Justin Bieber “Daisies” hit #1 in UK

Daisies Justin Bieber

Writer(s): Justin Bieber, Dijon Duenas, Michael Gordon, Eddie Benjamin, Carter Lang, Dylan Wiggins, Daniel Chetrit, Tobias Jesso Jr. (see lyrics here) Released: July 14, 2025 First Charted: July 23, 2025 Peak: 2 BB, 11 ST, 13 RR, 11 AC, 2 A40, 11 UK, 2 CN, 11 AU (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): -- US, 0.4 UK, 0.7 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 57.50 video, 527.17 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Justin Bieber was born in 1994 in Canada. He has released seven albums. The first six topped the charts in the United States; 2025’s Swag peaked at #2. The album’s lead single, “Daisies,” gave Bieber his 27th top-ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100. It fell just short of the pinnacle, a spot he’d reached eight times. “Daisies” is a “breezy, guitar-leaning” NP “lo-fi pop song.” BB’25 It is a “simmering, understated highlight” RS’25 from Swag. It “marked a softer and more relaxed chapter for Bieber.” NP “Simplicity is king in both the track’s spare guitar-and-drums production and its straightforward lyrics.” BB’25 “There’s no enormous production, no soaring chorus, just a sparse vocal with a pounding slow-burn refrain.” RS’25 “Of Justin Bieber’s many hits, ‘Daisies’ is the first that feels handmade, freed from whatever boardroom decision-making plagued the 31-year-old superstar’s past music. It’s alive and roomy and frayed around the edges, the rare radio smash whose pleasures deepen and develop with time.” PF “Written and produced with indie darlings Dijon and Mk.gee, it sounds both rigorously composed and thrillingly off the cuff, as if it were laid down in an inspired rush on a random summer night. This is the Bieber we need more of: throwing petals and all in his head, crooning horny and heartsick melodies over a virtuoso's dashed-off guitar lick.” PF Resources: BB’25 Billboard (12/11/2025). “The 100 Best Songs of 2025: Staff Picks” NP New York Post (12/29/2025). “The 10 best songs of 2025…” by Connor Surmonte PF Pitchfork.com (12/1/2025). “The 100 Best Songs of 2025” RS’25 Rolling Stone (12/4/2025). “The 100 Best Songs of 2025” Related Links: First posted 1/20/2026.

 

SZA's "Kill Bill" hit #1 on the R&B chart for the first of 21 weeks

Kill Bill SZA

Writer(s): Solána Rowe, Rob Bisel, Carter Lang (see lyrics here) Released: January 10, 2023 First Charted: December 21, 2022 Peak: 11 BB, 14 ST, 11 RR, 30 AC, 7 A40, 121 RB, 3 UK, 3 CN, 11 AU (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 8.0 US, 1.2 UK, 11.47 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 316.87 video, 2121.68 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: R&B singer/songwriter Solána Imani Rowe (known as SZA) was born in 1989 in St. Louis, Missouri. After several EP releases, she signed with RCA Records and released her debut album, Ctrl in 2017. It was certified three times platinum despite the absence of any songs to chart as high as the top 25 on the Billboard Hot 100. Five years later, she was back with her SOS, her second album. It topped the Billboard album chart and gave SZA another triple platinum album. It also gave her five top ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100. It was the album’s fifth single, “Kill Bill,” which met with the greatest success. It was released in January 2023 because of its successful streaming numbers. Three months later, a remix with rapper Doja Cat boosted the song’s success. The song spent eight weeks at #2 before finally triumphing over the Billboard Hot 100. It only spent one week on top, but was a major success on the R&B chart, spending 21 weeks at #1 and breaking the previous record by “Old Town Road.” The song title is taken from the martial arts movies Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003) and Kill Bill: Volume 2 (2004), directed by Quentin Tarantino and starring Uma Thurman as an assassin out for revenge against her ex-boyfriend. Similarly, the song follows the protaganist’s fantasy to kill her ex-boyfriend and his new girlfriend. Some critics “found her murder fantasites extreme but relatable to a degree.” WK “The song’s candid exploration of…unfiltered, violent emotions were a point of praise” WK for some critics. Interestingly, though, SZA has been annoyed by the song’s success. She said she put little heart or energy into making the song. As she said, “’Kill Bill’ was super easy – one take, one night.” SF Despite her feelings, the song wasn’t just a commercial success but has been well received critically as well. It garnered Grammy nominations for Record and Song of the Year. Billboard magazine called it her “first totally ubiquitous smash.” SF Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for SZA SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 1/4/2024; last updated 10/14/2024.