Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars battle Sabrina Carpenter for Number 1

Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars do not show any sign of slowing down as “Die with a Smile” easily earns a second consecutive week atop my chart. It shot straight to the top last week, earning Lady Gaga her first Number 1 since 2011’s “Judas”, the biggest gap between Number 1s of all time. For Bruno Mars, it is a welcomed comeback as well, although he did enjoy #2-success with Silk Sonic at the start of the decade. Their lead is not secured though, as Sabrina Carpenter shoots for the top with vengeance. Her album Short ‘N Sweet has lifted “Please, Please, Please” and “Espresso” back up the list while its third single “Taste” peaks at #2 this week. It is supported by a killer music video – starring scream queen Jenna Ortega as a possible Camila Cabello stand-in. If Sabrina were to overtake Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars next week, it would earn the young pop starlet her third consecutive Number 1-hit.

Earlier this month, Froukje played the mainstage at Lowlands Festival in The Netherlands. She was, to little surprise, joined by best friend and colleague S10. They recorded two singles together – “Zonder Gezicht” and “Nooit Meer Spijt” – both of which peaked inside my personal Top 10. They also teased a nice new single. Third time turns out to be the charm, however, as they collaborate again on “Ik Haat Hem Voor Jou”; a kiss-off anthem about exes and friendship. It earns Froukje and S10 the highest new entry of the week at #7, marking both artists’ their best debut to date. The duet is produced by Antoon, best known for his own personal Number 1s, such as “Hallo”, or producing Roxy Dekker her breakout “Satisfyer”. With Antoon behind them, Froukje and S10 could be looking at brand-new career heights. So far, “Ik Haat Hem Voor Jou” marks Froukje her seventh Top 10-entry, while S10 earns her fifth.

The golden age of girl groups is, sadly, long past us, ever since Little Mix disbanded in 2021. One girl group from the UK, however, is set to make it big. Enter, FLO. We met the London-based girl group in 2022 on “Cardboard Box”, produced by MNEK, after they signed to Island Records. In December 2022, FLO won the BBC's Annual Sound of... poll and the Brit Rising Star at the Brits. Things were on the up, but true charting hits stayed away. Their “Cardboard Box” peaked at #13 on my chart, while the follow-up in collaboration with Missy Elliott failed to reach the Top 20. Now, one year later, FLO return on “Check” at #32. It will precede their upcoming debut album Access All Areas later this year. FLO earns their third Top 40-entry to date. Rounding out the fresh entries is British electro duo Chase & Status featuring Stormzy on “Backbone”. An obvious UK Number 1-hit, it was first teased during a surprise performance at Ushuaïa. It marks Chase & Status their second Top 40-appearance to date, the first being Becky Hill’s “Disconnect”, while Stormzy is welcomed back following his Top 20-hit with RAYE on “The Weekend”.

And as Froukje and S10 collaborate again on “Ik Haat Hem Voor Jou”, I’ve decided to rank their best-scoring songs to date on my personal chart, including their three duets. Topping this ranking, their first ever duet “Zonder Gezicht” is both Froukje and S10 their best-scoring release to date. It was a sleeper hit with longevity in 2022 and 2023, peaking at #10 and staying on the chart for more than twenty-five non-consecutive weeks. Their follow-up duet “Nooit Meer Spijt” – initially teased at Lowlands 2022 – ranks as their second best-scoring single to date. At the time of release, it was both girls’ highest peak at #3 to date. They both later bested that peak with one spot; Froukje with “Als Ik God Was” and S10 in collaboration with Kevin on “De Leven”, which ranks as their third and fourth best-scoring release overall. Across both their repertories, Froukje has scored the most and the biggest hits. S10, however, scored a big international charting hit with her Eurovision entry “De Diepte”, the fifth biggest Froukje & S10-hit on my personal chart. For a full overview of this ranking, see the list below.

Newly certified

“Genesis.” – Raye GOLD

“Please, Please, Please” – Sabrina Carpenter PLATINUM

Froukje vs. S10: their biggest hits to date

1. “Zonder Gezicht” – Froukje & S10 (57,572)
2. “Nooit Meer Spijt” – S10 & Froukje (54,353)
3. “Als Ik God Was” – Froukje (53,036)
4. “De Leven” – S10 (49,685)
5. “De Diepte” – S10 (45,638)
6. “Houden Van Mij” – Froukje (45,521)
7. “Kwijt” – Froukje (36,842)
8. “Ik Wil Dansen” – Froukje (30,043)
9. “Onbezonnen” – Froukje (28,086)
10. “Naar Het Licht” – Froukje (27,877)