‘American Idol’ on the Charts: Fantasia Looks for Another ‘Win’

ONE RUNG AWAY: For the third week in a row, Fantasia’s “Lose to Win” is standing in place at No. 11 on the Adult R&B chart, just one step away from breaking into the top 10. The good news is that no song has passed her by, as last week’s top 10 is this week’s top 10, so there is still an outstanding chance that this latest single will become Fantasia’s eighth top 10 hit on this chart. Also working in her favor: her four preceding singles have all reached the top 10, making it her longest stretch of top 10 titles on this chart. “Lose to Win” could extend that streak to five top 10 hits.

Fantasia made her Adult R&B debut in July 2004 with her coronation song, “I Believe.” While that single went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, on Adult R&B it only went as high as No. 22. The follow-up, “Truth Is,” captured first place and remained there for 13 weeks. Fantasia’s next single, “Baby Mama,” stopped at No. 24, but that was succeeded by “Free Yourself,” which spent three weeks at No. 1. Next came “Ain’t Gon’ Beg You” (No. 27) and “Hood Boy” (No. 29), and then Fantasia returned to the top 10 with a No. 2 single, “When I See U.”  A potential streak of top 10 hits was interrupted by the follow-up, “Only One U,” which reached No. 19.

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Fantasia next charted with “Put You Up on Game,” a collaboration with the legendary Aretha Franklin. That single peaked at No. 10, and every Fantasia single that followed has made the top 10: “Bittersweet” (No. 1 for five weeks), “I’m Doin’ Me” (No. 3), “Collard Greens & Cornbread” (No. 9) and now “Lose to Win” is poised to join that list (“I Wanna Be Your Man,” a Charlie Wilson single with Fantasia as featured artist, peaked at No. 23 in March 2011).

Fantasia’s latest single is doing well on other charts, too. It’s up 38-34 with a bullet on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay and debuts at No. 8 on Bubbling Under Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.

FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH: Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” has already made Billboard chart history by topping 15 different charts, more than any other single by any other Idol. This week, “Stronger” captures its 16th crown, debuting at No. 1 on Adult Contemporary Recurrents.

“Stronger” first went to No. 1 on a Billboard chart the week of Feb. 11, 2012, when it led two lists: Hot Digital Songs and Hot Digital Tracks. That means this singe has a No. 1 span of one year, one month and one week.

“Stronger” is Clarkson’s 81st No. 1 on the Billboard charts, extending her lead with more chart-topping titles than any other Idol.

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This week, THR’s sister publication, Billboard, ranked the top 100 songs by Idols and “Stronger” proved its strength by coming in at No. 2. What was No. 1? Another Kelly Clarkson single. You can see the complete list, with many untold stories behind these songs, here:

REAL ‘GONE’: The mega-success of Phillip Phillips’ debut single, “Home,” has really raised the bar for the follow-up, “Gone, Gone, Gone.” But that single had a very good week on the charts, so maybe it has nothing to fear from its predecessor.

“Gone” x 3 had a top 10 breakthrough on Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart, with a climb of 16-10. On Rock Digital Songs, the track jumps 27-17 with a bullet. On Rock Songs, it’s up 20-18 with a bullet. The Adult Top 40 tally shows a rise of 24-21 with a bullet, and on Adult Top 40 Audience the single takes a hike of 24-21 with a bullet. Next week could see another top 10 breakthrough, on the Triple A tally, where “Gone, Gone, Gone” travels 18-12 with … yes, a bullet.

Meanwhile, “Home” continues its winning ways. It is still No. 1 on three different Billboard charts: Adult Contemporary (for the seventh week), Adult Contemporary Audience (for the sixth week) and Adult Top Recurrents (for the third week).

BITS AND PIECES: For the fourth week in a row, Scotty McCreery’s “Clear As Day” rebounds on Top Country Albums. This time it is up 40-39… Carrie Underwood’s “Two Black Cadillacs” drives to new heights on the Country Airplay chart with a ride of 6-3 with a bullet… Kelly Clarkson’s “Catch My Breath” breaks into the top five of the Adult Contemporary chart, with a move of 6-5 with a bullet. The single fares even better on the Adult Contemporary Audience tally, where it rises 5-3 with a bullet.

Twitter: @Idol_Worship