Katy Perry Achieves Hot 100 History

Congratulations are due to Katy Perry, who tomorrow, will become only the second artist in history to have an album generate five #1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. After having been held at bay by LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem," Perry's "Last Friday Night (TGIF)" will top the Hot 100 tomorrow, becoming the fifth single from her album, Teenage Dream, to achieve that feat.

Perry's previous four chart-toppers from Teenage Dream began hitting #1 last summer with the album's first single, "California Gurls" (feat. Snoop Dogg), which spent 6 weeks at #1, followed by the album's title track (2 weeks at #1), then "Firework," which spent 4 weeks at #1, and then spring's "E.T." (feat. Kanye West), which spent 5 weeks at #1.

The first album to have achieved this feat was Bad (1987), Michael Jackson's seventh studio album, which saw its first five singles reach #1: "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" (1 week), "Bad" (2 wks), "The Way You Make Me Feel" (1 week), "Man in the Mirror" (2 weeks) and "Dirty Diana" (1 week).

Although Bad scored its five #1 hits within a shorter period of time--about 9 months compared to Teenage Dream's 14 months--Teenage Dream's #1s have collectively spent many more weeks at #1--18 in total--versus the 7 weeks for Bad's singles.

Bad's haul in terms of weeks is actually quite small among albums with multiple #1s. Among those that have had four our more #1s, it ties Whitney Houston's Whitney (1987) for fewest weeks at #1 ("I Wanna Dance With Somebody"-2 weeks, "Didn't We Almost Have It All"-2 weeks, "So Emotional"-1 week and "Where Do Broken Hearts Go"-2 weeks). Among such albums, Usher's Confessions (2004) reigns with 28 weeks at #1 for its four #1 hits ("Yeah"-12 weeks, "Burn"-8 weeks, "Confessions Part II"-2 weeks and "MyBoo"-6 weeks), which is the most weeks at #1 an album's singles have achieved, tied with The Black Eyed Peas' 28 weeks for its three singles from The E.N.D. (2009): "Boom Boom Pow"-12 weeks, "I Gotta Feeling"-14 weeks and "Imma Be"-2 weeks. Four other albums have had singles collectively spend at least 20 weeks at #1:

• Mariah Carey's Daydream (1995), 26 weeks with 3 #1s ("Fantasy"-8 weeks, "One Sweet Day"-16 weeks and "Always Be My Baby"-2 weeks)
• Santana's Supernatural (1999), 22 weeks with 2 #1s ("Smooth"-12 weeks and "Maria Maria"-10 weeks)
• Monica's The Boy Is Mine (1998), 22 weeks with 3 #1s ("The Boy Is Mine"-13 weeks, "The First Night"-5 weeks and "Angel of Mine"-4 weeks)
• Boyz II Men's II (1994), 20 weeks with 2 #1s ("I'll Make Love to You"-14 weeks and "On Bended Knee"-6 weeks).

Teenage Dream would be next in line with its 18 weeks, at least so far.

History of Billboard Hot 100 Design

In looking at my personal chart, I decided over the weekend that its design needs an update--something with a little more Billboard-esque authenticity. Thinking about what has worked best about previous Hot 100 designs led me down an interesting path examining the history of the visual design of the Hot 100.

The Hot 100 has long been the premiere Billboard chart, ranking America's biggest hit songs each week based on airplay and sales. Although it has many fans, including myself, Billboard has long insisted that the purpose of the Hot 100 is to serve the industry. To that end, the design of the Hot 100, as well as the policies behind it (which I don't examine here), strives for an easy read of the nation's pulse of musical taste. Here's a trip down the design of Hot 100 history.

Current Design (April 2005 to present)

Hot 100, December 12, 2009, Google Books

The current design was adopted for the April 30, 2005, issue, as part of a major initiative to revamp the entire magazine. The biggest change to the Hot 100 over the previous version is the color overhaul, abandoning the longstanding red and black design in use since the late '80s in favor of a more colorful maroon and yellow palette. These new colors distinguished the Hot 100—a multi-genre chart—from the pop charts, which remain red. Other charts and genres have their own colors too: teal for the Billboard 200, gray for heatseekers, green for country, purple for R&B, olive green for Christian/gospel, gold for dance, dark red for Latin and blue for international.

The data columns headers went back to two decks, with “Weeks On” changing to “Weeks on Cht,” a different abbreviation from what was used before. The previously abbreviated “2 Wks. Ago” is now spelled out as “2 Weeks Ago.” All the chart data columns are now highlighted, not just the “This Week” and “Wks on Cht” columns, and the rows of data cells are highlighted in alternating shades of maroon, with a slightly darker color for the odd numbered entries, a purely decorative element. The bullet symbol is now a circle instead of the oval, which had been used since sometime in 1983 or 1984.

Featured entries (i.e. #1, Greatest Gainer, Hot Shot Debut) are highlighted in yellow, with bit of shadow to make them appear raised. The featured banners now appear to the left of the track names instead of above them. “Number One” is now more simply “#1,” with the number of weeks at #1 appearing just below as “X wks,” and “Greatest Gainer/Sales” was renamed “Greatest Gainer/Digital,” which I suppose is more accurate, although redundant. The “Hot Shot Debut” tag now appears where the “New” tag had been. “New” tags are highlighted in dark maroon, like the bullet circles.

A column for gold and platinum certifications (abbreviated “Cert.”) was added to the left of the artist column, perhaps in recognition of the rebounding sales market thanks to digital singles. Finally, sidebars were added to highlight additional information about certain entries.

My take: The bullet design is improved and the numbers columns all line up now, which they didn’t in the previous design. However, I find the alternating row shading, which was a big criticism of the first 2001 redesign, to be distracting and purposeless. Although the colors do look nice, I miss the traditional red.

Modern Update (November 2001 to April 2005)

Hot 100, November 24, 2001, Google Books

After a long period of virtual stagnation, the Hot 100 was overhauled in 2001—twice actually. The initial design, discussed below, didn’t last very long. Part of these changes were related to the charts in general. Up until now, most of Billboard’s charts were in black in white, with the exception of the Hot 100, which had red spot color, and the Billboard 200 albums chart, which had green. Beginning in 2001, all the chart formats were given color schemes, although they changed again for the 2005 redesign. In 2001, the existing colors for the Hot 100 and Billboard 200 were retained, while R&B became purple; country was orange; dance was gold; rock, adult, and top 40 were teal; and assorted other charts became blue.

The design elements of the chart were virtually unchanged. The data columns are one-deck, with “Wks. on Chart” now put as “Weeks On" and highlighted in right red. The “This Week” column is now highlighted in red. Although previously, groups of ten had been offset with thicker borders, these borders were eliminated. The bulleted ovals became white and filled in against the red background.

