Macklemore & Kesha (1) - Week Of February 24, 2018

Hello, fam! For those who are unaware, My 50,000 Pageview Special has finally been posted. If you haven't already, feel free to check it out right here. Now with that finally out of the way, I now send you to this week's Hits 1 Weekend Countdown. Simply put, this was a great week to close out the month of February. We had plenty of activity going on. We had two familiar faces returning, songs moving all over the place, and an unexpected new #1, which I'm totally cool with! Let's get down to the action! Before we get to this week's fresh 45, we say good-bye to the songs leaving us this week:

• Niall Horan – Too Much To Ask (#28)
• Taylor Swift – ...Ready For It? (#41)

The Countdown:

Last Week's #1 Song: Charlie Puth – How Long

45. Sam Smith – Too Good At Goodbyes (#45) [=]
44. Demi Lovato – Sorry Not Sorry (#44) [=] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
43. Niall Horan – Slow Hands (#42) [–1] [Spent 3 Weeks At #1]
42. Kesha – Praying (#39) [–3]
41. Louis Tomlinson – Miss You (#40) [–1] 
40. Post Malone featuring 21 Savage – Rockstar (#31) [–9] 
39. P!NK – What About Us (#43) [+4] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
38. Shawn Mendes – There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back (#33) [–5] [Spent 5 Weeks At #1]
37. Symon – Lonely Girl (#36) [–1]
36. Maroon 5 featuring SZA – What Lovers Do (#34) [–2]
35. WØLVES – Animal (#30) [–5]
34. Dua Lipa – New Rules (#23) [–11] 
33. Ed Sheeran – Galway Girl (#37) [+4] [Spent 4 Weeks At #1]
32. Troye Sivan – My My My! (#35) [+3]
31. Justin Timberlake featuring Chris Stapleton – Say Something (#38)[+7]
30. The Chainsmokers – Sick Boy (DEBUT)
29. All Time Low – Last Young Renegade (#26) [–3]
28. The Weeknd featuring Kendrick Lamar – Pray For Me (DEBUT)
27. Kelly Clarkson – Love So Soft (#21) [–6]
26. Camila Cabello – Havana (#27) [+1] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
25. Taylor Swift featuring Ed Sheeran and Future – End Game (#15) [–10] [Spent 1 Week At #1]
24. Lauv – I Like Me Better (#16) [–8]
23. Portugal. The Man – Feel It Still (#24) [+1]
22. Bruno Mars featuring Cardi B. – Finesse (Remix) (#14) [–8]
21. Imagine Dragons – Believer (#22) [Spent 3 Weeks At #1] [+1]
20. MAX featuring Gnash – Lights Down Low (#13) [–7]
19. AJR featuring Rivers Cuomo – Sober Up (#32) [+13] (...)
18. Eminem featuring Ed Sheeran – River (#29) [+11]
17. Fall Out Boy – Hold Me Tight Or Don't (#19) [+2]
16. Camila Cabello – Never Be The Same (#18) [+2]
15. Maroon 5 – Wait (#17) [+2]
14. G-Eazy featuring Halsey – Him & I (#25) [+11]
13. P!NK – Beautiful Trauma (#11) [–2]
12. NF – Let You Down (#10) [–2]
11. Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line – Meant To Be (#12) [+1]
10. X Ambassadors – Ahead Of Myself (#9) [–1]
9. Selena Gomez featuring Marshmello – Wolves (#6) [–3]
8. Walk The Moon – One Foot (#7) [–1]
7. Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle (#20) [+13]
6. Ed Sheeran – Perfect (#5) [Spent 2 Weeks At #1] [–1]
5. Halsey – Bad At Love (#2) [Spent 2 Weeks At #1] [–3]
4. Hailee Steinfeld & Alesso featuring Florida Georgia Line and Watt – Let Me Go (#4) [=]
3. Imagine Dragons – Thunder (#3) [=] [Spent 5 Weeks At #1]
2. Charlie Puth – How Long (#1) [–1] [Spent 2 Weeks At #1]

