The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber’s “Stay” is the biggest song in the world, as it tallies an unprecedented 10th week at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 chart and an eighth frame atop the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. survey (both dated Oct. 16).
Plus, Elton John and Dua Lipa’s “Cold Heart (Pnau Remix)” reaches the Global 200 top 10, rising 12-9, and TWICE’s “The Feels” debuts at No. 10 on the Global Excl. U.S. chart.
Billboard’s two global charts, which began in September 2020 and recently marked their first year, rank songs based on streaming and sales activity culled from more than 200 territories around the world, as compiled by MRC Data. The Billboard Global 200 is inclusive of worldwide data and the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart comprises data from territories excluding the U.S.
Chart ranks are based on a weighted formula incorporating official-only streams on both subscription and ad-supported tiers of audio and video music services, as well as download sales, the latter of which reflect purchases from full-service digital music retailers from around the world, with sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites excluded from the charts’ calculations.
‘Stay’ First Song to 10 Weeks Atop Global 200
“Stay” by The Kid LAROI, from Australia, and Justin Bieber, from Canada, logs a 10th week at No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200, becoming the first song to lead the list for double-digit frames. The song drew 100.1 million streams (down 6%) and sold 15,700 downloads (down 8%) worldwide in the Oct. 1-7 tracking week.
“Stay” extends its record run to nine straight weeks of over 100 million global streams, after logging 106.2 million (Oct. 9), 115.6 million (Oct. 2), 115.7 million (Sept. 25), 119.8 million (Sept. 18), 125.7 million (Sept. 11), 124.9 million (Sept. 4), 123.7 million (Aug. 28) and 108.5 million (Aug. 21).
Nigeria’s CKay pushes 4-2 on the Global 200 with “Love Nwantiti (Ah Ah Ah)”; Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow’s “Industry Baby” holds at No. 3, after reaching No. 2; Ed Sheeran’s “Bad Habits” rebounds 5-4, following a week at No. 1; and Coldplay and BTS’ “My Universe” falls to No. 5 a week after it launched at No. 1, down 34% to 63.4 million streams and 79% to 29,700 sold.
Elsewhere in the Global 200’s top 10, Elton John and Dua Lipa’s “Cold Heart (Pnau Remix)” reaches the region, climbing 12-9 with 34.4 million streams (up 9%) and 27,700 sold (up 3%). John posts his first top 10 on the chart and Lipa adds her second, after “Levitating” hit No. 2 in May. On the Global Excl. U.S. chart, “Heart” ascends 9-7 for a new high.
In the mash-up, John sings part of his 1990 hit “Sacrifice” and Lipa reprises his 1972 classic “Rocket Man,” as well as his 1983 nugget “Kiss the Bride” (while the single’s coda interpolates John’s 1976 track “Where’s the Shoorah?”) Joining the two British stars, Australian trio Pnau sports co-writing and co-production credit on “Cold Heart.”
On the U.S.-based Billboard Hot 100 (where “Stay” leads for a seventh week), “Heart” jumps 46-32, becoming John’s first top 40 hit since April 1999, when he charted with the No. 29-peaking “Written in the Stars,” with LeAnn Rimes; he appeared in the ranking’s top 40 for a record 30 consecutive years, from “Your Song” in 1970 through “Stars.
With “Heart,” John scores his 58th top 40 Hot 100 hit, the seventh-most in the chart’s history (which dates to 1958). Here’s an updated leaderboard:
Most Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 Hits:
143, Drake
87, Lil Wayne
81, Elvis Presley
81, Taylor Swift
68, Kanye West
61, Nicki Minaj
58, Elton John
52, Eminem
52, Jay-Z
51, Glee Cast
51, Rihanna
TWICE’s First Top 10
The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber’s “Stay” scores an eighth week atop the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart, with 79.4 million streams (down 6%) and 8,500 sold (down 3%) in territories outside the U.S. in the Oct. 1-7 tracking week.
CKay’s “Love Nwantiti (Ah Ah Ah)” rises 3-2 for a new Global Excl. U.S. best; Coldplay and BTS’ “My Universe” drops to No. 3, a week after soaring in at No. 1; Ed Sheeran’s “Bad Habits” keeps at No. 4, after five weeks at No. 1; and Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow’s “Industry Baby” is steady at No. 5, following its No. 2 peak.
Plus, TWICE’s “The Feels” enters the Global Excl. U.S. chart at No. 10 with 50.9 million streams and 8,800 sold beyond the U.S. With its first English-language single, released Oct. 1, the nine-member South Korean group (which formed in 2015 and comprises Chaeyoung, Dahyun, Jeongyeon, Jihyo, Mina, Momo, Nayeon, Sana and Tzuyu) earns its first top 10 on the chart, following two top 40 entries: “I Can’t Stop Me” (No. 16, November 2020) and “Alcohol-Free” (No. 22, this June).
“The Feels” introduces TWICE’s third LP, Formula of Love: O+T=<3, due Nov. 12.
The Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated Oct. 16) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Oct. 12). For both charts, the top 100 titles are available to all readers on Billboard.com, while the complete 200-title rankings are visible on Billboard Pro, Billboard’s subscription-based service. For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