The featured entry banners all got little icons: crowns for Number One, headphones for Airplay Gainer, dollar signs for Sales Gainer, and guitars for Hot Shot Debut. The number one banner is written out “Number 1,” as opposed to the former “No. 1.” The weeks at number one appears to the right of the Number 1 banner, written as “X weeks at Number 1.”

My take: This design was a great improvement over the difficult to read initial design of 2001. However, the bulleted tracks don’t stand out as much, and I miss the 10-block borders, which helped to quickly identify subsets, like the top 40 or top 10.

Colorful Misstep (July 2001 to November 2001)

Hot 100, July 28, 2001, Google Books

The July 28, 2001, issue of Billboard was the first to introduce the new color scheme, as a part of a general overhaul of the magazine’s format in an effort to make it more reader-friendly. Some of the changes implemented didn’t last very long, however. For its first 2001 overhaul, the Hot 100 looked a little pale, with the vibrant red replaced by a paler red, almost like hot pink. Alternating rows were highlighted in light red (odds) or left white (evens). The banners were black with white lettering. The bullet ovals were filled in black with white lettering, replacing the red oval outlines.

Despite Billboard’s excitement for these changes, readers apparently weren’t impressed, and in the October 27 issue, Billboard announced further design revisions, which took effect November 21. The new chart color schemes were retained but design elements were tweaked, reverting back a bit to the pre-2001 design. For example, the featured entry banners went back to being just red text above the entries, instead of white text on black. And the black bullet ovals became white with red lettering. And thankfully the alternating row color scheme was dropped.

My take: I applaud the attempt to give the Hot 100 a fresh look, but ultimately this just didn't work. The chart was difficult to read due to the alternating highlighting, which was distracting and arbitrarily makes some songs stand out more than others. Black featured entry banners weren’t very attractive, and the pale color overall made the chart look washed out.

Longstanding Classic (1984 to 2001)

Hot 100, October 12, 1991, Google Books

This was the design of the Hot 100 when I first started paying attention to it, a fairly straightforward black lettering on white background with thin grid lines to separate all rows and columns and thicker lines between blocks of 10, making it easy to quickly spot the top 10, or see which singles are bubbling just under the top 40. It was introduced on October 20, 1984, along with a major overhaul of the magazine in general, including an actual redesign of the “Billboard” title logo.

Change in Billboard Logo, 1984, Google Books

The first awards banners for the singles with the greatest increases in sales and airplay were introduced November 30, 1985, at first called “Hot Mover,” then “Power Pick” and later “Greatest Gainer.” The banner for the #1 single first appeared sometime in 1986. Also starting with the November 30, 1985, issue, the column headers, which had appeared at about a 30-degree angle, were made vertical and double deck.

Starting sometime in the late ‘80s, bright fire engine red was used as spot color for the title (red highlights had been used in the past, although the Hot 100 was black and white for much of the '80s), the “this week” position of bulleted tracks, which is slightly larger than those not bulleted and circled with a red oval, the “new” tag for new entries, which spans across the “last week” and “2 wks ago” columns, but not “wks. on chart,” and for all featured entry banners and song titles.

Because this basic format lasted for so long, a few other minor tweaks were made at times. At some point in 1986 the “new” entry label switched from stretching across all three data columns to just “last week” and “2 wks ago.” Beginning with the July 1, 1995, chart, the Hot 100 included a “peak position” column to the right of the artist column. During the week of December 5, 1998, the chart was remained from “Hot 100 Singles” to “The Billboard Hot 100,” a change that reflected the chart’s major policy change implemented the same week, allowing airplay-only tracks to chart. Additionally, the three featured entry banner stars were replaced with long pointed triangles.

Hot 100, October 20, 1984, Google Books

My take: With the design change to correct the angle column headers and the re-introduction of red spot color, this became a classic, clean look for the Hot 100. It is perhaps the most serious looking design for the chart.

Historic Looks (Prior to 1984)

Hot 100, March 26, 1983, Google Books

Before the major revision in 1984, the Hot 100 didn’t change much for quite a long time, except for the title font. It’s harder to find examples, but I’ve seen charts from 1983 and 1962 and they are pretty similar. Back then, stars were used instead of circles to indicate bulleted singles. There was an interesting feature in the early ‘80s, which was two tiers of bullets: a black star for bulleted singles, and white “superstars” for those bulleted singles with the biggest increases in sales and/or airplay. Sometime after March 1983 but before the big switch in 1984, the stars system was replaced with the ovals and the two-tiered bullet system was eliminated. Here's a fun one from the early '70s, with a vertical title and borders only between the three columns:

Hot 100, June 12, 1971, detroitradioflashbacks.net

In the ‘60s, there was a “3 weeks ago” column, and the “wks. on chart” column appeared to the right of the title and artist. The name of the artist appeared much smaller and in title caps, while the name of the single was in all caps.

Hot 100, October 12, 1963, detroitradioflashbacks.net

My take: While the stars are fun, I prefer the ovals, although I am intrigued by the idea of having a two-tier system to indicate which singles are rising up the chart the fastest. The chart looks best with both vertical and horizontal borders. It's interesting to see it in three columns, but I think I prefer the two.

Check out the new look of my personal chart this Friday, inspired by one of the above Hot 100 designs.

Billboard.com problems

Something is terribly wrong with the Billboard.com Web site. Several times while I've accessed it over the last week, I've gotten warnings that known attack sites are trying to access my computer. And today, while I was browsing the Hot 100, I got transferred to one of those phony Web sites that claims to scan your computer for viruses and spyware, sent there without clicking a thing. Billboard needs to look into this ASAP. Until they get their act together, I recommend learning about the Hot 100 and other charts from third party sources, such as Haven or Chartfreaks.

Billboard Hot 100 analysis, 6/23/2007

1. Umbrella - Rihanna (feat. Jay-Z)

It's a third week at #1 for Rihanna's "Umberella," matching the 3-week stay at the top she had last year for "SOS." It's also this week's airplay gainer, a good sign she'll stay #1 next week in favor of nearest competition Shop Boyz and T-Pain, who stay put at #2 and #3 this week, but both lose their bullets.

4. Big Girls Don't Cry - Fergie

Fergie also holds pat at #4 but keeps her bullet with "Big Girls Don't Cry." The song is still gaining strongly at pop radio, so it could climb higher. This makes her fourth straight top 5 single, putting her well ahead of her band now in chart success.

6. Hey There Delilah - Plain White T's

American rock band Plain White T's take their first top 40 single into the top 10 this week. "Hey There Delilah" is a gentle acoustic song. Not what I was expecting for a market that prefers its rock bands to be like Fall Out Boy and Linkin Park. The song makes a big jump up 10 spots this week.

10. Rehab - Amy Winehouse

Jumping an impressive 38 spots to land her first top 10 hit this week is Amy Winehouse with her second single "Rehab." While her first US single, "You Know I'm No Good," may have missed the top 40, "Rehab" is a bona fide hit. Winehouse has been aggressively promoting her amazing album, Back to Black, so it's nice to see her find chart success.

