JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
The usual suspects are lining up at the very top of the Billboard charts, but as Stephen Thompson of NPR Music reports, intriguing upstarts show up elsewhere in the top 10.
STEPHEN THOMPSON, BYLINE: It's another slow week at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. At No. 1, you've got Taylor Swift's "Patient Zero." That song tops the chart for a third week thanks in large part to sales of more than 150,000 physical copies. But there are a few other songs worth noting on the same chart. Several artists have recently cracked the top 10 for the first time in their careers. Let's start with the Slovak pop singer and dancer Adéla.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "NICOLE KIDMAN")
ADÉLA: (Singing) Babygirl in control. I feel like Nicole.
THOMPSON: That's a song called "Nicole Kidman." Its lyrics and video heavily reference the actress' films, including "Babygirl." The song is Adéla's first top 10 hit.
Joining her in the chart's upper reaches and cracking the top 10 for the first time in his career this week is Dominic Fike. He's a singer, songwriter and actor. You might have seen him in "Euphoria." And his first top 10 hit was first released all the way back in 2018. It's called "Babydoll."
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "BABYDOLL")
DOMINIC FIKE: (Singing) I can't move on, babydoll. Waiting on calls, flipping through stations.
THOMPSON: "Babydoll" first entered the Hot 100 in February thanks to a surge of interest on TikTok. But since then, it's taken on a life of its own. "Babydoll" is joined in the top ten by another recent entry with a similar title, and yes, it's a big week for songs containing the word baby. "Bby WOW" is only the second top ten entry by the Colombian singer Karol G.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "BBY WOW")
KAROL G: (Singing) Baby, wow, (singing in Spanish).
THOMPSON: The song has been the biggest Latin music hit of the season. And after a long stretch when the charts have been dominated by country ballads and Taylor Swift, it's a welcome blast of counterprogramming. Stephen Thompson, NPR Music.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "BBY WOW")
RUSOWSKY: (Singing in Spanish). Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
