"There are three types of one hit wonders. 1, acts who were too bad to get a second hit. 2, acts who were just too weird to get a second hit. And 3, actually really good bands who just so happened to only line up with the trends at one point in time." - Todd In The Shadows
I feel like Tiktok is becoming a one hit wonder breeding ground. Every week a new kid has a song blow up and then they can’t keep up. Cradles by Sub Urban, Roxanne by Arizona Zervas, or even Moral of the Story by Ashe. That is the closest I think we’ll get to one hit wonders right now.
Yeah that app has definitely become a breeding ground for starting the careers of random people who make music. Old Town Road is the shining example of that. It's also an alternative to the billboard because now it doesn't matter if your song is on the charts it matters if it's trending on tiktok
People: Rick is a one hit wonder Rick Astley: had 6 top-40 hits in the US, five of them in the top 10, plus many huge hits in europe that werent released in the US
I know that this wasn't the thrust of your video, but I find Mike Posner has a really interesting One-Hit Wonder story. He made Cooler Than Me, faded into obscurity, then in the next decade had a song that became a number one hit ABOUT being a One-Hit Wonder. And the real kicker is that it only blew up because of a remix that couldn't sound anymore different than the original. It's also a pretty damn good song. Just a really unique One-Hit Wonder story.
4 top ten's including 2 number one's in Austilra, Barbie Girl and Doctor Jones. 5 Top 10 including 3! number one's the UK the same as Aus plus Turn Back Time. Never thought of Aqua as a one hit wonder.
I was just about to make that point. A lot of bands exist in the zeitgeist as one hit wonders, but if you look at their career, they hand more than one top 40 song. People associate flock of seagulls with "I ran" but "space age love song" was also a top 40 hit.
Holy shit I lost it when he said that... like yo, do 5 fucking minutes of research. I'm not sorry, you cannot just be so confidently wrong and get away with it. calling this out had to be done. Dr jones is the way better song. Heat of the Night? Calling You? Candyman? that was a full ALBUM wonder. then there is the entire albums of remixes, a few stinkers here or there like the scream movie tie in track. but wow. aqua is not one hit.
Aqua FEELS like a one hit wonder and its very true. Don't screech at the man when he explained himself clearly. Aqua are a one hit wonder band to basically everyone, even if Denmark is the exception.
@@jamesmeow3039 He said that these artist were never going to build a career out of their song. And on this point he's wrong when it comes to Aqua. And they charted in many countries around the world with more than one song. America isn't the be all, end all when it comes to music. It's almost as "if it doesn't play in the States, it doesn't even exist, and the opinions of the rest of the world doesn't matter".
I don't even understand the initial reference to Weezer. I'm so confused. They had five #1 hits in the US. 19 top tens. And 32 songs in the top 100. I mean, did he think they just popped onto the music scene in the 2000s?
It probably cuts off at 2017 because you can't conclusively call someone a one hit wonder after a year or two. You can feel it, but you can't say conclusively.
@@monwren I looked up some songs from the Chainsmokers and they have on youtube 2 songs with over 1 Bil. clicks and several over 100 mil. clicks. I would not call these one hit wonders
@@danielsnoopeh1807 What they mean is that after #Selfie in 2014, many people were quick to write them off as a One-Hit-Wonder because of how ridiculous that song was. It was really surprising that they ended up having a bunch of hits starting in 2016.
In pure anarcho fashion, the band had a mixed line-up of both men and women (Crass and Poison Girls among them). There is a folk-punk protest number from one of their female vocalists called Begining To Take It Back. It sounds more like the Raincoats or Young Marble Giants than the band that got knocked down and got up again.
For Gotye to be fair, he just didn't want to make more music. He didn't feel like it, and said he'll maybe drop an album in the next decade. He didn't really try to work off of the success of his song. And before that song he apparently had a good traction.
Bittersweet Symphony wasn't the Verve's only hit. The Verve became a super popular British band, and at the very least any British parent and kid growing up in the 2000/2010s would be able to list at least two of their songs. Edit: I think that might be a possible reason why some songs can get into the top 40s, but no one remembers them.
Personally, I think TikTok also factors into it. In the ‘UK Viral 50’ on Spotify, 12/50 songs wouldn’t have been on without TikTok. Many artists (Doja Cat, mxmtoon, etc.) made a song that got big on TikTok and eventually get a fan base off of it. However, many people (powfu, K Camp, BENEE, etc.) made a song that got known as a ‘TikTok song’ and have never put out a song that got half as big. I don’t think it affects the quantity of one-hit wonders, but I think it affects HOW it works.
Alex W Lol gotta say I agree but Benee is actually has tons of great songs cause her whole old ep is getting trending again and get heard by a lot of people
Gotye was and is actually super talented. You should check out his other stuff. Especially the song hearts a mess. Yes somebody that I used to know was one of the most popular songs of the decade. But quite a few of his other songs have over 20 million streams. I wouldn’t say that’s a one hit wonder but great video.
@brandon roberts a-ha is not a one hit wonder, what are you talking about? they had at least a dozen radio hits after take on me, e.g. you are the one, crying in the rain, summer moved on, nothing is keeping you here etc.
i’m actually a pretty big fan of both a-ha and gotye and they are extremely talented and i think they have many songs that are arguably better than take on me and somebody that i used to know, however a-ha did have a few other hits and i believe that hearts a mess by gotye is also somewhat well known, but of course the majority of people are going to only know somebody that i used to know and take on me because of how successful and well known they were/are.
