soundman

Lenny Kravitz Low: :dance: :)

This new chart format change is amazing. Let's all make it even more amazing by refreshing this video a trillion times and getting it back to number one: Let's show Mr Talbot what we think of his OCC. :lol:

Well if the OCC continues to call it the Official Singles Chart then I think it's reasonable to expect some new singles in the top 40. We all know the single is more or less dead so the OCC should do the smart thing and rebrand the chart in 2018. I dunno, call it the Official Streaming Chart. Will they do that? Probably not. It's worth remembering the top 100 singles chart was never seen as the gold standard - it was the top 40. Top of the Pops on BBC1 showcased the top 40, not the top 100. Radio 1's Gallup Top 40 Sunday chart was just that, the top 40, not top 100. Same with the Network Chart/ Nescafe chart/Big Top 40 on commercial radio. It's a bit disingenuous for any chart fan to praise a new entry inside the top 41 - 100. It's not much of an achievement. Sure, some tracks may rise up the chart into the top 40 but 41 - 100 positions were never worthy of a mention on Radio 1, BBC tv, commercial radio. It's hard to get too excited by songs entering far down the top 100!

Second week in a row with zero new entries in the top 40. Not sure if that has ever happened before. The chart has never been more stagnant. 2017 may be the end of the chart as we remembered it. We've had stagnant charts since 2014 but 2017 may be the final straw. Perhaps the OCC will scrap the current format in 2018 and rebrand the chart as the Official Streaming Chart because single sales have zero impact on the top 40.

Slide - I'm not a huge fan of rap mid-sections, but the overall song is pretty good. I heard it for the first time on Kiss Fresh (yes, some of us oldies still listen to radio!) and thought "that song is cool!"

Dircadirca wrote: Amen to what you wrote! I think 2017 is the most momentous moment (that's three m words in a row! :D ) in modern chart history. We're seeing both Spotify and the OCC chart morphing into album track charts. I think it's the most dismal time in chart history but hey, you can't live in the past blah blah blah but overall streaming has sucked the life out of the chart. The more streaming tracks available, the less variety in the streaming chart. A wonderful irony. And if you think the Spotify chart is bad, wait until this December when Ed Snoozeran and Drake release their rap/R&B version of White Christmas! :lol:

The entire history of the UK singles chart was based on singles paid for, not heard for free. Prior to streaming every single in the chart was based on units sold. It's unfair to have singles calculated based on free non-paid streams. It goes against the fundamental principle of the chart.

How to change Spotify and the OCC chart: 1 - Only 'paid for' streams count to the top 50 Spotify Chart and the OCC Chart. 'Paid for' meaning streams from the subscription model of Spotify, not the free version. The premium version of Spotify is £9.99 a month which seems good value for money. Personally if I were in charge of Spotify I'd scrap the free version but that's just my opinion. 2 - Introduce a new album tracks chart for Spotify and the OCC chart. All non-single 'streaming hits' would go in those charts thereby leaving the official UK Singles chart free of album tracks. I can't see any problem with these two suggestions. Free streams should not count to any singles chart and album tracks should not count to any singles chart. The fact the OCC is in league with Spotify and not its rival means the OCC won't implement such suggestions. The OCC should not run the official chart. In an ideal world the official chart should be the rival of the Spotify Top 50 UK chart and the Big Top 40 chart. That's how it used to be. The official chart was the rival to the Network Chart, the two charts weren't pals! But now we've got the chairman of the official chart representing/marketing Spotify acts so there is no reason for the OCC to implement any changes. Scrap the OCC, remove them from running the chart and we could get major change.

The OCC chart is corrupt. The chairman of the OCC, Kevin Talbot, is a key executive at Spotify. That would be like the manager of Arsenal also helping Man United! :D Not to mention FREE Spotify streams count to the singles chart. Since when was the official singles chart comprised of free sales? - an oxymoron if ever there was! But now you can stream stuff for free - yes, you don't need to give those pesky singers any of your cash - and it counts to the singles chart. Absurd. Streaming is here to stay, we can't uninvent the internet nor should we bemoan technological process but chart fans want is a fair level-playing field chart. It's not trolling or criticism to suggest one track per artist/single for a certain period of time, it's not trolling or criticism to suggest album tracks be ineligible for the singles chart, it's not even that radical an idea to suggest a 20 weeks limit on all singles in the top 40. But all our comments fall on deaf ears. OCC CEO Martin Talbot (I assume relative of Kevin Talbot?) wants to keep the incestuous relationship between Spotify and the OCC chart so he'll never change the format.

