A little more than a week ago, Miley Cyrus released a new single titled “Used To Be Young,” which she’d been teasing for a long time. The pop superstar was clearly hoping to score another hit in order to keep her successful 2023 going, and she managed to do just that. Now, “Used To Be Young” has earned a splash debut on several Billboard charts, and it looks like this strong start may be just the beginning for the cut.
“Used To Be Young” launches at No. 8 on this week’s Hot 100. It opens inside the top 10 thanks to strong numbers across all consumption metrics that feed into the chart–sales, streams, and radio play. But it’s the last of the three that may say the most about the future of the singer’s new release.
Cyrus’s “Used To Be Young” starts at No. 19 on the Radio Songs chart, the weekly ranking of the tunes that reach the largest audience at radio in the U.S. For those not well-versed in the inner workings of the Billboard lists, a top 20 start on the Radio Songs tally is rarer to see than a top 10 launch on the Hot 100. That may be surprising, considering the fact that the Hot 100 is widely regarded as the most important and most competitive songs ranking in the country, but it’s true.
It’s difficult for any single to become a win at radio, as it requires programmers and DJs to continually put a track into rotation. This usually happens slowly, and it’s not uncommon for any tune, even those from superstars, to take its time climbing the list. A debut inside the top 20 shows that there is a lot of immediate trust among many individuals working in radio that this track will appeal to listeners.
If radio DJs believe from the outset that their audiences will love “Used To Be Young,” chances are they will keep playing it. The No. 19 starting point may turn out to be just that–only the beginning for Cyrus’s latest. Now that it has launched inside the top 10 on the Hot 100 and scored a huge opening on the Radio Songs tally, Cyrus’s label may be incentivized to pour more resources into its future. More money means greater promotion and perhaps more people working it at radio. An early win can lead to a longstanding one.
Cyrus scored a huge hit early in 2023 on the Radio Songs chart with “Flowers,” which kicked off this latest chapter of her career. That single went on to rule the ranking for 18 weeks, the most for a tune by a woman in history, according to Billboard.
Those programmers and DJs who watched as “Flowers” made history may be more willing to give “Used To Be Young” such a good shot at winning people over because of Cyrus’s previous smash. Success breeds more success, and that’s exactly what the Grammy nominee may be enjoying in this moment.
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