Billboard Top 10 Week of March 24: Marvel Music Universe

2018 is going at full speed as we are already in spring and almost 4 months in. One thing that doesn't seem to be going full speed though is the music charts, as things don't seem to change in the way that I wish they would. The top three songs seem to be glued onto the charts and haven't changed much in months at this point, while some of those three have gone up and down, they've maintained their spot at least on the top 10. The rest of the charts is pretty unexciting, as the newcomers are artists that have been playing it safe for years now, or just don't bring anything fresh to the table. It seems that pop music is still in need of some kind of shot to the arm to shake things up a bit. Lots of big artists seem to be failing at reaching the higher part of the charts with new big releases, Justin Timberlake the latest big name to drop a huge album only to get mostly negative reactions. This seems like the perfect time for new artists to step up and bring something fresh and new, possibly make a mainstream name for themselves. Artists like Dua Lipa, XXXTentacion, and Bebe Rexha are trying to get their names out there, but don't have a strong body of work outside of their current singles (which aren't that great either).  Here's a quick look at the top songs of the week:

1. Drake - God's Plan

Drake has taken his spot back as the number one streamed at the moment with his new song God's Plan. He and Ed Sheeran are battling it out for the top spot, but since Ed Sheeran's album has already been out for a year and Drake just released two singles recently, it helps boost Drake enough to beat him out for now. God's Plan is another song where Drake seems to complain about how much negative attention he's getting from conflicts and "haters" and also brag about how influential he is. The song is as boring as any of his other recent hits and doesn't really get me excited about anything else Drake might drop in the future. Of course, it doesn't matter what I feel because whatever Drake releases will get eaten up by the radio and streaming.

2. Ed Sheeran - Perfect

There are few pop songs that really stand the test of time for me. Songs that I really like when I first listen to them and continue to like even years after it's relevant. This song is not one of those. While at first, I enjoyed the song for its simple charm, I've grown tired of it at this point. It's strange to think that a song I really wanted to hate like Shape of You is still a song I can enjoy and a song that I wanted to enjoy like Perfect just bores me now.

3. Bruno Mars - Finesse (W/ Cardi B)

Yep, still fun. 

4. Bebe Rexha/FL-GA Line - Meant to Be

Another boring song by Florida Georgia Line and whoever Bebe Rexha is. This is supposed to be Bebe's song but honestly, I don't see the difference between her and the usual FL-GA Line song. Boring lyrics, boring music, boring vocals and just not worth listening more than once. This song just offers a bunch of cliches that any living adult has already heard 100s of times in music and other media. The sad part is that it took four people to write this song. FOUR people. This is what the music industry gives us with four paid writers. I'm in the wrong line of work.

5. Post Malone - Psycho (W/ Ty Dolla Sign $$$$$$$$)

Living meme Post Malone returns with another giant selling single with Psycho. While Rockstar was enjoyable for a few listens before it got old, Psycho was bad right from the first listen. Another brag rap song with generic lyrics you'd expect from this kind of song these days. I can barely tell the difference between Malone and Ty Dolla because they have such similar styles. I'm quickly starting to lose interest in Post Malone as an artist, though I find him to be an interesting person. I guess an interesting personality doesn't always transfer to good music. Hopefully, his next single will show more effort.

6. Zedd - The Middle (W/ Grey and Maren Morris)

Continuing with the boring music comes the new single by Zedd with Maren Morris. I've never really paid too much attention to Zedd, but he has a decent song with Selena Gomez recently... no wait, that was Kygo. I'm not really too familiar with this genre, though I do really like similar artists like Martin Solveig, Madeon and Michael Calfan. This (Zedd) doesn't offer as much excitement and great music like those other artists. The vocals are fine, but the music doesn't isn't good enough to carry the song into more than just being okay. It sounds more like something The Chainsmokers would make, which is not a compliment. 

7. Camilla Cabello - Havana (W/ Young Thug)

As I said 3 months ago (because this song has been on the top 10 the whole year), I like the idea of this song. The problem is just the execution and the terrible guest verse by Young Thug. Adding Young Thug to any song instantly makes it worse, I actually tried to turn on the subtitles and forgot that I was listening to music. Looking up the lyrics though it turns out he was just talking about sleeping with a sex worker or a stripper or something... that makes sense and totally fits with the song. This song has nothing to do with Havana. 

8. The Weeknd/Kendrick Lamar - Pray For Me

Black Panther is not only killing it at the box office but also in the music charts with two big songs from the Black Panther album. In this song, two giants team up (Kenrick and Weeknd) to bring a good song with some good lyrics. Weeknd takes care of the hook and the opening verse and Kendrick takes the second verse. The song is about the burden that the hero has to take on while he tries to save the world (like Black Panther). It's a theme that Kendrick touched upon his last album a lot, so it was cool to see it come back up. I really liked this song, both artists provided great work to the song, with good music and lyrics to elevate their talent.

9. BlocBoy JB - Look Alive (W/ Drake)

Nice to see Drake saving his best work for a guest spot on BlocBoy JB's song here. I'm still pretty tired of hearing these trap beats in the top of the charts, it's getting pretty boring. At least this one has some good energy, even from Drake who's been pretty boring in his last few releases. It's not something I will listen to often, but I can see why someone would like this. It's one of the better ones I've heard recently.

10. Sza & Kendrick Lamar - All The Stars

Nice to see Sza getting some attention in the charts, even better is it also has Kendrick attached to it. Sza is so great and I really enjoy her music, the chorus here is extremely catchy and memorable. The song pretty much follows the same format as Pray For Me, with Sza taking the hook and the second verse with Kendrick taking the first verse. I can pretty much say the same about this song that I said about Pray For Me. I like this song better though because I enjoy Sza way more than I ever enjoyed The Weeknd, and the chorus just feels more powerful and memorable as I said. If you haven't checked out the Black Panther album, I recommend giving it a listen.