Carly Rae Jepsen holds onto #1 for a second week as the top ten is stagnant save for a switch between Matt Nathanson and Alabama Shakes for #8 and #9. Second-week singles from Robin Thicke and Nicki Minaj, Lianne La Havas, and Jepsen make big moves into the top fifty. In the lower half, Years & Years score the week’s highest debut, as “Desire” enters at #61. They enter over new songs from Emily King, Rob Thomas, and The Band Perry, along with newcomers Felix Cartal (featuring Nikki Yanofsky), Audien (featuring Lady Antebellum), and Shane & Emily.

View full chart

Carly Rae Jepsen makes a big jump from #14 to #2 with “Run Away With Me,” leaving her with three tracks in the top five. Leon Bridges and R5 make double-digit jumps again, as do two Kacey Musgraves album cuts. Debuts are led by the new single from A Great Big World, “Hold Each Other” featuring Futuristic. CAFUNÉ, R5, CHVRCHES, Lianne La Havas, Rob Thomas, (formerly Dale Earnhardt) JR JR, and Francesco Yates (with Robin Schulz) all return to the chart with new songs, and pop singer-songwriter Clairity scores her first entry with “DNA” at #98.

View full chart

Carly Rae Jepsen now holds two spots in the top five (as does Alabama Shakes), with “I Really Like You” holding at #3 and “E·MO·TION” jumping to a new peak of #4. Kacey Musgraves, Grizfolk, and Demi Lovato make big moves in the chart’s upper half. Also in the top fifty is Hunter Hunted’s “Lucky Day,” the highest debut of the week at #48. Wildhood follows with the next entry, debut single “Psycho Jam,” at #60; in the lower rungs, R5 (who also re-enters “All Night”), Rob Thomas, ROMANS, and AIR BAG ONE all score with new songs.

View full chart

As the music industry wakes up from its holiday slumber and begins the new year, attention shifts to developing new artists whose careers are beginning to build. Below are forty hand-picked artists of varying genres and current levels of success. Some are completely independent, while others have already topped charts. Regardless, all of them show potential to be even bigger names, particularly in America, in the coming year. Listen to the artists through this SoundCloud playlist, and check back later in the year to see how these predictions turned out. Continue reading “Class Of 2015: 40 promising artists to watch this year”