October 15, 2016 - The Chainsmokers + Halsey (3)

This countdown... Well, I'd be lying if I said there wasn't bad here. On one hand, while not much may have come and gone, we got rid of my worst song of the year and replaced it with the song that I've been awaiting for some time now. More on that later, but on the other hand, some crappy stuff is getting dangerously high. Although it certainly helps that we're getting some activity, and we have a shake-up in the Top 10. Could we finally be getting out of the drabs of the summer? It very well could. So without further ado, here are the songs leaving us this week.

• Me Too by Meghan Trainor (#34) (!!!!!!!!!!)
• 7 Years by Lukas Graham (#45)

The Countdown!
Last Week’s #1 Song: Closer by The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey
45. Body Say by Demi Lovato (#29)
44. Mama Said by Lukas Graham (#37)
43. Never Be Like You by Flume featuring Kai (#12)
42. I'm Not Famous by AJR (#32)
41. Spirits by The Strumbellas (#22)
40. Dangerous Woman by Ariana Grande (#45)
39. I Took a Pill In Ibiza by Mike Posner (two weeks at #1)
38. Victorious by Panic! At The Disco (#41) (one week at #1)
37. Work From Home by Fifth Harmony (#39)
36. Just Like Fire by P!nk (#43)
35. No by Meghan Trainor (#44)
34. Cake By The Ocean by DNCE (#38) (four weeks at #1)
33. New Romantics by Taylor Swift (#40) (two weeks at #1)
32. Fresh Eyes by Andy Grammer (#33)
31. My Way by Calvin Harris (#17)
30. Girls Talk Boys by 5 Seconds of Summer (#16)
29. Bacon by Nick Jonas (debut)
28. Stressed Out by Twenty-one Pilots (#31) (five weeks at #1)
27. Send My Love (To Your New Lover) by Adele (#28) (one week at #1)
26. Gold by Kiiara (#19)
25. Setting The World On Fire by Kenny Chesney featuring P!nk (#35)
24. Starboy by The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk (#27)
23. We Don't Talk Anymore by Charlie Puth and Selena Gomez (#18)
22. Death of a Bachelor by Panic! At The Disco (#20)
21. The Little Things by Big Gigantic featuring Angela McCluskey (#23)
20. This Town by Niall Horan (#30)
19. 24K Magic by Bruno Mars (debut)
18. Let Me Love You by DJ Snake with Justin Bieber (#25)
17. I Hate U, I Love U by gnash featuring Olivia O'Brien (#24)
16. Perfect Illusion by Lady Gaga (#21)
15. Kids by OneRepublic (#26)
14. Don't Let Me Down by The Chainsmokers featuring Daya (#5) (three weeks at #1)
13. Can't Stop the Feeling! by Justin Timberlake (#4) (ten weeks at #1)
12. Cheap Thrills by Sia featuring Sean Paul (#12)
11. Ride by Twenty-one Pilots (#13)
10. Starving by Hailee Steinfeld and Grey featuring Zedd (#6)
9. Unsteady by X Ambassadors (#7)
8. Cold Water by Major Lazer featuring Justin Bieber and MØ (#14)
7. Sit Still, Look Pretty by Daya (#15)
6. Hymn For The Weekend by Coldplay (#11)
5. Into You by Ariana Grande (#9)
4. This Is What You Came For by Calvin Harris with Rihanna (#10) (...)
3. Treat You Better by Shawn Mendes (#6)
2. Heathens by Twenty-one Pilots (#2)
#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Stitches by Shawn Mendes (second of three weeks at #1)
1. Closer by The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey (third week at #1)

Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: Never Be Like You by Flume featuring Kai (-31)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Kids by OneRepublic (+11)

New Entrants
- First we have Bacon by Nick Jonas. And Hits 1 cut out Ty Dolla $ign's verse, because of course they did. I don't think it's as good as Chains or even Levels, but it's definitely more fun than Close was. The video for the song is pretty cool as well, and Spyder even talked about that in the introduction. It's not something I'm gonna pay for with my money to listen to, but it is a pretty funny song. We'll see where it gets.

