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Atlantic Records
Alex Warren
Chart Beat
Alex Warren Ends ROSÉ's Reign at No. 1 on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 with 'Ordinary'
After seven weeks at No. 1, the Bruno Mars-assisted "APT." drops to No. 3, while influencer and singer Alex Warren scores his first chart leader with his brand of emphatic folk-pop songwriting.
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Alex Warren's latest milestone is definitely out of the ordinary.
The American folk-pop singer has climbed to the top of the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 on the chart dated April 19, hitting No. 1 with single "Ordinary" in its ninth week on the chart.
The song is a forceful tribute to the transformative power of romance, accompanied by a music video starring Warren's real-life wife Kouvr Annon. It got a boost in popularity after Warren performed it at the Love is Blind season 8 reunion on March 9, making him the first-ever live performer on the show.
Warren first hit the Canadian charts last year with "Carry You Home," another dedication to his wife that fits with contemporary anthemic folk artists like Noah Kahan and Michael Marcagi. "Ordinary" is a slightly more sombre affair, leaning towards gospel and moody piano chords that recall Hozier's breakthrough "Take Me To Church."
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Warren rose to fame as a popular YouTube and TikTok content creator, part of the Hype House collective online personalities based in California. His ascent to No. 1 is further proof of the current appetite for boys who belt: male singers like Benson Boone, Teddy Swims and Cameron Whitcomb, who draw on different genres but foreground an intensity of emotion via vocal power.
The style is particularly popular in Canada, where Boone's "Beautiful Things" hit No. 1 in 2024 before doing so south of the border. Warren's "Ordinary" sits at No. 7 in the U.S., while Kendrick Lamar and SZA's "Luther" still tops the chart.
It's also a trend that contrasts with the playful moment for female pop musicians, from Sabrina Carpenter to Chappell Roan to ROSÉ, who held the No. 1 spot in Canada with the upbeat Bruno Mars collab "APT." for seven weeks before dropping to No. 3 this week. Roan holds at No. 2 this week with "Pink Pony Club" — can her celebratory queer anthem make a play against the reigning belting boy for No. 1?
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Drake's "Nokia" moves up 8-6 this week, continuing to climb after the release of the Shai Gilgeous-Alexander-assisted music video. That's still lower than its spot in the U.S., where it hits No. 2 — making the U.S. Hot 100 look a little bit like a rehash of the biggest rap beef of last year, with Lamar at No. 1.
$ome$exy$ongs 4 U, Drake's collaborative album with PartyNextDoor is back atop another Canadian chart though, climbing back up No. 1 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart (it's No. 3 in the U.S).
Debuting on both Canadian and American Hot 100 charts this week is Miley Cyrus' new single "End of the World." The wistful pop track was co-written and produced by Molly Rankin and Alex O'Hanley of Canadian indie stars Alvvays, and it's got an appropriate boost north of the border. The track enters at No. 32 in Canada and No. 52 in the States.
Also debuting this week on the Canadian chart is "Crash" by Loud Luxury at No. 98. The Canadian dance-pop duo are doing well on the national radio airplay charts with this track — it's at No. 20 on the CHR/Top 40 chart this week. Driven by a bouncy synth bass, it's over in less than two and a half minutes, a quick shot of energy that would go over well at a beach party.
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Check out the full charts here.
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