Let’s start this week as we roll through the dog days of summer with an obvious choice for the Pop/Hot AC world.
Justin Bieber is back with a new album called “Swag” and a good first single called “DAISIES” that should do well. BLACKPINK / “Jump” has a driving, memorable beat and could be a winner at Top 40 with quite a few on board already, including KIIS in LA.
There is no streaming story on this yet, but it sounds like a potential hit, and that would be Conan Gray / “Vodka Cranberry.”
One more to mention, as I truly believe this could be a significant crossover record, especially for Hot AC, is Scotty McCreery’s “Bottle Rockets,” which features the hook from “Hold My Hand” by Hootie & The Blowfish. The song is streaming over five million per week, and it sounds perfect for the format.
Let’s move into the Country world since I just mentioned Scotty. One piquing my ears up this week is Miranda Lambert & Chris Stapleton / “A Song To Sing.” Two great voices sounding really good together, and just a good-sounding song.
Liking Megan Moroney / “ 6 Months Later.” It’s really got a nice groove, and it’s catchy. Early big believers include KSON/San Diego and WQNU in Louisville.
Let’s go into the ROCK world for this week and start with a very talented guy by the name of Matt Maeson / “Downstairs.” I love the lyric “I just want to drift away downstairs with my beer and my lawn chair.” If you have not put this one into your ears, please do it soon. All Time Low/ “The Weather” is very catchy and worth consideration.
I firmly believe Shinedown does not write many bad songs. Get your ears on “Killing Fields” sooner rather than later.” This could be another big hit from them that you need to hear.
One final one this week in Rock comes from the AAA side, Counting Crows / “With Love from A-Z.” A cool, vibey effort from Adam Duritz and the boys, which is receiving nice love from WXPN in Philadelphia and WXRT in Chicago.
Onto the Rhythm / Dance world, and Jane Handcock feat Anderson Paak / “Stare At Me” has a great hook, and I love the horns in this song.
Next up for your ears this week, the Biebs is back for the Rhythmic format as well with “Sweet Spot” by Justin Bieber & Sexyy Redd.
Enjoy the ear candy this weekend.
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Jim Ryan is a Music Radio columnist for Barrett Media. In addition, he runs Jim Ryan Media LLC, a consulting company which assists major market radio brands and top talent including national radio personality Delilah. Prior to relaunching his consultancy in 2025, Jim spent 15 years with Audacy/CBS Radio, serving as SVP of Programming. Among his responsibilities included programming WNEW-FM and WCBS-FM. His career includes additional programming stops in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Houston. Jim was voted the #2 PD of 2024 in Barrett Media’s Top 20 series in the AC category. He can be reached by email at Jim@JimRyanMedia.com.