12. Lip Gloss - Lil Mama

Two weeks ago this song debuted at #95. Last week it wasn't on the chart. This week it suddenly re-enters at #12. ???!!!??? It's about as bad as you think it would be.

14. Thnks fr the Mmrs (Thanks for the Memories) - Fall Out Boy

Fall Out Boy reclaims its #14 peak position from 3 weeks ago with "Thnks fr th Mmrs" (sic), up three to #14. The band's last single, "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race," debuted at #2.

28. Nobody's Perfect - Hannah Montana

Disney product Hannah Montana scores her first top 40 hit this week with "Nobody's Perfect," which makes its Hot 100 debut at #28.

34. Wait for You - Elliott Yamin

I don't know what's going on with this song. It peaked at #31 and slides back two spots from #32 to #34 this week, but does keep its bullet. The former American Idol contestant's single has been doing great at top 40 radio, so I'm expecting this to just explode on the chart if it's sales would catch up.

Billboard Hot 100, June 9, 2007

1. Umbrella - Rihanna (feat. Jay-Z)

Rihanna makes a 40-spot jump to #1 this week with "Umbrella," her sixth top 40 single and second #1 hit following last year's "SOS," which made a similarly big jump to #1 (34 to 1). "Umbrella" is also currently #1 in Britain, making it the second single after Timbaland's "Give it to Me' to top both country's charts this year.

2. Party Like a Rock Star - Shop Boyz

Also making a big leap is the first top 40 hit for rap group Shop Boyz, who moves up 49 spots to #2 with "Party Like a Rock Star," this week's airplay gainer.

5. Home - Daughtry
9. Never Again - Kelly Clarkson
12. Before He Cheats - Carrie Underwood
34. It's Not Over - Daughtry
35. Wait for You - Elliott Yamin

American Idol alums continue to do well this week, particularly Kelly Clarkson who rebounds 8 spots to #9 with "Never Again." More though on AI in a bit.

8. Big Girls Don't Cry - Fergie

Fergie jumps 13 spots to #8 to land her fourth solo top 10 hit with "Big Girls Don't Cry." In doing so, she surpasses yet another statistic of her band Black Eyed Peas--her four top 10 hits now outpaces the band's three. All three of Fergie's previous top 10 hits went on to hit #1 or #2.

15. This Is My Now - Jordin Sparks
18. You Give Love a Bad Name - Blake Lewis

Somebody's got to be unhappy about this. Following the crowning last week of Jordin Sparks as the 6th American Idol (and Blake Lewis as the runner-up), both artists released their debut singles available as of Thursday morning on iTunes. Every other year, the AI finalists have been assured massive first-week sales, sending their hits up to #1 or #2. A recap of the biggest:

2002: Kelly Clarkson, A Moment Like This, #1 after its first week of sales
2003: Clay Aiken, This Is the Night, #1 debut
2003: Ruben Studdard, Flying Without Wings, #2 debut
2004: Fantasia, I Believe, #1 debut
2005: Carrie Underwood, Inside Your Heaven, #1 debut
2005: Bo Bice, Inside Your Heaven, #2 debut
2006: Taylor Hicks, Do I Make You Proud?, #1 debut

So what went wrong this year? Was it the shorter sales frame of 5 days? Perhaps, but I would think that if the demand were big enough it wouldn't make a difference. Is it that the singles aren't available as physical releases this year? Maybe, but "Umbrella" is sitting at #1 without a physical release. I think that this might be another sign of the growing American Idol backlash, the show's numbers were, afterall, down a bit this year. It will be interesting to see if Jordin Sparks can follow this up with a real hit.

Billboard Hot 100 Analysis, June 2, 2007

1. Makes Me Wonder - Maroon 5

Maroon 5 reclaim the #1 spot from T-Pain and Yung Joc, making "Makes Me Wonder" the longest-running #1 single of the nine we've had this year so far with 3 non-consecutive weeks at the top. It's the longest stay since Beyoncé spent 10 weeks at #1 with "Irreplaceable."

5. Home - Daughtry

Daughtry lands his second top 10 single this week with "Home," moving up a forceful 8 spots. It's also his second top 5 hit; last single "It's Not Over" peaked at #4. Daughtry becomes the third American Idol alumnus to land two top 5 singles following Clay Aiken and Kelly Clarkson.

8. Before He Cheats - Carrie Underwood

Speaking of American Idol alumns, Carrie Underwood scores her third top 10 hit with "Before He Cheats." Originally a country hit last year, the song has been renewed by its great popularity now at pop radio. It also earns this distinction of--at 38 weeks--holding the record for the longest journey of any single to land in the top 10.

9. Summer Love - Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake scores his 6th top 10 hit (7th if you count his appearance on Timbaland's "Give It to Me," currently #4) with "Summer Love." All five of his previous top 10 hits made it the top 5, and the last three (or four, again with "Give It to ME) went all the way to #1.

12. What I've Done - Linkin Park
14. Thnks fr th Mmrs - Fall Out Boy

Linkin Park and Fall Out Boy position themselves to enter the top 10 soon, moving up 11 and 10 spots respectively with their latest singles. "What I've Done" actually debuted on the chart at #7 on its first week sales, and then fell to #28 two weeks ago.

21. Big Girls Don't Cry - Fergie

Fergie makes an impressive entry into the top 40, up 20 spots with her fourth solo single, "Big Girls Don't Cry." Two of Fergie's singles have hit #1 ("London Bridge" and "Glamorous") and "Fergalicious" hit #2.

33. Do You Know (The Ping Pong Song) - Enrique Iglesias

After a 5 year gap, Enrique Iglesias returns to the top 40 this week. He launched his English-singing career spectacularly in 1999 with #1 hit "Bailamos," followed in 2000 with another #1, "Be With You." His momentum waned a bit on his second album, but he did land in the top 10 late in 2001 with "Hero." His third album though failed to generate any Hot 100 singles, despite scoring top 5 hit in Britain with "Not in Love."

Billboard Hot 100, May 12, 2007

What an exciting week for Hot 100 chart watchers. This week's top 10 includes not one but two major chart rarities, including a new record. Four singles move into the top 10 this week--two of which make their Hot 100 debut within the top 10. While top 10 debuts have occurred periodically since 1995, This is only the second time in which there were two. Also, the record held by Kelly Clarkson until today for the biggest leap to #1 is broken by...

1. Makes Me Wonder - Maroon 5

Maroon 5 climbs a record 63 spots this week to claim their first #1 Hot 100 single. "Makes Me Wonder" is the band's first single from their forthcoming second album It Won't Be Soon Before Long, a fantastic funk/rock pop song--something Jamiroquai in his heyday would have killed to come up with. The single is the band's 5th top 40 hit and 3rd top 10. In 2004, they hit #5 with two major hit singles, "This Love" and "She Will Be Loved," both of which topped the airplay top 40 chart.

