Lizzo “About Damn Time” hit #1

About Damn Time Lizzo

Writer(s): Blake Slatkin, Eric Frederic, Larry Price, Malcolm McLaren, Melissa Jefferson, Ronald Larkins, Stephen Hague, Theron Makiel Thomas (see lyrics here) Released: April 14, 2022 First Charted: April 23, 2022 Peak: 12 US, 13 AC, 12 A40, 40 AA, 15 RB, 3 UK, 2 CN, 3 AU, 12 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 2.0 US, 0.6 UK, 3.75 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 196.0 video, 874.82 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: R&B singer, rapper, and flutist Lizzo was born Melissa Viviane Jefferson in Detroit, Michigan, in 1988. In 2019, her two-year-old song “Truth Hurts” became a viral sleeper hit, topping the Billboard Hot 100. Then her song “Good As Hell” from 2016 also became a delayed success, peaking at #3. Both songs were added to deluxe editions of her third studio album, Cuz I Love You. Three years later, her fourth album, Special, was released. The lead single, “About Damn Time,” became Lizzo’s second chart topper. Billboard’s Rania Aniftos praised it for its “feel-good” chorus while Nardine Saad of the Los Angeles Times had an “affirmative, instantly, uplifting disco beat.” WK NME’s Alex Gallagher called it “a funk-tingled, classically Lizzo cut that comes replete with a groove-heavy bassline, an instantly memorable flute melody and lyrical gems.” WK The “funk-inspired disco number” SF was the last song written for the album. WK Lizzo didn’t feel like the album was complete; she wanted another song with the same kind of uplifting emotional impact as “Good As Hell.” WK She wrote it “as music therapy for when she’s down about herself and wants to feel better.” SF It was her “melodic medicine for her blues.” SF As she said, “Life had thrown some major traumas and hard experiences at us, especially globally these last few years. And I wanted to write a song that allowed us to take a moment and celebrate our survival, and celebrate how far we’ve come.” WK She didn’t fully embrace the song and the idea of it being a single until it was completed and she realized “its message was something the world needed to hear.” SF “About Damn Time” won the Grammy for Record of the Year and the People’s Choice Award for Song of the Year. It also received a nomination for the MTV Song of the Year. Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Lizzo SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 1/15/2023; last updated 10/14/2024.

Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello hit #1 with “Señorita”

Señorita Shawn Mendes & Camila Cabello

Writer(s): Shawn Mendes, Camila Cabello, Andrew Wotman, Benjamin Levin, Alexandra Tamposi, Charlotte Aitchison, Jack Patterson, Magnus August Høiberg (see lyrics here) Released: June 21, 2019 First Charted: July 6, 2019 Peak: 11 US, 12 BA, 14 RR, 4 AC, 13 A40, 16 UK, 17 CN, 11 AU (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 5.0 US, 1.8 UK, 16.1 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 2010.94 video, 2704.29 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello first collaborated on “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” a song from Mendes’ 2015 debut album Handwritten. They connected and knew they wanted to work together again. SF Their second effort together struck gold – well, multiplatinum in thirteen countries. It also won an American Music Award, two MTV Video Music Awards, and a People’s Choice Award. It also won Best Single of the Year at the Juno Awards. The song was conceived at a Charli XCX session, but she decided not to release it herself, saying the “Latin pop flair just wasn’t right for who I am because I am not a part of that culture.” SF Andrew Watt, the producer, sent a rough chorus to Shawn Mendes, suggesting it as a duet. Mendes agreed, saying Camila would be the only person with whom he could do it. Mendes and Cabello made some changes to the melody and lyrics, using FaceTime to tweak some lyrics together. Then they met up to record in the studio together. Producer Benny Blanco lauded their chemistry together. WK In the “smooth Latin love song” SF the pair “croon about their fictious romance,” SF although they would end up an actual couple for more than two years. The Fader’s Shaad D’Souza praised the single as “effortlessly steamy and wonderfully lightweight.” WK Medium’s TJ Lovell called it “a sexy ode to a vacation rendezvous that allows the pair to flex their undeniable chemistry.” WK The song debuted at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and eventually dethroned Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” to ascend to the pole position. It reached the peak in more than 30 countries. WK It was the second chart-topper for each of them in the UK. It was his first trip to #1 in the U.S. and her second, following “Havana.” Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Shawn Mendes DMDB encyclopedia entry for Camila Cabello SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia First posted 4/2/2022; last updated 5/4/2024.