Chart Moves: American Authors Pen First No. 1; Brantley Gilbert Pops Cork Atop Hot Country Songs; Wisin’s All-Star Collab Storms Latin Lists
As previously reported, Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” caps the Billboard Hot 100. Who else deserves a hat’s off thanks to notable moves on Billboard song charts this week?
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— American Authors: Spotlighted as recently as late November in Billboard’s “Bubbling Under” feature, the band earns its first No. 1 on an airplay chart, as “Best Day of My Life” lifts 2-1 on Adult Top 40. First released on the Brooklyn band’s self-titled EP, which topped Heatseekers Albums for two weeks in January/February, the song doubles as the lead track from its debut full-length “Oh, What a Life,” due on next week’s Billboard 200. The song (up 23-21 on the Hot 100) is a band’s first career-opening single to rule Adult Top 40 since the Lumineers’ “Ho Hey,” which led for eight weeks and became the format’s top title of 2013.
— Brantley Gilbert: He ropes his second No. 1 on Hot Country Songs (and first since the chart switched from measuring core country radio airplay to a sales/airplay/streaming hybrid in October 2012), as “Bottoms Up” bumps 2-1. (On the Hot 100, it lifts 34-32.) The track logs a fifth week atop Country Digital Songs (66,000 downloads sold, up 3%, according to Nielsen SoundScan) and holds for a third week at No. 1 on Country Streaming Songs (1.2 million U.S. streams, according to Nielsen BDS). It introduces his third album, “Just as I Am,” due May 20. Gilbert first led Hot Country Songs with “Country Must Be Country Wide” in December 2011.
— Trey Songz: In its seventh week on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, Trey Songz’s “Na Na” (up 55-48 on the Hot 100) skips 12-10 to mark his 19th top 10 hit. In terms of male R&B singers on the nearly 22-year-old chart, Songz has the fifth most top 10s. He trails only R. Kelly (30), Chris Brown (29), Usher (24) and T-Pain (20). “Na Na” rises by 9% in audience on R&B/hip-hop reporting stations to 17.5 million listener impressions, led by KKDA Dallas, which spun it 88 times in the tracking week ending March 2.
— Pitbull: Stand-alone single “Wild Wild Love,” featuring G.R.L., and the follow-up to Pitbull’s No. 1 “Timber,” featuring Ke$ha (No. 10), enters the Hot 100 at No. 89. It starts with 38,000 first-week downloads sold. The new song’s producers, Dr. Luke, Max Martin, Cirkut and A.C., are also in the studio working on G.R.L.’s forthcoming debut RCA album (via Dr. Luke’s Kemosabe imprint).
— Neon Trees: Bulleting at No. 14 on both Adult Top 40 and Alternative, “Sleeping With a Friend” arrives on the Hot 100 at No. 100. The song previews the group’s third album, “Pop Psychology,” due April 22. The band’s last entry, “Everybody Talks,” became its first Hot 100 top 10, rising to No. 6 in September 2012.
— Dawn & Hawkes: The romantically-linked couple snares the Hot Shot Debut on Hot Rock Songs, as its cover of the Beatles’ “I’ve Just Seen a Face” starts at No. 22 with 24,000 downloads sold. The duo auditioned with the song on the Feb. 24 season premiere of NBC’s “The Voice.” Afterward, Adam Levine, whom the twosome chose as its coach, praised the pair for serving up his “favorite [‘Voice’] performance ever.”
— Cher: The legend leaps onto Adult Contemporary at No. 24 with “I Hope You Find It,” the second single from her album “Closer to the Truth,” which became her highest-charting solo Billboard 200 entry (No. 3) in October. Lead track “Woman’s World” reached No. 28. Upon its start, “Hope” is Cher’s highest-ranking AC hit not featuring another artist since “Song for the Lonely” climbed to No. 11 in 2002. Cher’s “Dressed to Kill” tour kicks off on March 22 in Phoenix. The trek is her first since her worldwide “Farewell Tour” in 2002-05.
— Audio Playground: The fourth time’s a charm for Audio Playground, which grabs its first Dance Club Songs No. 1 with “Hands Up in the Air” (2-1). Remixes from Razor-n-Guido, Mike Cruz, and Funk Generation, among others, facilitated the track’s club play. The song is the Canadian collective’s fourth Dance Club Songs entry and third top 10 in less than three years. It arrived with the No. 10-peaking “Famous” in 2012, while its next two charted titles, “Emergency” (No. 13) and “You Never Know” (No. 5), both feature Snoop Lion.
— Wisin: He scores his second No. 1 on Latin Rhythm Airplay as a lead artist, as “Adrenalina,” featuring Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin, debuts atop the chart. The track, which also starts at No. 12 on Hot Latin Songs, is the third to open at the Latin Rhythm Airplay summit in the chart’s 19-year history and second involving Wisin. “Sexy Movimiento,” by Wisin & Yandel, was the last title to start at No. 1, in November 2007. It ultimately spent 14 weeks on top, yielding the duo’s longest No. 1 run.
— Juanes: The Colombian star vaults 11-1 on Latin Airplay with “La Luz” to secure his ninth No. 1. The uptempo track surged to 12.1 million audience impressions at radio (up 64%). It climbs 16-11 on Hot Latin Songs. The song is the first single from his album “Loco De Amor,” due on Tuesday (March 9).
Additional reporting by Wade Jessen, Amaya Mendizabal, Gordon Murray and Rauly Ramirez
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