“Billboard” 200
The top of the chart has been in constant flux over the past four weeks. It looks like new releases that had been waiting for the post-holiday lull have finally begun rolling out one after another. From Morgan Wallen, whose music has never been without its share of love since 2025, to rising country star Zach Bryan, the long-awaited return of young savant A$AP Rocky, and living legend Megadeth with their final album, it’s been a month of waves from all across the genre spectrum crashing in turn. And there’s more going on than just the battle for No. 1. For the first time in a while, there’s real movement and energy all throughout the upper part of the chart.

Wallen’s album “I’m The Problem” was No. 1 on the chart dated the third week of January. The album debuted at No. 1 last May and racked up a total of 12 weeks at the position by August. Since then the album could consistently be found toward the top of the chart, and here, it spent a 13th week at No. 1 on the back of 85,000 album equivalent units, mainly from streaming. Specifically, it was streamed 87.75 million times, equating to 82,000 units, and became No. 1 on the Top Streaming Albums chart for the 20th time. That same week, Olivia Dean’s album “The Art of Loving” climbed to No. 3, a new peak. “Loving” also enjoyed record highs at No. 3 in both streaming and album sales.

In the fourth week of January, Zach Bryan’s “With Heaven On Top” debuted at No. 1, marking the singer’s second chart-topper and fifth Top 10 album overall. Bryan first discussed “With Heaven On Top” as an EP early last year. When it finally arrived a year later, “Heaven” ended up being 25 tracks long. The album is currently available only for streaming and downloading, but CD and vinyl editions are slated to arrive next month. The album moved 134,000 units over the week, with 127,000 of those coming from 130.3 million streams, making it the most-streamed album of the week. Although only available in digital, sales still made up 6,000 units, placing “Heaven” at No. 7 on the Top Album Sales chart.

Elsewhere on the week’s chart, Wallen’s “I’m The Problem” was No. 2 with 82,000 units, lining up with its figure from the previous week. With country albums taking up both No. 1 and No. 2 on the “Billboard” 200, we saw a first since February 2024, when Toby Keith’s compilation album “35 Biggest Hits” was No. 1 and “One Thing At A Time” by Wallen was No. 2. The Kid LAROI’s latest album, “BEFORE I FORGET,” debuted at No. 6 with 41,000 units, his second time entering the Top 10. With 11,000 of those coming from album sales, it hit No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart.

In the fifth week of January, A$AP Rocky returned with his third No. 1 album, “Don’t Be Dumb.” It’s Rocky’s third chart-topper after “LONG.LIVE.A$AP” in February 2013 and “AT.LONG.LAST.A$AP” in June 2015. “Dumb” posted 123,000 units for the week. It logged 78 million streams, or 76,000 units, a personal best for the artist and enough to land the album at No. 1 on the Top Streaming Albums chart. The album also sold 47,000 copies, putting it at No. 3 on the Top Album Sales chart. Of those, 40,000 were on vinyl. Sales were driven partly thanks to the availability of a dozen different vinyl editions.

That same week, the Bad Bunny album “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS” jumped from No. 12 to No. 3 thanks to an Amazon-exclusive vinyl release. “FOToS” moved an impressive 119,000 units over the week, making it the No. 3 album. Sales accounted for 85,000 units, all thanks to the vinyl. In fact, the figure blew past the album’s initial 48,000 vinyl sales last May and set a new record for most vinyl sales of a Spanish-language album. Amazon has been deepening its partnership with Bad Bunny, including streaming the final night of the Puerto Rican artist’s concert on his home turf last September. On Friday, February 8, the week before the Super Bowl halftime show, Bad Bunny dropped yet another vinyl edition. We’ll be waiting to see how that and the expected surge in streams following the Super Bowl shake up the charts. Meanwhile, “Slime Cry” by YoungBoy Never Broke Again debuted at No. 6, marking his 17th Top 10 and tying him with Drake for the second-most Top 10 albums among hip hop artists. The record belongs to Future, with 18. “locket” by Madison Beer debuted at No. 10, scoring the singer not only her first Top 40 hit but also her first Top 10. She previously peaked at No. 65 with “Life Support” in 2021.

In the chart for the first week of February, Megadeth hit No. 1 with their self-titled and reportedly final studio album. After first appearing on the chart in 1986, the band has finally reached the top for the first time. In that time, Megadeth had 23 albums on the “Billboard” 200—nine of them in the Top 10—with their previous record belonging to 1992’s “Countdown to Extinction,” which reached No. 2. The fact that the band reached No. 1 exactly 39 years and three months after their first time on the chart is notable in itself. A similar case is Black Sabbath, who scored their first No. 1 with their album “13” in 2013, 42 years and 10 months after their 1970 debut album. Among solo acts, James Taylor earned his first No. 1 with “Before This World” in 2015, taking 45 years and four months from 1970, and David Bowie reached No. 1 for the first time with “Blackstar”—a wait of 43 years and 10 months from 1972.

