Twostepcublog

    Saturday's here, and it's time to run down my top "hit" tunes from the previous week. As Cowboy Carter gets released, Beyonce lays claims to the #1 spot, while the Black Keys (pictured above) climb a pair of notches in the top ten. Former big hits from Chris Stapleton, Mary J. Blige, and MGMT drop off my chart, while songs from Green Day, Kings Of Leon, and Linkin Park make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ). And under the list, everything is Spotify playlisted for 5 1/2 hours of the biggest in pop, rock, R&B, country, and dance music. Hoppity Hop Hop!   This Week                    Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Texas Hold 'Em - Beyonce (2) 2. Stick Season - Noah Kahan (1) 3. Lose Control - Teddy Swims (3) 4. Is It Over Now? - Taylor Swift (4) 5. Neon Pill - Cage The Elephant (6) 6. Beautifu

    " Pump It Up " - Joe Budden from the albums 2 Fast 2 Furious (Original Soundtrack) and Joe Budden (both 2003) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #38 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 1   Today's song comes from rapper Joe Budden , who grew up in New York and New Jersey where he started his music career. Discovered by popular DJ Clue, Budden was signed by Def Jam Records, where he released his self-titled debut album in 2003. Mind you, it was quite rare for a rap artist to go by their given name, and also to have their first album as such as well, so it definitely took some self-awareness to carry that off. The first single from the record was the hype track " Focus ", which featured labelmate and hip-hop royalty LL Cool J on the 12" single remix. The track climbed to #73 on Billboard magazine's R&B Singles chart.   That was followed by the first "proper" single release "Pump It Up", written by Budden with producer Justin "Just Bl

    " Where Is The Love? " - Black Eyed Peas with Justin Timberlake from the album Elephunk (2003) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #8 (three weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 22   Today's song comes from the Black Eyed Peas , who started out in the late 1980s as a dance/music group with friends Will "will.i.am" Adams and Allen "apl.de.ap" Pineda Lindo and a couple others originally under a couple different monikers. The act was originally signed by gangsta rapper Eazy-E formerly of N.W.A. to his Ruthless label, but after a debut album got put aside and Eazy died from AIDS in 1995, Adams and Pineda Lindo reinvented themselves as the Black Eyed Peas, adding a third rapper Jaime "Taboo" Gomez and singer Kim Hill. They gathered a local following with their west coast jazzy hip-hop style like the counterpart to the Roots, and were signed by Interscope Records, where they released their debut album Behind The Front in 1998. The record went to #129 on the Bill

    " In Those Jeans " - Ginuwine from the album The Senior (2003) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #8 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 14   Today's song comes from R&B singer Ginuwine , whose fourth studio album The Senior had already spun off two hits on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 with " Stingy " and " Hell Yeah ". The third single from the project was "In Those Jeans". The song was written by the singer (under his given name Elgin Lumpkin) and Harvey Hester, with the pair co-producing the track with Jerry Vines. The lyrics have Ginuwine coming on to a woman, leading off about her choice of apparel, and course going on how he wants to get "in them". The production is light and sparse, empathizing the weird cadence of the melody taken straight out of the R. Kelly playbook. Ginuwine's voices are adequate if not matching the power of some of his earlier work. Nevertheless, the booty-call track proved to be the biggest success

    " P.I.M.P. " - 50 Cent from the album Get Rich Or Die Tryin' (2003) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #3 (one week) Weeks in the Top-40: 21   Today's song comes from rapper 50 Cent , whose debut album Get Rich Or Die Tryin' had already spun off a pair of huge #1 pop crossover hits with " In Da Club " and " 21 Questions " (a third preceding single, " Wanksta ", was also included as a bonus track). His next single promoted to radio was a revamp of the album cut "P.I.M.P.". Written by 50 Cent (under his given name Curtis Jackson) with producer Denaun Porter, the lyrics have him painting himself in the titular vocation, even though he doesn't "look" like it. It throws out lines like " I ain't that nigga tryna holla 'cause I want some head , I'm that nigga tryna holla 'cause I want some bread" but then follows it up with " hit that track, catch a date, and come and pay the kid!". Cla

    " Speed " - Montgomery Gentry from the album My Town (2002) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #47 (three weeks)   This week's "robbed hit" comes from the country-rock duo Montgomery Gentry , who nicked the top-40 on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 for a second time in the late autumn of 2002 with " My Town ", the lead single and title track from their third album. Their second release from the record was the ballad "Speed". Written by Jeffrey Steele and Chris Wallin, the song has the guys conversing with a used-car dealer for a mode of transport that would get then "over" their heartbreak. Eddie Montgomery's deep baritone parlays the weary resignation in the verses, and hits the gas on the chorus where Troy Gentry joins in. There's the cringe line about how the truck he's trading in is where they made love, but it's passable. The production from Blake Chancey brings the sonic force, and that minor-key sad song is their

