Billboard Hot 100 Highlights April 7, 2018

Looks like we got a bit of a lighter week after the album bombs? I'm all for it. Especially when most of the songs are decent. Highlights.

Top 20

1. God's Plan by Drake (1)
2. Meant To Be by Bebe Rexha ft. Florida Georgia Line (2)
3. Finesses (Remix) by Bruno Mars ft. Cardi B (4)
4. Psycho by Post Malone ft. Ty Dolla $ign (5)
5. Perfect by Ed Sheeran (3)
6. Look Alive by BlocBoy JB ft. Drake (11)
7. The Middle by Zedd, Maren Morris & Grey (6)
8. Freaky Friday by Lil Dicky ft. Chris Brown (9)
9. Sad! by XXXTENTACION (7)
10. Havana by Camila Cabello ft. Young Thug (8)
11. Mine by Bazzi (15)
12. Pray For Me by The Weeknd & Kendrick Lamar (10)
13. Stir Fry by Migos (12)
14. Never Be The Same by Camila Cabello (19)
15. Walk It Talk It by Migos ft. Drake (20)
16. All The Stars by Kendrick Lamar & SZA (14)
17. Ric Flair Drip by Offset & Metro Boomin (13)
18. Plug Wank by Rich The Kid (23)
19. Let You Down by NF (17)
20. New Rules by Dua Lipa (16)

Fell Off Top 20

21. Rockstar by Post Malone ft. 21 Savage (18)

Big Gains (10+)

22. In My Blood by Shawn Mendes (72)
38. Powerglide by Rae Sremmurd ft. Juicy J (51)
52. Delicate by Taylor Swift (66)
59. Tell Me You Love Me by Demi Lovato (73)
73. One Number Away by Luke Combs (84)
74. Tequila by Dan + Shay (87)
80. Sativa by Jhene Aiko ft. Rae Sremmurd (91)

Moderate Gains (5 - 9)

6. Look Alive by BlocBoy JB ft. Drake (11)
14. Never Be The Same by Camila Cabello (19)
15. Walk It Talk It by Migos ft. Drake (20)
18. Plug Wank by Rich The Kid (23)
50. Singles You Up by Jordan Davis (57)
51. X by Nicky Jam x J Balvin (59)
55. No Excuses by Meghan Trainor (64)
56. Gummo by 6ix9ine (63)
63. El Farsante by Ozuna & Romeo Santos (69)
68. The Long Way by Brett Eldredge (74)
69. Red Roses by Lil Skies ft. Landon Cube (75)
78. Sit Next To Me by Foster The People (86)
81. She's With Me by High Valley (90)
88. Beautiful Trauma by Pink (93)
90. Echame La Culpa by Luis Fonsi & Demi Lovato (97)

Big Losses (10+)

48. Moonlight by XXXTENTACION (35)
62. All On Me by Devin Dawson (52)
67. Everyday by Logic & Marshmello (56)
72. Five More Minutes by Scotty McCreery (60)
85. 44 More by Logic (70)
97. The Remedy For A Broke Heart (Why Am I So In Love) by XXXTENTACION (67)

Moderate Losses (5 - 9)

47. Bartier Cardi by Cardi B ft. 21 Savage (38)

Dropouts

• Young Dumb & Broke by Khalid (46, 18, 36 weeks)
• How Long by Charlie Puth (48, 21, 24 weeks)
• Found/Tonight by Lin-Manuel Miranda & Ben Platt (49, 49, 1 week)
• Sky Walker by Miguel ft. Travis Scott (50, 29, 26 weeks)
• Numb by XXXTENTACION (82, 82, 1 week)
• Infinity (888) by XXXTENTACION ft. Joey Bada$$ (83, 83, 1 week)
• Going Down! by XXXTENTACION (95, 95, 1 week)
• At The Club by Jacquees x DeJ Loaf (96, 86, 7 weeks)
• Everybody Hates Me by The Chainsmokers (100, 100, 1 week)

Returning Entries

87. This Is Me by Keala Settle & The Greatest Showman Ensemble (Rank: 2)
96. Rubbin Off The Paint by YBN Nahmir (Rank: 3)
99. Get You by Daniel Caesar ft. Kali Uchis (Rank: 1)

New Entries

60. Say Amen (Saturday Night) by Panic! At The Disco
64. Lost In Japan by Shawn Mendes
70. Japan by Famous Dex
86. Up Down by Morgan Wallen ft. Florida Georgia Line
95. For The First Time by Darius Rucker
100. No Roots by Alice Merton

New Entries Ranked

1. No Roots

I have been waiting for this to crossover. In a way, this does feel overly mainstream friendly, but when you have a killer 8 bar bassline, commanding female vocals, and a satisfying guitar bit, it's hard for me to care. Plus I love the discordant synths on the bridge and the vagabond lyrics. It all reminds me a bit of The Rancoteers' Steady As She Goes, and I welcome it. Love me some blues rock.

2. Lost In Japan

This is a Shawn Mendes sex song... Yeah. Or at least I think it is. It's got a funky bassline, and the lyrics comprise of Shawn pining after a girl who's currently a couple hundred miles from him. Plus, the production and Shawn's vocal delivery are a lot like Justin Timberlake. So yeah, I'm gonna say it's a sex song. But credit where it's due, it's a good sex song if it is one. Though the production is a little lacking, especially with the synths, it's still got the style and charm to make this danceable and smooth. This seems like something that shouldn't work, and it works so much better than it should. Easily my favorite of Mendes' new singles. Hope this gets as much attention as In My Blood.

3. Say Amen (Saturday Night)

Death of a Bachelor came out two years ago and yet it still feels like it didn't come out that long ago. So it feels weird to get more material from Panic. And this is definitely what I expected from a new Panic song. Hugely theatrical, suave performance from Brendan Urie, and an absolutely maddening feeling. The chipmunk vocals are a nice touch along with the horns. What holds it back a bit, though, is that the chorus doesn't feel /quite/ as wild as I feel it could be. Possibly due to there not being much bass at that point. Or roaring guitars. Regardless, this is oddly nostalgic. Can't wait for that next album.

4. For The First Time

Mr. Hootie himself back again, and with a song with much more energy than If I Told You. Yeah, it's a song where Rucker is trying to pick up a girl, but with the promise that he wants to do things with her that she's never done before. Thankfully not in a sexual context either. And I appreciate the detail here that makes it feel fun rather than sleazy. The instrumentation is also nice, with the chugging banjos and hints of electric guitar. Good stuff.

5. Japan

Oh hey, a song about Famous Dex getting high on Xanax to take someone else's girl. Joy. Along with a painfully basic beat that doesn't really invoke any thoughts of Japan, and a bored, autotune cadence from Dex. Plus the whole thing feels very fillery, with the intro cluttered with ad libs and including a flubbed version of the chorus. When the whole song isn't even two and a half minutes. The verses are also noticeably short; about the same length as the chorus, which gets really monotonous really quickly. Not the worst thing I've ever heard, but kinda confirms my suspicion that Famous Dex isn't worth caring about.

6. Up Down

You're not gonna be able to convince me that this isn't just a regular Florida Georgia Line song. It sounds exactly like something they'd make on their own, and Morgan Wallen does not stand out from them at all. Surprise, it's a sleazefest, with the painfully screechy guitar licks thrown in after the chorus and muddy instrumentation. And as usual, the lyrics are basic as hell country clichés that crank up the meatheadedness to 11. I guess they're not hitting on girls, that's a plus. But they are invoking Free Bird, a song that I'd much rather be listening to and all things considered isn't really a song you bob your head to. Not FLG's worst, but...gag.