- Then we have the return of Bruno Mars, with 24K Magic. I had really been waiting for the man to do something since Uptown Funk with Mark Ronson, which was the biggest song of last year*. And to say the least, this did not disappoint. I have listened to this song SO MANY times since it first dropped. But I figure I may as well talk about some of the things that people don't like about it. Some people have said that in general, not only do they not like the idea that Bruno Mars turned from the sweet, serenading guy that he was on his first album, as well as When I Was Your Man, to a conceited player just like a lot of the generic rappers that tend to flood the charts nowadays, but calling it the same song as Uptown Funk. I do see why people are saying that - sure, lyrically both this and that are little beyond him talking about how awesome he is, but as time passes, it's gonna be harder to think of new conceptual ideas for songs, and much like that one, it's a song that people can just have a good time to and intended for parties. You can say the same about most "party party party" songs out there, like just about anything by Pitbull or Flo Rida. And he has over 9000 times more charisma and talent to back it up than most rappers in that vein will ever realize even exists (to be fair, the former has made plenty of stuff I like). Lines like "Bad bitches and your ugly ass friends" sound like something that a typical luxury rapper would say, and most of the time those lines can come off as condescending, but when Bruno Mars does it I cannot help but be pulled in. I still remember my reaction when I listened to it upon it first dropping. Granted, I may be in this mindset because I'm older and do have knowledge on some of the classics by acts like The Bee Gees, Prince and Michael Jackson, but I think my point stands. Anyway, I've rambled enough. Back to the song itself. This song is just badass in every sense of the word. Seriously, to think he ever wasted his time writing songs like It Will Rain, Grenade, or god help you, The Lazy Song, the latter of which even he admitted he wasn't proud of in the long run. THIS is the kind of guy we need. I'll admit, while I do think its predecessor was more instantly quotable and memorable, I feel this may have more fire and raw bombast to it. That could change, but we've needed something to save this incredibly underwhelming year for pop music and this very well may be that something. The point I'm trying to get across is, yeah, I see why some aren't quite as big on this song, but for me, right now it is no question my favorite song on the countdown. And I'm looking forward to it getting overplayed. Bring it on!

* Yes, I know that Shut Up and Dance was Hits 1's biggest song of last year, but Uptown Funk was Billboard's, and that song was overall bigger in just about every other source.

24 Karat Blurbing In the Air
- As much as I want to save the best for last, I ALWAYS go by the order of the countdown, starting with exits, no exceptions! And I have my pride, so be it! We must now celebrate as Me Too by Meghan Trainor, one of the worst songs I have EVER had the displeasure of hearing in my entire life, has left the Sirius XM Hits 1 Weekend Countdown!!!!!!! And of course this had to happen when I overslept and missed the first few songs... I'm absolutely overjoyed to see this one off!!!!!!! Good fucking riddance, you piece of shit!!!!!!! You will not be missed. And as for 7 Years by Lukas Graham, I still like the song, but I know that a certain few will be attending the be-gone party for that one.

- ...Wow. Never Be Like You by Flume featuring Kai just had the biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! of the entire year so far. I can't say this devastates me too much, because it did just leave the Billboard Hot 100, but that huge a drop did kinda catch me out of nowhere.

- Now that Me Too is no more, its predecessor is my new least favorite song on the countdown. I have no idea who is still voting for this *cough Parker cough*, but it jumping out of the bottom ten is ridiculous and I really hope it leaves soon. Also, is it just me, or did Spyder say "one of the catchiest hits on the planet" upon introducing this one?

- Alongside it, New Romantics by Taylor Swift also made a jump out of the bottom ten. A little odd, but I'm not complaining. This song can stay as long as it wants to.

- Girls Talk Boys by 5 Seconds of Summer has finally left the Top 20. It may not be much longer for us. And on the note of 5sauce, I heard Amnesia twice in the past few days - the first being the other day when I was about to leave for work, and the second being yesterday right before the YouTube15.

- Starboy by The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk didn't jump as much as I thought it would, but at least it didn't drop on its second week.

- The guest DJ who introduced The Little Things by Big Gigantic featuring Angela McCluskey was not only a teacher, but a Florida native much like Spyder Harrison.

- Before introducing Perfect Illusion by Lady Gaga, Spyder mentioned how The Chainsmokers said they were not fans of the song. I read about that on Billboard, but I don't care, because the song still gives me the chills.

- So OneRepublic considers Kids the "best song they've put out this month". Planning to release better songs from that album in future months, then? It having the biggest jump of the week definitely owes in part to the album dropping.

- Both Can't Stop the Feeling! by Justin Timberlake and Cheap Thrills by Sia featuring Sean Paul have finally left the Top 10. So the former's shot at the record and the latter's shot at #1 at all are all but finished. Wonder how much longer they'll be with us. With the Trolls movie releasing soon, the former might last to the very end of the year.