The GOTYE example is definitely a function of him being an artist who has always resided in Melbourne, Australia, where I live. I've been a fan of his since about 2005, and even exchanged some emails with Wally. Before "Somebody I Used to Know" became his break-out hit, GOTYE was best known in Australia for songs like "Hearts a Mess" and "Thanks For Your Time".
@@georgememmott4398 Gorillaz kinda just has a one hit wonder every album lol. Started with Clint Eastwood (Gorillaz) then Feel Good Inc. (Demon Days) followed by On Melancholy Hill (Plastic Beach) and then later Saturnz Barz (Humanz), Humility (The Now Now) and recently Momentary Bliss (Song Machine). That's not to say they haven't had other successes as every album always has a second or third or just entire discography of equally as good songs but these songs have become their most popular, ESPECIALLY Clint Eastwood and Feel Good Inc.
Yh blur is well loved in the UK but their hit song in the US is not representative of their style song 2 was a song satiring the over the top grime hits of the US and it ironically blew up as a grime hit in the Us
Uh, the reason there’s no “one hit wonders” since 2017 on the Wikipedia page is because there needs to be time for them to fade out of focus. They could still come out with a hit
I think that Carly Rae Jepson is the perfect example of how one hit wonders aren’t really a thing anymore. When most people hear her name they just think of Call me maybe, but she has a thriving fanbase- over 11 million monthly listeners on Spotify- and has put out some of the best pop music of the decade
FWIW I would say Carly is the very typical 2nd tier artist...and by that I mean, think of most rock bands or pop bands that are not the absolutely masters of their generation in which people would really know more than two of their songs. Think of Poison or Warrant in comparison to Motley Crue, VH or GnR...people really remember maybe 2 songs of them like talk dirty to me and every rose or cherry pie, while for sure they may choose or really fast pick any of the big hits of the other three. Or the killers when compared to strokes or even more by now The Arctic Monkey.
So many good songs. There's none of this "sorry we can't afford to keep you on for another 3 albums" bs. it's like "Sure, carly if you wanna make music, we will release and promote it." and so they just get to .... stay..... I remember when it was like "Woah Madonna has been around for SO LONG" and now MOST artists are sticking around for a decade or so.. The good ones. P!NK is up to 2 decades. Carly seems to have the right personality to keep going too.
Post Malone is a great example of were Little Nas X could be if he carried on. Malone turned his 'one-hit wonder' (White Iverson) into a career by delivering more hit singles and a big and relatable personality on social media. Little Nas followed Old Town Road up with Panini and has a very strong fanbase on social media. If he can have more hits, not even necessarily good albums (No shade to Malone, but his carear has thrived off the massive succes of single like Congratulations and Rockstar), he good come as big as Malone.
@@mfxandro9094 No, defiantly not. But he was at risk of becoming one because Old Town Road was so big, but then he's managed to carry the momentum forward and he's a solidified artist now
Well Lil Nas X is a recent case... it took almost 2 years to malone to deliver his second hit congratulation after white iverson... and u can tell that old town road and panini were way more popular than white iverson and go flex by post... Little Nas is about to drop an album so we will see if he can get rid off of that one hit wonder status
both post malone and lil nas x are good artists and i actually enjoy quite a few of their songs, which is really saying something because i strongly dislike rap and modern music, so they must be doing something right in order me and even my parents and grandparents who also have the same mindset about modern music and rap to genuinely enjoy them.
That song is fucking rancid. I have nothing against the artist, but damn does it suck. What's even worse is that I had to hear it everyday since my dad would play it in the shower.
@@memeking8734 Haven't heard The Drugs Don't Work? Easily their best song and one of their most popular too. Listen to it and let me know what you think 😊
Ylvis never intended to make a career out of their song, they already had a career. What does the Fox say was just a silly song they made for their late night talk show. They made tons of songs for their talkshow, never intending any of them to be viral.
The Verve isn't a "one hit wonder" - band by any stretch of that term. They didn't really make it in the US but were popular in the UK throughout the 1990s (both before and after "Bitter Sweet Symphony")
Unfortunately, we're talking about mainstream music. I like other stuff from The Verve, and they are really talented but the majority of people don't know anything from them except Bittersweet Symphony.
I saw him in the preview and I was like what? First of all he's only 22 and Old Town Road came out like 2 years ago, and if we erase 2020 as a year we expected anyone to do anything in the normal manor then it's been basically a year. It does take time to create music.
Really? I like the classic stuff like "Alien Heart" by Max Modem. Ooh, or an even better one- "I'm Lindana and I Wanna Have Fun". I wonder what ever happened to her?
