Olivia Rodrigo's "Good 4 U" hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and broke Spotify's record for the most streams in a single week, with 84 million
The song was manufactured to be a massive hit in a streaming-driven world
Here's how 👇
The song was manufactured to be a massive hit in a streaming-driven world
Here's how 👇
1/ Chart rankings are now done by # of streams. Artists also get paid per stream. This incentivizes shorter songs.
Hit songs used to be ~3.5 to 4 minutes.
"Good 4 U" is only 2:57.
Hit songs used to be ~3.5 to 4 minutes.
"Good 4 U" is only 2:57.
2/ A stream is also only recorded after 30 seconds of listening.
This means that artists are pulling catchy choruses earlier into songs.
Choruses used to hit ~45 seconds into a song.
The "Good 4 U" chorus hits 28 seconds in.
This means that artists are pulling catchy choruses earlier into songs.
Choruses used to hit ~45 seconds into a song.
The "Good 4 U" chorus hits 28 seconds in.
3/ Today, TikTok is the nucleus of music discovery.
"Good 4 U" has multiple challenges going on TikTok right now, seeding virality.
Already, 1.3 million TikTok videos use the song.
"Good 4 U" has multiple challenges going on TikTok right now, seeding virality.
Already, 1.3 million TikTok videos use the song.
4/ Technology influences art.
Songs were originally around 3 minutes long because that's how much music could fit onto a 78 record.
Now, streaming is leading to shorter songs + earlier choruses. And TikTok incentivizes ~15 second viral sounds.
Songs were originally around 3 minutes long because that's how much music could fit onto a 78 record.
Now, streaming is leading to shorter songs + earlier choruses. And TikTok incentivizes ~15 second viral sounds.
5/ Billboard has two tiers to count streams:
TIER 1: For paid subscription streams, 1,250 streams = 1 album unit
TIER 2: For ad-supported streams, 3,750 streams = 1 album unit
Of the 295K "albums" Olivia Rodrigo's album sold, 218K came from her 301M streams.
TIER 1: For paid subscription streams, 1,250 streams = 1 album unit
TIER 2: For ad-supported streams, 3,750 streams = 1 album unit
Of the 295K "albums" Olivia Rodrigo's album sold, 218K came from her 301M streams.
6/ There are other factors in the song's success.
The chorus follows the Max Martin / Shellback "formula" of ear-pleasing sounds:
"Good for you, you look HAPpy and HEAlthy, NOT me."
In other words, "Good 4 U" is designed to be pleasing and even addictive to listen to.
The chorus follows the Max Martin / Shellback "formula" of ear-pleasing sounds:
"Good for you, you look HAPpy and HEAlthy, NOT me."
In other words, "Good 4 U" is designed to be pleasing and even addictive to listen to.
7/ Mostly, "Good 4 U" was smartly manufactured for a streaming-dominated music landscape and cleverly used TikTok to seed virality.
And no, I still won't apologize for this week's obscene amount of Olivia Rodrigo content.
And no, I still won't apologize for this week's obscene amount of Olivia Rodrigo content.
https://twitter.com/rex_woodbury/status/1400145566810574850
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