Post Malone “Circles” hit #1

Circles Post Malone

Writer(s): Austin Post, Louis Bell, Adam Feeney, Kaan Gunesberk, Billy Walsh (see lyrics here) Released: August 30, 2019 First Charted: September 14, 2019 Peak: 13 US, 111 BA, 11 DG, 17 RR, 12 AC, 14 A40, 23 MR, 3 UK, 2 CN, 2 AU, 3 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 10.0 US, 1.2 UK, 12.62 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 0.94 radio, 858.40 video, 2400.49 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Singer/songwriter and rapper Post Malone was born Austin Richard Post in Syracuse, New York in 1995. His debut album Stoney from 2016 featured the top 10, diamond-certified song “Congratulations.” His next album, 2017’s Beerbongs & Bentleys, spawned the #1 hits “Rockstar” and “Psycho” as well as the # hit “Better Now.” In 2019, he released Hollywood’s Bleeding. The first two singles, “Wow.” and “Goodbyes” reached #2 and #3 respectively; the third single, “Circles,” gave him his fourth #1 song. It was his first chart-topper where he wasn’t accompanied by another artist. “Circles” set a record for most weeks in the top 10 (39) before being surpassed by the Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights.” It logged 61 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. It became the most-played radio song of 2020 overall as well as on adult contemporary radio. WK The song was also nominated for Grammys for Record and Song of the Year. Songfacts.com described the song this way: “Though the relationship seems to bring only sorrow, Post and his lover are unable to split. But continuing to stay together on their carousel only increases the tension between them.” SF Billboard magazine described the song as “backed by sunny, acoustic guitars, swirling percussion, and infectious melodies.” WK R Dub, the director of programming at Z90.3, called it “an absolutely addicting, fun, emotional, and…non-fatiguing hook, combined with relatable lyrics.” WK Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Post Malone SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 10/19/2022; last updated 3/31/2024.

Jonas Brothers’ “Sucker” debuted at #1

Sucker Jonas Brothers

Writer(s): Ryan Tedder, Louis Bell, Mustafa Ahmed, Adam Feeney, Homer Steinweiss, Nicholas Jonas, Joseph Jonas, Kevin Jonas II (see lyrics here) Released: March 1, 2019 First Charted: March 9, 2019 Peak: 11 BB, 16 BA, 11 DG, 11 ST, 117 AC, 19 A40, 4 UK, 11 CN, 13 AU (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 5.0 US, 1.2 UK, 8.23 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 443.40 video, 1381.03 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Kevin (born 1987), Joe (1989), and Nick (1992) were raised in New Jersey and formed as a pop trio in 2005. They released their first album, It’s About Time, a year later. Three albums followed – two reached two million in U.S. sales, two topped the Billboard album chart. They reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 twice – with “Burnin’ Up” and “Tonight,” both from 2008’s A Little Bit Longer. After their fourth album, it was ten years before they released Happiness Begins in 2019. It gave the group their third #1 album and third platinum release. It also featured their biggest hit to date, the #1 song “Sucker.” In addition to debuting atop the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S., it reached the pinnacle in seven other countries. It became the most-heard song on American radio in 2019. SF It is a “rollicking pop-rock jam…about an infatuation…The lovesick brothers are so obsessed with the girl it makes them do crazy stuff like dancing on top of cars. Still, they are proud to be suckers for their love.” SF One of the song’s co-writers was Ryan Tedder. He had success with his group One Republic, reaching the top ten with “Apologize” (2007), “Good Life” (2010), “Counting Stars” (2013), and “I Ain’t Worried” (2022). He’d also accumulated writing credits on songs by Adele, Beyoncé, Camila Cabello, Miley Cyrus, Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, Leona Lewis, Jennifer Lopez, Maroon 5, Paul McCartney, Katy Perry, Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift, and others. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Jonas Brothers SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 4/11/2024.

Post Malone hit #1 with “Rockstar”

Rockstar Post Malone with 21 Savage

Writer(s): Austin Post, Shayaa Abraham-Joseph, Louis Bell, Carl Austin Rosen, Jo Vaughn Virginie, Olufunmibi Awoshiley (see lyrics here) Released: September 15, 2017 First Charted: October 7, 2017 Peak: 18 US, 11 DG, 114 ST, 5 RR, 114 RB, 14 UK, 16 CN, 17 AU, 26 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 10.0 US, 1.8 UK, 13.26 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 1546.40 video, 2908.87 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: As the lead single from his second album, “Rockstar” took Post Malone to new heights. “Congratulations,” from his debut album, had gone top 10 on the U.S. pop and R&B charts, but “Rockstar” gave Post Malone his first #1 on those charts as well as countries around the world, including Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. WK The song was also nominated for a Grammy for Record of the Year and won Song of the Year at the MTV Video Music Awards. The song was marketed with an unusual, albeit unofficial YouTube video consisting solely of an audio of the song’s chorus. While some considered it a trick to qualify for downloads, others called it a clever marketing scheme which may have been responsible for its #1 status. Spin magazine said, “the chorus loop may be a weirdly hypnotic, post-Vine marketing gimmick, but it seems like it worked.” WK However, they also named it one of the worst songs of 2017. WK Lyrically, the song is a celebration of the hedonistic lifestyle of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll. English singer-songwriter Ian Dury’s 1977 single “Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll” first popularized the phrase. SF Post Malone and 21 Savage, with whom he duets on the track, both brag about the amount of sex and drugs which they have incorporated into their rock ‘n’ roll lifestyles. SF Musically, the song grew out of two chance meetings between Post Malone and Tank God, a young producer who was working on a session next door at Quad Studios in New York. Tank God ran into Post Malone again in a sneaker store in Los Angeles and asked if he could play some beats for Post Malone. SF When it was recorded, T-Pain and Joey Badass were first featured on the song before they were replaced by 21 Savage. SF Resources: DMDB Encyclopedia entry for Post Malone DMDB Encyclopedia entry for 21 Savage SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Last updated 3/31/2024.