Month: May 2023

Shouse shuffles to an APRA AMCOS Billions Award for their “coming out of lockdown” anthem “Love Tonight.”

The Melbourne dance music duo is saluted for notching one billion streams of their song, an overnight sensation that was, in reality, five years in the making.

“Love Tonight” is the creation of Jack Madin and Ed Service, one a primary school teacher, the other an arts community manager, who were spotted performing the moody number in 2016 by OneLove head of A&R Ant Celestino. He documented the performance on video; in the cold light of day, Celestino knew it was a total banger.

Soon after, the track was recorded with a choir of local Melbourne friends and released in 2017 on the OneLove imprint Hell Beach.

The story took another turn when, in early 2017, OneLove struck a partnership deal for global digital distribution and label services with Ingrooves Music Group, an arrangement that cleared a path for “Love Tonight.”

“It was like an unhealthy obsession,” Celestino told this reporter on stage at 2022 Indie-Con. “We never stopped. I just thought the record was so good.”

The eight-minute original cut was spun off into a string of new remixes and edits, the track was serviced to radio, DJs and tastemakers in 2021, an underground swell bubbled away in European clubs, and when the doors finally burst open after the pandemic — a global hit.

The single went top 10 in over 20 countries including Germany, France, Greece, Netherlands, and Belgium. “Love Tonight” reached No. 18 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, and No. 8 on the Billboard Hot Dance/Electronic Songs.

According to APRA AMCOS, “Love Tonight” is certified diamond in France, triple platinum in Australia, double platinum in Belgium and Portugal, Platinum in Germany, Italy, New Zealand and Greece, and gold in Denmark, Spain, the U.K. and the U.S.

“Hearing the voices of our makeshift Melbourne choir resonate across crowds around the world will never get old,” comments Madin and Service on receiving their circular trophy. “We’re thrilled and stunned that our little moment of collective joy here in our home has made an impact on so many. They always sing along. We hope that this song inspires people to sing and create music with friends, family and their community. Music is magic!”

The 1,000,000,000 List takes into account streaming numbers from major services Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube, and is given to APRA AMCOS songwriter members and their publishers in recognition of a song surpassing one billion streams.

It’s said to be the first award of its kind to recognize a songwriter’s achievement. Other recipients include Tones And I (for “Dance Monkey”), 5 Seconds of Summer (“Youngblood”), Vance Joy (“Riptide”), Gotye (“Somebody That I Used to Know”), VASSY (“Bad”), Harry Michael and Tyron Hapi for Masked Wolf’s “Astronaut in the Ocean.”

Read more on the “Love Tonight” story here.

Lewis Capaldi steamrolls his way to No. 1 with Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent (EMI), his sophomore album.

The Scottish singer and songwriter had set a fearsome pace. At the midway mark in the chart cycle, Capaldi’s LP was outselling the rest of the top 20 combined. When the chart was published May 26, Broken By Desire chalked up more than 95,000 chart sales, the best opening week for any title in 2023.

According to the Official Charts Company, it’s the most streamed, downloaded and physically purchased LP of the latest cycle, and passes the 76,000 first week chart units notched by Ed Sheeran’s Subtract (Asylum).

That outguns the opening effort of Lewis’s 2019 debut Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent, which accumulated 89,000 chart units in its first seven days.

The last album to bag a bigger opening week was Taylor Swift’s Midnights in October 2022, with 204,000 chart units, and the loftiest start for a male solo artist since Harry Styles’ Harry’s House reached the top in May 2022 with 114,000 chart units.

With his big feat, Capaldi halts Sheeran’s run at the top with Subtract at two weeks; it dips 1-2.

British metal band Sleep Token enjoys a career best (and first top 10 appearance) with Take Me Back to Eden (Spinefarm), which bows at No. 3, while Def Leppard’s Drastic Symphonies (Mercury) with the London Philharmonic Orchestra is close behind, for a No. 4 start.

Finally, Swedish rockers Ghost grab a third U.K. top 10 with Pantomime (Loma Vista). The followup to 2022’s Impera, which peaked at No. 2, Pantomime is new at No. 8.

Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding enter a seventh non-consecutive week at No. 1 in the U.K. with “Miracle” (Columbia), while Lana Del Rey enjoys a chart miracle of her own.

“Miracle,” the throwback rave number, is once again the most-streamed song in the U.K., as it becomes Harris’ second-longest reigning single in his homeland, passing the six-week streak for “We Found Love” with Rihanna and “Promises” with Sam Smith. It’s just one week from equaling the Scottish EDM star’s longest reign, the eight-week run for “One Kiss” with Dua Lipa.

The seven-week stretch for “Miracle” sees Goulding rise up the all-time ranks. Other female acts to enjoy seven weeks at No. 1 include Cher with “Believe” and the Spice Girls with “Wannabe.”

