Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the main U.S. singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. The new charts go into effect every Saturday, while the charts are posted every previous Thursday on the website.

Limitations

The limitations of the Hot 100 have increased in importance over time. Since the Hot 100 is based on singles sales, as singles have themselves become a less common form of song release, the Hot 100's data has represented a narrowing segment of sales. Further, the history of popular music shows nearly as many remarkable failures to chart as it does important charting positions. Some critics have argued that the emphasis on a limited number of singles has distorted record industry development efforts, and there are nearly as many critics of the Hot 100 as there are supporters.

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