The 63 spot jump to #1 breaks a record held for the last 5 years by Kelly Clarkson, who lept from #52 to #1 with "A Moment Like This," her debut single released soon after her victory as the first American Idol winner. The previous record holder was The Beatles, who lept from #27 to #1 with "Can't Buy Me Love" in 1964.

5. Because of You - Ne-Yo

Ne-Yo makes a 34-spot jump with "Because fo You," the first signle from his second album of the same name, released last Monday. The song has been drawing comparisons to Thriller-era Michael Jackson. Ne-Yo scored three top 40 hits from his first album, including his #1 debut single "So Sick."

6. I'll Stand By You - Carrie Underwood
8. Never Again - Kelly Clarkson

Here's the other big chart news of the week, and it doesn't get any more perfect than this. Top 10 debuts have been a fairly common event since 1995, when record companies realized they could delay the sales release of singles from big-name acts a few weeks while their airplay built up and then push the single into the market during peak airplay to score headling-grabbing debuts. Michael Jackson's "Scream" was the first of such top 10 debuts, landing at its peak position of #5 in its first week. His next single, "You Are Not Alone," became the first in a string of #1 debuts, followed closely by Mariah Carey's "Fantasy" and "One Sweet Day" and Whitney Houston's "Exhale."

The phenomenon has been fueled again by two forces--perhaps the two most powerful forces in pop music today. First there's iTunes, which provides such an easy venue for the promotion and purchase of new singles by big artists in a single's first week of release that it's easy to see a chart connection between the two. Second there's American Idol. In four out of the show's five year's the winner or runner-up has debuted at #1 with their first single. Kelly Clarkson missed out on this with "A Moment Like This" only because the song was getting a good dose of airplay the week before it was released, but of course, this gave it the above-mentioned record chart leap from #52 to #1. All the other singles had poor airplay, but fantastic sales, making instant #1 hits for Clay Aiken ("This Is The Night"), Fantasia ("I Believe"), Carrie Underwood ("Inside Your Heaven"), and Taylor Hicks ("Do I Make You Proud").

This week then we have a double confluence of these two forces, creating yet another chart rarity. This is only the second instance I know of where two singles have debuted in the top 10 in the same week, the first being the week in 2003 where Clay Aiken debuted at #1 and Ruben Studdard at #2. American Idol's two hottest alumni are easily Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood. Both are multiple Grammy winners with crossover appeal. Clarkson's had numerous top 10 and #1 pop hits, Underwood has topped the country chart and has a big crossover pop single ("Before He Cheats") at the moment. Clarkson is an international star. Both move albums like no other current pop act.

"I'll Stand By You" by Underwood debuts this week at #6, her second top 10 hit. The remake of the Pretenders '90s hit is a tie-in to last week's American Idol "Idol Gives Back" special, and proceeds from the sale of the single (available with prominent promotion from iTunes) go to charity. It's a worthy remake, superior to the 2004 effort from Girls Aloud, a charity single in Britain. "Never Again" by Kelly Clarkson debuts at #8. It is the first single from her forthcoming third album, My December, set for release next month. This is Clarkson's 7th top 10 hit.

22. Summer Love - Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake's fourth FutureSex/LoveSounds Single, "Summer Love" makes a 12-spot jump to #22. His previous single, former #1 "What Goes Around...Comes Around" does nearly the reverse, falling from #24 to #33. Timberlake is also in the top 10 at #3 (down 1) with Timbaland and Nelly Furtado and their former #1 hit "Give It To Me."

28. Icky Thump - The White Stripes

Another iTunes benefactor, The White Stripes, debuts on the Hot 100 at #28, fueled by strong first-week sales. This is, shockingly, the first top 40 from the band, who have been a critics favorite and an indie darling, particularly for their fourth album Elephant from 2003. "Icky Thump" is the title track from the band's forthcoming sixth album, due in June.

U.S. (Billboard Hot 100) Chart Analysis, 4/14/2007

1. Don't Matter - Akon
2. The Sweet Escape - Gwen Stefani (feat. Akon)

It's a one-two punch for Akon this week, topping the Hot 100 for a second week with "Dont Matter," his second #1 hit, while also rising 4 spots as guest vocalist on Gwen Stefani's "The Sweet Escape," earning a new peak position at #2.

5. Girlfriend - Avril Lavigne

Avril Lavigne climbs two spots this week with "Girlfriend," matching the peak position the single reached four weeks ago. Propelled by strong airplay now, it will surely climb higher. "Girlfriend" is Lavigne's third top 5 hit after "Complicated" (#2) and "I'm With You" (#4).

6. Beautiful Liar - Beyonce & Shakira

After making a big (record?) #94 to #3 leap last week on sales, "Beautiful Liar" slumps a bit to #6. The airplay on this is so-so, not as good as you'd expect, but it could pick up.

10. Last Night - Diddy (feat. Keyshia Cole)

Whatever-you-want-to-call-him Sean Combs is back in the top 10 with "Last Night," following his last top 10 single, last year's "Come to Me," which featured Pussycat Dolls' Nicole Scherzinger. Never alone, now he's with Keyshia Cole.

13. Last Dollar (Fly Away) - Tim McGraw

Tim McGraw makes a big 68-spot leap with "Last Dollar (Fly Away)," his highest-charting solo single since 1999's "Please Remember Me," which hit #10. Tim's highest ever appearance on the Hot 100 was at #3 when he was featured on Nelly's 2004 hit "Over and Over."

39. The River - Good Charlotte

Good Charlotte scores their second top 40 hit this week with "The River," up from #68. Their first top 40 single was "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," which hit #20 in 2002. Several other singles from the band have charted just outside the top 40 such as "The Anthem," "Girls and Boys" and "I Just Wanna Live."

US Chart (Billboard Hot 100) Analysis, 3/24/2007

1. Glamorous - Fergie

Fergie lands her second #1 hit with "Glamorous," this week's sales gainer winner and her third top 2 hit in a row following "London Bridge," which spent 3 weeks at #1 last August, and "Fergalicious," which hit #2 in January. All three of Fergie's solo singles have now charted higher than her highest-charting hits with Black Eyed Peas--the #3 hits "Don't Phunk with My Heart" and "My Humps."

3. Don't Matter - Akon
4. The Sweet Escape - Gwen Stefani (featuring Akon)

Akon keeps his bullet, winning the airplay gainer award even, but still slides back a spot to #3, pushed back by the seven-spot leap by Fergie. "Don't Matter" is Akon's third top 2 hit since November, when he hit #2 with "Smack That" and #1 with "I Wanna Love You." Akon is also at #4 this week, featured on Gwen Stefani's "The Sweet Escape," down one from #3 this week. The single is Stefani's second highest-charting single after #1 "Hollaback Girl."

