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Chart Beat

Karan Aujla Scores First Top Ten Hit on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 With 'Wavy'

Also this week: Tate McRae's new single "2 Hands" arrives at No. 22, while Shawn Mendes' fifth album Shawn lands at No. 24 on the Canadian Albums chart — and Christmas comes roaring back onto the charts.

Karan Aujla

Karan Aujla

Karan Aujla/Instagram

Karan Aujla is making waves on the charts this week with his first top ten single.

"Wavy" debuts at No. 7 on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 for the chart dated November 30. It's a big week on the Canadian charts — Gracie Abrams has halted Shaboozey's record-setting run at No. 1 — and Aujla is making his own history.


While Aujla previously hit No. 5 on the Canadian Albums chart with the Ikky collab Making Memories, this marks his highest charting song on the Canadian Hot 100. The swaggering hip-hop influenced track finds Aujla singing in Punjabi over a punchy snare and emphatic string loop, accompanied by a music video featuring footage of the rising star on-and-off stage at the major venues he's already filling.

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Earlier this summer, Aujla reached No. 25 with the Bollywood single "Tauba Tauba," and last year's "52 Bars" with Ikky hit No. 13.

The achievement caps off a big year for the B.C.-based Punjabi artist, who won the Juno fan choice award and set out on his first Canadian tour, with three arena performances. We can expect more big moves from him in 2025.

Aujla isn't the only Canadian with a strong chart debut this week.

Tate McRae's new single, "2 Hands," arrives at No. 22. The single, powered by a peppy breakbeat, comes ahead of her just-announced third album, So Close To What, out February 21.

Previous single "It's Ok, I'm Ok" peaked at No. 13, but with a strong falsetto hook and a drag racing themed video this one could speed its way into the top ten. McRae will bring her "2 Hands" to six Canadian cities next year, as part of the Miss Possessive tour.

Shawn Mendes also makes a return on the Canadian Hot 100, with the bittersweet tribute to a late friend "Heart of Gold" re-entering at No. 96. Over on the Canadian Albums chart, his fifth album — and his first since 2020's Wonder — arrives at No. 24. The album also landed at No. 26 on the Billboard 200, his first album not to top the chart.

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But Mendes has been purposeful about his return to music following the cancellation of his 2022 world tour due to his mental health. He's playing smaller venues and building connection with fans, rather than shooting for big-tent pop hits — coming back on his own terms, which is a win for any artist.

Elsewhere on the charts, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas" re-enters the Canadian Hot 100 at No. 13, joined by Bobby Helms' "Jingle Bell Rock" at No. 28. Andy Williams' "It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" is back at No. 36 and Canada's king of Christmas, Michael Bublé, is at No. 37 with "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas."

Bublé's holiday album Christmas climbs to No. 9 on the Albums chart, while Christmas songs by Dean Martin, Ariana Grande, and Kelly Clarkson have also re-entered the Canadian Hot 100.

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Expect things to get increasingly seasonal in the weeks to come, and check out the full charts here.

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Executive of the Week: Justin West of Secret City Records on the Secrets of Independent Music Success​
Record Labels

Executive of the Week: Justin West of Secret City Records on the Secrets of Independent Music Success​

The man behind of Canada's most successful indie labels talks about the late-blooming success of French-language streaming record-holder Patrick Watson, why he builds long-term relationships with artists, and why it's important for the indie sector to work together.

Justin West is a leader and advocate in Canada’s independent music scene, but he didn’t plan it out that way. When he started his record label Secret City Records in Montreal in the mid-2000s, it was out of necessity. He had met an artist he loved and wanted to build a career with, and the label was a means to do it. That artist was Patrick Watson, and 20 years later he — and Secret City — are more successful than ever.

West — a multiple time Billboard Canada Power Player – leads one of the biggest indie labels in Canada while also advocating for the sector on multiple boards both locally and internationally. When we speak to him for this Executive of the Week interview, he’s just returned from Banff for the National Summit on Artificial Intelligence and Culture, and is a central figure in discussions around the Online Streaming Act and collective negotiations with online streaming platforms.

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