Quincy Jones’ catalog is up 1,229% following the producer’s death

by Junna Base November 6, 2024

Welcome to Billboard Pro’s In an upward trend Newsletter where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some came out of nowhere, others took months to catch on, and all could become ubiquitous in the blink of an eye on a TikTok clip.

This week: The legendary Quincy Jones’ catalog gets a major boost after his death, a ’70s hitmaker officially becomes one of the big names in spooky season streaming, a 2003 pop-rock jam gets a major horror dub, and more.

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Quincy Jones catalog explodes on streaming after legend’s death

Late Sunday evening (November 3), Quincy Jones, a 28-time Grammy winner who played a key role in some of the world’s most influential works of art across music, film, television and stage, passed away surrounded by family at his home in Bel Air. To commemorate Jones’ nearly immeasurable legacy, fans have found solace in some of his greatest musical contributions.

According to Luminate, streaming activity for Jones’ entire catalog increased by 1,229%, recording nearly 1.25 million official on-demand streams in the first full day after his death (November 4). The previous Monday (October 28), Jones’ catalog recorded almost 94,000 streams.

“Just Once”, a Grammy-nominated single by Jones’ The guy LP, which introduced James Ingram to the world, is up 632%, reaching 77,000 official on-demand streams on November 4th, up from 10,500 streams on October 28th. “One Hundred Ways” – another Jones-Ingram team from The guy (this one actually won its Grammy category) – saw a similar increase, jumping 626% in streaming activity from just over 8,000 official on-demand streams on October 28th to over 60,000 streams on November 4th. About two decades ago The guy, Jones composed the hugely influential instrumental “Soul Bossa Nova”, which was used as the theme song for everything from 1997 onwards Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery to the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Streaming activity for “Soulful” increased a whopping 755% from 11,500 official on-demand streams (October 28) to just over 98,000 streams (November 4).

Of course, “We Are the World,” the highest-charting charity single on the Billboard Hot 100 and winner of Record and Song of the Year at the 1986 Grammys, is a prominent part of Jones’ far-reaching legacy. This classic is up 146% in streams, from 37,500 official on-demand streams (October 28) to over 92,000 streams (November 4). Jones’ hits over the course of her seven-decade career included Lesley Gore’s timeless 1963 Hot 100 chart-topper “It’s My Party.” Streaming activity for this iconic track increased 17% from 33,000 official on-demand hits. Streams (October 28th) to just over 39,000 streams (November 4th).

As a producer, Jones’ extensive catalog also includes three of the most seminal albums in pop history: that of Michael Jackson Away from the wall (1979), thriller (1982) and Bad (1987). Jones related winnings for thriller And Bad are a bit complicated since both are house Halloween anthems (the title track for thriller and “Smooth Criminal” for Bad). Nonetheless, Away from the wall – Jackson’s first Jones-helmed LP – is up 10% with 794,000 official on-demand streams in the US (November 4th) compared to 720,000 streams (October 28th).

Jones’ oeuvre also includes the classic soundtracks for The color purple And The magician. The former is up 290%, collecting over 41,000 official on-demand streams in the US on November 4th, while the latter is up 219%, collecting over 47,000 official on-demand streams in the US on the same day.

Jones’ death is particularly painful for global pop culture, but he leaves behind an incredibly rich catalog that we can revisit and learn from again and again. – KYLE DENIS

Andrew Gold: The New King of Halloween?

Search the Hot 100 this week and you’ll discover some of the most recognizable names long associated with Halloween music: Michael Jackson (“Thriller,” No. 20), Ray Parker Jr. (“Ghostbusters,” No . 28), Bobby Boris Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers (“Monster Mash,” #30) and Danny Elfman – technically “The Citizens of Halloween” (“This Is Halloween,” #38). But landing just below their ranks and outside the Hot 100 (for now) is a guy who has only been primarily associated with Spooky Season in recent years: Andrew Gold, singer-songwriter and ’70s pop-rock hitmaker.

For most of his career, Gold (who died in 2011) was primarily associated with two singles: the heartbreaking story song “Lonely Boy” (a No. 7 hit in 1977) and the heartwarming “Thank You for Being a Friend” ( a No. 7 hit in 1977). No. 28 hit from 1978 – although more associated with a Cynthia Fee cover version that served as the theme for the timeless 80s sitcom The Golden Girls). But thanks to some TikTok trends that first emerged in the late 2010s, Gold is now best known to younger fans as the guy behind 1996’s “Spooky, Scary Skeletons,” a cartoon-style Halloween number that’s new has been mixed and hammered to death over the last half decade.

According to Luminate, “Skeletons” recorded 11.2 million official on-demand streams in the US in the week ending November 2nd – a huge number and a 1,146% increase over the 898,000 streams the song recorded six weeks earlier. It’s not Gold’s only song to see such gains, as did his entire 1996 set Halloween Howls: Funny and spooky music is way up there, including his version of the classic theme The Addams Family – which garnered 2.1 million streams in the same week. Overall, Gold recorded 14.7 million total streams for the week, up 1,040% from the 1.3 million for the week of September 19th – evidence that Gold is on the verge of becoming the standard for streaming performance in to become Halloween week. – ANDREW UNTERBERGER

Joé Dwèt Filé looks at Konpa hit in the USA with “4 Kampé”.

The streaming age and increasing globalization have largely paved the way for more niche genres to enter the US market – and Konpa could be next in line. Konpa (sometimes spelled “Kompa”) became popular in the 1950s and is a descendant of meringue music, characterized by the prominent use of tanbou drums, lively horns, and rhythmic guitars.

With “4 Kampé,” Joé Dwèt Filé – a singer, songwriter and engineer of Haitian descent – has his eye on a hit single with remarkable crossover potential. During October 25-28, “4 Kampé” recorded over 393,000 official on-demand streams in the United States. In the post-Halloween period from November 1st to 4th, the title’s consumption activity increased by 13%, recording over 446,000 streams.

Filé began teasing the song a week before its October 25 release with a post that has since garnered over 1.6 million views and over 195,000 likes. Two more teasers followed, with each video garnering more views than the previous one. Currently, the official “4 Kampé” TikTok sound has nearly 190,000 posts, many of which users perform the Kare dance, which is traditionally accompanied by konpa music. In just 12 days, the official “4 Kampé” lyric video reached 3.4 million views on YouTube, while the track’s official music video reached the two million view mark in less than a week.

Although it’s still early in the song, these gains look promising for “4 Kampé.” – KD

**So yesterday: Waste of time Adds a big kick to the 2000s Hilary Duff classic**

Netflix’s time-traveling slasher film Waste of time is currently the streaming service’s highest-rated film, whose ending is causing controversy among viewers. But before discussions about the film began, social media users were busy arguing about whether a scene from the film that was released as a teaser on Netflix channels – a montage from the school hallway that reflects teenage life in 2003 should – actually reflected the fashions and styles of the time. One choice, however, was pretty undeniable: the use of Hilary Duff’s 2003 pop-rock hit “So Yesterday.”

“Yesterday,” which debuted at No. 42 on the Hot 100 as recently as October 2003 (but was far bigger on MTV and Radio Disney-like platforms), serves as the soundtrack to the slow-motion scene, evoking the cultural moment quite effectively. Unsurprisingly, the clip sent nostalgic viewers to streaming services to listen to the historic classic – “Yesterday” logged over 85,000 total official on-demand streams in the US during the first four days of November, a 49% increase from the Total number of previous four days in the year of the previous tracking week. Not quite “unwritten” numbers yet, but a good start for a song that has stood for too long in the shadow of Duff’s bigger hit “Come Clean”. – AU

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