Hit Parade

What makes a song a smash? Talent? Luck? Timing? All that—and more.

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About the Show

Chris Molanphy, a pop-chart analyst and author of Slate’s “Why Is This Song No. 1?” series, tells tales from a half-century of chart history. Through storytelling, trivia, and song snippets, Chris dissects how that song you love—or hate—dominated the airwaves, made its way to the top of the charts, and shaped your memories forever.

Host

  • Chris Molanphy is a feature writer and critic who writes widely about music and the pop charts.

The Bridge: The Sun Never Set on the Britpop Empire

Our producer tells us about his Britpop cover, and Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine traces the music’s roots.

Champagne Supernova Edition

What was Britpop—a scene, a sound, a movement? What were Oasis and Blur scrapping over? And why was America (mostly) immune?

The Bridge: Video Pilled Suburbia’s Child

DJ and editor Lori Majewski says she was “Poltergeisted” when MTV brought British New Wave to U.S. Gen-X teens

The British Are Charting Edition

What did the British Invasion of the ’60s and the Second British Invasion of the ’80s have in common?

The Bridge: Still a Rock Star

Critic and author Annie Zaleski says Pink tries everything because her voice can do anything.

Raise Your Glass Edition

How P!nk earned the exclamation point in her name, with filter-free bravado and music that pivoted from R&B to rock.

The Bridge: Losing Hootie’s Religion

The man who signed Hootie & the Blowfish to the majors says they mainstreamed the formerly indie jangle of R.E.M.

A Little Love and Some Tenderness Edition

How Darius Rucker defied genre stereotypes twice—first with Hootie & the Blowfish, then with his solo country stardom.

The Bridge: Tell Her Sweet Little Lies

Critic and Christine McVie eulogizer Alfred Soto says she was Fleetwood Mac’s songwriter for the morning after.

Thinking About Tomorrow Edition

How the late Christine McVie kept Fleetwood Mac afloat during fallow periods until they became chart conquerors.

Hits of the Year Edition

Why Glass Animals beat Harry Styles for Billboard’s top song of 2022—year-end upsets date back to the Stones vs. Sam the Sham.

The Bridge: Pub Rock, Power Pop and New Wave

Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine breaks down the scenes and sounds that led to—and flowed out of—punk.

Angry Young Men Edition

How three British post-punkers named Joe, Graham, and Elvis helped “write the book” on New Wave.

The Bridge: Chi-Town, Soul Town

Chicago music expert Ayana Contreras says the Great Migration made the Midwest funkier and more soulful.

Give Up the Funk Edition

In the ’70s, funk tore the roof off the charts, and taught a generation what it meant to get on the One.

The Bridge: Lost Hits vs. Legacy Hits

Radio analyst Sean Ross says the airwaves are the ultimate arbiter of which hits endure—or disappear.

At Last, My Legacy Has Come Along Edition

What is a “legacy hit”? A chart flop back in the day that’s now a classic—from “Tiny Dancer” to “What I Like About You.”

The Bridge: Let Me Be the One

Boston Globe and Time critic Maura Johnston says freestyle, however fizzy, was also profoundly emo.

Point of No Return Edition

How freestyle—a frenetic, synthetic Latin-flavored ’80s dance genre—bridged the disco and hip-hop eras while racking up scores of hits.

The Bridge: Sync Is Both Stranger and Shameless

Publishing exec and TV-sync expert Mara Kuge says placing a song on a show is a songwriter’s jackpot.