I don;t like the US Billboard 100 is formulated or configured currently. I don;t like it because a song with no or without any significant airplay can chart because of digital sales of the song alone. For example "Keeps Gettin Better" by Christina Aguilera peaked at #7 without any significant airplay I think, "3" by Britney Spears went to #1 because of digital sales of the song alone, and "We Are The World(For Haiti) peaked at #2 earlier this year without even hitting the Top 40 in the Billboard Hot 100 airplay charts. I say Billboard should change these practices and weigh digital sales and airplay more evenly.Finally  I don;t like how songs currently ping-pong forward and backward either on the chart every week because of this practice of weighing digital sales alot more heavily than airplay.

Digital downloading is preferred by Top 40 listeners above radio.  Radio suffered from extreme consolidation and homogenization over the past 15 years.  It became insufferable.  When you hear the same radio announcer doing the same routine in Santa Fe as in Bangor, people lose interest.  Regional radio stations and their on-air personalities had an intimate connection with the communities they served.  Clear Channel killed that.  Then when facile downloading technology hit the market early in the '00s, Top 40 radio had nothing to offer as an alternative, unless you liked Howard Stern, Opie & Anthony, or that kind of juvenile garbage. 

I'm in the community radio business, so I could go on about this forever!
::)

Digital downloading is preferred by Top 40 listeners above radio.  Radio suffered from extreme consolidation and homogenization over the past 15 years.  It became insufferable.  When you hear the same radio announcer doing the same routine in Santa Fe as in Bangor, people lose interest.  Regional radio stations and their on-air personalities had an intimate connection with the communities they served.  Clear Channel killed that.  Then when facile downloading technology hit the market early in the '00s, Top 40 radio had nothing to offer as an alternative, unless you liked Howard Stern, Opie & Anthony, or that kind of juvenile garbage. 

I'm in the community radio business, so I could go on about this forever!
::)


Maxwell, is that why albums sales started to decline in 2001 (like you said, the early 00s) because of uninteresting radio show formats and the increase in downloading technology?

And I also think the  horrible quality of music might have something to do with decrease radio listeners also.  ;)

Digital downloading is preferred by Top 40 listeners above radio.  Radio suffered from extreme consolidation and homogenization over the past 15 years.  It became insufferable.  When you hear the same radio announcer doing the same routine in Santa Fe as in Bangor, people lose interest.  Regional radio stations and their on-air personalities had an intimate connection with the communities they served.  Clear Channel killed that.  Then when facile downloading technology hit the market early in the '00s, Top 40 radio had nothing to offer as an alternative, unless you liked Howard Stern, Opie & Anthony, or that kind of juvenile garbage. 

I'm in the community radio business, so I could go on about this forever!
::)
I don;t mind digital downloads being counted into the configuration of the Billboard Hot 100 but to have a song go to #1 on the Hot 100 with no radio airplay is crazy.

Not just in the US, but in Canada as well.  Some good examples ...

♦ On December 27, 2007, the song 'Speakerphone' by Kylie Minogue hit #87 in Canada based on downloads alone.  It was never released as a single and spent only 1 week in the chart

♦ In September of 2008, LoveGame by Lady Gaga spent 1 week on the Canadian chart at #68, when it was just an album track.  It was eventually issued as a single in March of 2009

♦ On February 21, 2009, 'Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)' by Lady Gaga debuted at #68 in Canada based on downloads alone.  It only spent 1 week in the chart, but still quite an achievement for a song that was never released as a single in North America.

♦ 'I Wanna Go Crazy', the 2009 collaboration between will.i.am and David Guetta was released as a digital only single 1 day before Guetta's album 'One Love' was released.  Based on iTunes downloads alone, it reached #83 in Canada and #92 in the UK

Not just in the US, but in Canada as well.  Some good examples ...

♦ On December 27, 2007, the song 'Speakerphone' by Kylie Minogue hit #87 in Canada based on downloads alone.  It was never released as a single and spent only 1 week in the chart

♦ In September of 2008, LoveGame by Lady Gaga spent 1 week on the Canadian chart at #68, when it was just an album track.  It was eventually issued as a single in March of 2009

♦ On February 21, 2009, 'Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)' by Lady Gaga debuted at #68 in Canada based on downloads alone.  It only spent 1 week in the chart, but still quite an achievement for a song that was never released as a single in North America.

♦ 'I Wanna Go Crazy', the 2009 collaboration between will.i.am and David Guetta was released as a digital only single 1 day before Guetta's album 'One Love' was released.  Based on iTunes downloads alone, it reached #83 in Canada and #92 in the UK
Yeah but it seems like of the songs you mentioned radio airplay and digital sales are weighted more evenly or tilted towards airplay in the UK and Canada than they are in the US.