@@mauve9266 he’s talking about the one episode where phi was and ferb decide to become a one hit wonder and the song they make is called “glitche glitche goo”
I do think one hit wonders are becoming less common but they're not going to go away completely. The fact that there's no wiki one hit wonders since 2017 is more down to how we haven't seen artists careers pan out. There may be an artist whose released one of their first songs recently and has become a hit but they can't be called a one hit wonder yet because they haven't had a chance to follow it up. Give it a few years and there may be many songs from 2016-20 that are seen as one hit wonders
I feel like this video is interesting but looks past a crucial point. We are still living in this era, so parsing what will be remembered as a one hit wonder and what won't is impossible right now. The statement that social media and streaming make it easier for artists to connect with and maintain their most loyal following is ultimately true, but misses the point that even true one hit wonders frequently have a dedicated following but pre-social media there was no way for us to easily rally them. It also fails to recognize that the US billboard charts as defining a one hit wonder has always been a flawed metric (ask Todd in the Shadows about that one). To borrow an example from the video, Desiigner may still have a dedicated following but that in the grand scheme 2 million followers on insta does not necessarily translate to streams or to concert attendance or record sales. He has plenty of music, and a fan of his work may love all his output, but given time and distance, we re-focus on the songs that made them famous. We do this all the time to other older artists. Given enough time and distance, some artists who had limited or no chart success will be looked back on as legends of their era, while other artists, regardless of their actual chart numbers in the US will have much of their work lost to the memory hole.
I agree. Most of these albums had one hit on their first album to break through and most people thought their next album would probably have another one. You can't know who is a one hit wonder and who isn't until it has been a while without another hit.
@@kuaraba Your comment proves the point. Lil Nas X seemed like a one hit wonder 3 months ago. Then he regained popularity. Can't say one way or the other yet for newer artists. Too soon.
You said it better than I could. If anything social media has segmented things so much that most of us will never hear Designer, let alone hear his hit song within in the same week or month. That wasn't the case with Barbie Girl where most of the people who were going to hear it, heard it with in a few weeks maybe even days. Aqua easily spent a few years headlining festivals and getting mainstream media attention because of that one hit song. I really don't think we can look at 2018 and really see who the One Hit Wonders are. If there are less One Hit Wonders it's because that kind of peak in popularity is no longer possible.
Huge disagree. Magic has had at least three or four major songs. Perhaps they haven’t hit the USA the same way they have in Canada, but at least here I could name you three right off the bat if you had a gun against my head. I think it’s an issue with the USA being such a tough and ever-changing market.
does fireflies count?? a lot of people know owl city from when can i see you again and good time with carly rae jepsen so i wouldnt call fireflies a ohw. also ive heard many popular radio stations play sit next to me by foster the people so i wouldnt even call pumped up kicks a ohw lmao.
Pumped Up Kicks got me into Foster the People (the band that sung it) and I've never stopped being a fan of their stuff. They full changed their style in the lastest album and they got even better.
yes thats what ive seen from most, ive seen artists whos most popular songs are the most mainstream tipe off songs and the others are still good but not mainstream
@@roddor7254 I guess you didn’t get the memo, we’re going in order by number. Don’t worry though, you’re only the 5.4 billionth person in line. You’ll get your 60 seconds in no time, just be glad you’re not the 7.8 billionth person in line, that guys never getting his 60 seconds
In the UK, Dexy’s Midnight Runners had plenty more hits than just ‘Come On Eileen’. ‘Gino’; ‘Jackie Wilson Says’ etc. It’s just because they didn’t break America very well people think they’re one hit wonders.
Yeah they're probably the biggest band in the indie world, but it's not something outrageous to suggest they're a one hit wonder. Have they ever released another song that has done as well commercially? The answer is no and I feel if you say that about Radiohead, you can say that about nearly anybody who was had one hit and then gone on to have a lengthy career, it's all about the communities you're active in. Looking at the past 10 years, two of the most obvious contenders for biggest one hit wonder would be Carly Rae Jepsen and Lorde and yet they have both still got incredibly dedicated fanbases and a ton of critical acclaim, but if you only follow pop music at a surface level, you're probably not going to know that, just as somebody who doesn't follow indie music wouldn't really know about Radiohead's later critical acclaim.
@@josephhughes1325 "Two of the most obvious contenders for the biggest one-hit wonders would be Lorde and Carly Rae Jepsen." Bruh none of the two aren't even close of being the biggest one-hit wonder. There are way bigger candidates such as Gotye, PSY, Baauer or Magic.
Gotye is the most underrated artist of the 2010s. He also fully disappeared but that album that somebody I used to know was on is fantastic. And so was his previous album.
Shouts out to Toddintheshadows for teaching me that Chumbawumba is actually a long running Anarcho-punk band thatbwas around way before and way after Tubthumping.
Just a side note: the day the organe dictator left office, my husband and I popped a bottle of champagne and drank to "the day the nazi died" over and over just singing at the top of our lungs. It was awesome
Came here to speak up for Chumbawamba! They live their ideals, too: aside from getting a new 2nd hand truck, or other modest necessities, they gave away the millions generated by Tubthumping to worthy causes.
Not if using the criteria set forth in the video: any group or performer who had only one release to reach the top forty in sales. I don't remember uf the video said what chart or agency data source was used and I think data was restricted to sales in the U.S.A. only. Then again, Hendrix's 'Band of Gypsys' Lp was certified gold by the RIAA which indicates a million dollars in sales (in 1970 when it was released) which should have put it in the top forty at least.
Feel It Still was a weird one for me. I was listening to Portugal. The Man in the late 00s. Never thought they would have a top 40 hit. But also not that surprising because Feel It Still is nothing like what they were making when I first heard them
I'm guessing that in the case of modern meme one-hit wonders, it's still possible for them to fade into obscurity once the meme itself dies along with them. Some that come to mind are Baby Powder by Bandingo and Mia Khalifa by ILoveFriday. In Bandingo's case, his latest releases only got a max of 3k views on YT and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't get enough money off of those new songs. His meme song has been stagnant and is only used in old outdated memes. ILoveFriday however still has a solid fanbase of around 500k so they're still good. So it depends on the artist but yeah it's still possible to be a one-hit wonder nowadays.
