Today, another titan falls. Jeremih’s “Birthday Sex” — with us since the second week of the Power Rankings, often right at the top of the pack — is no more, its plummeting radio presence finally sending it to the Blame It on the Alcohol Memorial Cemetery (say hello to “Boom Boom Pow” and “Obsessed” when you get there, Mr. “Sex”). Won’t you take a walk down memory lane with us? We appreciated Jeremih’s tenderness back when we first introduced him to the charts — not only does he care that his girl is thirsty, he obviously also remembers her birthday. We forgave him for whiffing on his video debut and watched in horror as haters doubted his birthday-sexing credentials. We watched him slipping, and now, we say good-bye.
Also gone? Pearl Jam, Demi Lovato, and Shakira, making space for old friends Jay-Z, Jason Mraz, young upstarts Paramore, and Dirty Projectors, whose “Stillness Is the Move” is this week’s biggest gainer. Obviously, indie tunes are harder to track, what with little hard empirical evidence to go on, but a close reading of the critical landscape indicates that, other than Animal Collective’s “My Girls” (also making an appearance this week), nothing in the indie-rock sphere is touching “Stillness” this summer. And it’s not hard to see why — yes, Amber Coffman’s vocals are preposterous, but it’s that irresistible guitar lick that creates the song’s instantly recognizable groove. We gushed about it when we first heard it, and we’re not done yet.
2. Drake, “Best I Ever Had”: MGMT might not be on Blueprint 3, but Drake is, sharing the spotlight with Hova on a track called “Off That.” We guess Jay likes “Best I Ever Had,” too?
2. Drake, “Best I Ever Had”: MGMT might not be on Blueprint 3, but Drake is, sharing the spotlight with Hova on a track called “Off That.” We guess Jay likes “Best I Ever Had,” too?
6. Dirty Projectors, “Stillness Is the Move”: We’ll hear out the case for “Useful Chamber” actually being the better song, especially with that walloping bitteorcaoracbitte chorus and all, but “Stillness” is more relevant here because, to our ears at least, it’s a no-qualifications-needed radio-ready single.
4. Jay-Z feat. Kanye West and Rihanna, “Run This Town”: We predicted big things for this track when it first debuted, and we’re glad to say we’ve finally been validated — “Run This Town” made a huge leap on the Hot 100, going from No. 66 all the way to No. 3.
5. Taylor Swift, “You Belong With Me”: Swift hung tough amidst the serious Power Rankings purging this week. Also, we know no one actually cares who wins VMAs, but Swift’s presence amid some serious heavy hitters in Best Female Video is still impressive for a singer who is supposedly a country act.
6. Dirty Projectors, “Stillness Is the Move”: We’ll hear out the case for “Useful Chamber” actually being the better song, especially with that walloping bitteorcaoracbitte chorus and all, but “Stillness” is more relevant here because, to our ears at least, it’s a no-qualifications-needed radio-ready single.
9. Paramore, “Ignorance”: For those who like youthful female hit-makers not pining for boys, there’s Paramore. Their steady-going Warped-crowd single, “Ignorance,” packs some much-appreciated fire-breathing punch.
7. Jason Mraz, “I’m Yours”: “I’m Yours” has been mostly hanging around the middle range of the Hot 100, but it’s managed to do so for a record-setting 70 straight weeks. We can’t argue with numbers like those.
9. Paramore, “Ignorance”: For those who like youthful female hit-makers not pining for boys, there’s Paramore. Their steady-going Warped-crowd single, “Ignorance,” packs some much-appreciated fire-breathing punch.
10. Animal Collective, “My Girls”: The other would-be Indie-Rock Song of the Summer is making its first appearance on the list late in the game, after a whole season of proving its staying power. Similarly rewarding for Animal Collective as this spot on the Power Rankings? A ninth-place finish in Pitchfork’s Song of the Decade.