40 songs you slept on in 2020, including singles by Don Toliver, Kygo and Celeste

The biggest songs that narrowly missed the Official Singles Chart Top 40 in 2020

 

2020 has been a busy year at the top end of the Official Singles Chart. The last 12 months has seen 19 songs reach Number 1, up from 12 last year and the highest in five years.

 

But while turnover at the top is on the up, breaking into the Top 40 is still no mean feat. Competition is tough, meaning some songs – usually for very different reasons - miss out on a spot in the top flight.

 

The biggest song to miss out on a Top 40 placing this year is Juliet & Romeo by French DJ/producer Martin Solveig and Canadian singer-songwriter Roy Woods. The dance-pop track first appeared on the Official Singles Chart in April, debuting at Number 77 and peaking at 51 four weeks later.

 

Despite being hugely popular on radio, the song’s chart success was possibly hindered by his Jax Jones and Raye collaboration, Tequila, which hit the Top 40 around the same time. Its total chart sales to date stand at 233,000.

 

In second is After Party by US rapper and singer Don Toliver. Released in April as the fourth single from his debut album Heaven Or Hell, the track had brief viral success as a dance challenge on TikTok but narrowly missed the Top 40, peaking at 47.

 

The third biggest song to miss the Top 40 this year is What If I Told You That I Love You by Ali Gatie. The rap ballad was the follow-up to the Iraqi-Canadian star’s debut single It’s You – a hit around the world in 2019 (though it stalled at 45 in the UK). Released in January, the song logged 10 weeks inside the Top 100, peaking at Number 57 in March, notched up 176,000 chart sales to date.

 

Stripped-down pop ballad Selfish by US singer-songwriter Madison Beer is the fourth biggest song to miss the Top 40 this year, peaking at Number 53 in April. Another hit-that-shoulda-been, soul-jazz stomper Stop This Flame by Celeste places in the Top 10 on the list, topping out at Number 47 on the singles chart in February, shortly after winning this year’s Rising Star BRIT Award.

 

DJ and producer Kygo released two songs this year that narrowly missed out on Top 40 glory: Like It Is ft. Zara Larsson and Tyga in April (49), and Lose Somebody with OneRepublic in May (46). He eventually landed his ninth Top 40 hit in July with his re-working of Tina Turner's What's Love Got To Do With It? (31).

 

Elsewhere, Ella Henderson's Take Care Of You, The Other Side by SZA and Justin Timberlake - released for the Trolls World Tour film and a massive radio hit in March - and Tom Walker's Wait For You were also popular songs that just managed to miss the Top 40.

 