If I ever make it to the music industry,this is the most terrifying thing for me. You guys sick of me already? My musics aren't good anymore? Am I being too aggressive? Was my joke bad? Did I sing terrible? Things will just get in my mind,but I still love music tho.
I've made plans for a music project in time with my role being acting as manager, i deeply fear the idea of being a one hit wonder as at best i aim at two hits.
Imagine thinking The Verve are a one hit wonder! They’ve headlined Glastonbury, had four top 10 hits in the UK and The Drugs Don’t Work was a number one.
The reason I think one hit wonders stopped is that whenever there would be a one hit wonder some label picks that artist up. Like Lizzo and Truth Hurts. It was a song that was played constantly on the radio and it was the first time I’ve heard of her. Now her songs are pushed everywhere. No one is allowed to fade into obscurity anymore because there’s still money to be gained from their sudden burst of popularity.
Yeah, he said that. He said that Old Town Road would've been a one-hit wonder years ago. But now people have the ability to ride that success to their next big song.
that song was amazing at how bad it did, the snippet had millions of views but I remember when he eventually released the music video months later he was struggling to do 10k views. Shit was so sad
I don't know if it's disappearing as much as evolving with the times. I think the one hit wonder formula still exists, but social media, like you say, allows OHW to stay afloat if they are smart. With social media lowering the barrier to entry, OHW are allowed to use the momentum generated off of their hit and find a groove. OHWs aren't going away, I would actually say they're getting stronger.
Some of those random songs became temporarily popular after they were featured in a famous TV show, movie, or commercial - example "When I'm Small by Phantogram" was on a TV show and commercial and then I heard it everywhere.
I firmly believe that the only reason most people remember that song is because Michael Jackson is featured. I know nobody else is clamoring for more Rockwell.
You sir are a novice one hit wonder connoisseur at best. How dare you leave out what in inarguably the greatest O-H-W of all time. Lou bega - mambo no. 5
@@marmolejomartinezjoseemili9043 "The Drugs Don't Work", "Lucky Man", and "Love Is Noise" broke the UK top 10, with "The Drugs Don't Work" hitting #1, and their singles from _A Northern Soul_ as well as the album itself charted well. The band did well in Continental Europe and Australia, too.
Man, your first example of a one hit wonder really made me sad because it’s true, but it shouldn’t be. Vanessa Carlton is an extremely talented songwriter and pianist, and it’s such a shame it’s not more recognized. Her song ‘The Wreckage’ gives me chills every single time I listen to it. To date, still one of my all time favorite songs and artists
Vanessa is amazing! I've seen her in concert and she sounds exactly the same as she does on all her tracks which no artists do. There doesn't seem to be any editing on hers. It shocks me how she hasn't had another huge hit either. Her music is really good!
If we could just get every single one hit wonders from the past (50-100) years together and just have a one hit wonder concert. I'd go to that concert it would be 1,000 different artists NOT getting the Star treatment. They could seriously just chill with the crowd and still be awesome on stage and just put on a show and then just go back to sitting in the crowd and hanging out
Without watching the video, I think it's just a lot easier to M I L K your 1 hit and keep the momentum. Look at how many music videos and lyric videos old town road has. Then his mainstream appeal and old town road had him EVERYWHERE. eventually he started working with better producers to make his sound even better and he managed to make a career.
I agree with some artist categorised here as "one hit wonders" but not others like Verve. Like WTF? Urban Hymns is one of the best albums from the 90's with several huge songs: Bittersweet symphony, Sonnet, The drugs don't work, Lucky man. And those are just the well known singles. There were plenty of other tracks just as good (Space and time, Velvet morning, One day). So, Verve is definitely not a one hit wonder band. A one hit album wonder maybe (although I wouldn't call them that either since they made 4 albums) but that's already so much more. If people remember and cherish a whole album by some artist I think it changes the perspective of how that artist is remembered: not as a one hit wonder but already as a great artist/band (like Jeff Buckley). So Verve is definitely remembered as a great band. There's maybe a bit too American perspective in this video although I do agree with many of the other examples picked.
Tainted love was a Gloria Jones cover. Do you think that had anything to do with their one hit wonder status? Maybe their original stuff didn’t catch on as easily?
@@mcfly4959 no they don't, only young people who can't be bothered to go past radioplay (who only ever seem to play one song from some artists) can think bands or singers are one hit wonders when there clearly not
Dude this is the 4th video in a row that Im watching... Your content is really good. and they way you talk is "Cachty"! Im really glad that I found this channel hahah
'All Star' was a hit song years before Shrek even existed. Shrek isn't even the first movie that song was in, 'Mystery Men' with Ben Stiller is the real movie that song is for the soundtrack. They were cast was even in the music video. Also, 'Then The Morning Comes' was a huge hit as well, that used to get played on MTV all the time in '99/00
from my experience with music ive seen that most one hit wonders have their one hit be a very popy or very mainstream tipe where as their other songs are less mainstream so i think thats also an important thing to point out
Dexys Midnight Runners are the furthest thing from a one hit wonder band. They produced three masterpiece albums, and managed to be popular in the U.K. and across Europe throughout the 80s and 90s
They are definitely not the "furthest" thing from a one hit wonder band. They only have three songs on Spotify with more than 10 million streams, and they are all "Come on Eileen". When one song by a group has nearly 400 million total streams and their next biggest song has under 10 million streams, it's hard to deny that their mainstream popularity was simply a flash in the pan. That disparity in popularity is the definition of a one hit wonder. Also, let's talk about their albums. They only have one platinum album (hint: it's the one with "Come on Eileen" on it) and none of their other albums even went gold. It doesn't matter if a group puts out masterpieces. Being a one hit wonder has nothing to do with long term quality and everything to do with short term popularity.