The highest debut this week belongs to Lana Del Rey, whose “Say Yes To Heaven” (Polydor) starts at No. 9. Originally recorded in 2012, “Say Yes” failed to secure a spot on any Del Rey album. The somber tune sat on the shelf until it was leaked in recent years and made its own journey on TikTok. It’s Del Rey’s sixth top 10 appearance, and first solo U.K. top tier entry since “Born To Die” also hit No. 9 in 2012.

Eurovision 2023 is in the books, but a trio of songs from the annual song festival continue to fly high on the U.K. chart.

Following a record-setting week for Eurovision on the Official U.K. Chart, the 2023 champion, Sweden’s Loreen, sees her winning song “Tattoo” (UMG International) dip 2-4; Finland’s Käärijä’s “Cha Cha Cha” (WM Finland) down 6-15, and Great Britain rep Mae Muller’s “I Wrote A Song” (Capitol) down 9-18.

According to the Official Charts Company, “Tattoo” is the first Eurovision entry to spend two consecutive weeks in the U.K. Official Singles Chart top 5 in 27 years. The last to do so was Australia-born U.K. contestant Gina G’s “Ooh Ahh…Just A Little Bit,” which logged nine consecutive weeks in the top 5 back in 1996, including a one-week stint at No. 1.

Finally, Australia’s pop princess Kylie Minogue bags her 52nd U.K. top 40 with “Padam Padam” (BMG). The electro pop tune new at No. 26, on the chart, published May 26, for the Melbourne pop veteran’s highest-charting song in her adopted homeland since “Into The Blue” hit No. 12 back in 2014. “Padam Padam” is the most-downloaded song of the week in the U.K., for top spot on Official Singles Sales Chart and Download Chart.

Lewis Capaldi wouldn’t be denied his first No. 1 in Australia, as Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent blasts to the summit.

The Scottish singer and songwriter’s sophomore album eclipses the No. 7 best for his debut Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent from 2019. Platinum-certified Divinely Uninspired bounces 34-30 this week in its 210th cycle on the survey.

Coming in at No. 2 on the ARIA Chart, published May 26, is John Farnham’s Finding The Voice (Wheatley Records / Sony Music Australia), the soundtrack to the documentary of the same name.

Finding The Voice becomes the legendary Australian singer’s 20th top 10 album in Australia.

The documentary, like its companion album, is a hit. In the weeks following its release May 18 through Sony Pictures, Finding the Voice was confirmed as the best-selling theatrical release of an Australian music documentary.

Farnham is accustomed to life at or near the top of the charts. His blockbuster 1986 album Whispering Jack spending 25 weeks at No. 1, and is the highest selling album by an Australian act, shifting more than 1.6 million copies. Today, it’s certified 24-times platinum.

He also led the albums tally with Age Of Reason (1988), Chain Reaction (1990), Then Again… (1993), Highlights From The Main Event with Olivia Newton-John and Anthony Warlow (1998), 33 1/3 (2000), The Last Time (2002), Highlights from Two Strong Hearts: Live (2015) and Friends For Christmas, both with Olivia Newton-John (2016).

Farnham has been in the headlines due to poor health. The ARIA Hall of Fame-inducted singer underwent major surgery last year to remove a cancerous growth on his throat, and subsequently endured a stint in hospital as he battled a chest infection.

Completing an all-new top three is Sleep Token’s third album, Take Me Back To Eden (Spinefarm/Inertia). It’s new at No. 3 for the British rock band’s first appearance on the ARIA Chart, while Ed Sheeran‘s latest, Subtract (Atlantic/Warner), dips 1-4.

Also cracking the top 10 on debut is South Coast, Australian indie band The Vanns with their second album Last Of Your Kind (Upper River Records/AWAL), new at No. 8, for their first impression on the tally.

Adelaide alternative rock band Bad//Dreems starts at No. 10 with Hoo Ha! (BMG/ADA).

Over on the ARIA Singles Chart, Morgan Wallen logs a seventh week at No. 1 with “Last Night” (Republic/Universal).

Finally, Lana Del Rey secures the top debut with her recently unearthed recording from 2012, “Say Yes To Heaven” (Interscope/Universal), new at No. 20, while Australia’s pop princess Kylie Minogue scores her 49th top 50 single with “Padam Padam” (Liberation), new at No. 39.

Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time spends a 12th week in a row, and in total, atop the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated June 3) – the most weeks at No. 1 for a country album in over 30 years. As the album surpasses the 11-week reign of Taylor Swift’s Fearless in 2008-09, Wallen’s set has the most weeks at No. 1 for a country album since Billy Ray Cyrus’ Some Gave All, which notched 17 weeks, all consecutively, atop the list (June 13-Oct. 3, 1992-dated charts). (Country albums are those that have charted on, or are eligible for, Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart.)

One Thing at a Time earned 129,000 equivalent album units in the United States in the week ending May 25 (down 4%), according to Luminate.

One Thing at a Time continues to have the most weeks in a row at No. 1 since the Titanic soundtrack ruled at No. 1 for 16 consecutive weeks in 1998 (its entire run at No. 1, Jan. 24-May 9 of that year). The last album to spend at least 12 weeks in total at No. 1 was Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti, which notched 13 nonconsecutive weeks atop the list in May-October 2022.