1. Macklemore featuring Kesha – Good Old Days (#8) [+7] [1^st Week At #1]

#1 Song This Week One Year Ago: Ed Sheeran – Shape Of You (3^rd of 9 Weeks At #1)

Biggest DRRRRRRROP!!! Of The Week: Dua Lipa – New Rules (–11)

Biggest Jump Of The Week: Tie between AJR featuring Rivers Cuomo – Sober Up and Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle (+13)

New Entrants

- We have two new songs debuting this week that I'll be covering. First, let's begin with the return of The Chainsmokers. It wasn't too long ago that they brought us Something Just Like This, which became a huge hit last year. That one was easily a favorite in the blogging community and also one of my favorites from last year. This week, they bring us one of their latest releases, in the form of Sick Boy. It's pretty different than what we're getting from these guys, but Andrew Taggart still shows what he is capable of as a singer. When I hear the chorus, he sounds a bit like Tyler Joseph from TWENTY ØNE PILØTS. This song basically talks about being political, when paying attention to the lyrical content. I won't go into more detail about it. Overall, it's a great song.

- For our second debut this week, we have The Weeknd making his return, also. This time, he's collaborating with Kendrick Lamar in their latest single, Pray For Me. This is from the Black Panther movie soundtrack. As I said before, I watched the movie and it was really good. I highly recommend it. Anyway, Pray For Me pretty much sounds like Starboy in terms of the production. The Weeknd sounds great throughout the song, and Kendrick does a very good job with his verse. I do love the lyrics about wanting to be a hero and sacrificing for the world. Simply put, I'm in love with this solid track. I have a feeling it's going to be another hit for these guys, and I certainly wouldn't mind that because it's a really good song.

Tell Me Sweet Little Blurbs

- As always, we begin with our exits. First off, ...Ready For It? makes its departure, and despite me growing out of it, I'll still remember it as one of my favorites from Taylor Swift. It was definitely a banger that I enjoyed. Second, we also say good-bye to Too Much To Ask. I thought Slow Hands would leave first, seeing as that one has been here for a long time. But I guess I was wrong.

- Nice to see Rockstar tumble down to near the Bottom 5 this week. Now I'm hoping that this song gets out soon, like right now.

- The guest DJ that introduced What About Us gave a shout-out to her son, who's 16th Birthday was this week! How very nice! I hope he enjoys his birthday presents!

- It's too bad that New Rules isn't getting the recognition it deserves on Hits 1, what with it sitting at #34 after that big drop. Meanwhile, it's #1 on the American Top 40 for two weeks in a row. Goes to show that this countdown is different from the other charts, such as Billboard.

- Of course, that big piece of garbage known as Sober Up would take a big jump this week, especially when the other two debuts from last week we're more deserving of it. I don't get the appeal to this. This song is what a certain blogger would like to call an "insta-station changer". I'm hoping it'll flop soon, but that's not very likely at this point.

- We have two other songs jumping into the Top 20 this week. River I don't mind too much, though I am starting to lose interest in it. Him & I, on the other hand, I'm greatly happy about. Let's hope that one continues to gain steam.

- On the note of other big jumps, we have The Middle making its entrance in the Top 10. I'm definitely pleased by this. I've been enjoying it a lot more as of late and it's becoming a huge favorite of mine at this moment. It's good to see this one is catching on quick. Now I'm really hoping it can be #1 soon. Is that too much to ask?

- Speaking of which, we have a new #1 this week! Macklemore and Kesha both achieved their #1 with Good Old Days! I honestly did not think it would be a big hit on this countdown, but I have no complaints about it at all. It's definitely a more meaningful song and I'm greatly appreciated that it got the top spot! I would like to thank the voters who pushed this song to #1! It's definitely a candidate for My Top 10 or maybe Top 5 songs of 2018.