Ethan Rappeport mate you walk round the north of England, or Birmingham, Paris, Dublin, everyone knows who Dexys are and can speak about them with knowledge of songs other than just Come On Eileen. Geno was number 1 as well so instantly taking away from the one hit wonder category
As well as the uplifting "Lucky Man", the upbeat "Love Is Noise", the hard-rocking "This Is Music", the melancholic "On Your Own", and the poignant love song "History". All of those songs charted well in the United Kingdom.
"There are three types of one hit wonders. 1, acts who were too bad to get a second hit. 2, acts who were just too weird to get a second hit. And 3, actually really good bands who just so happened to only line up with the trends at one point in time." - Todd In The Shadows
Ah.. a man of culture i see. Long live TITS
is 3 a reference to Radiohead lol
Traplover in what world is Radiohead a 1 hit wonder?
Traplover singles from ok computer could count as hits such as karma police and no surprises
@@traplover6357 its moreso refers to bands who were big in other countries, but only had their one-hit in the US
I feel like Tiktok is becoming a one hit wonder breeding ground. Every week a new kid has a song blow up and then they can’t keep up. Cradles by Sub Urban, Roxanne by Arizona Zervas, or even Moral of the Story by Ashe. That is the closest I think we’ll get to one hit wonders right now.
Yeah that app has definitely become a breeding ground for starting the careers of random people who make music. Old Town Road is the shining example of that. It's also an alternative to the billboard because now it doesn't matter if your song is on the charts it matters if it's trending on tiktok
It's so crazy to see Ashe being used when I remember loving a lot of things Ashe posted years ago.
I remember listening to Cradles the day it came out on NCS, thinking it was neat but nothing stand out. Nuts how it blew up.
sub urban has a good song on his new album
Remember Dominic Fike?
People: Rick is a one hit wonder
Rick Astley: had 6 top-40 hits in the US, five of them in the top 10, plus many huge hits in europe that werent released in the US
For me I know 2
The obvious and together forever
So 2 hit wonder
@@OpTubeShorts statistically he's a six hit wonder
@@memeteam2692 at that point he's a hitmaking artist
@@JohnBillow more so a singer. he usually didn't write his own songs, like many pop singers
He had a number 1 uk album when he turned 50. Hardly a one hit wonder. Love me some rick Astley
*Welcome back to One Hit Wonderland, where we take a look at bands and artists known for only one song.*
Hands
Todd dosent get enough love
Love Todd
Probably the reason this is recommended to me, I’ve been on a Todd binge for the last few days
TITS!
I know that this wasn't the thrust of your video, but I find Mike Posner has a really interesting One-Hit Wonder story. He made Cooler Than Me, faded into obscurity, then in the next decade had a song that became a number one hit ABOUT being a One-Hit Wonder. And the real kicker is that it only blew up because of a remix that couldn't sound anymore different than the original. It's also a pretty damn good song.
Just a really unique One-Hit Wonder story.
Now he makes some cool eccentric stuff with blackbear (also only has a few hits) in mansionz
I'll have you know that "please dont go" is a banger 😤😤😤
Ppl just like sad lyrics with fun music I guess
@@william_d no cap detected
Nah he was in a duo with black bear “mansionz” he had a few hits
Aqua has not only had 7 #1s in their home country of Denmark, but they've even had 2 US top 40 hits.
4 top ten's including 2 number one's in Austilra, Barbie Girl and Doctor Jones. 5 Top 10 including 3! number one's the UK the same as Aus plus Turn Back Time. Never thought of Aqua as a one hit wonder.
I was just about to make that point. A lot of bands exist in the zeitgeist as one hit wonders, but if you look at their career, they hand more than one top 40 song.
People associate flock of seagulls with "I ran" but "space age love song" was also a top 40 hit.
Holy shit I lost it when he said that... like yo, do 5 fucking minutes of research. I'm not sorry, you cannot just be so confidently wrong and get away with it. calling this out had to be done. Dr jones is the way better song. Heat of the Night? Calling You? Candyman? that was a full ALBUM wonder. then there is the entire albums of remixes, a few stinkers here or there like the scream movie tie in track. but wow. aqua is not one hit.
Aqua FEELS like a one hit wonder and its very true. Don't screech at the man when he explained himself clearly. Aqua are a one hit wonder band to basically everyone, even if Denmark is the exception.
@@jamesmeow3039 He said that these artist were never going to build a career out of their song. And on this point he's wrong when it comes to Aqua. And they charted in many countries around the world with more than one song. America isn't the be all, end all when it comes to music. It's almost as "if it doesn't play in the States, it doesn't even exist, and the opinions of the rest of the world doesn't matter".
