Latest Site News

[Ryan.]

What could be one of the most exciting chart weeks in recent years is nearly upon us as three massive new releases go head-to-head in a sprint race to #1 that last only 5 days! Let's have a look at the three main contenders:

David Zowie - House Every Weekend

• iTunes: David's biggest advantage over the competition at this stage is the pre-order advantage on iTunes. David has been comfortably top 100 for a couple of weeks now whereas Years & Years and Fifth Harmony have been bubbling under for the most part.
• Spotify: David has been having a clear streaming advantage over on Spotify for a while now, however Fifth Harmony have just taken that advantage away from him - more on that in a moment.
• Airplay: David has had the least airplay of the three big contenders according to Compare My Radio, but that airplay is spread over a number of stations and has therefore reached a wider audience.
• Other: David arguably has the smallest UK fanbase being a brand new artist, and the song is the least chart-friendly of the contenders.

Fifth Harmony feat. Kid Ink - Worth It

• iTunes: Fifth Harmony have been the most consistent contender on pre-orders and have spent the last couple of months in the top 400 however haven't managed to reach the recent heights of the other two contenders but are still very close to the top 100.
• Spotify: Despite only being released a week ago, Fifth Harmony have managed to storm into the top 30 on Spotify and have even taken over David Zowie today. If their progress continues, they could already be in the top 15 by the time the iTunes release arrives next Sunday.
• Airplay: Fifth Harmony have more airplay than David Zowie plays-wise, but less than Years & Years. However Fifth Harmony are disadvantaged here as the overwhelming majority of their plays have come from Capital, with Radio 1 picking the song up late. Therefore their song has been played to the least wide audience but are best placed to gain momentum in the next couple of weeks as Radio 1 move it up their playlist.
• Other: Worth It is arguably the most chart-friendly song here, with similarities to previous major hits Talk Dirty and Problem. Fifth Harmony do have a massive international fanbase, and seemingly a very solid fanbase in the UK too.

Years & Years - Shine

• iTunes: Years & Years had a slow start to pre-orders but have picked up speed in the last couple of weeks and find themselves at the bottom end of the top 100.
• Spotify: As far as I'm aware this isn't yet on Spotify and this could be a massive disadvantage not just because of David and Fifth Harmony's streaming success but because there is only 5 days in this chart week for streaming momentum to build.
• Airplay: Years & Years win this category with the most radio plays from various radio stations, so should their pre-order be doing better considering this situation?
• Other: Years & Years are the only artist with previous major UK chart success and arguably have the biggest UK fanbase, the song is very radio-friendly also.

I've also included this week's top 3 in the poll in case you believe that one of them will hold off all of the new contenders. Nathan Sykes and Petite Meller are also looking to score top 20 hits next week but it is very unlikely either will be in #1 contention.

Remember next week's chart only lasts 5 days, so there is less time for momentum on Spotify or iTunes to be gained. Could this benefit Fifth Harmony's modest but very active fanbase or maybe Years & Years due to being the most well known name. Or maybe David Zowie due to the iTunes headstart he is looking like to achieve?

It's all to play for, but who will come out on top?