“Megadeth” moved 73,000 units over the week. Of those, sales made up 69,000 copies, putting it at No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart. It was Megadeth’s biggest sales week since “Risk” sold 74,000 copies in 1999. The band’s latest and final album topped the chart on the back of the lowest number of units since last May, when SZA’s “SOS” was No. 1 with just 52,000 units.

Hot 100: Bruno Mars
The Bruno Mars single “I Just Might” debuted at No. 1 on the chart for the fourth week of January and held onto the spot the following week. This is Mars’ 10th No. 1 to date, and his first to debut right at the top. Previously, his highest debut was No. 3 with “Die With A Smile,” his duet with Lady Gaga.

Mars’ 10 No. 1s tie him at third among male soloists with Stevie Wonder, behind Drake and Michael Jackson, themselves tied at 13. Mars is tied for 10th among artists of all stripes. The singer has now spent a total of 41 weeks at No. 1, putting him in ninth place for that particular record. If you narrow that down again to male soloists exclusively, he’s number three, behind Drake (56 weeks) and Usher (47).

“I Just Might” saw 23.5 million streams and 13,000 paid downloads in its first week. It entered Streaming Songs at No. 1, Mars’ fourth time at the top of that chart. The single also debuted at No. 1 on the Digital Song Sales chart, his 12th No. 1 there. In the highest airplay debut for a male solo artist since 1998, “Might” entered at No. 12.

“Might” logged 17.1 million streams (No. 2) and 9,000 downloads (No. 1) in its second week. It leaped to No. 9 on the radio, becoming Mars’ 21st Top 10 on the relevant chart. Of Mars’ 10 No. 1s so far, eight have managed to hold tight at the top for at least two weeks—a success rate of 80%. Among artists with 10 or more No. 1 hits, Mars is tied for second for the percentage of those that met the distinction for two weeks or more with Janet Jackson (also 8 of 10). The only artist ahead of them is Mariah Carey, at 89% (17 of 19).

Mars is set to release “The Romantic” on February 27, his first solo album in 10 years following 2016’s “24K Magic.” Of course, in the meantime, his work with Anderson .Paak under the name Silk Sonic and his collabs with Lady Gaga and ROSÉ were all runaway hits. Even so, it’s a rare showing to command this level of influence again as a solo act after roughly a year of laying low.

That same week, Olivia Dean’s “Man I Need” rose to No. 2 on the Hot 100, a new high. Ella Langley’s single “Choosin’ Texas” hit No. 1 on the Streaming Songs chart with 18 million streams, her first time topping the chart. The song sat at No. 6 on the Hot 100 and had been No. 1 on Hot Country Songs for nine weeks. Elsewhere, Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” went to rule Radio Songs for a 27th week, tying “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey for the record.

Hot 100: Harry Styles
Harry Styles is back, too. His new song “Aperture” debuted at No. 1 in the first week of February, his third No. 1 following “Watermelon Sugar” in 2020 and “As It Was” in 2022. Over the week, “Aperture” was streamed 18.2 million times, hitting No. 1 on the Streaming Songs chart, Styles’ second No. 1 in streaming after “As It Was.” With 4,000 downloads, it was also No. 4 on the Digital Song Sales chart. The single debuted at No. 19 on Radio Songs, just like “As It Was.”

The year kicked off with a run of newly debuted No. 1s on the chart. Debuting at No. 1 is common enough these days, but having them pile up right at the start of the year is rarer than you might think. There’s only been two other years in history where two different songs debuted at No. 1 in January and February, and the Bruno Mars/Harry Styles releases are the earliest it’s ever happened. The other two cases were in 2024 (“yes, and?” by Ariana Grande and “HISS” by Megan Thee Stallion) and in 2011 (“Hold It Against Me” by Britney Spears and “Born This Way” by Lady Gaga).

“Aperture” made waves from the moment it dropped, with the pop artist giving the world his first full-on dance track. Consequently, it became the first song ever to top both the Hot 100 and the Hot Dance/Pop Songs chart, which launched last January.

Styles’ upcoming album, “Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally.,” comes out on March 6. For the record, all three of his solo albums to date—2017’s “Harry Styles,” 2019’s “Fine Line,” and 2022’s “Harry’s House”—debuted at No. 1.

The Olivia Dean song “Man I Need” hit No. 1 on the Radio Songs chart, a first for the artist. She dethroned Alex Warren’s “Ordinary,” which spent more time on the radio at No. 1 than any song before it. This is the first time since 2022 that a British artist has been No. 1 on both the Hot 100 and Radio Songs, following “Unholy” by Sam Smith and Kim Petras.

