It’s been two years since Sam Smith had a song in the Billboard Hot 100 — the last was his Oscar winning “Writing’s on the Wall” from the movie “Spectre. And it’s been even longer since he had a song in the top five — the last was his 2014 single “I’m Not the Only One.” But that’s right where he has ended up thanks to his new breakup song “Too Good at Goodbyes.” He debuts at number-five this week, his all-time highest bow. But can he climb higher? He has yet to top the chart in his career, but he’d have to unseat Taylor Swift, who is comfortably ensconced in the top spot for the third straight week.
“Look What You Made Me Do” has burned bright since its blockbuster debut, but it may already be fading. Though it’s the top song of the week overall, it’s not the top song in streaming, digital sales, or radio airplay, the three metrics used to determine the Hot 100. That makes it vulnerable not just to Sam Smith, but to Cardi B‘s “Bodak Yellow,” which remains at number-two this week but is now the top streaming song in the country, and “1-800-273-8255” by Logic featuring Khalid and Alessia Cara, which jumps from number-five to number-three on this week’s chart.
To date, the best Sam Smith has done on the Billboard Hot 100 was, unsurprisingly, his Grammy winning breakthrough hit “Stay with Me” (2014), which peaked at number-two. And along with that song, “I’m Not the Only One,” and now “Goodbyes,” he has two other top-10 hits: “Latch” with Disclosure (number-seven in 2012) and “Lay Me Down” (number-eight in 2015). What do you think of Smith’s chances of unseating Swift next week? Watch Billboard’s video above to see what else made the top 10, and discuss this and more with your fellow music fans in our forums.
