It will not remotely challenge Harry Styles’ “Watermelon Sugar” for #1 this week, but Lewis Capaldi’s “Before You Go” will come closer than any other song. The enduring ballad will rise to #2 on this week’s Mediabase pop radio listing.
“Before You Go” received 6,782 spins during the first three days of the August 23-29 tracking period. Up 8% from the count at this point last week, the tally slots “Before You Go” at #2 on Mediabase’s building chart.
As it does not face a threat from below, “Before You Go” should have no trouble retaining its #2 position as the chart goes final.
The question, of course, will be whether “Before You Go” can reach #1 in the coming weeks. “Watermelon Sugar” still holds a massive spin lead over “Before You Go,” and it remains fairly stable from an airplay standpoint. With “Before You Go” already so “old” in terms of its chart life cycle, it is unclear whether it will be able to gain enough in the next few weeks to catch up to the Harry Styles smash.