We told you so! In last week’s edition, we promised that the only thing holding Ms. Taylor Swift back from truly dominating our list was some latency in traditional tracking metrics. While The Life of a Showgirl remains the hottest attraction in town, further down the rankings we’re seeing major storylines as well, highlighted by the UK’s Olivia Dean and Atlanta’s Metro Boomin.
Now with a whole week to catch up, the multi-time everything winner takes up a whopping eight slots in our top ten, only prevented from total takeover by K-Pop Demon Hunter’s “Golden” and Alex Warren’s “Ordinary,” the latter a song that’s been a thorn in the side of chart hopefuls throughout 2025. Notably, Swift’s accomplishment upholds by way of continuing success in snapshot streaming numbers. Despite the social media hand wringing over the record’s quality, clearly her fanbase is still showing out for her eleventh. Should that continue, nothing is stopping her from maintaining this momentum through the end of the month and beyond.
Olivia Dean isn’t an unknown commodity by any means, making waves with her 2023 Messy. However, her latest, The Art of Loving, appears poised to turn Dean into a genuine global presence, already earning the singer-songwriter her highest U.S.-charting record to date, “The Man I Need.” After flitting up to the #7 spot in last week’s rankings, the track clocks in with a third consecutive week within the top 50, now pushed down by the aforementioned Swift to just above the #20 mark.
Metro Boomin and Olivia Dean Prove Late-Year Mainstays
Though she’s bucked comparisons to her countrywomen recently, her timeless soul production and undeniable vocal talents are on full display with “The Man I Need.” It’s that exact combination that causes us to draw lines to British artists like Adele or Jorja Smith, who’ve followed this formula to success in the past.
A staple of the charts and discourse overall in 2024 for his involvement in the Drake/Kendrick feud, Metro Boomin is proving he doesn’t need controversy. In many ways, he did a 180 as he dropped A Futuristic Summa, lasering in on feel-good throwback Atlanta aesthetics for the mixtape-style project. He may not be at the very top of our rankings, but we can nonetheless acknowledge the staying power of his material, particularly “Take Me Thru Dere.” Clocking in at #39 in our latest, the booming (no pun intended) anthem unites longtime A-lister Quavo and rising presence YKNEICE (previously featured in this series for her and PLUTO’s “Whim Whammie”), further solidifying Metro’s strengths as a connector. Clearly built for warm-weather airwaves, we’ll have to see whether it can remain in the ether as colder weather looms, but it’s done plenty to redouble Metro’s hitmaking abilities.
As always, you can find the msuic mentioned throughout this piece wherever you stream your music. Check back in next week for another update on Music Daily’s Tracks.