While the OCC is run by a man that has a job with Spotify - marketing European acts! - there won't be any change to the chart format. No limit on singles per artists, no re-classification of what is or isn't a "single" - we're all wasting our time thinking there will be any change. Brown has a vested interest in keeping the singles chart full of Spotify album tracks and other non-single material. As mentioned by others, the OCC is unfit for purpose - it's in league with Spotify - they are directly linked because Brown was hired by Spotify (!) - so the whole concept of the SINGLES chart has been corrupted. Any change will be superficial - such as altering the streaming ratio - but real substantive change will never happen.

Some major information that I saw on Facebook: The boss of the OCC is part of Spotify! <_< This explains why the official singles chart is so streaming based. The boss of OCC also wants people to stream songs on Spotify. Seems like a conflict of interest! With this guy running the OCC there will never be any change to the chart format. It's a rigged system - the chart is run by a guy that wants streaming tracks to dominate the chart. The boss of the OCC should not have a vested interest in Spotify.

Which proves: The Singles chart is more-or-less dead The OCC couldn't care less. I don't know how the OCC makes money - from adverts on their site? - but if there's no financial reason to change the chart I doubt they will. The OCC site is praising Sheeran's chart success. They don't seem bothered by it.

What a farce! What the heck has happened to chart music in the UK? Gone right down to the toilet and Ed and Drake are happy to flush!

The top 40 lasted 39 years before it died, Spotify's top 50 chart has died in a fraction of that time. 2017 - the year streaming killed off chart music.

It's a shame The Weeknd I Feel It Coming isn't a bigger hit. Had the song been around before the internet it might have been a big number one hit. One of my fave songs of 2017.

A potential way to resolve the problem with the chart: Introduce a new album tracks chart. The album tracks chart will list the most popular streaming album tracks. For example, all of Sheeran's album tracks will be at the top of that chart. However, his single release - Shape of You - won't be in that chart, it will be in the official Top 40 Singles chart. Spotify will also introduce a new album tracks chart so Spotify users can see what album tracks are popular. If the OCC and Spotify were to agree on this new album tracks chart I think the singles chart can retain its legitimacy. The record industry, the OCC and Spotify (and other major streaming apps) would need to come up with a strict rule regarding what is a single. And the single would not be eligible for the album tracks chart. For example, Shape of You would never chart in the album tracks chart. You should end up with a pure singles chart and a new album tracks chart. Depending on your preference you can choose to follow the singles chart or the album tracks chart or both.

I think Talbot is being dishonest to the public. The album tracks are not singles PERIOD so for him to say "The fact Ed Sheeran has got so many singles in the Top 20 is a reflection of the fact that people are listening to those singles, and they are also buying those singles" is a load of nonsense. He praised Sheeran's album sales - the highest since Adele and Oasis - but sees no problem in consumers streaming the tracks from the album and they're given singles-status. It's absolute nonsense, unfair, and he's sticking his two fingers up at chart fans and really saying: "you lot must be morons if you believe what I just said!" The format is completely flawed and it's no surprise the OCC defend it. If Talbot said "the current situation is unacceptable, we're changing the rules in April" it would mean he was responsible for the unacceptable situation.It's like Jeremy Hunt saying "NHS waiting times are too long, too unacceptable" but he doesn't add "I think I should do something about it or resign." And Talbot is no different. Talbot doesn't see any problem in artists having multiple singles in the chart, he doesn't care that FREE streams add to the overall sales figures, he doesn't care about a slow, often stagnant chart. If Sheeran's album tracks remain in the top 20/40 for the next three months or so - thereby limiting new 'singles', new entries - I think Talbot should resign.