7. It's Not Over - Daughtry

Daughtry climbs back into the top 10 with "It's Not Over," propelled by ever increasing airplay. The single had climbed as high as #4 a few weeks ago, mostly on sales. "It's Not Over" is a major top 40 hit, in fact, it now tops the Mediabase Top 40 chart, making it a shoo-in to top the Radio & Records top 40 next week. When it does so, Daughtry will become only the second American Idol alumnus to do so, following Kelly Clarkson, who's topped the airplay top 40 four times ("Miss Independent," "Breakaway," "Since U Been Gone," and "Because of You"). Despite the intuitive link, American Idol artists have largely fared poorly at top 40 radio, but lately have turned that around, with three current top 40 hits: Daughtry at #3 this week, followed by Carrie Underwood at #27 with "Before He Cheats" and Katharine McPhee at #29 with "Over It"--both of which are quickly rising up the chart. The only other acts to hit the airplay top 40 from the show have been Clay Aiken (#17 in 2003 with "Invisible") and Kimberly Locke (#19 in 2004 with "Eighth World Wonder").

9. Girlfriend - Avril Lavigne

This single is more noteworthy for what it did last week, when it debuted at #5 to become Lavigne's 5th top 10 hit and 3rd to hit the top 5. Her last single, ballad "Keep Holding On" is still in the top 40, slipping 6 spots to #32 this week.

28. Before He Cheats - Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood rises 9 spots this week with "Before He Cheats." The single, which peaked at #16 back in November when it was a hit at country radio, is enjoying a second wind, now as a top 40 radio hit--her first.

31. Candyman - Christina Aguilera

Christina Aguilera lands her 14th top 40 hit this week with '40s-styled "Candyman," rising 16 notches this week to #31. Her last top 40 single, "Hurt," peaked at a disappointing #19 following the #6 peak of "Ain't No Other Man."

36. U + UR Hand - Pink

Pink returns to the top 40 this week with "U + Ur Hand," which makes a 26-spot jump to #36. This is Pink's 9th top 40, her last being last year's #13 single "Stupid Girls." Pink has had a difficult time on the chart lately, although the signles from her latest album did chart very well in the UK. Her last single, "Who Knew" failed to make the Billboard Hot 100, but was a top 5 hit in Britain. "U + Ur Hand" is doing very well at top 40 radio, where it's the third-biggest gainer in the top 20 this week, moving up 4 spots to #15, besting the #17 peak of "Stupid Girls."

Billboard Hot 100 Analysis, 3/3/2007

1. What Goes Around...Comes Around - Justin Timberlake

Once again Timberlake + Timbaland proves unstoppable. Buoyed by his double appearance at the Grammys, Justin Timberlake rises seven spots to score his third consecutive #1 single, edging out another Timbaland-produced single, Nelly Furtado's "Say It Right." According to Billboard's Fred Bronson, "What Goes Around..." is only the second #1 hit to feature an ellipsis (...) in its title, the first being current tabloid fixture Britney Spears' debut single, "...Baby One More Time." Of course, Spears and Timberlake both got their start on the Mickey Mouse Club, which also featured one Ryan Gosling, vying for a Best Actor Oscar tonight.

2. Runaway Love - Ludacris (feat. Mary J. Blige)

Ludacris featuring Mary J. Blige rises another notch to #2 this week. This is the highest Mary J. Blige has ever charted when working with another artist, the previous best being her #3 collaboration in 1995 with Method Man, "I'll Be There For You/You're All I Need to Get By."

4. Not Ready to Make Nice - Dixie Chicks

The Grammys had a big influence on quite a few singles and albums on the Billboard charts this week, but no act benefited from the awards more than the Dixie Chicks. The country trio won all five awards they were nominated for, including Album of the Year for Taking the Long Way, which rocketed up the albums chart this week from #72 to #8, and Record and Song of the Year for "Not Ready to Make Nice," which re-enters the Hot 100 this week at #4. The song had previously peaked at #23 in May last year.

At #4, "Not Ready to Make Nice" is the highest-charting single from the band, beating their previous #7 best attained by "Long Time Gone" and "Landslide," the former being their 2002/2003 single that had been very popular at the time singer Natalie Maines made an anti-Bush comment at a concert in London. The single, which was at its 8th week at in the top 10, plummeted instantly from the country radio backlash, falling from 10 to 43 and then off.

5. Don't Matter - Akon
6. The Sweet Escape - Gwen Stefani (feat. Akon)

Akon's third Konvicted singles climbs 6 spots into the top 10 this week at #5. It edges just ahead of Gwen Stefani's "The Sweet Escape," down 3 this week, which he is also featured on.

7. It's Not Over - Daughtry

With all the activity in the top 10 this week, a few singles slide back while retaining bullets, including Stefani's track and this first single from former American Idol contestant Chris Daughtry's band Daughtry. The single has proven a big hit at top 40 radio, where it's currently #3 and rising. Not a bad song, sounding along the lines of a Nickelback single, only darker.

14. Waiting on the World to Change - John Mayer

Another Grammy benefactor, John Mayer, rises 10 spots to a new peak position at #14 for "Waiting on the World to Change." The single's parent album, Continuum, won Pop Album of the Year, itself rising 19 spots back into the top 10 at #1o.

Billboard Hot 100 analysis, 2/24/2007

1. Say It Right - Nelly Furtado

Beyonce proves she really isn't "Irreplaceable" as that song falls from #1 after a 10-week run to give Nelly Furtado her second #1 hit with "Say It Right." Furtado spent 6 weeks at #1 with her current album's first single "Promiscuous," which was followed by the relative less popular "Maneater," which made only #16. "Say It Right" bring her back at the top though, and his her fourth top 10 hit overall.

3. The Sweet Escape - Gwen Stefani (feat. Akon)

"The Sweet Escape" continues its ascent, up two spots this week to #3. It is Gwen Stefani's second-highest charting single as a soloist.

5. Runaway Love - Ludacris (feat. Mary J. Blige)

Rapper/actor Ludacris scores his third top 5 hit this week with "Runaway Love," his Mary J. Blige collaboration that rises 1 notch this week. Both of Ludacris' previous top 5 hits, 2003's "Stand Up" and last year's "Money Maker" were #1s.

8. What Goes Around...Comes Around - Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake climbs back into the top 1o with "What Goes Around...Comes Around," his third top 10 hit from his current album, FutureSex/LoveSounds, and his fifth top 10 solo single.

9. Glamorous - Fergie (feat. Ludacris)

Fergie makes a huge 22 point leap on the Hot 100 this week, earning the Airplay Gainer award and her third consecutive top 10 single. That ties her with her band Black Eyed Peas' three top 10 hits. Both of Fergie's previous solo hits, the #1 "London Bridge" and #2 "Fergalicious" charted higher than the highest-charting BEP effort, the #3 singles "Don't Phunk with My Heart" and "My Humps."