    " Flying Without Wings "/" Superstar " - Ruben Studdard from the album Soulful (2003) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #2 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 5   Today's song comes from the man who beat Friday's SOTD artist, Clay Aiken, in the second season of television singing contest American Idol . Ruben Studdard , born an "army brat" in Germany, grew up singing in church in Alabama. Like Clay, Ruben appeared on the American Idol : The All American Love Songs album, which spun off the top ten charity single cover of Lee Greenwood's " God Bless The U.S.A .". It would be a tight race for the pair, but while Studdard grabbed the trophy, it was Clay whose fanbase gobbled up the single just a little more. For Ruben, his "winner's single" wasn't an original, but rather a remake of a #1 hit in the United Kingdom for Irish boy-band Westlife in 1999. "Flying Without Wings", written by Steve Mac (who coincidentally p

    Saturday's here, and it's time to run down my top "hit" tunes from the previous week. Noah Kahan holds tight at #1 for a third week, while Cage The Elephant (pictured above) leap into the top ten. Songs from Scotty McCreery, Green Day, and Billy Joel make the biggest jumps (moves of 10+ places highlighted in red ), while former big hits from Sia, Miley Cyrus, Jelly Roll, and casso/RAYE drop off my chart. And under the list everything is Spotify playlisted for 5 1/2 hours of the biggest in pop, rock, R&B, country, and dance music. Well, that question is answered...   This Week                  Song/Artist (last week's position in parentheses) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Stick Season - Noah Kahan (1) 2. Texas Hold 'Em - Beyonce (6) 3. Lose Control - Teddy Swims (2) 4. Is It Over Now? - Taylor Swift (4) 5. Houdini - Dua Lipa (5) 6. Neon Pill - Cage The Elephant

    " This Is The Night "/" Bridge Over Troubled Water " - Clay Aiken from the album Measure Of A Man (2003) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #1 (two weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 7 Today's song comes from Clay Aiken , who in the spring of 2003 participated in the second season of the television  singing competition American Idol. Growing up a "church choir kid" in North Carolina, Clay was following the path of becoming a special education teacher when he auditioned for the show as a homely geek with a promising voice. He originally didn't make it past the cattle-call stage in Hollywood, but was voted in by the public as the "wild card" contestant. By the end of the contest, Aiken had come in second to Ruben Studdard. However his fanbase was huge , loving the ugly duckling transformation he went through during the series. During the show, Aiken joined his fellow finalists in releasing the American Idol Season 2: All-American Love Songs , which in

    " Into You " - Fabolous featuring Ashanti or Tamia from the albums Street Dreams (Fabolous 2003) and More (Tamia 2004) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #4 (one week)  Weeks in the Top-40: 24   Today's song comes from rapper Fabolous , who scored his first top ten crossover hit on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 in the spring of 2003 with " Can't Let You Go ".  The second single from his Street Dreams album was "Into You", which on the set featured R&B singer Ashanti , who then was riding high with her own top ten hit " Rock Wit U (Aww Baby) ". The record sampled the song " So Into You " from Canadian R&B singer Tamia , who in turn sampled the Commodores' album track " Say Yeah ", giving Tamia, her producers Tim (Kelly) and Bob (Robinson) as well as Commodores Lionel Richie and Ronald LaPread writing credit along with the rapper (under his birth name Johnathan Jackson). However when it came time to put out

    " Are You Happy Now? " - Michelle Branch from the album Hotel Paper (2003) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #16 (three weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 16   Today's song comes from singer/songwriter Michelle Branch , who scored three top-40 hits on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 from her debut album with " Everywhere ", " Goodbye To You ", and the top ten single " All You Wanted ".  She then rounded out her 2002 with her collaboration with Santana on " The Game Of Love ", which was her highest charting hit at #5 and won the Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Collaboration.  The following year, Branch returned with her second studio album on Maverick Records, Hotel Paper . The lead single from the record was the angsty breakup track "Are You Happy Now?". Written by Michelle with producer John Shanks, the lyrics has her very bitter and focused on the other person as the reason for the split. There's no reflection, just anger, and the

    " Right Thurr " - Chingy from the album Jackpot (2003) Billboard Hot 100 peak: #2 (five weeks) Weeks in the Top-40: 28   Today's song comes from rapper Howard Bailey Jr., who records under the stage name Chingy .  Chingy grew up in the St. Louis area, and after garnering a local following toured with fellow Missourian Nelly. However, it was Atlanta hip-hop star Ludacris who signed the rapper to his Disturbing Tha Peace label, where he released his debut album Jackpot in 2003. The lead single from the record was "Right Thurr", written by Chingy with the Trak Starz production team of Shamar Dougherty and Alonzo Lee.  The party record's lyrics are straight up about macking on a prospective woman he wants. This involves throwing some cringe lines like " I know your grown a 'lil bit, twenty years old, you legal" and " Like to be seen, she got it honest , in real life girl remind me of Pocahontas". At least it's not reliant on a