The "Download Up" Theory

Hello again. Today, I want to share a theory in music that my brother and I have thought about. I call it the “Download Up” Theory.

For the Billboard Hot 100 positions, a song has to have good radio airplay, single sales, digital streams, and digital downloads. Our theory is about the reason artists wait to release a song digitally. We say that the artist waits until the single they released is at its peak of success, and then release it digitally. This allows for huge digital sales, meaning an pretty easy top spot on Billboard. Well, in the cases in which you release it at the exact peak of success. For instance, when Sean Kingston and Rihanna released their singles “Beautiful Girls” and “Umbrella” respectively at their peak of radio success, they shot up to number one on the Billboard Hot 100.

Sometimes, this is not the case, as a single may flop, or just not get enough attention. For instance, the Akon single “Sorry, Blame it on Me” did not get enough attention prior to digital release, causing it to debut at a depressing #7 (as in depressing for Akon, who has had 2 #1 singles) and falling ever since. Another example of this is Jay-Z’s latest, “Blue Magic”. Just after about 3 weeks of release, “Blue Magic” was released digitally. Because of the lack of attention, it debut below number 50.

To conclude this article, I shall put in my hopes of “Kiss Kiss (featuring T-Pain)” by Chris Brown debuts this week at number 1, as it was just released digitally last week. Thanks for reading! Also, think of this theory next time you look at past Billboard number ones.