11. Don't Matter - Akon

Akon already has two hits in the top 10, his former #1 hit "I Wanna Love You" at #10 and his appearance on Gwen Stefani's "The Sweet Escape" at #3, and almost had a third as his new single, "Don't Matter," glides up 19 places to #11 this week.

Billboard Hot 100, 2/17/2007

1. Irreplaceable - Beyonce

"Irreplaceable" hits the magic 10 week mark this week, making the single Beyonce's longest solo stay at the top. One more week at it will tie her former group's 11-week run for "Independent Women." Each week it amazes me this single stays at the top, and an 11th week looks very unlikely. Still, it's possible.

2. Say It Right - Nelly Furtado

If Nelly Furtado's going to score a second #1 hit, next week's the week. "Say It Right" eclipsed "Irreplaceable" at top 40 airplay this week, but has Justin Timberlake's "What Goes Around...Comes Around" hot on its heels, and I expect him to get a sales boost after this Sunday's Grammy Awards performance.

5. The Sweet Escape - Gwen Stefani (featuring Akon)

"The Sweet Escape" rises a notch this week, surpassing last single "Wind It Up's" peak at #6. This is Stefani's second solo top 5 hit, following her #1 "Hollaback Girl."

11. What Goes Around...Comes Around - Justin Timberlake

Justin takes a 1-notch dip this week, but keeps his bullet. This single is still likely to be a huge hit, if not a third #1 single for him. If he cleans up at the Grammys it will unstoppable.

14. Here (In Your Arms) - HelloGoodbye

This is a very cool song, a great blend of synth, rock, and pop influences. It's up 5 spots this week. The band formed in Huntington Beach, California and appeared on MTV The Read World in Austin.

15. Cupid's Chokehold - Gym Class Heroes Featuring Patrick Slump

This gets the Airplay Gainer award this week, rising 13 notches from #28. I listened to the iTunes clip and was not impressed.

29. Lost Without U - Robin Thicke

Growing Pains actor Alan Thicke's son Robin has his first top 40 hit in "Lost Without U," rising 8 spots this week to #29.

31. Glamorous - Fergie (featuring Will.I.Am)

Fergie's third solo hit breaks into the top 40 this week, rising 20 notches. Time will tell if it will be another big hit for her, but it's not a bad song--mellower than it's predecessors, with another spelling lesson too.

32. If Anyone Cared - Nickelback

Sorry Nickelback, I don't.

40. Year 3000 - Jonas Brothers

Radio Disney flexes some chart muscle here, sending young band Jonas Brothers straight into the top 40 with this week's highest hot 100 debut. It's a remake of "Year 3000," a #2 hit in the U.K. for Busted in 2003.

Billboard Hot 100 Analysis, 1/26/2007

1. Irreplaceable – Beyonce

It’s 7 weeks at #1 for Beyonce’s “Irreplaceable.” It’s run at the top is now 1 week shy of the 8 weeks she had at the top for her first solo hit, “Crazy in Love.” Collectively, she’s now spent 29 weeks at #1 as a solo artist, 12 weeks more than the 17 weeks at #1 she’s had with Destiny’s Child.

4. Say It Right – Nelly Furtado

Nelly Furtado continues her ascent with “Say It Right,” up one to #4 this week. The song is currently #2 on the top 40 airplay chart and climbing. As of this writing, it’s #1 on iTunes.

9. Welcome to the Black Parade – My Chemical Romance

My Chemical Romance scored their first top 10 hit last week at #9 with “Welcome to the Black Parade,” which holds steady this week. The band’s previous best was the #33 peak of “Helena” in 2005.

12. What Goes Around … Comes Around – Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake moves up nine spots this week to #12 with “What Goes Around…,” the third FutureSex/LoveSounds single. “Sexyback” hit #1 in September; “My Love” hit #1 in November. “What Goes Around…” looks like it’s on that trajectory as well. If he keeps this pace up, expect another top 10 hit around early April, and probably another in the summer too.

31. The Sweet Escape – Gwen Stefani (featuring Akon)

Gwen Stefani gets the Sales Gainer designation this week for “The Sweet Escape” and enters the top 40 (up 22 spots) at #31. This is her sixth top 40 hit as a soloist, although she has a little help here from Akon, who’s currently #2 with “I Wanna Love You” and #5 with “Smack That.”

Billboard Hot 100, 2006

Billboard's Year-End Charts are here. The #1 single of 2006 is....Daniel Powter's "Bad Day." A huge hit in the UK in 2005, "Bad Day" was released in the US in February, and climbed to #1, where it spent 5 weeks.

Canadian Daniel Powter is the first non-American act to top the Billboard Hot 100 since Nickelback, also Canadian, topped the chart in 2002 with "How You Remind Me." Interestingly, the top 6 spots are held by foreigners this year, which is a Hot 100 first. In 1988, non-US acts held the top 4 slots--George Michael, George Harrison, and Rick Astley from the UK and INXS from Australia--but this year, the top 6 slots go respectively to a Canadian, a Jamaican, another Canadian, a Brit, a Colombian, and another Brit.

The top 10 Billboard Hot 100 singles of 2006 are:

1. Bad Day - Daniel Powter (5 weeks @ #1)
2. Temperature - Sean Paul (1 wk @ #1)
3. Promiscuous - Nelly Furtado (featuring Timbaland) (6 wks @ #1)
4. You're Beautiful - James Blunt (1 wk @ #1)
5. Hips Don't Lie - Shakira (featuring Wyclef Jean) (2 wks @ #1)
6. Unwritten - Natasha Bedingfield (#5)
7. Crazy - Gnarls Barkley (7 wks @ #2)
8. Ridin' - Chamillionaire (featuring Kayzie Bone) (2 wks @ #1)
9. Sexyback - Justin Timberlake (7 wks @ #1)
10. Check On It - Beyonce (featuring Slim Thug) (5 wks @ #1)

Billboard Hot 100, 12/16/2006

1. Irreplaceable - Beyonce

Beyonce rises to #1 this week with "Irreplaceable," scoring her fourth solo #1. Technically speaking, this is her first true solo #1, as she had an assistant rapper on each of her previous #1s: Jay-Z on "Crazy in Love," Sean Paul on "Baby Boy," and Slim Thug on "Check On It." This is Beyonce's second #1 hit this year, after "Check On It," making her the second artist, after Justin Timberlake, to score two chart-toppers this year. There are only two charts left in 2006, and judging from the historical longevity of Beyonce #1s, the lack of srong competition (now that Akon's 2 singles have lost their bullets), I think she'll be spending the rest of the year at the top. This is her third B'Day single and clearly the biggest. Finally, at 13 letters, "Irreplaceable" is the longest one-word title to hit #1. Beyonce, as a member of Destiny's Child, had been tied for the 12-letter record for "Bootylicious."

