In the last week of June, we’re seeing a divide among the on Billboard’s flagship Hot 100 chart. Not pop versus rock, or hip-hop versus dance, or fast versus slow. I’m talking about new versus old.

The major Song of Summer contenders still feel new — they’ve been wafting through the air only a couple of months. For example, current chart-topper “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke has spent a total of nine weeks on the Hot 100. Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” currently No. 2, is also nine weeks old. A bit lower in the Top 10, a pair of starlets have hits of roughly the same vintage — Selena Gomez’s “” (No. 8) is nine weeks old, and Ariana Grande’s “” (No. 9) is at week 11.

By contrast, in the middle of the Top 10, you’ll find a pair of hits that are now positively ancient. At No. 6 is Florida Georgia Line’s 36-week-old country-crossover smash “Cruise”.  A couple of weeks ago this song, fueled by , sneaked into the Top 5 in its 34th chart week, setting a record for . Just two weeks after that, the record was broken: Imagine Dragons’ turgid rock hit “,” in its 42nd chart week, just leaped to No. 4,  Read more

Buzz Track: Utopia

Toronto indie buzz act Nightbox will release a new album. Upon releasing their debut EP in 2011 on Canada’s Last Gang Entertainment, critical and commercial reaction was noteworthy on a world scale. The music video for single “Pyramid” earned heavy rotation on Canadian music television stations, and the track was selected to appear on the French label Kitsune’s Maison Compilation 11. It was also chosen by NME as a Top-10 download. Check out the new track Utopia from their upcoming release.
Contact: rgentles@wizkidmanagement.com

Country pop newcomer Courtney Rau recently released a track ‘After The Storm‘ which features Jessica Harp, formally of “The Wreckers.” She has been compared to Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood. She will announce several shows in the upcoming months.
Contact: jarau@aol.com

Buzz Track: Common Gold

Not Tonight Josephine will release a new EP in July which was recorded and produced by James Paul Wisner (Underoath, Paramore, Go Radio, Further Seems Forever). The band will embark on tour in August & September.
Contact: nottonightrock@gmail.com

Track: Sunshine

Kink Ador is an indie rock group based in Nashville, TN. The duo first launched onto the national stage in 2012 with their Summerfest performance and selection as a Red Bull Soundstage Artist. Since then, they have performed the CMJ Festival in New York City, the SnowBall Music Festival in Winter Park, CO, and the Canadian Music Festival in Toronto in 2013.
Contact: Christian@bluewatermusic.com