Even though it’s only mid-May, it certainly feels like summer around the Billboard office in midtown Manhattan. And with the official post-Memorial Day debut of this year’s Songs of the Summer chart just weeks away, Billboard‘s staff thought it was time for a check-in on how the race is shaping up so far.
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The first name that has to be mentioned in the discussion is undoubtedly Ella Langley, who has the top two songs on the Billboard Hot 100 this week (dated May 23), and a third hit just outside the top 10. But she’ll be competing with big hits from big names like Olivia Rodrigo and Noah Kahan — as well as from a likely chart onslaught coming from the most prolific artist in Hot 100 history — in addition to some artists who we haven’t even heard from yet this year, but are almost certain to make their presence felt by season’s end.
Should Ella Langley be considered the frontrunner? And which late entrants might be pacing the race before long? Billboard staffers discuss these questions and more below.