4. Fergalicious - Fergie

Fergie gets the Sales Gainer award this week for "Fergalicious," rising six notches following a week in which it plumetted five spots. I think that the Sales Gainer award is a technicality, as I suspect there was some kind of technical error over at iTunes that mysteriously caused Fergie's album to disappear for several days, thus the big chart decline last week. With Akon in decline, she has a shot of beating her previous #3 peak for this song, although I doubt it has #1 potential.

6. Wind it Up - Gwen Stefani

Gwen Stefani rises another notch with "Wind It Up," edging ahead of "Rich Girl" to become her second highest charting solo single, now only behind #1 hit "Hollaback Girl." Her band, No Doubt, had two higher-charting hits: #5 "Hey Baby" and the #3 "Underneath it All." "Don't Speak," while widely regarded as the band's biggest hit, didn't chart on the Billboard Hot 100, since it wasn't released as a single, and back then charting airplay-only tracks wasn't allowed.

12. Say it Right - Nelly Furtado

Nelly Furtado makes a big jump with "Say it Right," up 13 spots to #12, supassing the #16 peak of her last single, "Maneater." If it goes top 10 next week, it will become her fourth top 10 hit.

22. Keep Holding On - Avril Lavigne

Avril Lavigne makes a tremendous Hot 100 bow this week with "Keep Holding On," the single from the soundtrack to the forthcoming fantasy & dragons epic Eragon. This is Lavigne's 6th top hit. Her last Hot 100 single, "Nobody's Home," just missed the top 40, peaking at #41.

40. Wait a Minute - The Pussycat Dolls

The Pussycat Dolls score their 5th top 40 hit this week with "Wait a Minute," which moves up a spot to #40. Their last single "Buttons" peaked at #3, their third top 5 hit. In the UK "Wait a Minute" will be their 6th single; their fifth was "I Don't Need a Man," which was not released in the US. I believe this makes them the most recent act to score 5 top 40 hits from one album since Kelly Clarkson, who did it earlier this year with "Walk Away," the fifth Breakaway single.

Billboard Hot 100, 12/9/2006

1. I Wanna Love You - Akon (featuring Snoop Dogg)

Akon sits pretty at #1 for a second week with "I Wanna Love You." He's lost his bullet though, so I expect a new #1 next week, and there's a hot track at #2.

2. Irreplaceable - Beyonce

After two subpar singles ("Deja Vu" and "Ring the Alarm") Beyonce is back in true form with "Irreplaceable," which has a good shot at becoming her fourth #1 single next week. The single rises a notch this week to #2 and is the chart's greatest airplay gainer--a very good sign she will continue moving upwards next week.

3. Smack That - Akon (featuring Eminem)

Akon's other big hit keeps its bullet, despite moving down a spot to make room for fast-rising Beyonce. The track gave up its #1 spot in Britain this week for Take That's comeback hit, "Patience."

5. How to Save a Life - The Fray

It peaked at #3 awhile ago on sales and now The Fray manages to creep back into the top 5 on it's growing airplay support, up three this week from #8. Their first single, "Over My Head (Cable Car)" peaked at #8.

7. Wind It Up - Gwen Stefani

Gwen Stefani makes a big leap this week--up 18 spots this week to #7 with "Wind It Up," this week's greatest sales gainer. At #7, the single matches the peak of her second most successful solo single, "Rich Girl," surpassed only by #1 hit "Hollaback Girl." Counting her appearance on Eve's #2 hit, "Let Me Blow Ya Mind," this is Stefani's fourth top 10 hit.

10. Fergalicious - Fergie

Fergie takes a big dip this week, down five spots to #5, losing her bullet. I suspect this is a product of the bizarre occurance whereby her album, the Dutchess, was mysterious missing from iTunes for a few days this week. It's back now, but the missing sales days seems to have taken its toll on her chart performance. "Fergalicious" tumbles from #2 to #11 on the Digital Songs chart. Ouch. I wonder if Apple or Fergie's label is to blame for this.

20. That's That S*** - Snoop Dogg (featuring R. Kelly)

Snoop Dogg scores his 6th top 20 this week, making a big leap into the top 40 up 65 slots to #20 with "That That S***." This is R. Kelly's first appearance in the top 40 this year; his last big hit was last year's #22, "Trapped in the Closet (Chapter 1)."

25. Say It Right - Nelly Furtado

Nelly Furtado scores her 5th top 40 hit this week with "Say It Right," the third single from her massively succesful third album, Loose. "Maneater," although a #1 hit in Britain, proved an unworthy US successor to #1 hit"Promiscuous," peaking at only #16. "Say It Right" appears to be on track to surpass "Maneater," rising an impressive 41 spots this week to #25.

41. Wait a Minute - The Pussycat Dolls

Just outside the top 40 this week is the fifth US single from The Pussycat Dolls, "Wait a Minute," which rises 12 spots to #41. The Pussycat Dolls already have 4 top 40 hits under their belt, including "Dont Cha" (#2), "Buttons" (#3), and "Stickwitu" (#5). "Beep" was their only single to miss the top 10, peaking at #13.

Billboard Music Awards Nominees

Billboard announced their BMA nominees today. BMA categories are based upon Billboard's year-end charts, with the award going to whoever is #1 for the year in that category. The nominees for the Hot 100 are:

"Bad Day" - Daniel Powter
"Promiscuous" - Nelly Furtado featuring Timbaland
and "Temperature" - Sean Paul

So one of those three songs is the #1 single of 2006 in the Billboard Hot 100. Interestingly, all of them are foreign artists; Daniel Powter and Nelly Furtado are Canadian and Sean Paul is Jamaican. So a non-American is guaranteed to top the Hot 100 this year, which last happened in 2002 when Canadian group Nickelback was #1 with "How You Remind Me."

I can think of at least three other foreign artists that might land in the top 10 of the year-end Hot 100, Rihanna's "SOS" (Barbados), Natasha Bedingfield's "Unwritten" (Britain), and Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie" (Colombia). That's quite a turnaround from last year when the highest a non-American act charted was #18 (Rihanna with "Pon Da Replay"). Foreigners held down the top 4 spots of the Hot 100 in 1998, with George Michael (Britain), INXS (Australia), George Harrison (Britain), and Rick Astley (Britain).

As for this year's "nominees," my bet is that Nelly Furtado is going to be this year's Hot 100 chart topper.

The albums set to top the year-end Billboard 200 are a sorry lot:

"All the Right Reasons," Nickelback
"High School Musical" soundtrack, Various Artists
"Some Hearts," Carrie Underwood

I read somewhere that High School Musical is the best-selling album of the year, so look for that at #1. Carrie Underwood has certainly done well for herself, becoming arguably the second most successful artist from American Idol. I would expect that Rascal Flatts and Mary J. Blige will also show up in the top 10.

