Sia's "Cheap Thrills" is making a serious run at song of the summer after toppling Drake's "One Dance" from the top of Billboard's Hot 100 following a long 10-week run. Meanwhile, another A-list pop star is now making his summer song splash as Justin Bieber and Major Lazer's new release "Cold Water" is now gunning for the top spot.
Everyone was wondering who would finally knock 10-week chart topper Drake off his throne. Last month we clued you in on what looked to be an unexpected contender for top summer song, Sia's "Cheap Thrills." Although the song had actually been released in the winter to only tepid response, it slowly gained momentum due to several high profile TV performances by the singer, along with a tropical sounding production and Caribbean flavored rap by collaborator Sean Paul that gives the track natural, hot weather appeal.
A month later our prediction appears to have panned out, with Sia having topped Billboard's Hot 100 for the first time in her career and emerging as the artist who is finally able to deliver a knockout blow to Drake's "One Dance" phenomenon. It also marks the first Hot 100 chart topper for a female artist over 40 years of age since Cher and Madonna did so in 1999 and 2000 with "Believe" and "Music," respectively.
Sia did have a No. 1 hit as a writer on Rihanna's "Diamonds," which topped the Hot 100 for three weeks back in 2012. Ironically, "Cheap Thrills" was originally written by Sia for Rihanna's current Anti album. When it wasn't used for that collection, Sia decided to record a version of the track for herself.
Drake, however, may have a secret weapon in the cards that could return him to the top: the video for "One Dance," which was recently shot on location in South Africa and has yet to be released. Drake should experience a surge in recorded spins for the track when the video is released and that could help him regain the top spot.
"One Dance" also remains at the top of Billboard's on-demand streaming chart for a record breaking 14th week, although it was just bumped off the helm of Spotify's streaming chart by none other than Justin Bieber, with his new collaboration with Major Lazer (of "Lean On" fame), "Cold Water." That song, which was just released this week, should make a huge splash on Billboard's charts next week, and is just in time to still compete for song of the summer 2016.
