Music Sounds Better With You

Reviewing the #1 single on the NZ music chart each week

[popmusic101]

The Days (Notion Remix) - Chrystal

3rd February 2025

Okay, here we go! Finally a new #1.

Notion's remix of Chrystal's 'The Days' has been lurking in the top three for a few weeks now and finally makes it to the top of the charts.

So this is a bit of a unique one. 'The Days' isn't exactly a new song. In fact it first came out in 2015. The original song is a bit different to the remix, slower and less peppy. Last year, Notion remixed the song to create the single that's currently reached the top spot on the charts.

I do like the remix better personally. The increased dance beats make the song feel more vital and give 'The Days' a sense of immediacy and passion.

So far New Zealand is the first country that 'The Days' has reached #1 in, but it's in the top five in several others. This is the first time both Notion and Chrystal have appeared on the NZ charts. Neither of them are super well known, but with 'The Days' now a #1 song I guess they now have a higher chance of future success.

Still, that said, this does feel a bit like it might be a one-and-done type deal for them. My gut feeling is that 'The Days' might stick around at #1 for a short while and then be easily knocked off the top spot once something new comes along. We'll have to wait and see what happens next week though. See you then.

[niggaloden]

nah he high key fucking snapped

[popmusic101]

Soulja Boy was ahead of the game on this one

[popmusic101]

Flashback: Swing - Savage

27th Jan 2025

I'm very very bored with 'APT.' at this point to be completely honest. It's still at #1, for the eleventh week now, and yes it's a fun song, but it's not so great that it should have this much of a chokehold on the charts. Give us something new! For the love of dog!

Annnnyyyway, we'll flashback twenty years and take a look at the charts in 2005 when the #1 was Savage's 'Swing'

The quality of this music video is absolutely shocking, but it's the best I could find on YouTube. Apologies. Good old 2005, aye? Fortunately the song itself is still excellent - this is an absolute classic of the early 2000s NZ hip-hop scene.

When I was at university, Savage performed this song at the uni bar and I guess his hips were swinging a bit too much because the stage broke and he fell through it. He was fine though! and the show went on.

Although 'Swing' only charted in NZ and Australia, the song featured in the movie Knocked Up and a subsequent remix with Soulja Boy managed to get it onto the US Billboard Charts as well, peaking at #45 there, which is impressive for a kiwi musician.

In 2013, Joel Fletcher, an Australian DJ, remixed the track at it recharted in both NZ and Australia. Frankly, I think the remix is pretty bad (the original didn't need to be improved on), but it's nice to see the song living on.

[voxina]

Jason Derulo giving One Direction credit for the success of Talk Dirty.

[vasfasan]

it's so funny to me how in 'Talk Dirty' Jason Derulo sings that he's been 'round the world' in 'New York to Haiti' when those places are literally not even in different timezones and is only about a 4 hour flight

[slytherinsav]

[sinc0]

[popmusic101]

Flashback: Replay - Iyaz

20th Jan 2025

Yet another week with 'APT.' at #1 and I gotta be honest, I'm getting a bit sick of it. I want a new #1 dammit!

In the meantime though we'll flashback fifteen years to 2010, and I can't really complain about that because it means we get to look at Iyaz's 'Replay' (which was in the #2 position at the time, after Stan Walker's 'Black Box' which we've already covered).

"Shawty's like a melody in my head" has to be one of the best hooks of the 2010's right? It's so good. I genuinely love this song. It doesn't even matter that no one really has iPods anymore - this song is still an absolute classic.

Unbelievably 'Replay' peaked at #2 on the NZ charts, with 'Black Box' preventing it from reaching the #1 spot. And no disrespect meant to my fellow countryman Stan Walker, but 'Replay' is a significantly better song and absolutely should have been a #1.

'Replay' was Iyaz's debut single and was co-written with Jason Derulo and Sean Kingston who certainly both know their way around a catchy tune.

Iyaz was kind of a one-hit wonder - he did have a few other singles, but I doubt most people could name them let alone sing them. But if you're going to be a one-hit wonder, then what a hit 'Replay' is. Truly a great all-timer of a pop song, to the extent that it became something of a Rick Roll-esque meme on TikTok back in 2020.

Iyaz may have disappeared from the music industry but 'Replay' is a song that will live on forever.

