Australia has a new No.1 single this week, the first new chart-topper since mid-August, and the crown this week goes to James Arthur and his ballad “Say You Won’t Let Go”, matching its current peak in England (3rd week at the top this week over there).
“Say You Won’t Let Go” becomes the 1058th No.1 Single in Australia (1940 to 2016) and the 493rd for ARIA (1983 to 2016), plus the 15th No.1 for 2016 (this time last year Australia had 17 No.1 singles by mid-October), and the first here for James, who had previously peaked at No.2 with his first entry “Impossible” landing at No.2 for two broken weeks, one in February and then again in March of 2013.
This becomes the 114th No.1 single for the Columbia (through Sony) label in Australia, and the first time since late June/early July in 1999 that a Columbia act has taken over from a previous artist on that label, as The Chainsmokers were at the top for the past nine weeks, and now James takes over. The last acts to do this were Sixpence None the Richer with “Kiss Me” (1#786, 3 weeks from 14th June, 1999) who saw first time entrant Jennifer Lopez take over from them with “If You Had My Love” (1#787, 3 weeks from 5th July 1999) as she occupied the top spot after them. The only other time the Columbia label had done this prior to 1999 was back in 1953 when the label was then distributed by EMI.
This is the eighth time that a ‘Say’ has been in a No.1 song title, the third for a ‘Won’t’ and the twelfth ‘Let’, whilst also the fourteenth ‘Go’, the last one being ‘Let Her Go’ by Passenger (1st April 2013). James becomes the 43rd Solo English Male act to top the charts here and the third for 2016 after Jonas Blue and Zayn both spent a single week at the top back in February, plus overall he is the 122nd English Act to make to No.1 here and also the song becomes the 199th No.1 performed by an English Act (solo or group) to achieve a place at the top in Australia.
The Weeknd scores his third Top 3 single and now second No.2 hit as his latest track with Daft Punk called “Starboy” is up two places to a new peak of No.2, matching the height of “Can’t Feel My Face” (3 weeks at No.2 in July & August of 2015), and after nine weeks at the top “Closer” for The Chainsmokers and Halsey is down two spots to No.3 this week, a plus for the track is that it is now certified 4x▲Platinum in sales, and their debut from last week “All We Know” featuring Phoebe Ryan is up one spot to land at No.10 this week.
After three weeks at No.2, the Calum Scott cover of “Dancing on My Own” is also down two spots this week to No.4, while rising back up three to No.5 is “The Greatest” for Sia and Kendrick Lamar (HP-2), with Hailee Steinfeld back up one spot to No.6 with her former No.5 peaking song “Starving”. Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj are down one spot to No.7 with “Side to Side” and up one spot each are DJ Snake with Justin Bieber and “Let Me Love You”, and landing a new peak is “My Way” by Calvin Harris, to No.8 and No.9 respectively, with Calvin’s new track newly crowned Gold (●) in sales.
UP: Like Justin’s other track in the Top 10, his former No.1 appearance on the Major Lazer track “Cold Water” is back up one to No.11, and with the new Fox FM (and 2Day FM) ads on the TV, using “I Love You Always Forever” by Betty Who, it is back up one spot to No.16, with the first new peak outside of the Top 10 occurring at No.21 where Zara Larsson is up a spot to No.21 with her latest entry “Ain’t My Fault” which is the third and final certification this week achieving Gold (●) in sales . There are two more peaks in the Top 50 this week, the second chart entry for Cheat Codes and “Let Me Hold You (Turn Me on)” is up four to a new peak of No.39, whilst “Controlla” by Drake is also up four, this week to a new chart height of No.46. In between those two we see the former No.1 single for Flume “Never Be Like You” rise back up five places to No.41 after his 13 ARIA Award Nominations were announced this past week.
