Pop Sweep: January 9, 2016...

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

On the "big" chart, Billboard's Hot 100, which combines tallies of internet streaming (like YouTube and Spotify), radio airplay from all formats, and sales (like iTunes and Amazon MP3), Adele extends her longest stay at the top with "Hello" to nine weeks...

On this slow holiday tracking week, the highest debut doesn't come until down at #80. Chris Brown's Royalty album debuted in the #2 position on Billboard's Albums Sales list, and two tracks from it enter the big chart. First at #80 is "Zero", my "Pop Pick of the Week". Originally released in September as the second single, and now finally making the pop chart (current radio hit "Back To Sleep" moves up to #53, while first single "Liquor" re-enters at #77). Out of the new set, this is the best of the lot, sending me back to the 80s with the slick production and the Rodgers-esque guitars.

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Pop violinist Lindsey Stirling comes in at #81 with her cover of the Leonard Cohen classic "Hallelujah". This is her first time on the Hot 100, though her last album Shatter Me went to #2 on the Albums chart. Helping this one on the chart is the "viral video" released for the Christmas Facebooking season with her performing in the New York Subway station to unknowning passersby.

The other Brown track to make its way on to the chart at #91 is the title track, "Little More (Royalty)". I guess someone's handlers wanted to "humanize" him a little for the Christmas album-buying rush in this EDM-ish video...

Louisiana rapper Kevin Gates lands his second hit on this chart at #94 with "Really Really". It's the second single (and first to make the pop list) from his upcoming Islah album. In 2014 he went to #90 with "I Don't Get Tired". More of a hip-hop boast than a pop track, the song does roll stronger than the usual fare in that genre...

British singer/songwriter James Bay enters at #98 with "Let It Go", his first to get to the Hot 100. The song is up at #14 on the Adult Top-40 chart.

Rap star Future moves in at #99 with "Stick Talk", the fifth offering from his #1 album DS2 to make the chart. "Where Ya At", which peaked at #28, is still in the top-40 at #35 after 23 weeks...

Jason Derulo has had a hard time trying to overcome the outshining top-10 success of his "Want To Want Me" hit, and while the worthy "Cheyenne" stopped at #66, perhaps the percolating "Get Ugly", a former "soul pick of the week", will do the track, moving in at #100.

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

On the Mainstream Top-40 radio panel, Justin Bieber climbs to #1 with "Sorry". It's his first chart-topper on this list....

Rapper Travi$ Scott comes in at #39 with "Antidote". The track, which is in the top-20 on the Hot 100, is his first on this format...

Indie-pop singer/songwriter BØRNS (aka Garrett Borns) takes his former top-10 Triple-A rock hit "Electric Love" to this chart at #40...

Meanwhile, on the older-skewing Adult Top-40 format, "Hello" reigns for a sixth week, and there are no songs making their debut this time out...

Finally, on the Adult Contemporary, or "easy listening", radio chart, Christmas ends quickly as Seal's "This Christmas" only got to interrupt "Hello" for a week, tumbling to #7, while Adele is back for a sixth week...

...while her new single "When We Were Young", a previous "pop pick", jumps in at #24...

I'll be back with the latest on rock radio...