AT40: Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé (2) - Week Of February 10, 2018

Hello, fam! Another busy week for me has finally come to a close. Now, I can relax and be able to spend the weekend. I still plan on doing a review for the Grammy Music Awards, but I'm diverting my attention on some other things right now. I'll have it ready as soon as I can. Right now, let's talk about the American Top 40 this week, shall we? So without further adieu, here are the songs dropping out this week:

• Too Much To Ask by Niall Horan (#26)
• Feels Great by Cheat Codes featuring Fetty Wap (#34)
• Stay by Zedd featuring Alessia Cara (#40) [Spent 5 Weeks At #1]

The Countdown:

Last Week's #1 Song: Perfect by Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé

40. Beautiful Trauma by P!NK (DEBUT)

39. Believer by Imagine Dragons (#38) [–1]

38. Wait by Maroon 5 (DEBUT)

37. There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back by Shawn Mendes (#35) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]

36. I Like Me Better by Lauv (#37) [+1]

35. Slow Hands by Niall Horan (#33) [–2] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]

34. Lemon by N.E.R.D. featuring Rihanna (#39) [+5]

33. Attention by Charlie Puth (#31) [–2] [Spent 5 Weeks At #1]

32. I Miss You by Clean Bandit featuring Julia Michaels (DEBUT)

31. 1-800-273-8255 by Logic featuring Alessia Cara and Khalid (#27) [–3] [Spent 1 Week At #1]

30. Tell Me You Love Me by Demi Lovato (#32) [+2]

29. Mic Drop by BTS featuring Desiigner (#36) [+7]

28. Strip That Down by Liam Payne featuring Quavo (#25) [–3] [Spent 1 Week At #1]

27. LOVE. by Kendrick Lamar featuring Zacari (#27) [=]

26. River by Eminem featuring Ed Sheeran (#30) [+4]

25. What Lovers Do by Maroon 5 featuring SZA (#20) [–5]

24. Never Be The Same by Camila Cabello (#29) [+5]

23. One Foot by Walk The Moon (#24) [+1]

22. Feel It Still by Portugal. The Man (#22) [=] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]

21. Young, Dumb, and Broke by Khalid (#23) [+2]

20. Meant To Be by Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line (#21) [+1]

19. Sorry Not Sorry by Demi Lovato (#17) [–2] [Spent 1 Week At #1]

18. Best Friend by Sofi Tukker featuring NERVO, Alisa Ueno, and The Knocks (#19) [+1]

17. Let Me Go by Hailee Steinfeld & Alesso featuring Florida Georgia Line and Watt (#16) [–1]

16. Him & I by G-Eazy featuring Halsey (#15) [–1]

15. Good Old Days by Macklemore featuring Kesha (#13) [–2]

14. Filthy by Justin Timberlake (#14) [=]

13. Finesse (Remix) by Bruno Mars featuring Cardi B. (#18) [+5]

12. Thunder by Imagine Dragons (#9) [–3] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]

11. Lights Down Low by MAX featuring Gnash (#12) [+1]

10. End Game by Taylor Swift featuring Ed Sheeran and Future (#10) [=]

9. Let You Down by NF (#11) [+2]

8. Wolves by Selena Gomez featuring Marshmello (#8) [=]

7. Too Good At Goodbyes by Sam Smith (#6) [–1]

6. How Long by Charlie Puth (#7) [+1]

5. Rockstar by Post Malone featuring 21 Savage (#5) [=]

4. Havana by Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug (#4) [=] [Spent 7 Weeks At #1]

3. Bad At Love by Halsey (#2) [–1]

2. New Rules by Dua Lipa (#3) [+1]
1. Perfect by Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé (#1) [=] [2^nd Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Scars To Your Beautiful by Alessia Cara (2^nd and Final Week At #1)

Biggest Fall Of The Week: What Lovers Do by Maroon 5 featuring SZA (–5)

Biggest Rise Of The Week: Mic Drop by BTS featuring Desiigner (+7)

New Entrants
- Not long after What About Us died out, P!NK is following up with her new single in its stead. Enter Beautiful Trauma, the title track off of her latest album. Right off the bat, I won't say it's her best work, but it's still a good song by any means. P!NK rarely disappoints me with her music, and this song is no exception. She has continually proven to be a good songwriter when looking at the lyrical content, her vocals are as good, and the production is exceptional. Overall, it's a good single choice for P!NK and I would like to see it do well.

- Next, we have the return of Maroon 5 with their latest single, Wait from their latest album. I discussed this one in detail when it debuted on the Hits 1 Weekend Countdown. For those who haven't read it, you can check out my previous posts. While it's better than Don't Wanna Know and Cold, it's still pretty undesirable for the most part. I've noticed that Adam Levine has seemed to take over the entire band, and they lack the groove that made them my go-to band like they once were and it shows in this, along with their recent singles. Adam's voice is okay, but nothing else stands out. I want something along the lines of Love Somebody, Moves Like Jagger, etc. Even the singles from V (Outside of This Summer's Gonna Hurt...) were good. I miss those days, but oh well.