Hit-Bound:

• Portugal. The Man – Live In The Moment
• Marshmello featuring Anne-Marie – Friends (DEBUT)
• Keala Settle – This Is Me
• Thirty Seconds To Mars – Walk On Water (DEBUT)
• Post Malone featuring Ty Dolla $ign – Psycho (DEBUT)
• Kesha featuring The Dap-Kings Horns – Woman
• Rudimental featuring Jess Glynne, Macklemore, Dan Caplen – These Days
• Welshly Arms – Legendary
• Khalid – Young, Dumb, And Broke
• Bazzi – Mine (DEBUT)
• Wild Things – Don't Wanna Feel It
• Imagine Dragons – Whatever It Takes
• Niall Horan – On The Loose
• Alan Walker featuring Noah Cyrus and Digital Farm Animals – All Falls Down
• 5 Seconds Of Summer – Want You Back (DEBUT)

- We have quite a shake-up on this week's edition of Hit-Bound as we have five debuts to cover. So, buckle up, everyone.

- But first, we have two debuts from last week that I didn't get to cover. Let's start with Niall Horan, who has a new single from his album Flicker, titled On The Loose. Right off the bat, this is definitely something different from the acoustic tracks we're accustomed to. It's more upbeat and the production is pretty amazing. Niall does showcase his vocal talent. I'll have more on this when it debuts.

- Then, we have the return of Rudimental. Three years ago, they brought us Lay It All On Me, which featured Ed Sheeran. I pretty much enjoyed that song. This time around, they're collaborating with Macklemore, Dan Caplen, and Jess Glynne in their single These Days. I love the production in this one, and all of the artists make nice contribution, especially Jess Glynne and Macklemore, who pretty much shine throughout the song. Not too much else I can say outside of that.

- Now this week, we have five debuts on Hit-Bound. First up, we have Marshmello with his latest single titled Friends, which features Anne-Marie. I can't say I'm loving this one too much. Anne-Marie sounds a little underwhelming here, though the production is nice. I feel like Wolves is the better song. It might grow on me with more listens, but I don't know yet.

- This next debut is one I'm sure some are delighted about. Thirty Seconds To Mars make their return with the single titled Walk On Water. I gave it a couple of listens this week and I was quite impressed. The chorus is really good and I like the production. Well, pretty much everything about this works. More details on this when it makes its debut.

- Oh, this is just great. More Post Malone is all we needed. And this time, he replaces himself on Hit-Bound with his latest release, titled Psycho. I know most of you are tired of hearing me rant about his music. But time and time again, he's proven to me that he sucks, period. Again, I went into this one with an open mind and it's just not working for me at all. Ty Dolla $ign, who is featured in the song, hardly adds anything to the mix. More on this when it debuts. Hopefully it doesn't become a massive hit, because my reaction will NOT be pretty.

- We have newcomer Bazzi, who makes his first appearance with his debut single, by the name of Mine. I'm not quite sure how I feel about this. The production is pretty good, but everything else is okay for the most part. I'll have to give it more listens.

- Finally, we have the big return of one of Hits 1's favorites. 5 Seconds Of Summer make their comeback with their latest release titled Want You Back. We haven't heard from these guys since Girls Talks Boys back in 2016, which was really not to anyone's liking. Their new single, Want You Back, is different from what we're used to hearing from them. It's almost certain to make its debut next week, and by then I'll have more details on it.

- So, in case anyone is wondering, I have indeed decided that Legendary is my new favorite song on Hit-Bound. Yeah, that powerhouse chorus pulls me in and I love the rock elements used throughout the song. We'll see if it ends up making it debut soon, which I hope it does.

- Both Whatever It Takes and All Falls Down have been here for a seemingly time and they're still on Hit-Bound. The former I'm pretty sure it'll debut eventually, given that it's just now gaining steam on all fronts. The latter, on the other hand I can't really picture it graduating since it's not very popular elsewhere. It's quite a shame because it's the only song I like from Noah Cyrus.

