Throwing back to the week of May 16, 1956, we find Elvis Presley and Perry Como atop the Billboard singles chart with ‘Heartbreak Hotel‘ and ‘Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)‘,’ respectively.
At #3 that week was an instrumental medley by composer Morris Stoloff that combined the 1933 jazz standard ‘Moonglow’ with an instrumental version of the theme from the 1966 film Picnic, which starred William Holden and Kim Novak.
Closing out an enjoyable two weeks of ‘What the Kids are Listening To’ is Tame Impala’s ‘Dracula,’ #15 on the Billboard Hot 100. This is the first single to ever reach the Hot 100 for the Australian indie rock band (which is really just one guy, a versatile musician named Kevin Parker).
At least some of the popularity of this song can be traced to a remix Parker made with KPop star Jennie, one of several Blackpink members who has had major solo success. ‘Dracula’ scores a TikTok trend that seems to consist of two people walking toward the camera while lip-syncing the track.
At #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 is British singer-songwriter Raye with ‘Where is My Husband!,’ her best performing single so far in the United States. This song, the lead single from her sophomore album This Music May Contain Hope, peaked at #11 on the Hot 100 and gave Raye her second #1 hit in the UK.
The song is an absolutely blast, with frenetic horns and a pulsating rhythm track scoring a very modern take on a soulful girl group effort. It’s propulsive, funny, and viscerally satisfying. I’m actually surprised it hasn’t been a bigger hit stateside.
Justin Bieber holds the #13 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 with ‘Yukon,’ the second single from his seventh album, Swag. Opening single ‘Daisies’ debuted at #1 while this one has so far peaked at #13.
The slightly subdued success might be due to the song’s pitch shifting, which has the effect of making Bieber sound like a combination of his childhood self and one of the Chipmunks.
Taylor Swift sits at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 with ‘The Fate of Ophelia.’ The song spent 10 weeks at #1, making it the Swift single with the longest stint in the top spot.
At #12 is the second single from Bruno Mars’ album The Romantic, and the record’s first track. ‘Risk it All’ entered the chart at #4 before dropping out of the top ten a week later. It hasn’t had the staying power of ‘I Just Might,’ which has spent more than three months in the top five.
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