- Most people were not looking forward to hearing from Julia Michaels again, especially after Issues was not to anyone's liking and the disastrous Uh Huh thankfully flopped elsewhere. She makes her return this week, along with Clean Bandit in their latest collaboration titled I Miss You. Now this I can get on board with as opposed to Julia's two solo singles. It's not the best I've heard from Clean Bandit, but they still do a good job with the production overall. Not only that, but Julia actually sounds good singing in this one as well. The song is about another failed relationship, in which a lover misses another. I'm hoping it has some success because it's a good song. I'm glad Clean Bandit and Julia Michaels managed to impress me with this one.

I Miss Blurbs, Yeah I Miss Them
- So, our three exits consist of two songs that didn't take off elsewhere, and one which was one of the biggest songs of last year. Too Much To Ask didn't become another big hit that Niall was hoping for, and Feels Great was a flop for Cheat Codes as well. It sure doesn't feel great (no pun intended) to not have another hit like he did with No Promises, heh. Finally, we have the departure of Stay by Zedd featuring Alessia Cara, which I had just grown back into. I'm sure some people here are going to be throwing a be-gone party over that one, but I'm not attending. Instead, I'll be grieving over its departure. I'm hoping The Middle can makes its debut soon.

- Of course, there had to be a jump from Mic Drop at some point. Honestly, I don't really buy into the BTS hype. While I've gotten used to Rockstar continuing to anger me to no end, this song is just a mess. There are better songs on this countdown that are more deserving of jumping big, not this.

- On the note of other things that pissed me off this week, we get an unwelcome new entry of Meant To Be in the Top 20. Joy. And unfortunately with it doing well in sales and streaming, I doubt this will go away anytime soon.

- I have a feeling that Finesse is going to enter the Top 10 sooner than we think. That would be good news. Maybe next week we'll see it in that region.

- I'm not too surprised about Perfect holding on to the #1 spot. It's still holding up well in sales. But New Rules is closing in on Perfect for #1 on this countdown. I wouldn't mind seeing that at the top soon.

Breakouts/On The Verge

• Walk On Water by Thirty Seconds To Mars
• Hold Me Tight Or Don't by Fall Out Boy

Extras/Optional Extras

• ...Ready For It? by Taylor Swift
• Can't Stop The Feeling! by Justin Timberlake
• Unforgettable by French Montana featuring Swae Lee
• Love So Soft by Kelly Clarkson
• Heathens by TWENTY ØNE PILØTS
• Faking It by Calvin Harris featuring Kehlani and Lil' Yachty
• Side To Side by Ariana Grande featuring Nicki Minaj
• Mi Gente by J. Balvin featuring Willy William

Top 20 Breakdown:
0 – Garbage:
20. Rockstar by Post Malone featuring 21 Savage
19. Meant To Be by Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line

1 – Bad:
18. Let You Down by NF 
17. Lights Down Low by MAX featuring Gnash

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
16. Too Good At Goodbyes by Sam Smith
15. Sorry Not Sorry by Demi Lovato
14. Filthy by Justin Timberlake

4 – Good:
13. Best Friend by Sofi Tukker featuring NERVO, Alisa Ueno, and The Knocks
12. How Long by Charlie Puth

5 – Great:
11. Thunder by Imagine Dragons
10. Let Me Go by Hailee Steinfeld & Alesso featuring Florida Georgia Line and Watt
9. End Game by Taylor Swift featuring Ed Sheeran and Future
8. New Rules by Dua Lipa
7. Bad At Love by Halsey
6. Him & I by G-Eazy featuring Halsey
5. Perfect by Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé
4. Havana by Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug
3. Good Old Days by Macklemore featuring Kesha
2. Wolves by Selena Gomez featuring Marshmello

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
1. Finesse (Remix) by Bruno Mars featuring Cardi B.

Total Score: 75/100 = 75% (C)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Bye Bye Bye by NSYNC (2000)

Most Missed Song: Mirrors by Justin Timberlake

#1 Recommendation For The American Top 40: Say Something by Justin Timberlake featuring Chris Stapleton

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Paris by The Chainsmokers

My Top 5 Picks
1. Finesse (Remix) by Bruno Mars featuring Cardi B.
2. Wolves by Selena Gomez featuring Marshmello
3. Good Old Days by Macklemore featuring Kesha
4. Perfect by Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé
5. Havana by Camila Cabello featuring Young Thug

My Bottom 5 Picks
1. Mic Drop by BTS featuring Desiigner
2. Rockstar by Post Malone featuring 21 Savage
3. Meant To Be by Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line
4. Strip That Down by Liam Payne featuring Quavo
5. I Like Me Better by Lauv

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
That's What I Like by Bruno Mars: Ah, yes. Bruno's raw vocal talent put on display. I don't need to say anymore about this.
Issues by Julia Michaels: A forgettable song hated by many, but it does have a meaning and this is something we can relate to.
HandClap by Fitz & The Tantrums: For a lead singer of this band in his 40's, I'm glad he made a loud, but fun song. It makes me want to clap my hands. (no pun intended).
Make Me (Cry) by Noah Cyrus featuring Labrinth: One may think that adding the dripping noise to replace the word "cry" is cool, but it makes the song worse. So yeah, this was not a good first impression.