Week In Music: Chappell Roan, Lizzo, and Gen Alpha’s Faves Dominate Top 40
After all the hype, Chappell Roan dropped her first country banger, “The Giver,” and it’s honestly fire. She debuted it on Saturday Night Live back in November with “Pink Pony Club,” but YouTube took it down quick. No worries though—fans uploaded it elsewhere, and it was still getting played everywhere.
Right after “The Giver” dropped, it hit #3 on Spotify, and would’ve been #1 if Playboi Carti didn’t drop his whole album MUSIC the same day. Even now, it’s holding strong at #4 after five days, and the SNL performance is back online. But even with all the love, radio’s taking its sweet time picking it up, even though Chappell’s dropped three major hits in one year. “Good Luck, Babe!” and “HOT TO GO!” also took forever for radio to catch on, so it’s not too wild that “The Giver” isn’t getting the instant love it deserves.
Meanwhile, Benson Boone’s “Sorry I’m Here For Someone Else” was all over radio in two days, but now it’s barely hanging on the Robloxian Top 40 and isn’t even on the Spotify Top 200 anymore. Sean Ross from Ross on Radio talked about how some Boston stations treated it, and honestly, “The Giver” has had the same vibe—#43 on Robloxian Top 40 and #74 on Country airplay.
Lizzo’s “Still Bad” is lowkey a vibe. The title’s whatever, but the track slaps. Lizzo’s known for dropping first-week bangers, but then they fade, and “Still Bad” hasn’t even cracked the Spotify Top 200 yet—it’s sitting at under 2 million views in six days. But it’s still #28 on Robloxian Top 40. Lizzo’s dropping a new album Love in Real Life this summer, and the title track is already killing it in Australia, so let’s see if this one picks up soon.
Alex Warren, the TikTok star from Hype House, is out here with two tracks—”Ordinary” and “Burning Down”—and they’re both going off in different ways. “Burning Down” is the one that’s getting radio attention, but “Ordinary” is lowkey more popular, sitting at #8 on Shazam and #20 on Spotify in the U.S. Meanwhile, “Burning Down” has been on air for months, hasn’t even made the Spotify Top 200, and still isn’t popping as much. Feels like the Gracie Abrams situation all over again, right?
Buried Treasures of the Week:
Wiz Khalifa, Bruno Mars & Snoop Dogg – “Young, Wild & Free”: Classic banger from the early 2010s that still hits. It’s been getting tons of love on Liveline for almost five years, and it samples “Toot It and Boot It” by YG and “Sneakin’ In the Back” by Tom Scott & The L.A. Express. It peaked at #7 on Billboard and #10 on Robloxian Top 40, but dominated Rhythmic, finishing #3 for the year 2012. Bruno Mars is still lit, everyone still vibes with Snoop, but Wiz? What’s he been doing lately?
NSYNC – “Bye Bye Bye”: This throwback is still lowkey popular, especially after it was used in Deadpool. It’s still getting requests on Liveline, and here’s the twist—most of the people asking for it aren’t Millennials, they’re Gen Z and Gen Alpha. Even though it’s an oldie, it’s still a vibe for the new generation. Pop radio needs to get with it. If it’s popping with listeners, who cares about age? Also, “Here Comes The Sun” by The Beatles still gets requests every couple weeks. “Bye Bye Bye” peaked at #4 on Billboard and #1 on Robloxian Top 40, finishing #3 for the year 2000.
