Lil Uzi Vert – “What You Saying”: If Harry Styles’ “Aperture” is too long for many programmerds, perhaps this song is just right. At only 2:10, this has become another streaming smash for Uzi who already has four songs with more than a billion streams, in addition to “Just Wanna Rock” which was a social media phenomenon and huge Liveline request (where it peaked at #5) three years ago. Here’s a look back at our requests that week. It was in our Top 10 for more than two months.
Now, “What You Saying” is already #6 Spotify and has over 76 million streams. We’ve received requests for it the past few weeks. Last week, it cracked our top 20. This week, it goes from No. 13 to No. 11. Because we strive to reflect our CHR and Hot AC reporters, who haven’t acknowledged it yet, we waited to play it on Liveline until February 2 and used a listener request to set it up.
When “I Wanna Rock” was top 5, our most-requested songs were almost entirely Hip-Hop. R&B and Rhythmic Pop: SZA, Metro Boomin’, the Weeknd, Pink Pantheress, Steve Lacy, and Coi LeRay, with only “Flowers” and “Unholy” as pure pop titles. This week, there’s more of a spread from Djo to Ella Langley (finally being worked to CHR this week but a big Liveline request getter for weeks) to Olivia Dean and Raye, again. Noah Kahan’s “The Great Divide” debuted at No. 1 on streaming and may be story-worthy by next week. Now, the hole is for rhythmic music.
So what is Pop radio’s fear of rhythmic music? Overall, it remains the most popular genre with CHR’s traditional core of listeners under 35 and has for the last 20 years. “What You Saying” is already reminiscent of “Dark Thoughts” by Lil Tecca, a huge streaming song that generated tons of passionate requests for Liveline, but never cracked the top 30 at CHR. The format is in need of lots of fresh material, but also needs genre diversity from country, alternative, dance, and hip-hop. I hope “What You Saying” doesn’t go unsupported by Top 40. The audience is telling us what they like, yet, too many stations wait to “talk to their indie” or “see who else adds it.”
Some of programmers’ slowness on streaming stories has been their fear that those songs are coming from listeners who are already lost to Top 40 or radio altogether. So it’s worth noting how streaming hits like “What You Saying,” “Choosin’ Texas,” as well as Pink Pantheress & Zara Larsson’s “Stateside” are generating requests for us already. The people who like the biggest songs from streaming are Liveline’s listeners and could be all of radio’s listeners as well.
As for “Aperture,” we made that song an event on Liveline for its first two days, including taking a lot of listener comments. But we didn’t receive any unsolicited listener calls for the first five days. Now, even with streaming down to #14 on Spotify, “Aperture” is up to #16 on “Liveline.” Time will tell. The music video is certainly worth the watch.
“Just Wanna Rock,” what a banger. One of the oddest and most fascinating cuts I can recall hearing on radio in the past decade for sure, at any format. The first time I heard it I genuinely thought I was hearing an extended intro and the song would open up to something more conventionally structured. Instead it just… ended. I was confounded. But then I listened again. And again, repeatedly. Of course it’s not a shock that a track like that went essentially nowhere at 2020s CHR. It was never going to be a power there, but I wish it had at least poked its head above ground. Unfortunately the most Jersey club and/or drill influence we ended up hearing at CHR was in two absolute gutter-trash TikTok’d-sample-flip/”is it AI?”-core tracks by the MAGA lady that made sub-power (one of which did feature Uzi). (Apologies to the many who apparently enjoyed those songs.)
I’m hoping for good things for “What You Saying,” “Choosin’ Texas,” and “Stateside”! But honestly I am not especially certain about any of them going the distance as the format stands today. I really like “Aperture” too! I’ll be interested to hear what it sounds like on the radio at least a little before it’s inevitably abandoned with haste for an “easier” follow-up.
“Aperture” is a chillout record, but a good one. It needs some tweaking… Yes that’s Columbia’s job but they didn’t do it. We’ve got a little work to do.
PROS:
1. It’s Harry Styles. He’s got that likability factor and brings emotional honesty. His songs are accessible with great hooks, and there’s urgency without getting overwrought.
2. It has a nice groove,. This is dance (or more like after-dance) but it isn’t loud like Gaga. It’s very chill, which provides a sonic break between the loud songs people hear all day.
3. The atmospheric “We belong together” chorus is really nice.
CONS:
1. The intro is just way too long. No reason it can’t be cut to about 12 seconds. Also: There’s a middle section with unnecessary fill. I think y’all know what I mean. Cut that out and get the entire song down to 3:05 max. No apologies.
2. The song needs a stronger instrumental hook. If Columbia doesn’t have a radio mix then get a real DJ with a keyboard to develop and insert a custom piano or synth lick.Think like David Guetta, who always comes up with cool sweeteners.
3. The title is just bad. Most people don’t know what an aperture is so anyone playing this should always say “Aperture (We Belong Together).,” Titles are what bond people to their favorite songs. This one makes no sense, so fix it.
It will be interesting to see what people come up with because this is a sleeper that wants to get big.