[friedpussylips]

Amy Winehouse/Mark Ronson @ 100club (2010)

[bitchtoss]

Amy Winehouse photographed by Mischa Richter for Back To Black, 2006

[amyjdewinehouse]

Amy Winehouse backstage at the Shepherd's Bush Empire on May 28th, 2007

[trashskywalker]

I love this, don’t ask me why.

credits (x)

[arsdamnatio]

This is one of those things you never asked for, but never knew you needed.

[sonofgodbeliver-deactivated2025]

A total Obama montage of uptown funk 😂🤣

[mizarchivist]

This supercut is one of my favorites

[popmusic101]

Flashback: Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars

13th January 2025

Another week in the top spot for Rosé and Bruno Mars' 'APT.' - come on 2025, we're waiting for a brand new #1 song! But while we wait for that to happen, we'll flashback ten years to 2015, when a different song featuring Bruno Mars was the #1. It's Mark Ronson's 'Uptown Funk'. Let's take a listen.

Apologies to Mark Ronson, but if you'd asked me earlier I would have said that 'Uptown Funk' was a Bruno Mars song. That's how much Mars completely owns the track. I think it actually makes a really nice comparison song with 'APT.' - both are infectious, fun, bouncy songs that really showcase Mars' sense of humour and of course his vocals, and there's even a bit of similarity in the style of the music videos.

'Uptown Funk' was a bit of an instant classic when it first came out, and deservedly so. It was in the #1 spot for nine weeks back in 2015, which is kind of funny because that's also how long 'APT.' has (currently) been at #1! It was Mars' third #1 single and Ronson's first and only #1 song, which is kind of surprising because I would have guessed 'Valerie' (his 2007 single with Amy Winehouse) was a #1 as well, and yet it only reached #39 on the charts. That's absolutely insane because 'Valerie' is such a popular song and still gets a reasonable amount of radio play today.

'Uptown Funk' was inspired by a song by The Gap Band called 'Oops Up Side Your Head', but a couple of other artists have also accused Ronson of copying their songs including Collage's 'Young Girls'; The Sequence's 'Funk You Up'; and Zapp's 'More Bounce To The Ounce'. Personally speaking, I can hear it a little in all three songs, but it seems like more of a passing similarity than anything else. People have also said the theme song for the British kids TV show 'The Really Wild Show' sounds similar and yeah, I guess it sort of does too, but I think it all really just comes down to a similar style and genre of music than anything else. Side note though: 'The Really Wild Show' looks super cool and ten year old me would have been super into it!

Regardless, 'Uptown Funk' is an incredible track and I'm glad we got to flashback to it. I just hope we can get to hear some new 2025 music next week! Please? Please?

[mdnet]

Tate McRae for It's ok I'm ok.

[leggycelebs]

Tate McRae

[popmusic101]

Flashback: Glitter - Benee

6th January 2025

New year, old song! Rosé and Bruno Mars' 'APT.' is back in the #1 spot (that makes a total of eight weeks at the top now), so we'll flashback five years to 2020. We've covered the #1 (Tones And I's 'Dance Monkey') and #2 (Arizona Zervas' 'Roxanne') already, so we'll take a look at the #3: Benee's 'Glitter'.

Whatever happened to Benee? I honestly haven't heard of her in several years, but there was a while in 2019 and 2020 when she was inescapable on the NZ airwaves. According to good old wikipedia she spent last year touring with (and I'm assuming opening for) Olivia Rodrigo and will soon be touring with Tate McRae. So she's keeping busy and is apparently still releasing music although none of her recent stuff has charted.

I can only speak for myself but I do think she was maybe a little too overexposed and overplayed in 2020 and I know I got a bit sick of some of her songs and the 'I'm quirky' vibe that she chose to lean into.

However, five years have passed since then and listening to 'Glitter' with fresh ears, it's definitely a nice song if not necessarily a great one. Benee has a great voice and I'd be interested to see her doing some slightly more "grown up" work. No shade meant, she was only 20 when 'Glitter' was released, but it definitely comes across as a song by a 20 year old.

Anyway hopefully she continues to release more music because I always root for NZ artists to do well.

See you next week when hopefully we get a brand new #1. Fingers crossed.