- We say good-bye to three songs this week. First, good riddance to I Fall Apart. That one thankfully never really took off, so I'm glad it left. I'm hoping its successor follows its footsteps and become a flop as well. Second, there's also Whatever, but I've heard it quite a bit this week. So unfortunately, it's not gone for good and it could potentially graduate to the weekend countdown next week. On a sad note, I Miss You left us this week. It's too bad Julia Michaels is being considered a one-hit wonder, especially when this song shows just what she is capable of. But at least Clean Bandit had two hits under their belt. That aside, I Miss You will be missed by me.

My Top 5 Hit-Bound Picks

1. Welshly Arms – Legendary

2. Kesha featuring The Dap-Kings Horns – Woman

3. Keala Settle – This Is Me

4. Imagine Dragons – Whatever It Takes

5. Thirty Seconds To Mars – Walk On Water

Top 20 Review:

0 – Putrid:
20. AJR featuring Rivers Cuomo – Sober Up
19. Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line – Meant To Be
18. MAX featuring Gnash – Lights Down Low

1 – Bad:
17. Maroon 5 – Wait
16. NF – Let You Down
15. Camila Cabello – Never Be The Same

2 – Mediocre:
None!

3 – Decent:
14. Eminem featuring Ed Sheeran – River

4 – Good:
13. Imagine Dragons – Thunder
12. Charlie Puth – How Long

5 – Great:
11. Fall Out Boy – Hold Me Tight Or Don't
10. X Ambassadors – Ahead Of Myself
9. P!NK – Beautiful Trauma
8. Hailee Steinfeld & Alesso featuring Florida Georgia Line and Watt – Let Me Go
7. Halsey – Bad At Love
6. Ed Sheeran – Perfect
5. Walk The Moon – One Foot
4. G-Eazy featuring Halsey – Him & I
3. Selena Gomez featuring Marshmello – Wolves

BONUS: 6 – Best Song On The Countdown:
TIE: 1. Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle
TIE: 1. Macklemore featuring Kesha – Good Old Days

Overall Grade: 71/100 = 71% (C–)

Throwback Pick Of The Week: Fleetwood Mac – Little Lies (1987)

Most Missed Countdown Song: Rihanna – Diamonds (since her birthday was this week, so Happy Birthday, Rihanna!)

Most Missed Hit-Bound Drop-Out: Disturbed – The Sound Of Silence

#1 Recommendations For Hits 1: Rachel Platten – Collide and Hailee Steinfeld featuring BloodPopⓇ – Capital Letters

Favorite Countdown Song This Week One Year Ago: Katy Perry featuring Skip Marley – Chained To The Rhythm

My Top 5 Picks

TIE: 1. Kesha – Praying

TIE: 1. Macklemore feautring Kesha – Good Old Days

TIE: 1. Zedd featuring Maren Morris and Grey – The Middle

4. Bruno Mars featuring Cardi B. – Finesse (Remix)

5. Selena Gomez featuring Marshmello – Wolves

My Bottom 5 Picks

1. AJR featuring Rivers Cuomo – Sober Up

2. Post Malone featuring 21 Savage – Rockstar

3. Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line – Meant To Be

4. Lauv – I Like Me Better

5. MAX featuring Gnash – Lights Down Low

Songs That Debuted This Week One Year Ago:
Noah Cyrus featuring Labrinth – Make Me (Cry): One may think it's cool to add the teardrop sound to replace the word "cry", but it actually makes the song worse. Noah didn't make a good first impression here.
Linkin Park featuring Kiiara – Heavy: While some hate this because they think they're selling out, I'm not one of them. Everything about this song pretty much works, and it's good to see what Kiiara is truly capable of.
Kygo featuring Selena Gomez – It Ain't Me: I love when new EDM artists make a mark in the world of music. Kygo does a fantastic job here, and adding Selena to the mix makes this song divine on all fronts.

QOTW: 5 Seconds Of Summer are back.  What are your thoughts on their new single, Want You Back?