Gotye himself is now “somebody the we used to know “
He chose to stop making music for a number of reasons. Always had a decent following in Australia not sure about outside tho
What a great hit it was. That song still bangs 8 years later.
@@Bradley_Lute umm it's 10 years, my dude
Somebody and We Are Young were such an awesome one two combo of hit songs in early 2012
Kinda sad that both Gotye and fun. disappeared
@@jonnathan1869 no it's 9 years, the song was recorded in 2011 but it can also be 8 years because the song was released in 2012.
The cut you used for that “Pray for You” song really made me laugh
Same 😂😂😂😂
Lmfaooo same
same
It’s “babyyyyy you, got what I need” and It’s Just A Friend by Biz Markie 😂
Yes. That song is pretty dang funny to me lol
The Verve, Soft Cell, and Dexy's Midnight Runners all had pretty massive careers in the UK as far as I know.
I wasn't even sure what song he was referring to with The Verve
@@ayyguevara8448 He was referring to "Bitter Sweet Symphony", their only hit single in Canada and the United States.
In UK, 'The Drugs Don't Work' was their biggest hit (reaching #1). Lucky Man and Sonnet are also extremely well-known songs in Britain
I don't even understand the initial reference to Weezer. I'm so confused. They had five #1 hits in the US. 19 top tens. And 32 songs in the top 100. I mean, did he think they just popped onto the music scene in the 2000s?
They all did. I'm a fan of none of them but I remember all of them.
It probably cuts off at 2017 because you can't conclusively call someone a one hit wonder after a year or two. You can feel it, but you can't say conclusively.
Example - the Chainsmokers. It still boggles my mind they were a thing.
A Shiba Inu called Kanye i forgot they were a thing
@@monwren I looked up some songs from the Chainsmokers and they have on youtube 2 songs with over 1 Bil. clicks and several over 100 mil. clicks. I would not call these one hit wonders
@@danielsnoopeh1807 What they mean is that after #Selfie in 2014, many people were quick to write them off as a One-Hit-Wonder because of how ridiculous that song was. It was really surprising that they ended up having a bunch of hits starting in 2016.
You probably resolved this whole video.
Chumbawamba were actually a very serious Anarcho-Punk group who briefly sold out and made a pop track. I am not making this up.
They literally made it to fuck with EMI
Yeah I grow up listening to there album of British Protest songs
In pure anarcho fashion, the band had a mixed line-up of both men and women (Crass and Poison Girls among them). There is a folk-punk protest number from one of their female vocalists called Begining To Take It Back. It sounds more like the Raincoats or Young Marble Giants than the band that got knocked down and got up again.
I think they just wanted to make a pop song they don't seem like a band who would think to make a certain type of song just for money or fame
They didn't really sell out, they were trolling
Rude by Magic! sure was a one hit wonder everybody was singing that damn song
Brings me back to when pools were open
I love that song I even remember the music video
I feel like I remember Magic having another big song
@@dnyal7251 Red dress?
@@dnyal7251 Geronimo
For Gotye to be fair, he just didn't want to make more music. He didn't feel like it, and said he'll maybe drop an album in the next decade. He didn't really try to work off of the success of his song. And before that song he apparently had a good traction.
i’m pretty sure he made one album afterward but it underperformed and he didn’t really care and then just dipped lol
Gotyes first album was actually pretty big in Australia fyi . He's not really a One Hit Wonder
Calling Gotye a one hit wonder is an absolute travesty. Give his albums a listen - Like Drawing Blood is a masterpiece and revered in Australia.
its so sad that people only know gotye for somebody that i used to know, its a great song but his album like drawing blood is so amazing!
@@laursieloise wtf
I’m sure somebody will mention this, but if you’re interested in this topic watch Todd in the Shadows’s series about these songs
yeah there great
This whole video made me miss Todd
Tails gang
This whole video just builds hype for TitS.
@@davehenry6997 You act like Todd is gone
Bittersweet Symphony wasn't the Verve's only hit. The Verve became a super popular British band, and at the very least any British parent and kid growing up in the 2000/2010s would be able to list at least two of their songs.
Edit:
I think that might be a possible reason why some songs can get into the top 40s, but no one remembers them.
I was waiting for someone to say this, the drugs don't work, sonnet and lucky man are all pretty damn good
Exactly, same with the proclaimers. They were/are both popular.
Personally, I think TikTok also factors into it. In the ‘UK Viral 50’ on Spotify, 12/50 songs wouldn’t have been on without TikTok. Many artists (Doja Cat, mxmtoon, etc.) made a song that got big on TikTok and eventually get a fan base off of it. However, many people (powfu, K Camp, BENEE, etc.) made a song that got known as a ‘TikTok song’ and have never put out a song that got half as big.
I don’t think it affects the quantity of one-hit wonders, but I think it affects HOW it works.
I hate NA countries wholeheartedly.
@@jumalakohtuotsus4174 fuck tiktok
Alex W Lol gotta say I agree but Benee is actually has tons of great songs cause her whole old ep is getting trending again and get heard by a lot of people
IIRC Benee has a couple of songs that got big in New Zealand
Alex W K Camp had multiple hits in like 2015-2016
Gotye was and is actually super talented. You should check out his other stuff. Especially the song hearts a mess. Yes somebody that I used to know was one of the most popular songs of the decade. But quite a few of his other songs have over 20 million streams. I wouldn’t say that’s a one hit wonder but great video.