- I watched Twenty-one Pilots perform both Heathens and Ride on Saturday Night Live last weekend. When they did the latter, I noticed that the elongated words in the chorus were just cut down to one word each (as in "riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiide" being just "ride"). They did pretty good with both performances.

- Cold Water by Major Lazer featuring Justin Bieber and MØ entering the Top 10? Sure.

- Sit Still, Look Pretty by Daya, on the other hand, is not welcomed back in the Top 10 at all. This song was never that good to begin with and I was a hair away from putting it in orange along with No, but her debut album of the same name dropped, so I'll give it some credit for that. Hopefully 24K Magic will kick it out of the Top 10 again next week.

- Into You by Ariana Grande has reached a new peak at #5. I highly doubt that it'll hit #1, but I'd be pretty darn pleased if it did. I still do like the song a lot, even though most are getting sick of it.

- I was also very close to putting This Is What You Came For by Calvin Harris with Rihanna in orange as well after it jumped up to #4 like that. The most interesting thing I can say about that is Spyder Harrison sadly sharing of Rihanna and Drake's split before introducing it, which I knew about before then thanks to the YouTube15. This better not hit #1. It just left the Top 10 on the Hot 100. It needs to leave this countdown now.

- Once again, Closer by The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey has to block the superior (to me at least) Heathens by Twenty-one Pilots from #1. At least the former is looking like it'll finally have some competition for #1 on Billboard - more on that in a bit - but Heathens better not get countdown blocked from #1 because of this damn thing.

Hit-Bound
Body Moves by DNCE
The Greatest by Sia featuring Kendrick Lamar
Scars To Your Beautiful by Alessia Cara
Kiss The Sky by Jason Derulo
Side To Side by Ariana Grande featuring Nicki Minaj (debut)
Good Grief by Bastille
Red Dress by MAGIC! (How in the name of everything good and pure in this world are you still here?!?!)
Still Falling For You by Ellie Goulding
Don't Wanna Know by Maroon 5 (debut)
Green Light by Pitbull featuring LunchMoney Lewis and Flo Rida
Mercy by Shawn Mendes (debut)
All Time Low by Jon Bellion
Be As You Are by Mike Posner
Chase You Down by RUNAGROUND

- Yes. It's still here. I have no idea why. I have a feeling that it's gonna become what Infinity by AJR was, which first made Hit-Bound in late 2014 and debuted in late April 2015, if memory serves.

- That being said, I'm sad that This Girl by Kungs vs Cookin' On 3 Burners left. As if that drop it just took on the Hot 100 wasn't enough. America, you are really underrating some quality music here.

- We've got ourselves a few new Hit-Bound entrants yet again. The first, and arguably most important one of them, would be Side To Side by Ariana Grande featuring Nicki Minaj. These two have good synergy together, and although reggae feels like an odd thing to have on the album, the song itself actually works quite well.

- And there's Don't Wanna Know by Maroon 5. I'm not wild about this one, but that could change. Although it's currently #1 on iTunes... Could it be the song that'll dethrone Closer on the Billboard Hot 100?!

- Finally there's Mercy by Shawn Mendes, which is probably my favorite of his singles yet (well, besides Something Big, which was never big, ironically). It's much better written than Treat You Better was.

And since I have some time to myself, I figure I'll do the YouTube15 again. I still hate it when Jenna Marbles talks for like ten seconds after introducing a song before it starts, including talking as long as she possibly can during intros until the lyrics come in, but let's see what she has in store this time around.

Starboy by The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk
Perfect Strangers by Jonas Blue featuring JP Cooper
Times Like These by A&J
Cold Water by Major Lazer featuring Justin Bieber and MØ
Live For Today by MattyBRaps
This Is What You Came For by Calvin Harris with Rihanna
Love On Me by Galantis featuring Hook N Sling
Heathens by Twenty-one Pilots
Carry Me by Kygo featuring Julia Michaels
Treat You Better by Shawn Mendes
Trust Nobody by Cashmere Cat featuring Selena Gomez and Tory Lanez
Closer by The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey
Say You Won't Let Go by James Arthur
Let Me Love You by DJ Snake with Justin Bieber
In The Name Of Love by Martin Garrix and Bebe Rexha

So, things changed quite a bit from when I covered this last month. We lost quite a few of the songs here that I really liked, which is a shame.

