Mason:  So, I heard something today that was amazing on a couple different levels.

Amy:  What’s that?

Mason:  So, Cake, the band…

Amy:  Oh yeah, Cake! Love them.

Mason:  Has a new album out that is like really good, it like hit number one on the charts. That’s amazing thing number one, that Cake is still making albums that hit number one.

Amy:  I know.

Mason:  And that’s no…I mean, I love Cake, don’t get me wrong.

Amy:  But you still hear the songs from, like, way back, like a decade ago or something.

Mason:  Right. But so, the crazy thing is, so it hit number one on Billboard, but it has incredibly low sales.

Amy:  Weird. Yeah, I mean, I guess I always thought that “number one” was connected to sales, you know, but I guess maybe…is it radio requests or something, or radio plays? How do they determine that a song is number one?

Mason:  I don’t know actually.

Amy:  What qualities do you think lead a song to become number one? I mean, outside of how much it sells, like what do you think makes a hit?

Mason:  Don’t they have that down to a DNA science at this point?

Amy:  I think so.

Mason:  Like, between 120 and 180 beats per minute, with thumping bass…

Amy:  Mindless lyrics that everyone can relate to.

Mason:  If anything, I’m thrilled that Cake still made it to number one.

Discussion

Mason is surprised that Cake has a number one album out. The band has been around for a long time, and he’s impressed that they’re still making hits.

He’s also surprised that even though the album is number one, it hasn’t sold many copies. He and Amy wonder what it really means when an album goes “number one” on the charts.

Amy also wonders what it takes to make a hit song. Mason thinks record companies know exactly what it takes, from how many beats per minute to what kind of lyrics the song should have.

What do you think it takes to make a hit song? What’s your number one song right now?

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