The race for song of the summer is still tight, with hit pop tracks from Drake, Justin Timberlake, Desiigner and The Chainsmokers battling it out for supremacy. Sia's "Cheap Thrills," however, is now giving all those songs a run for their money as it shoots up the charts after having been released for several months.
Back at the beginning of June, we told you about the predictions being made for songs of the summer by top on demand music streaming service Spotify and music identification app Shazam. All the usual suspects were present. At the time Drake's "One Dance" and Justin Timberlake's "Cant Stop The Feeling!" were already battling it out for the No. 1 spot, and hits like Desiigner's "Panda" and The Chainsmoker's "Don't Let Me Down" were also making their mark.
Other predictions included Fifth Harmony's "Work From Home" and Rihanna's new collaboration with Calvin Harris "This Is What You Came For." Both have considerably impacted the summer song chart since, proving the algorithms used by the streaming services were accurate.
We also told you that despite the current contenders, there would likely be a song or two that came out of left field, which no one was expecting to hit it big, that could suddenly take off and challenge the favorites. It looks like one of those songs has emerged in the form of Sia's "Cheap Thrills" collaboration with Sean Paul. Out of nowhere, the song has shot to the No. 3 spot on Spotify's most streamed tracks for the current week, and has also registered the highest gain in radio airplay of any song on Billboard's Hot 100, where it jumps from the No. 13 position to No. 8, its highest placing yet.
The surge occurs despite the fact that the song was released almost 5 months ago, and was not on anyone's radar to shoot towards the top after performing only modestly upon release. Why exactly it experienced a sudden upsurge is unclear, but one likely possibility is that the sound and theme of the song is suited perfectly to the hot summer season, with its reggae-tinged electropop production and lyrics about dancing the night away in carefree style. "Cheap Thrills" seems so much more suited for the soundtrack of the summer than the wintry snow days much of the country was experiencing when the song was released back in February.
Another reason for the rise could be Sia's relentless promotion of the track, which recently saw featured performances by the masked songstress on both the American Idol and The Voice finales, as well as a high profile appearance at the Coachella festival. Whatever the reason, it looks like "Cheap Thrills" is primed to take aim at the expected favorites.
As of now, however, there's still one song clearly leading the pack for song of the summer, and that's Drake's "One Dance." The tropical sounding R&B track has simply dominated the top of the streaming and Hot 100 Charts on various services for not just weeks but months now, and still remains in the No. 1 position. As we head into the dog days of summer, it will be interesting to see how much more staying power Drake's track really has, and if Sia or any newcomer can challenge it for the song of summer 2016.
