New dance songs recently appearing on the radio and in clubs:
This week on the THO 100 Rihanna collects her eighth top 10 hit with "Take A Bow." Her string of hits began in 2005 with "Pon de Replay" and includes three number ones: "SOS (Rescue Me)," "Umbrella" (featuring Jay-Z), and "Don't Stop The Music." She is clearly one of the most successful artists of the past 3 years. Rihanna also has the highest debut on this weeks' chart, "If I Never See Your Face Again," a duet with Maroon 5. The news at the top of the chart is the same: Madonna has a huge lead over all competition with "4 Minutes" (featuring Justin Timberlake).
Usher - Here I Stand
This week on the THO 100 Coldplay returns for the first time since 2006's "The Hardest Part." The lead single from their new album, "Violet Hill" has a huge debut at #24. It is also Coldplay's 13th THO hit, which started in 2000 with "Yellow." With 13 chart hits, they are added to our list of artists with the most songs to chart on the THO 100. They certainly have a long way to go to reach the 46 hits by the leader, Mariah Carey. We have also created a poll for fans to pick their favorite Coldplay song.
New Album Releases in the U.S. on May 20th, 2008:
No big surprise this week as Madonna extends her lead over the THO 100 at #1 with "4 Minutes" (featuring Justin Timberlake). The song is the largest point gainer and has one of the highest point totals in THO's history, which dates back over 15 years. Another big story is the unusually high number of song debuts this week. We didn't change our chart methodology, so it is just coincidence that there are 14 songs debuting. They are led by Nelly's "Party People" (featuring Fergie) which lands at #57. Given Nelly and Fergie's superstar status, top ten placement is almost guarranteed for this one.
New album releases for this week:
New songs recently receiving airplay on Pop/Top 40 radio stations in the U.S.:
Gavin DeGraw - Gavin DeGraw
In the week in which Natasha Bedingfield (pictured) appeared on American Idol (and gushed over David Archuleta), she is the greatest point gainer on the THO 100. The song she performed on Idol was "Pocketful of Sunshine," which rockets from #38 to #18 on this weeks' chart. Although top 10 status seems inevitable for this song, it will be hard to overcome the current hits at the top by Madonna, Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, and Usher. "4 Minutes" (featuring Justin Timberlake) continues to widen the gap between #1 and #2, and a new #1 before June, or maybe even July, seems unlikely.
New Adult Alternative and adult contemporary songs recently receiving airplay on U.S. radio stations:
Who is the best guitarist of all-time? This is one of those questions that seems like it might draw endless debate. But in the last two polls we've conducted, Jimi Hendrix drew 42% and 40% of the votes, far and away the top vote-getter each time. (The first guitarist poll we did received over 12,000 votes!) We thought we'd add a few more guitarists to the list, such as Slash, Prince, and Richie Sambora, and start a new guitarist poll. We hope you'll vote in the new poll.