@brandon roberts a-ha is not a one hit wonder, what are you talking about? they had at least a dozen radio hits after take on me, e.g. you are the one, crying in the rain, summer moved on, nothing is keeping you here etc.
@brandon roberts You do know the US isn't the only country in the world? And A-ha had multiple successful singles even in the US
@@arpitdas4263 Well, if you ask the average american, there's a 99% chance they could only name Take On Me
Gotye has som really good shit on his other albums, kinda wish he’d come back soon
i’m actually a pretty big fan of both a-ha and gotye and they are extremely talented and i think they have many songs that are arguably better than take on me and somebody that i used to know, however a-ha did have a few other hits and i believe that hearts a mess by gotye is also somewhat well known, but of course the majority of people are going to only know somebody that i used to know and take on me because of how successful and well known they were/are.
The GOTYE example is definitely a function of him being an artist who has always resided in Melbourne, Australia, where I live. I've been a fan of his since about 2005, and even exchanged some emails with Wally. Before "Somebody I Used to Know" became his break-out hit, GOTYE was best known in Australia for songs like "Hearts a Mess" and "Thanks For Your Time".
Nice
“Hey There Delila” deserved that intro montage more than anyone
nah they had 1234 and rhythm of love too, both songs that everyone forgets how they sound until they hear them again. but both top 40 hits nonetheless
Yoo I fucking loved that song
what about whip nae nae
@@stampie6442 He literally mentioned it in the video
Our time now became so big because of icarly
In the UK, The Verve were huge, it’s the same with a lot of British bands like Blur
I feel like gorillaz is one of them yeah
@@georgememmott4398 Gorillaz kinda just has a one hit wonder every album lol. Started with Clint Eastwood (Gorillaz) then Feel Good Inc. (Demon Days) followed by On Melancholy Hill (Plastic Beach) and then later Saturnz Barz (Humanz), Humility (The Now Now) and recently Momentary Bliss (Song Machine).
That's not to say they haven't had other successes as every album always has a second or third or just entire discography of equally as good songs but these songs have become their most popular, ESPECIALLY Clint Eastwood and Feel Good Inc.
Yeah thats true i can agree lol
Yh blur is well loved in the UK but their hit song in the US is not representative of their style song 2 was a song satiring the over the top grime hits of the US and it ironically blew up as a grime hit in the Us
i really enjoy gorillaz and blur and damon abarn’s solo work as well but i did find them through their most popular songs as i’m sure most people did
Uh, the reason there’s no “one hit wonders” since 2017 on the Wikipedia page is because there needs to be time for them to fade out of focus. They could still come out with a hit
that is what i thought, how do you know the artist's career is dead until they realease a new album and it flops ?
@@devforfun5618 more than just one for that matter. Plenty of artists have had albums that didn't do well and still went on to create hits after that.
kinda like how Elle King now has Drunk and I Don’t Wanna Go Home
@@cadenhyde9510 And yet I would think only of "Exes and Ohs".
@@devforfun5618 And they may follow the flop with another hit.
I think that Carly Rae Jepson is the perfect example of how one hit wonders aren’t really a thing anymore. When most people hear her name they just think of Call me maybe, but she has a thriving fanbase- over 11 million monthly listeners on Spotify- and has put out some of the best pop music of the decade
Exactly, Carly is the pop/alternative commercial who make art, so one hit wonder mean abother thing
FWIW I would say Carly is the very typical 2nd tier artist...and by that I mean, think of most rock bands or pop bands that are not the absolutely masters of their generation in which people would really know more than two of their songs.
Think of Poison or Warrant in comparison to Motley Crue, VH or GnR...people really remember maybe 2 songs of them like talk dirty to me and every rose or cherry pie, while for sure they may choose or really fast pick any of the big hits of the other three.
Or the killers when compared to strokes or even more by now The Arctic Monkey.
Her song Good Time with Owl City was a pretty big hit back in 2012, so she was never in any way a one hit wonder
@@aristotleasparaguspodcast1129 she also had I really like you as a minor hit
So many good songs. There's none of this "sorry we can't afford to keep you on for another 3 albums" bs. it's like "Sure, carly if you wanna make music, we will release and promote it." and so they just get to .... stay.....
I remember when it was like "Woah Madonna has been around for SO LONG" and now MOST artists are sticking around for a decade or so.. The good ones. P!NK is up to 2 decades. Carly seems to have the right personality to keep going too.
the world was in a better place when fetty wap released trap queen
Crimea River 6 years is pretty long ago in terms of popular music lol
Crimea River 6 years is still a long time old man
Crimea River ur fun at parties huh
6 years damn
Trap queen went famous at the same time as TPAB was launched. Let that sink in
Do you remember that one-hit wonder called ‘Creep’ by Radiohead. Shame they never did much else after that 😔
Karma Police is the 2nd one
Can’t tell if you’re joking or not.
@@daishoryujin95 I'm pretty sure he's joking.
Gabingston well, you can’t hear sarcasm through text, and there are people who only know creep. I was just trying to be sure
Are they still together? Bless their heart
Post Malone is a great example of were Little Nas X could be if he carried on. Malone turned his 'one-hit wonder' (White Iverson) into a career by delivering more hit singles and a big and relatable personality on social media. Little Nas followed Old Town Road up with Panini and has a very strong fanbase on social media. If he can have more hits, not even necessarily good albums (No shade to Malone, but his carear has thrived off the massive succes of single like Congratulations and Rockstar), he good come as big as Malone.
