It’s shocking that it took someone as beloved as Grande this long to reach No. 1, but she couldn’t have done so with a more powerful tune.<\/b>
\nNEW YORK, NY — AUGUST 20: American Express and Ariana Grande present ‘The Sweetener Sessions’ at Irving Plaza on August 20,2018, in New York City. (Photo by Kevin Mazur\/Getty Images for American Express)
While she may already be one of the most famous musicians in the world, there is one achievement that has thus far eluded superstar Ariana Grande…at least until now. Before this week, Grande had never owned the Hot 100, but now she\u2019s changed all that, and she\u2019s done so in spectacular form.
The pop singer\u2019s new single \u201cThank U, Next\u201d debuts at No. 1 on the Hot 100 thanks to impressive first-week sales and streams, proving that there was immense interest in her latest upon arrival. Grande\u2019s new musical effort starts with 81,000 pure sales and 55.5 million streams in the U. S. alone, which is incredible considering when it was released.
\u201cThank U, Next\u201d was released Saturday (November 3) late in the evening, just before the new episode of Saturday Night Live aired. The timing likely wasn\u2019t coincidental, as the track mentions SNL cast member Pete Davidson by name. In the catchy, optimistic-yet-sad track, Grande also name-drops her other ex-boyfriends, such as Big Sean and Mac Miller, who she calls \u201can angel.\u201d
No. 1 debuts on the Hot 100 remain relatively rare, as there have only been just over 30 such instant smashes, which is out of hundreds of chart-toppers. \u201cThank U, Next\u201d is the fourth song to start at the top this year alone, following two successes from Drake (\u201cGod\u2019s Plan\u201d and \u201cNice For What,\u201d which debuted at No. 1 back-to-back) and one from Childish Gambino (\u201cThis Is America\u201d).
In addition to becoming her first No. 1 hit in the U. S., \u201cThank U, Next\u201d is Grande\u2019s eleventh top 10 hit, and her third this year. She collected her first when she launched \u201cNo Tears Left to Cry,\u201d which previewed her recent album Sweetener. That song climbed all the way to No. 3. It was quickly followed by the record\u2019s second official single \u201cGod is a Woman,\u201d which initially missed the highest tier, but which eventually made it to No. 8 when the full-length dropped.
\u201cThank U, Next\u201d is presumably the first single off of Grande\u2019s upcoming fifth studio album, which she has been openly discussing for some time now. The timing is a bit strange for her, as Sweetener was only released back in August, but based on the warm reception \u201cThank U, Next\u201d has been met with, it seems fans are eager for more from one of the world\u2019s most successful solo female pop stars to come along in a long time.
I am a freelance music journalist based in New York City. My byline has appeared in The Huffington Post, Billboard, Mashable, Noisey, The Hollywood Reporter, MTV, Fuse, and dozens of other magazines and blogs around the world. I love following charts and the biggest and most…
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