- Times Like These by A&J is a song that I heard for the first time here. These two are a couple, and the girl, Acacia Brinley, is 18 (although she's apparently just about to turn 19) and pregnant. D'awwwwwww! I hope that the two have a happy life when she has the kid. As for the song, I think they can sing quite nicely, and the song itself is very sweet and made me tear up a bit. It was super close to purple, but I'll get to my favorite later.

- There's also Live For Today by MattyBRaps. The song's production feels similar, I want to say I know a song that it takes off from. Anyway, the song isn't anything too special aside from another basic "live your life" type of song. Eh.

- Galantis has made quite a few cheesy and annoying tracks, like No Money. Love On Me is unfortunately among that group, as the lyrics are pretty repetitive and everything feels extremely auto-tuned. Not really a lot to say beyond that.

- We also have Carry Me by Kygo featuring Julia Michaels. Lyrically, it's another basic love song, but I like the production. Apparently this was performed at the closing ceremony of the Olympics.

- Trust Nobody by Cashmere Cat featuring Selena Gomez and Tory Lanez is a track that I've been hearing buzz about. This makes Selena sound kinda hardcore, I don't know why. But I think I like this sound for her. This song is pretty cool, definitely better than all four of the singles off of Revival.

- Say You Won't Let Go by James Arthur is another acoustic guitar track, and with lines like "And I wanna stay with you until we're gray and old", it feels kinda reminiscent of Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran. Eh, whatever.

- I'm glad they saved my favorite song here, In The Name Of Love by Martin Garrix and Bebe Rexha, for last. I am really liking that one more and more with every listen.

Top 20 Breakdown:
0 — Shit:
20. This Is What You Came For by Calvin Harris with Rihanna
19. Sit Still, Look Pretty by Daya

1 — Bad:
18. Treat You Better by Shawn Mendes
17. Starving by Hailee Steinfeld featuring Grey and Zedd

2 — Meh:
16. Cheap Thrills by Sia featuring Sean Paul
15. Don't Let Me Down by The Chainsmokers featuring Daya

3 — Decent:
14. Unsteady by X Ambassadors
13. Kids by OneRepublic

4 — Good:
12. This Town by Niall Horan
11. I Hate U, I Love U by gnash featuring Olivia O'Brien
10. Closer by The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey
9. Ride by Twenty-one Pilots

5 — Great:
8. Can't Stop the Feeling! by Justin Timberlake
7. Hymn For The Weekend by Coldplay
6. Let Me Love You by DJ Snake with Justin Bieber
5. Perfect Illusion by Lady Gaga
4. Into You by Ariana Grande
3. Cold Water by Major Lazer featuring Justin Bieber and MØ
2. Heathens by Twenty-one Pilots

Oh my god this song is so incredibly boss I need another tier because no words can describe how fucking magical this song is I could seriously give a shit what the haters think I'm going on too long here aren't I
1. 24K Magic by Bruno Mars

Total score: 68/100 (I so wanna up that at least three points or so because that #1 pick just runs away with the entire Top 20)

Countdown Bottom 5
1. No by Meghan Trainor
2. This Is What You Came For by Calvin Harris with Rihanna
3. Sit Still, Look Pretty by Daya
4. Work From Home by Fifth Harmony
5. Gold by Kiiara

Countdown Top 5
1. 24K Magic by Bruno Mars
2. Heathens by Twenty-one Pilots
3. Cold Water by Major Lazer featuring Justin Bieber and MØ
4. Into You by Ariana Grande
5. Starboy by The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk

Hit-Bound Top 5
1. Side To Side by Ariana Grande featuring Nicki Minaj
2. Green Light by Pitbull featuring LunchMoney Lewis and Flo Rida
3. Mercy by Shawn Mendes
4. Scars To Your Beautiful by Alessia Cara
5. Body Moves by DNCE

YouTube15 Top 5
1. In The Name Of Love by Martin Garrix and Bebe Rexha
2. Heathens by Twenty-one Pilots
3. Times Like These by A&J
4. Trust Nobody by Cashmere Cat featuring Selena Gomez and Tory Lanez
5. Cold Water by Major Lazer featuring Justin Bieber and MØ

Most Missed Song: Can't Feel My Face by The Weeknd

#1 Recommendation For Hits 1 And The Countdown: HandClap by Fitz and The Tantrums

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Same Old Love by Selena Gomez — I'm pretty tired of Selena Gomez, to be honest (aside from the aforementioned YouTube15 song). I'll have more words for this one come December or January.
Good To Be Alive (Hallelujah) by Andy Grammer — While super catchy, it comes off as full-force and kind of a draining listen.

Thanks for reading, everybody!