One Thing at a Time debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated March 18 and has yet to yield the top slot. As it has now spent its first 12 weeks at No. 1, One Thing at a Time is just the second album to rule for its first 12 weeks on the chart, after Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life logged its first 13 weeks at No. 1 (of a total of 14 weeks in the top slot) in late 1976 and early 1977. (For context, today, it’s common for albums to debut at No. 1. However, before 1991, when the Billboard 200 began utilizing Luminate’s electronically monitored tracking information, only six albums debuted at No. 1, including Songs In the Key of Life.)

Wallen has now spent a total of 22 weeks at No. 1 across his two chart-topping albums (One Thing at a Time, with 12 weeks, and his last album, Dangerous: The Double Album, with 10). Among acts with the most weeks at No. 1 this decade (2020-onwards), Wallen pulls further ahead of the act with the second-most weeks at No. 1 in that span of time – Taylor Swift, with 20.

Notably, Swift’s most recent No. 1, Midnights (which spent five weeks atop the list in late 2022), was reissued in multiple formats on May 26 (on vinyl, CD, digital download and via streaming services), with some iterations containing additional bonus tracks. The sales and streaming impact of those new variations will be reflected on next week’s Billboard 200 chart, dated June 10.

Also in the top 10 of the new Billboard 200 albums chart, Dave Matthews Band earns its 14th top 10-charting effort with the debut of Walk Around the Moon at No. 5. Plus, Ghost logs it fourth top 10, and second in a little over a year, as its new five-song covers set Phantomime bows at No. 7.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new June 3, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on May 31 (a day later than usual due to the Memorial Day holiday in the U.S. on May 29). For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.

Of One Thing at a Time’s 129,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending May 25, SEA units comprise 121,000 (down 3%, equaling 162.52 million on-demand official streams of the set’s 36 songs), album sales comprise 6,000 (down 30%) and TEA units comprise 2,000 (up less than 1%).

SZA’s chart-topping SOS jumps 5-2 with 77,000 equivalent album units earned (up 52%) following the album’s release on CD and vinyl on May 19. The set sold 29,000 copies across all formats (physical and digital) – up 22,963% from a negligible sum the previous week. SOS was released on Dec. 9, 2022, via streaming services and to purchase as a digital download album.

Swift’s Midnights falls 2-3 with 58,000 equivalent album units (down 4%), while Wallen’s Dangerous climbs 6-4 with 47,000 units (down 2%).

Dave Matthews Band achieves its 14th top 10-charting album on the Billboard 200 as its new studio effort Walk Around the Moon debuts at No. 5. It’s the act’s first new studio set since 2018. The new album earned 44,000 equivalent album units in its first week. Of that sum, album sales comprise 40,000 (making it the top-selling album of the week), SEA units comprise 4,000 (equaling 5.45 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum. The album’s first-week sales were supported by multiple vinyl editions, including exclusive color variants for the band’s fan club and webstore, Barnes & Noble, independent record stores and Target.

Dave Matthews Band notched its first top 10 with Crash (No. 2 in 1996) and has earned at least one new top 10 album in every decade since (three total in the 1990s, eight in the 2000s, two in the ‘10s and one so far in the ‘20s). In addition, Matthews himself has three solo top 10s.

Dave Matthews Band is the 11th group to have tallied a new top 10 in each of those four decades, joining AC/DC, Def Leppard, Foo Fighters, Green Day, Marilyn Manson, Megadeth, Metallica, Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers and U2.

Swift’s former No. 1 Lover jumps 10-6 with 38,000 equivalent album units earned (up 1%). That’s the highest rank for the 2019 set since that December, sparked by Swift performing songs from it live for the first time on her ongoing juggernaut The Eras Tour.

Ghost’s five-song covers project Phantomime debuts at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 with 36,000 equivalent album units earned. It’s the fourth top 10 for the band, and second in a little over a year, following Impera, which debuted and peaked at No. 2 (March 26, 2022-dated chart).

Of Phantomime’s 36,000 units earned, album sales comprise 34,000, SEA units comprise 2,000 (equaling 2.67 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum. The set’s first-week sales were bolstered by its availability across a variety of physical formats, including multiple vinyl LPs (including exclusives color variants for independent record stores, Target and Urban Outfitters) and even a cassette tape.

Phantomime boasts covers of Genesis (“Jesus He Knows Me”), Iron Maiden (“Phantom of the Opera”) and the late Tina Turner (“We Don’t Need Another Hero [Thunderdome]”).

Luke Combs’ Gettin’ Old rises 12-8 on the Billboard 200 with 34,000 equivalent album units earned (down 3%), Bad Bunny’s former No. 1, Un Verano Sin Ti, ascends 11-9 with nearly 34,000 (down 4%) and Zach Bryan’s American Heartbreak bumps 15-10 with 32,000 (up 5%).

Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.