POS TITLE ARTIST PEAK

1 JULIET & ROMEO MARTIN SOLVEIG & ROY WOODS 51 233,000

2 AFTER PARTY DON TOLIVER 47

3 WHAT IF I TOLD YOU THAT I LOVE YOU ALI GATIE 57 176,000

4 SURRENDER NATALIE TAYLOR 58

5 SELFISH MADISON BEER 53

6 ONLY IF YOU KNEW DUTCHAVELLI 95

7 LIKE IT IS KYGO/ZARA LARSSON/TYGA 49

8 THIS IS THE PLACE TOM GRENNAN 73

9 LOSE SOMEBODY KYGO & ONEREPUBLIC 46

10 STOP THIS FLAME CELESTE 47

11 TAKE CARE OF YOU ELLA HENDERSON 50

12 GOT IT ON ME POP SMOKE N/A

13 SOMETHING SPECIAL POP SMOKE N/A

14 THE OTHER SIDE SZA & JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE 44

15 GO KID LAROI & JUICE WRLD 43

16 BLOODY VALENTINE MACHINE GUN KELLY 51

17 WAIT FOR YOU TOM WALKER 47

18 MAGIC ILL BLU/OFB/BANDOKAY/DOUBLE LZ 46

19 ENJOY YOURSELF POP SMOKE FT KAROL G N/A

20 CONO DERULO/PURI/JHORRMOUNTAIN 55

21 INDULGE M HUNCHO FT D-BLOCK EUROPE 50

22 LEVEL OF CONCERN TWENTY ONE PILOTS 42

23 WALK EM DOWN NLE CHOPPA FT RODDY RICCH 85

24 MARTIN & GINA POLO G 71

25 TKN ROSALIA & TRAVIS SCOTT 41

26 GOOD NEWS MAC MILLER 45

27 FUTURE NOSTALGIA DUA LIPA N/A

28 HATE THE OTHER SIDE JUICE WRLD/MARSHMELLO/POLO G N/A

29 OURSELF NSG 43

30 UNACCOMMODATING EMINEM FT YOUNG MA N/A

31 YOU GON' LEARN EMINEM/ROYCE DA 5'9/WHITE GOLD N/A

32 HEAT WAVES GLASS ANIMALS 63

33 SHAKE THE ROOM POP SMOKE FT QUAVO 76

34 TATTOOS TOGETHER LAUV N/A

35 THE LAST GREAT AMERICAN DYNASTY TAYLOR SWIFT N/A

36 BLACK AND WHITE NIALL HORAN 91

37 P*SSY FAIRY (OTW) JHENE AIKO 84

38 21 POLO G N/A

39 EMOTIONALLY SCARRED LIL BABY 78

40 WE PAID LIL BABY FT 42 DUGG 89

I was glad to sleep on all of these (except TKN)

Haven't even heard of many of those. I'm still shocked 'Take Care Of You' missed the Top 40 though, that sounded like a huge smash.

Quite a few good ones in here! Goes to show that peak is becoming less and less important in the charts now! Certainly some of the album tracks from the big albums this year and the likes that did well on radio feel as big as any other top 40 hit!

 

My faves are Stop This Flame, Take Care of You, Future Nostalgia, TKN, Good News, the last great american dynasty and Heat Waves!

I kept hearing that Ali Gatie song all the time at the start of the year but had no idea it was close to being a top 40 hit.

LOVE ME LAND >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Interesting list this!

 

'Stop This Flame' seems like its been huge!

Most of the Top 10 are great tunes, but Juliet and Romeo deservedly takes the crown.

 

I wonder if Pop's label will give Got It On Me a push at some point to help get the platinum album.

Martin Solveig getting the justice he deserves!

Interesting list this!

 

'Stop This Flame' seems like its been huge!

 

Yep inescapable for us Sky Sports viewers!

Take Care Of You seems so much bigger than a No.50 hit, such a good song.

That Celeste track should have been much bigger than it was, it really grew on me over the year and it should have been as radio friendly as a new Adele track.

That Celeste track should have been much bigger than it was, it really grew on me over the year and it should have been as radio friendly as a new Adele track.

 

Your taste in music xx

I remain waiting in hope that 'Got It On Me' will eventually get a chance to make a chart appearance after presumably having quite a few weeks where it would have been top 100 but was denied by the 3 song rule - it's by far my favourite song from his album, the actual hits from the album don't represent the overall quality of the project at all imo (especially 'Mood Swings' which is the worst song on the album so of course it'd become (arguably) the biggest hit). Come on TikTok, you know you want to xx

 

I can't say I'm a huge fan of any of the top 10 on this list ('Stop This Flame' would be my fave I guess) but there are some great songs on the list beyond that - 'TKN' of course being my favourite (eternally triggered at it peaking at #41, I wish I could stop being reminded of this xx) alongside 'Hate The Other Side', 'Good News', 'bloody valentine' and 'Magic' (and 'Got It On Me' as per the previous paragraph), a good handful of others that made my chart as well. Polo G managing 3 appearances on this list while still yet to have a single top 40 hit (with '21' making it despite never even going top 100), really hope 2021 can be a bigger breakout year for him in the UK as I have been consistently enjoying his output throughout this year! Definitely one of if not the best artist from the current melodic rap wave.

 

Looks like 'Tattoos Together' (ew) and '21' are the two biggest non top 100 hits of the year excluding songs which would have charted if not for the 3 track rule then?

Future Nostalgia didn't chart because of the 3 tracks rule?

Edited December 30, 20204 yr by jszmiles