US Chart Analysis, Billboard Hot 100, 12/2/2006

1. I Wanna Love You - Akon (featuring Snoop Dogg)
2. Smack That - Akon (featuring Eminem)

There's no one hotter than Akon at the moment, who manages the stellar feat of having both the #1 and #2 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 this week. Last time this happened was September 2005 when Mariah Carey was #1 and #2 with "We Belong Together" and "Shake it Off." Impressively, Akon is a trans-Atlantic chart topper this week, as he is also #1 on the UK singles chart, although with "Smack That" instead of "I Wanna Love You."

That "I Wanna Love You" and not "Smack That" is #1 is a bit of a surprise though. Last week the top 4 was a locked in a fierce competition between four bulleted and fast-rising singles. "I Wanna Love You" shoots to #1 from #17 this week, pushing those four singles back a bit, becoming Akon's first #1 hit.

3. Irreplaceable - Beyonce

Continuing her impressive rise is Beyonce, up one to #3 this week with "Irreplaceable," which is this week's greatest airplay gainer. This song still has a good shot at being #1, as it currently tops iTunes singles sales chart. She now matches the peak of her 2004 hit "Naughty Girl."

4. My Love - Justin Timberlake

After 3 weeks at the top Justin Timberlake's "My Love" loses its bullet and tumbles to #4 amid stiff competition in the top 5.

5. Fergalicious - Fergie

Despite retaining its bullet, "Fergalicious" back-pedals a bit, falling two spots to #5. Inexplicably Fergie has been deleted from iTunes this week, a really stupid move just before the holiday shopping season moves into full force. Unless that's a technical error, expect this to drop like a stone next week without its sales.

Not much else going on outside the top 10. So I'll leave it at that.

Billboard Hot 100 Analysis, 11/25/2006

1. My Love - Justin Timberlake

What an exciting time for the Hot 100. Remember when, just a few years ago, it was so boring an stale? Justin Timberlake retains the #1 position for a third week, but with his bullet gone, the 3 songs from #2 to #4 will be vying for #1 next week, and it's a tight, tight competition.

2. Smack That - Akon (featuring Eminem)

Akon leads the pack of would-be #1s for next week with "Smack That," his collaboration with Eminem. At #2, it's already two spots ahead of previous best, 2005's "Lonely," which peaked at #4. This song is posing huge airplay gains at top 40. Interestingly, this track is leading at top 40, not on the R&B and rap charts, where it is climbing, but not yet top 10.

3. Fergalicious - Fergie

Fergie holds at #3, but continues to post strong gains at top 40. I think she's going to get mowed over by Beyonce at #4 though.

4. Irreplaceable - Beyonce

With lines like "to the left, to the left," and "don't you ever think, you're irreplaceable," it's easy to confuse this song for an election commentary. At #4 this week it matches the peak of first B'Day single "Deja Vu," and should climb even higher, given it's momentum. It's this week's Airplay Gainer winner.

8. Show Me What You Got - Jay-Z

A few places below Beyonce is her boyfriend Jay-Z, who scores his sixth top 10 hit this week with "Show Me What You Got," making a big leap from #47. He's only had two top 5 hits as lead artist, his best being #4 "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" with girlfriend Beyonce. Wouldn't you like to have separate top 10 hits at the same time with your girlfriend? I'm sure they love counting up the $$$s.

11. It Ends Tonight - All-American Rejects

All-American Rejects is up 7 spots to #11 with "It Ends Tonight," pulling it ahead of the #15 peak of their last single, "Move Along," to become their second-highest charting hit. Top 10 next week?

16. Before He Cheats - Carrie Underwood

Fresh from having won a CMA award for Female Vocalist of the Year (to the chagrin of Faith Hill), Carrie Underwood is fastly establishing herself as the second most successful American Idol alumna. She has a long, long way to go to catch frontrunner Kelly Clarkson, who's topped any incarnation of a Billboard chart 41 times now, 30 #1s ahead of second-place Fantasia's 11 number ones. "Before He Cheats" climbs 9 places this week, scoring a third top 20 hit for Underwood. Only Clarskon has had more top 20 hits on the Hot 100 (she's had 7).

17. I Wanna Love You - Akon (featuring Snoop Dogg)

Not content with just one hit in the top 20, Akon's second rises three to #17 this week. This single is bigger at R&B stations, but is also impacting at top 40, and wil surely score him another top 10.

US Chart Analysis, 11/18/2006

1. My Love - Justin Timberlake (featuring T.I.)

Justin Timberlake (featuring T.I.) tops the Billboard Hot 100 for a second week with My Love, his second #1 hit and the only artist to have repeat #1s so far this year. T.I. had his biggest solo hit earlier this year with "What You Know," which hit #3 in March. "My Love" still has a ways to go before matching the 7-week #1 peak of Timberlake's last single, "Sexyback."

2. Smack That - Akon (featuring Eminem)

Akon's "Smack That" spends a third week in pole position. Akon's previous best was last year's #4 hit, "Lonely."

3. Fergalicious - Fergie

Fergie earns the Sales Gainer award this week, moving up another three spots to #3 with "Fergalicious." While I initially hated "London Bridge" (it later grew on me), I'm totally loving "Fergalicious," which is poppier and even sillier than prior #1 single. She could be the second artist with repeat #1s in 2006.

9. Irreplaceable - Beyonce

Beyonce's third B'Day single, quickly released on the back of tepidly received "Ring That Alarm" outruns its predecessor this week, soaring 15 spots to #9, becoming Beyonce's 7th solo top 10 hit. This single is looking really good. It should easily outperform the album's first single, "Deja Vu," which peaked at #4, but had only lukewarm airplay and burned out quickly.

15. Welcome to the Black Parade - My Chemical Romance

They may have spent 2 weeks at #1 in Britain, but in the U.S., My Chemical Romance's "Welcome to the Black Parade" could only make #13, from where it slips this week to #15.

18. It Ends Tonight - All-American Rejects

All-American Rejects are on a roll. "It Ends Tonight," the third single from their second major album, edges up 14 spots to #18, a climb similar to that performed by their last single, "Move Along," which rose from 32 to 16 in one week. If it can crack the top 10, this will be their second, after "Dirty Little Secret," which hit #9 in January.

22. Hurt - Christina Aguilera

Christina's 13th top 40 hit, "Hurt," climbs five places this week to #22. We'll see if it can crack the top 20 next week to become her 11th top 20 hit.

40. Wind It Up - Gwen Stefani

Gwen Stefani makes a splashy Hot 100 debut at #40 with "Wind It Up," the first single from her forthcoming second solo album. "Wind It Up" is Stefani's fifth top 40 solo hit, who hit the top 40 four times with singles from her first album, Love.Angel.Music.Baby. Singles from that album had a bell curve of peaks: #s 47, 7, 1, 13, 21, and 49 for "What U Waiting For," "Rich Girl," "Hollaback Girl," "Cool," "Luxurious," and "Crash."