Adult Contemporary facts for kids
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly list of popular songs published in Billboard magazine. It shows the top 30 songs that are most popular. This chart measures how often songs are played on the radio (called airplay), how many times they are bought as digital downloads, and how many physical singles are sold. It focuses on songs played on 85 specific radio stations that play adult contemporary music. The chart first appeared in Billboard magazine on July 17, 1961.
Contents
What is Adult Contemporary Music?
Adult Contemporary (often called AC) is a style of popular music. It usually features soft rock, pop ballads, and easy-listening songs. This music is often played on radio stations that target adult listeners. It's known for being smooth, melodic, and generally family-friendly.
How Songs Get on the Chart
Songs make it onto the Adult Contemporary chart based on a few things:
- Radio Airplay: How many times a song is played on the 85 special radio stations.
- Digital Downloads: How many people buy the song online.
- Single Sales: How many physical copies of the song are sold.
Other Popular Music Charts
Billboard magazine publishes many different music charts. Here are a couple that are similar to the Adult Contemporary chart:
Hot Adult Contemporary Recurrents
The Hot Adult Contemporary Recurrents chart lists the top 10 adult contemporary songs that are more than one year old but are still very popular on the radio. This means even older hits can stay on the charts if people keep listening to them.
Adult Top 40 Chart
The Adult Top 40 chart started in 1996. This chart specifically lists the top 40 adult contemporary songs. It's a bit broader than the main AC chart, showing more songs.
Top 40 Mainstream Chart
The Top 40 Mainstream chart ranks both adult contemporary songs and dance-pop songs. This chart gets its information from 141 different radio stations, making it a wider look at popular music.
Images for kids
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Johnny Mathis sang romantic jazz and pop songs that were popular with adult listeners in the 1960s and 1970s.
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Barry Manilow is one of the most successful adult contemporary singers ever, especially in the 1970s.
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"Careless Whisper" by George Michael was his first solo song and stayed at No. 1 on the adult contemporary chart for 5 weeks.
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Latin artist Marc Anthony's 1999 English album had songs that became popular on the AC charts.
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Many of Michael Bublé's songs and albums were very popular on the AC charts in the 2000s and 2010s.
See also
In Spanish: Adult contemporary para niños
