Niall Horan notches his first solo No. 1 on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart (dated Oct. 21) with "Slow Hands" (2-1). It's his second chart hit, following "This Town," which reached No. 3 in March. "Slow" was remixed by Basic Tape, Jay Pryor and Barry Harris, among others.
Horan has also tallied two top 10s, also both in a single calendar year, as a One Direction member. In 2012, 1D topped the chart with "What Makes You Beautiful" in June and followed with "Live While We're Young" (No. 6) that December.
LOOK WHAT SHE DID: Taylor Swift also makes news on Dance Club Songs as "Look What You Made Me Do" becomes her first top 10 (14-10). Her seventh overall chart hit, "Look" has exceeded her prior-best No. 17 peak of 2014's "Shake It Off," her first entry on the survey.
Former country queen-turned-pop titan Swift has found support in clubland, particularly with "Look," which interpolates Right Said Fred's "I'm Too Sexy," which crowned the Billboard Hot 100 (for three weeks) and hit No. 4 on Dance Club Songs in 1992.
"A group of women recently were expressing to me how they don't really listen to Taylor Swift much, but when she came out with 'Look,' they all felt connected to it," says Houston-based DJ Athenz (Athena Armylagos). "They said how hearing it in my sets in a dance setting causes them to like it even more. The remix that gets the most reaction is the KidCutUp Momentum Bootleg, which mixes the track with Don Diablo's 'Momentum,' making it even more danceable."
Chicago's DJ Lori (Lori Lucas Martinez) plays various house mixes but often favors a trap version of "Look," the Evans Christian remix. "These days, trap is huge, so it works best for dancefloors. Swift's produced arrangements of her vocals flow smoothly, which pop fans can relate to. The remix isn't forced; it just flows naturally."
LOVATO LEAPS: Demi Lovato lands her third top 10 on Dance/Mix Show Airplaywith "Sorry Not Sorry" (12-10). She's also the only act with two concurrent top 10s on the latest chart, as "Sorry" joins "No Promises" (by Cheat Codes featuring Lovato), which holds for a second week at its No. 3 peak. Lovato is also the only act with as many as three songs on the 40-position chart this week, as "Instruction" (by Jax Jones featuring Lovato and Stefflon Don) ranks at No. 37.
Lovato landed her first top 10 in 2015 with "Cool for the Summer." She has charted nine titles total, starting with the No. 16 hit "Give Your Heart a Break" in 2012.
SCHULZ STARTS: Robin Schulz debuts at No. 12 on Top Dance/Electronic Albums with Uncovered (2,000 equivalent album units, according to Nielsen Music). With half of that sum from traditional album sales, Uncovered arrives at No. 5 on Dance/Electronic Album Sales. The German DJ/producer's two previous efforts both peaked in the Top Dance/Electronic Albums top 10 two years ago: Prayer (No. 3) and Sugar (No. 5).
Uncovered has revealed two hits on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs, "Shed a Light" (Schulz with David Guetta and featuring Cheat Codes; No. 11, December 2016) and "OK" (featuring James Blunt; No. 25, Sept. 23, the same date that "OK" also became Schulz's first Dance Club Songs No. 1).
WATCH IT 'GO': Hailee Steinfeld and Alesso score a hat trick's-worth of honors on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs with "Let Me Go," featuring Florida Georgia Lineand Watt. Up a notch to a new peak of No. 7, "Let" is simultaneously the Greatest Gainer for digital, Airplay and streaming. The track sold 4,000 downloads, up 48 percent, also good for a 16-8 jump on Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales. On the radio side, "Let" earned 6 million all-format audience impressions, up 45 percent, in the week ending Oct. 8. The song also captured 7.5 million domestic streams, up 41 percent, sparking its 8-5 lift on Dance/Electronic Streaming Songs.
