Billboard Hot 100 Background

The RIAA defines the United States music industry in terms of certification - Gold, Platinum, Multi-Platinum, and Diamond.

The Billboard Hot 100 defines the United States music industry in terms of record chart.

Where the RIAA has a history, so too does Billboard.

Billboard Background -

- Best Sellers in Stores - First Billboard chart (est. 1940)*

*Ranked biggest selling singles in retail stores

- Most Played by Jockeys - Billboard's original airplay chart*

*Ranked the most played songs on U.S. radio stations

- Most Played in Jukeboxes*

*Measured song popularity with young generations

*Point of interest - Many radio stations refused to play rock and roll 

Billboard Magazine references Best Sellers in Stores prior to the Hot 100. 

In 1955, Billboard created The Top 100.  The Top 100 combined sales, airplay, and jukeboxes to determine a song's performance.

In November 1957, Most Played in Jukeboxes was discontinued as radio stations began to integrate rock music into their playlists.

In July 1958, Most Played by Jockeys and Top 100 charts were also discontinued.

In August 1958, Billboard launched The Hot 100.  The Hot 100 became the music industry standard.  In October, Best Sellers in Stores was discontinued.

The Hot 100 metrics -

- Radio airplay audience impressions (measured by Nielsen BDS)

- Sales data (compiled by Nielsen Soundscan)

- Streaming activity (provided by online music sources)

(Component details within The Hot 100 can be found on Wikipedia.)

Weekly chart details and year-end chart details can be found on Wikipedia.  

My take away -

The history behind Billboard Hot 100 is as detailed and extensive as Billboard itself.  There are so many technical aspects covered by Billboard that go behind a song's scenes, if you will.  As for weekly and year-end chart designations, there are components that appear complicated to the average person.  In the end, though, I find greater appreciation for what is produced by Billboard and specifically Billboard Hot 100.

Where time, patience, and dedication go behind recording songs into an album and eventual airplay, technical determination goes behind defining what lands the Billboard Hot 100 list.