Change comes in waves on the BILLCS Top 30, and there is plenty of it this week as a bunch of songs make hefty moves as recent favourites run their course – my three songs of summer reach the maximum 10 chart (20 week) appearances. But the new blood is good and always keeps the chart interesting!
As a standing item about my daughter VXTORIA‘s progress with her music, her debut EP Dreamstate is now out! It features three new songs, “Awaken”, “U&Me”, and “TMRW”, in addition to singles Back To You, changes, and Lost in Your Love. I’d like to thank anyone who has found out about her music through my blog page for supporting the songs. She is currently working on new music.
Check out information about my ONLINE RADIO SHOWS after the chart commentary below as they are directly tied in with this blog. As most of you know, I host 3 online radio shows – The Big 20 and two iterations of Your Weekend New Music Mix – and produce 2 online radio segments – my new music and retro picks of the week – that are all pre-recorded. The Big 20 and the picks of the week are happily being syndicated and you can find the current schedule for all at the bottom of the home page of this blog.
Reminder: Click on the photos to listen to the songs on Spotify.
Sombr’s “12 to 12” grabs a 3rd appearance (6th week) at #1. The rising North American hit and current UK Top 10 hit though has a challenge to stay atop in two weeks. In any event, Sombr has 9 appearances (18 weeks) at #1 split between three songs (the other two being “back to friends” and “undressed”)!!
Most of the songs on Conan Gray’s Wishbone album are the kind that crawl under your skin and stay there for a very long time. “Vodka Cranberry” (3-2, above) looks to succeed “12 to 12” at #1 in two weeks, while “This Song” (below) lands in the Top 5, up 7-4. Also, check out the Instagram posts for Conan and Sombr which hilariously document meeting each other for the first time. How people are getting the two confused with each other is beyond me!
Sandwiched in between is “Daydreaming”, the glorious retro pop tune by UK singer/songwriter Elliot James Reay, which climbs 5-3.
40% of the Top 10 changes up, with “Won’t Give Up” by British dance producer MXTR and L.A.-based talent Tyler Garrett leading the way and climbing 11-6. The pair have a follow-up release out on Friday October 10 called “Crash” – can’t wait!
Right behind is Above & Beyond with Justine Suissa, who get their second Top 10 entry with “Bigger Than All Of Us” rising 16-7, though they actually had a #1 on the chart back in 2004 with “Satellite” under the pseudonym Oceanlab.
Damiano David looks to surpass the #7 peak of “Born with a Broken Heart” earlier this year as “The First Time” moves up 15-8.
It’s taken nearly 12 years, but NYC dance music mainstay SIRPAUL gets his 2nd Top 10 entry with his Disco 3000 remix of “Dopamine” (12-9), the title track of his recent album. “Every Little Moment” got to #4 in late 2013.
The commanding presence of Lady Gaga’s “The Dead Dance” on my playlists sees it soar 22-12. Top 40 radio seems to be cooling on it, but maybe its best is yet to come during Hallowe’en month.
The Fastest Riser on the chart is one of the best of the year to translate 70’s disco into 2020’s disco. “An Everlasting Love”, featuring a 30 year old vocal by Canadian chanteuse France Joli and produced beautifully by Lewis Martinee, leaps 26-13.
Everything comes together well on “Fake It” by US dance producers Polar Bears with a powerhouse vocal by Dutch singer/songwriter Jay Mason, vaulting 25-15.
Yungblud has a double whammy happening as his duet with Aerosmith on “My Only Angel” is taking off at rock radio. “Zombie” also continues to climb at alternative radio, and moves up on the chart 27-19 in its Hansa Studios mix. He’s already announced another North American tour for Winter/Spring ’26.
There are 5 debuts on the chart, all from returning favourites.
Crashing in at #17 is “Friends Don’t”, the heart-wringing ballad by Toronto’s Alexander Stewart and Nanaimo’s Lauren Spencer Smith, which will be included on Alexander’s third album called What If. Someone needs to light a fire under Canadian radio programmers as it is so deserving of airplay at all pop formats. Alexander’s “His Problem Instead” reached #2 on the chart earlier this year and this is his 4th entry.
Arriving at #23 is Greyson Chance, revamping a song he recorded half his lifetime ago as a child in 2011 called “Summertrain ’25”. This new version suits his adult voice so well and provides a sense of both zen and hope that the earlier version couldn’t evoke. It’s the first of three recent singles by Greyson, who is now entirely recording and managing his career independently. This week he begins a short tour of south-east Asia starting in Shanghai. “Summertrain ’25” is Greyson’s 8th chart entry.
Next at #25 is the third concurrent chart entry for Conan Gray from Wishbone called “Eleven Eleven” at #25. It really is the centrepiece of Wishbone for me, about harbouring the love for a past lover that will never go away. It’s also Conan’s 8th entry overall on the chart.
Award winning Canadian dance producer Felix Cartal has teamed up with L.A. go-to vocalist/songwriter Reo Cragun for the snappy and soulful pop/dance track “Summer Rain” which bows at #27, from Felix’s upcoming album i, sabotage. It’s ideal for Top 40 radio and Dance radio too. It’s Felix’s 7th chart entry, following last year’s #1 with Lights “feel less” in its Warehouse studio live version.
The last debut is bittersweet and belongs to my Queen of Disco music, Donna Summer. It’s an unreleased track from the sessions for her Crayons album in 2008, which yielded the #1 dance hit “Stamp Your Feet”, which reached #4 on this chart at the time. The song is the upbeat “Run – Disco” in collaboration with producers Mousse T and Toby Gad, who believed in it enough to get it released independently. It’s a must-hear for Donna Summer fans, and will resonate more with each listen. It’s also a return to the chart for Mousse T, who last charted in 2000 with Tom Jones on “Sex Bomb” (#23). It’s likely the longest gap for an artist on this chart between chart entries to date.
ONLINE RADIO SHOWS
You can hear me and many of my blog choices on this growing list of online radio stations and features!
Listen to The Big 20 from 10pm to Midnight EST on Wednesdays as “The Musicman” James Rogers and I bring you the latest in new songs. The show also repeats on Saturday evening at 6 pm EST.
My New Music Pick of the Week debuts each week on The Big 20. It airs more than 25 times during the week and you can view its schedule by clicking at the following link: Schedule.
On Saturdays and Sundays from 8pm to Midnight EST I bring you “Your Weekend New Music Mix”, four hours of commercial-free music from the 2000’s including many song choices from this blog.
My Retro Pick of the Week airs each week on Russ Horton’s “Top 40 Timeline”, Saturdays at 4pm EST. You can view its schedule by going to the lower right corner of the home page of this blog. New episodes are coming soon!
The 3D Variety Show by Planet Radio Canada
I’m featured Tuesdays between 7 and 7:30 pm EST with my Retro Pick of the Week on the live online radio show “The 3D Variety Show”, powered by www.xstreamrockradio.com with “The Musicman” James Rogers. I also join occasionally for looks at music from our past through some live segments. The show repeats on Alberta’s www.katpowerhit.ca on Wednesdays at 6pm EST.
Canada’s Party Dog Radio anchors Hunter Wilbur’s “Modern Hype” on Saturdays at 4pm EST, which airs my New Music Pick of the Week. Party Dog Radio also airs “The Big 20”, where you can also hear my New Music Pick of the Week on Sundays after 9pm EST.
For other details about all of the shows, such as dates and times of broadcasts, go to my home page and scroll down to the bottom right side! Schedules are updated regularly.
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