Artist: ENHYPEN
ENHYPEN’s mini album “THE SIN: VANISH” debuted at No. 2 on the “Billboard” 200 for the fifth week of January, tying their previous high with 2024’s “ROMANCE: UNTOLD.” It’s also the group’s ninth appearance on the chart overall, and their fifth Top 5 in a row. ENHYPEN first cracked the Top 10 with “MANIFESTO: DAY 1” back in 2022, and all five albums they’ve released since have debuted within the Top 5.

The album opened with 122,000 units, 113,000 of which were from traditional album sales, giving ENHYPEN their fourth No. 1 atop the album sales chart following 2025’s “DESIRE: UNLEASH,” 2024’s “ROMANCE: UNTOLD,” and 2022’s “MANIFESTO: DAY 1.” “VANISH” was also streamed 9.5 million times for 9,000 units, the group’s best weekly streaming figure to date.

Meanwhile, ENHYPEN reached No. 1 on the Artist 100 chart for the first time. “Knife” debuted at No. 90 on the Global 200 and No. 62 on the Global Excl. US chart, marking the group’s fifth and eighth times on the respective charts. “Knife” also debuted at No. 1 on World Digital Song Sales, a first for ENHYPEN.

Artist: Djo
The iconic Netflix series “Stranger Things” has come to a close. The show previously turned ’80s classics by Kate Bush, Metallica, and others into streaming smash hits. For its final season, the series pulled together everything from giants like Prince and David Bowie to campus radio staples of the era like Pixies and Cowboy Junkies. All of them saw big boosts, with streams at least doubling and, in Prince’s case, surging more than sevenfold.

But the artist who will be remembered as the biggest “Stranger Things” musical success story is Djo, better known as Joe Keery, who portrayed Steve Harrington on the show. Following the season finale, streams of Djo’s catalog jumped 114%, and digital sales more than quadrupled. Half of that came from his viral hit “End of Beginning.” Released in 2022, the song originally climbed to No. 11 on the Hot 100 in 2024. It returned to the Hot 100 with renewed momentum at No. 16 in the second week of January, then climbed to No. 6 in week three, marking his first Top 10. Immediately afterward, the song also rose to No. 1 on a number of other charts, including general lists like Streaming Songs and the Global 200, as well as genre-specific charts like Hot Rock & Alternative Songs, Hot Rock Songs, and Hot Alternative Songs.

What’s especially interesting is that “End of Beginning” is never actually used anywhere in “Stranger Things.” While, yes, Keery plays one of the show’s most beloved characters, it’s still remarkable that a song released years ago—one that had already reached its commercial peak—surged back all the way into the Top 10. It’s on par with the Kate Bush song “Running Up That Hill” going to No. 1 on the Global 200 after being featured in season four. Djo started up his music career alongside his work with “Stranger Things,” and there’s a generation of listeners who grew up with the show. Maybe they were, in a sense, performing a communal ritual where they say goodbye to the series with “End of Beginning.” In recent years, songs used in TV shows have blown up in popularity, but the public’s affection always seems to stay one step ahead of what anyone expects.

• Huntrix’s new radio single “How It’s Done” debuted at No. 40 on the Pop Airplay chart in the fourth week of January. “Golden” topped the same chart for three weeks in November and Radio Songs this past January. In the fifth week of January, “Golden” also hit No. 1 on Adult Pop Airplay. It’s the first K-pop song to be No. 1 on that particular chart since ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” peaked at No. 2 last April.
• KATSEYE’s single “Internet Girl” debuted at No. 29 on the Hot 100, No. 23 on Top Streaming Songs, and No. 32 on the Global 200 in the third week of January. The song is KATSEYE’s first time debuting in the Hot 100 Top 40. That same week, “Gabriela” reached new highs of No. 21 on the Hot 100 and No. 28 on Radio Songs. “SIS (Soft Is Strong)” returned to the “Billboard” 200 at No. 194 and the Top Album Sales chart at No. 18 in the fifth week of January. It then climbed to No. 138 and No. 9 on the respective charts in the first week of February.
• DK x SEUNGKWAN’s EP “Serenade” debuted at No. 195 on the “Billboard” 200 and No. 6 on Top Album Sales in the fifth week of January.
• The CORTIS EP “COLOR OUTSIDE THE LINES” returned to Top Album Sales at No. 17 in the fourth week of January, rising to No. 13 in the first week of February.
• In the fourth week of January, YEONJUN’s EP “NO LABELS: PART 01” returned to Top Album Sales at No. 20.
• ILLIT’s single “NOT CUTE ANYMORE” reached a new peak of No. 60 on the Global 200 in the third week of January. “bomb” returned to Top Album Sales at No. 41 in the fifth week of January.
• Similarly, PLAVE’s single “BBUU!” reached a new high on the Global 200 dated the third week of January, hitting No. 138.
• “Who” by Jimin returned to the Global 200 in the fifth week of January at No. 180.
• Jin’s song “Don't Say You Love Me” returned to the Global 200 that same week at No. 195.