Pop Shots – A Look At The Charts
Welcome to your weekly dose of pop world musings. Covering all things pop culture, this week Pop Shots is hitting you with a little Billboard singles chart analysis, as there are some fresh voices climbing the charts, and veterans making return appearances. The chart positions I’m using are from this past Thursday, and since this is Pop Shots, you know everything is seasoned with a little bit of attitude.
I have to admit, the first few times I heard this song I found it a bit annoying. The chorus is herky-jerky, and the effect, while sonically interesting, throws off any rhythm one might have while nodding their head, or moving to the music. That said, “Gold” has grown on me. Perhaps that’s simply a result of repeated plays, or perhaps it’s because it reminds me just a bit of the Cam’ron classic “Oh Boy.” I really hope a DJ out there is working on mixing those two songs.
Has there been a more unlikely ascendance in recent memory than that of Young M.A.? Her insanely addictive “OOOUUU” not only took hip-hop by storm, it’s now worked its way into the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100, proving a gay woman rapping about the same topics straight male rappers rhyme about is not only viable, it can be pretty dope. From asking, “Where the hoes, bro,” to mentioning getting head, to dropping a plethora of lyrics about street life, Young M.A. has taken the concept of “anything you can do I can do better” and ran with it.
This one definitely gets filed under “what the kids are loving,” as I first learned about Jon Bellion when I was flipping channels and saw the video for “All Time Low” on NickMusic (which is what replaced MTV Hits). Bellion’s vocals on “All Time Low” are reminiscent of a Warped Tour band’s frontman, and he has a similar lyrical style, as well (which is apropos, being that All Time Low is also the name of a Warped Tour band). The production is the exact type of mixture of electronic music and pop that’s dominating the airwaves right now. With all of this in mind, all signs are pointing to Bellion having a very nice 2017.
During the past half decade Lady Gaga slowly became a caricature of herself, but with her latest album, Joanne, she’s back to being an artist, and it’s a great thing. “Million Reasons” is one of the many examples on the album that she’s, at least temporarily, shattered the disco ball that imprisoned her stylistically. A pop-rock ballad with a slight country tinge, this is a new Lady Gaga, and one that I hope sticks around.
You may not be aware of this, but last month Tove Lo released one of the best pop albums of the year – Lady Wood. The reason you may not be aware of this is that she isn’t getting nearly as much airplay as she should, and it seems her label’s entire promotional campaign has been, “Shhh, tell no one!” “Cool Girl” was the first single off of Lady Wood, and while it peaked at #84 during its initial release, it reentered the charts this week. Here’s hoping it becomes a hit this time around.
And with that, my time is up for the week, but I'll be back next week with more shots on all things pop.
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