When rock ‘n roll exploded in the 1950s, it wasn’t exactly welcomed with open arms by older audiences and the radio industry. Many dismissed it as a passing fad or considered it too loud, too rebellious and simply inappropriate for the enthusiastic young fans. While the radio leaders were busy questioning whether this new sound belonged on their air, younger listeners already made up their minds. Independent stations and adventurous DJs like Alan Freed recognized what was happening and started playing the music that teenagers actually wanted to hear. The result wasn’t just a few hit records. It was a fundamental shift in popular culture and the radio stations willing to embrace it helped shape what Top 40 radio would eventually become.
70 years later, it’s interesting how familiar that sounds. Today, radio programmers have access to more information about what people are listening to than at any point in history, yet there’s still a tendency to wait until a song has proven itself everywhere else before giving it a chance. TikTok, Spotify, and YouTube have essentially become the modern equivalent of those pioneering DJs in the 1950s, introducing audiences directly and immediately to sounds that radio sometimes struggles to understand. Of course, not every viral song deserves airplay, just as not every rock and roll record from 1956 became a classic.
Whether it’s upping the spins on heavily-streamed throwbacks regardless of age, or not waiting three months to finally add a song that’s been in the Spotify Top 10 ever since, pop radio is at its best when it’s embracing what’s happening NOW, and not being risk-aversive and be in a world of its own. Respecting the audience by playing what the evidence clearly shows they like is the formula for attracting and keeping them. Here are some notes on Liveline’s Top 20 requests, November 2-November 7.
#1. ADÉLA – Ain’t In LA
#2. ADÉLA – Nicole Kidman – Chappell Roan was the last person to have the top two requests “Good Luck Babe” and “HOT TO GO!” in September 2024, so this is a phenomenal achievement. Sabrina Carpenter also did it with “Please Please Please” and “Espresso” in July 2024.
#3. Ashe – Stop The Wedding! – #5 on Spotify in the US, #4 Globally. Despite being a song for women, it’s a very equal balance of men and women requesting it. From the texts we get, it’s mainly 15-25 year olds. The callers sound young too! Exploding now.
#4. Malcolm Todd – Earrings
#5. Tate McRae – Housewife – #1 in the world on Spotify and just last night was our top request for the first time. It’s her third song to do so, following “greedy” and “Sports car”.
#6. Olivia Rodrigo – stupid song
#7. The Killers – Mr. Brightside – It’s been an all-ages favorite for years, but never this high on Liveline before. It’s also #7 on Spotify in the US right now and has been Top 30 for several years
#8. Olivia Rodrigo – the cure – Only one request for “drop dead” and only two for the new “expectations” with Chappell Roan last week. Radio continues to ignore this obvious smash despite being a Top 10 request on Liveline AND Top 10 Spotify since July!
#9. Ella Langley – Choosin’ Texas – Biggest song of the year!
#10. Noah Kahan – Orbiter
#11. Tame Impala – Loser
#12. KAROL G, Judeline, rusowsky – BbY WOW (Just added to power rotation at affiliate KQMV/Seattle after seeing explosive local research in callout, Shazam (#1) and Spotify (#10). PD Cat Thomas adds “I don’t know if anyone else that uses an algorithm like this. It gives me a great look at both active and passive listeners weekly: Consumption, discovery, and the average daily listener all in one final snapshot with weighting for each of the different forms of listening (callout and “passion” score weigh heaviest) then streaming, etc. It’s all audience driven with no attention paid to the national charts.” We’ve been playing it since September 22. Overall US Spotify charts, it’s #4 and still heavily ignored by Top 40. One of the hottest songs of the whole year! Catchy as hell with the rhythmic-power Pop radio is missing right now on the airplay charts.
#13. Dominic Fike – Babydoll
#14. Michael Jackson – Thriller – It’s become a staple of the show, regardless of Halloween. Every year, we reliably receive lots of requests for it the week after.
#15. Olivia Dean – Man I Need
#16. The Neighbourhood – Sweater Weather
#17. Jamie Miller – Babydoll – #1 at home in the UK on Spotify. It samples the “ahh-ooooo” from Fleetwood Mac’s “Everywhere” and is cute, fun and well produced. It shares the same vibe as “Man I Need” by Olivia Dean and “Lil Boo Thang” by Paul Russell.
#18. Tame Impala – Dracula (JENNIE Remix) – Unbelievable run for a song that’s been active since October 2025. JENNIE remix gave it new life in March but it’s crazy how callout and airplay still holds strong.
#19. TLC – No Scrubs – Not the first time in our Top 20. One of our five most requested throwbacks of the past three years and lingering in the Spotify Top 50 for months. Women love this song and so do all the kids! Nobody will turn the radio off when this plays
#20. Zara Larsson – Midnight Sun
