Mars Rockets to Number One

Hi everyone, and welcome back to my music blog. This week, I’m starting off addressing my predictions from last week. And not to brag, but I was pretty spot-on in the few predictions I did make. Last week I said that I would not be surprised if Bruno Mars’ “Just the Way You Are” knocked Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” out of the top spot, and he did just that. Last week, Mars was arrested for cocaine possession in Las Vegas. I think it will be really interesting to see what, if any, this effect has on his career. He is at such an early stage in his career that it may be too early to tell. He’s not a rapper or hard-partying rockstar where this kind of behavior would be expected and accepted. But he’s also not a Taylor Swift or Disney star where this kind of scandal could ruin their squeaky-clean images. I suppose only time will tell.

I also predicted that Rihanna’s new song “Only Girl (In the World)” would make a huge jump into the top 3, and it did just that, landing at number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. I think that this song is going to be huge – one of the biggest of Rihanna’s already incredibly successful career. She still managed to score hits last year with her darker, more experimental music, and this song is a return to the type of music that made fans love her in the first place. I think it could jump even further up the chart to number one next week.

Landing in the top 10 for the first time is Far East Movement’s “Like a G6.” This song has seemingly come out of nowhere for me, and now is already at number 10 after only a few weeks on the chart. I really, really like this song. It’s different and catchy and I think it’s going to continue becoming a big hit. I don’t know much about Far East Movement, however, so I don’t know what that says about their ability for continued mainstream success.

There is one song that is in the top 20, this week at number 19, that I am actually surprised is a hit. It is Chris Brown’s “Deuces.” It seems as though the public, and radio stations DJs, are finally willing to forgive Brown for his beating of Rihanna. But what surprises me is that it is for this song. Last year, Brown released what I consider the far superior song of “I Can Transform Ya,” which featured usually-guaranteed hitmaker Lil’ Wayne. I think that song is very underrated and am surprised “Deuces” is becoming more of a hit.

In other brief news, Florence and the Machine’s “Dog Days Are Over” and Drake’s “Fancy” make huge jumps into the top 30 after performances of these songs at the MTV Video Music Awards. I think both are good songs, and were good performances (particularly “Dog Days”) so I think they deserve to be hits. Like last week, I got so excited discussing the top half of the charts that I wasn’t able to get to the bottom half. I believe that the top half is more interesting anyway, but in future posts I will discuss what is happening on the charts on numbers 40-100. Until next time music fans.

Here is the link to Florence and the Machine's VMA performance, which I thought was surprisingly the best of the night (the video isn't the best quality):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZo9WtDqkIk

And here is the link to Rihanna's "Only Girl (In the World)" song (the video doesn't matter; it's not the official music video yet):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjZD63BWKgA

First Blog

Welcome everyone to my first blog post. As I said in my About Me, I will be covering all things popular music, specifically the Billboard charts, so without further ado, let’s jump into this week’s Billboard Hot 100. Scoring the #1 spot for the second week in a row is Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream.” After dominating the airwaves this summer with “California Gurls,” it’s impressive that Perry could score another number 1 hit. At #2 is Eminem and Rihanna’s “Love The Way You Lie.” I am a lifeguard in the summer, and we are allowed to have radios at our chairs, and despite hearing this song multiple times a day by the end of the summer, I never got sick of it like I do for most songs. I think that is a testament to the staying power of this song. I, like most fans, think that the rest of the songs on Eminem’s album “Recovery” are amazing, but he may have trouble choosing a follow-up to “Lie” as I’m not sure any of the other songs are as “commercial” as his current hit. At #3 is Bruno Mars’ “Just The Way You Are.” Mars is making a name for himself with this hit after being featured on B.o.B’s “Nothing on You” this past spring and Travie McCoy’s “Billionare” this summer. “Just The Way You Are” has been exploding up the charts and I would not be surprised if he knocks Perry out of the top spot next week. Much of the rest of the top ten remained relatively the same compared to last week. Making a jump into the top ten is Flo Rida featuring David Guetta’s “Club Can’t Handle Me.” It hit number nine and marks Flo Rida’s fifth top 10 hit in less than three years. I’ve already said so much about only the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. In future posts I will try to go into more detail about the rest of the chart. So until next week. And speaking of next week, a final prediction: keep an eye on Rihanna’s “Only Girl (In the World).” It was just released; it currently sits at #75 but I think it is going to make a huge jump into the top 3. Only time will tell.

Eminem and Rihanna's "Love The Way You Lie" Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uelHwf8o7_U&ob=av3e