,756,106 1/24/2009
37 SMACK THAT AKON FEATURING EMINEM 2,742,000 2/14/2009
38 WOMANIZER BRITNEY SPEARS 2,737,431
39 BEFORE HE CHEATS CARRIE UNDERWOOD 2,682,246 4/4/2009
40 GIRLFRIEND AVRIL LAVIGNE 2,681,810 7/12/2008
41 DON'T STOP THE MUSIC RIHANNA 2,675,331 4/18/2009
42 LOVE LOCKDOWN KANYE WEST 2,654,602 5/30/2009
43 IRREPLACABLE BEYONCE 2,588,000 2/14/2009
44 THE WAY I ARE TIMBALAND 2,562,000 4/11/2009
45 POCKETFUL OF SUNSHINE NATASHA BEDINGFIELD 2,491,745 4/25/2009
46 4 MINUTES MADONNA 2,471,692 2/28/2009
47 PARALYZER FINGER ELEVEN 2,457,058 1/10/2009
48 THE SWEET ESCAPE GWEN STEFANI FEATURING AKON 2,447,466 4/19/2008
49 KISS KISS CHRIS BROWN 2,428,910 1/24/2009
50 FERGALICIOUS FERGIE 2,427,377 2/16/2008