Pop Sweep: November 21, 2015...

I'm ready to kick off the first of today's "music sweeps", checking out the songs making their debut on the singles charts in Billboard magazine. As usual, I'll start out with the pop side of things, then later on move to the latest in rock, R&B, country, and dance music.

On the "big" chart, Billboard's Hot 100, which combines tallies of radio airplay from all formats, sales (like iTunes and Amazon MP3), and internet streaming (like Spotify and YouTube), Adele remains at #1 with "Hello" for a second week...

Ariana Grande puts down the donut and makes the top entry of the week as she rockets in at #7 with "Focus". It becomes her sixth top-10 single, and first without a "featured artist" (Jamie Foxx does an uncredited cameo, though). Last year she peaked at #2 with "Problem" with Iggy Azalea...

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In the wake of the CMA awards last week, alt-country artist Chris Stapleton leaps on to the chart at #23 with "Tennessee Whiskey". Chris won album of the year, new artist, and male vocalist without any prior radio love, surprising in 'corporate' bro-Nashville. At the show he performed this song with Justin Timberlake...

(Sidenote: as this week's chart tracked the Halloween week, Michael Jackson's "Thriller" re-entered the chart at #45...)

The third preview track from Justin Bieber's Purpose album, which was released yesterday (11/13), is "I'll Show You", which moves in at #51. The current radio single "Sorry" drops a couple notches to #4, while lead-off "What Do You Mean?" holds at #5...

Oakland rapper G-Eazy scores his second and highest Hot 100 placing with "Me, Myself & I" featuring Bebe Rexha at #83...

The Zac Brown Band pull another card from their diverse Jeckyll & Hyde album for the chart as "Beautiful Drug" enters at #95. The song, which climbs to #24 on the Country Airplay chart, seems influence by the "folk-rave" stylings of Avicii. The other two country singles from the album, "Homegrown" and "Loving You Easy", both reached the top-40 on the Hot 100...

Another more traditional mainstream country group, Parmalee, come in at #96 with "Already Callin' You Mine", the fourth single from their debut album Feels Like Carolina. Their breakthrough hit "Carolina" went to #36 here...

Rounding things out at #100 is another country artist, Randy Houser, with "We Went". He went to #24 on this list last year with "Runnin' Outta Moonlight"...

...and now on to the pop radio format charts...

On the Mainstream Top-40 radio panel Vine star Shawn Mendes lands his first #1 hit with "Stitches"...

Pop-punk vets Fall Out Boy return at #34 with "Irresistible". It follows "Uma Thurman", which went to #7 on this chart...

Pentatonix takes their a-cappella nugget "Can't Sleep Love" to this list at #39...

St. Louis rapper Nelly is back at #40 with "The Fix" featuring R&B singer Jeremih. He's been to #1 four times at this format, most recently with "Just A Dream" in 2010. The song samples the melody to the late Marvin Gaye's 1982 smash "Sexual Healing"...

Meanwhile, on the older-skewing Adult Top-40 format, Taylor Swift spends a fourth week on top with "Wildest Dreams"...

British modern rock heroes Coldplay return with a more danceable sound at #27 with "Adventure Of A Lifetime", the first single from their upcoming A Head Full Of Dreams album, and my "Pop Pick of the Week". They topped this list back in 2008 with "Viva La Vida"...

Alternative singer Halsey crosses over with her top-20 rock hit "New Americana"...

The second single from Selena Gomez's Revival album, "Same Old Love", moves in at #39. It follows "Good For You", which peaked at #24 on this list...

Lastly, on the Adult Contemporary, or "easy listening", radio chart, Rachel Platten's "Fight Song" stands still at #1 for a ninth week, while there are no new entries...

That's it for the start of this week's musical journey...I'll be back with the latest on rock radio...