DOWN: The only track leaving the Top 10 this week is last week’s highest new entry “This Town” by Niall Horan (HP-5, WI10-1), which drops nine spots to No.14. “Sucker for Pain” from the ‘Suicide Squad’ soundtrack is down four to No.18 and even after her recent tour here, Ellie Goulding’s “Bridget Jones’s Baby’ song “Still Falling for You” is down three to No.27 this week. “In My Blood” for The Veronicas is down six to No.40, most possibly due to their new single “On Your Side” being released, “Wake Me Up” by Jessica Mauboy drops back six to No.43, but could rebound next week as her new TV soundtrack for ‘The Secret Daughter’ was released on Friday, “Crash” for Usher drops five to No.45 and after his rebound last week Keith Urban’s “The Fighter” is back down seventeen spots this week to No.49. Three songs that fall hard into the lower fifty are “Dopamine” for Bliss N’ Eso (38 to 55), “Toothbrush” by DNCE (45 to 66) and “#WherestheLove” by The Black Eyed Peas (42 to 72).
Three former No.1 singles acts debut in the Top 50 this week, the first of which is Bruno Mars and the title track to his early November due third album “24k Magic”, which enters at No.12, becoming his eighteenth Top 100 and Top 50 entry, and his first in exactly 100 weeks, as his last entry “Uptown Funk” with Mark Ronson is back up twenty places this week to No.70 in its 100th week within the Top 100.
John Legend enters at No.26 with “Love Me Now”, the first single lifted from his forthcoming fifth album “Darkness and Light” (no date known yet), and his eighth Top 100 and fourth Top 50 entry, with all of his previous Top 50 entries reaching the Top 3 or higher. “Joanne” is the name of the new Lady Gaga album out next week (it’s her favourite Aunt’s name who Gaga took inspiration from at an early age), and the second track to chart from the album debuts at No.37 entitled “Million Reasons”, following on from “Perfect Illusion” (HP-14, TW-75).
Lower 50: Just outside of the Top 50 this week are four songs all waiting to enter the upper fifty next week, with “Trust Nobody” for Cashmere Cat with Selena Gomez and Tory Lanez climbing eight spots to a new peak of No.51, followed by the EP “Groovy People” for Marc E. Bassy up three to No.52, on hold at No.53 for a second week are Frenship with Emily Warren and “Capsize”, whilst leaping up twenty-five spots to No.54 are Fifth Harmony and “That’s My Girl”.
Andy Grammer debuted last week at No.85 with “Fresh Eyes”, and this week he jumps up twenty-four spots to a new peak of No.61, whilst bettering that is DJ Khaled and “Do You Mind” up a massive twenty-seven places to land at No.65, and lastly “Luv” by Tory Lanez (HP-83) jumps back up ten spots to No.84. Two songs re-enter this week, “What Do You Mean?” for Justin Bieber returns at No.80 helped by his tour tickets going on sale this past week, and now that it’s featured in a new TV ad, “High and Low” for Empire of the Sun (HP-66) is back in at No.92, whilst holding the longest charting single crown again this week is last weeks returning track “Riptide” for Vance Joy at 123 weeks, but it does fall twenty-eight spots to No.93 this week.
Australian house DJ Timmy Trumpet returns to the ARIA Singles Chart this week at No.59 with “Party Till We Die” featuring MAKJ and Andrew W.K., becoming his fourth Top 100 entry. Up next at No.81 is US rock band Hey Violet with their first chart entry here “Guys My Age”, whilst also making their first chart appearance are hip hop duo of Zayion McCall and Zay Hilfigerrr and their current US anthem “Juju on the Beat (TZ Anthem)”.
“Tear in My Heart” for twenty one pilots is a new entry at No.89 this week, even though it was actually released as a single prior to their breakout hit “Stressed Out” (TW-67), and is from their current album “Blurryface” (TW-25), and it also becomes their fifth chart entry here, plus they currently have three further songs in the Top 100 this week. Finally new at No.98 is UK electronic producer and songwriter Mura Masa (real name Alex Crossan) who has teamed with rapper A$AP Rocky for the track “Love$ick” (not a cover of the 1991 Gang Starr track).
Gavin Ryan reports
