The end of December is traditionally a quiet period for radio, so much so that some music industry outlets do not cover the associated airplay charts. Mediabase, moreover, does not apply recurrent/purge rules to the published listings.
Yet there is nothing quiet about this week’s pop radio race — three songs are contending for a position in the Top 10 on this week’s Mediabase chart.
As of press time, Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now” is leading the way. The song, which received 3,927 spins during the first three days of the December 15-21 tracking period (6.7% vs. same-time-last-week), is #10 on the Mediabase building/real-time chart.
Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber’s “10,000 Hours” and Tones and I’s “Dance Monkey” are, however, very close behind. “10,000 Hours” is #11 on the building chart with 3,920 spins (+4.1%), while “Dance Monkey” is #12 with 3,907 (+6.6%).
Given their fairly similar spin counts and gain rates, it is hard to say which will pull ahead.
It, moreover, is too early to guarantee that any will get there. While NF’s “Time” is down to #13 on the building chart (3,903, -5.5%), it could bounce back into the Top 10 by the end of tracking.
On the other hand, it is possible that two spots will open up this week. Jonas Brothers’ building #8 (4,121, -7%) is starting to fade — and could soon join “Time” in falling out of the Top 10. Whether it will be by this week remains to be seen.
