September 2023 - Chris Molanphy

Blogger and pop historian Tom Nawrocki says instrumentals were the ultimate novelty hits. Listen & Subscribe Choose your preferred player: Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Stitcher Amazon Music Overcast TuneIn RSS Feed For questions about subscriptions or your Slate Plus feed, check our FAQ. Please enable javascript to get your Slate Plus feeds. All Slate [...] Read more

Slate Why Is This Song No. 1?

Why Olivia Rodrigo’s “Vampire” Is No. 1 on the Hot 100—Again

22 September 20231 October 2023

Two months in, it’s not the Taylor Swift rumors that put her back on top. It’s the parents. A decade ago this month, in late September 2013, Miley Cyrus scored her first ever No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 with “Wrecking Ball.” Way back then, I reported on some skepticism about whether “Wrecking Ball” was a [...] Read more

Hit Parade Slate

Hit Parade: Insert Lyrics Here Edition

15 September 20231 October 2023

How instrumental hits topped the charts from the ’50s through the ’70s and why they fell off—well, except for Kenny G. If an instrumental tops the charts, it’s probably an earworm: “Tequila.” “Wipeout.” “Dueling Banjos.” “The Hustle.” “Feels So Good.” “Chariots of Fire.” “Axel F.” You can probably whistle or hum several of those from [...] Read more

Slate Why Is This Song No. 1?

That Welfare-Bashing Country Song Is Still Atop the Charts, but There’s a Silver Lining

1 September 20237 September 2023

Oliver Anthony’s overnight smash shows how passionate niches have taken over the Hot 100. It’s not all bad. At a time of national polarization, a singer-songwriter who has never recorded professionally before scores an improbable chart-topper that finds favor with America Firsters. The artist, a high-school dropout trying to make something of himself, claims to [...] Read more