Wait is lil nas x really a one hit wonder ? I don’t think so
@@mfxandro9094 No, defiantly not. But he was at risk of becoming one because Old Town Road was so big, but then he's managed to carry the momentum forward and he's a solidified artist now
Well Lil Nas X is a recent case... it took almost 2 years to malone to deliver his second hit congratulation after white iverson... and u can tell that old town road and panini were way more popular than white iverson and go flex by post... Little Nas is about to drop an album so we will see if he can get rid off of that one hit wonder status
Gaston Bustamante and rodeo did numbers for lil nas x
both post malone and lil nas x are good artists and i actually enjoy quite a few of their songs, which is really saying something because i strongly dislike rap and modern music, so they must be doing something right in order me and even my parents and grandparents who also have the same mindset about modern music and rap to genuinely enjoy them.
Remember when we thought Katy Perry was gonna be a One Hit Wonder when she released "I Kissed a Girl"
Gaga too with Just Dance
lmao and then she came out with teenage dream and got 6 numbers ones...
@@Sophhiiaa_ bop, is that what they do now?
@@jahjoeka where have you been
We ONLY wish she had remained a 1 hit wonder because she sucks....
I'd say dance monkey is a one hit wonder
The vocals on that song are vile
Tones and I has other fairly big hits like „you’re so f***ing cool“
@@cuddlycuttlefish5674 “big”…. that song was abyssmal.
That song is fucking rancid. I have nothing against the artist, but damn does it suck. What's even worse is that I had to hear it everyday since my dad would play it in the shower.
@@metallicfingers Ikr, that song had no reason to get that popular
The Panda effect: Panda by Desiigner outshines his other songs so much that he is now irrelevant
I've thought of the same thing before just that I've called it the call me maybe effect
blackyspeakz influence
@@diegoanimations9504 Call me maybe doesn't even come close to the best songs on e•mo•tion
lol the thing abt him is he has made much more better songs but because he fell off in popularity those songs didn't get the traction they needed
he's the most relevant person that follows me on instagram
Most of these songs were covered on One Hit Wonderland by Todd In The Shadows.
alfo: “what the heck is pray for you by jaron and the long road to love?”
that guy: 😔🙏
I saw him with my friend for her bday with Toby Keith
Verve are pretty big ngl not just bitter sweet symphony
I think that one might be a case of them being one hit wonders in the states but not elsewhere
Ngl that’s the only song I’ve heard of verve
@@memeking8734 Haven't heard The Drugs Don't Work? Easily their best song and one of their most popular too. Listen to it and let me know what you think 😊
Ryan O so two hit wonders?
@@twilit History. Lucky Man. Richard Ashcroft has 500,000 monthly listeners on spotify.
"Mans Not Hot" the last true one hit wonder 😂
THE TING GO SKRRRRAAH
i’m so sorry
Loverboy Media He’s a fairly successful comedian though, so he’ll be alright
i hate to break it to you but that video is not real. he is a british comedian, that was a character and was part of an act. still fuckin funny tho
@@brendansomerville2412 Well yeah so is Ylvis but no one has an issue calling them a one hit wonder
old town road
Ylvis never intended to make a career out of their song, they already had a career. What does the Fox say was just a silly song they made for their late night talk show. They made tons of songs for their talkshow, never intending any of them to be viral.
I had no idea that Ylvis had a talk show
@@kittykittybangbang9367 it's a sketch/late night talk show. Lots of fun stuff. Most of them in Norwegian, but subbed.
What’s the meaning of Stonheeeeeeenge?
Is that show still going on to this day?
@@LPMBMLPM no, that went off the air in 2016. But they are active with other tv shows and projects. Still mixing music and comedy
The Verve isn't a "one hit wonder" - band by any stretch of that term. They didn't really make it in the US but were popular in the UK throughout the 1990s (both before and after "Bitter Sweet Symphony")
Yeah, if The Verve's a "one-hit wonder" then Franz Ferdinand and Modest Mouse are the same, too.
Unfortunately, we're talking about mainstream music. I like other stuff from The Verve, and they are really talented but the majority of people don't know anything from them except Bittersweet Symphony.
@@Aster_Risk Most people who I know who were around during the Brit pop era cañ name at least 2 verve songs
@@Aster_Risk the world doesn’t revolve around America. They were mainstream in the UK
But were they, " Bigger than Jesus?"
basically the opposite of Drake and Ed Sheeran, those 2 could cough into a mic and it'd blow up
@@dennisl3475 mans a hit machine
unfortunately
sarah ll-// fortunately **
Nas X proved he isn't a one hit wonder
I saw him in the preview and I was like what? First of all he's only 22 and Old Town Road came out like 2 years ago, and if we erase 2020 as a year we expected anyone to do anything in the normal manor then it's been basically a year. It does take time to create music.
Absolutely. All his other songs have done extremely well, and Montero(?) recently was on like SNL or something
@@Ceares even „Holiday“ was a great track
He has another number one song
Industry Baby Friday ‼️‼️‼️ Hes at the height of his career with this smart ass marketing
"When I Say The Words One Hit Wonder, What Comes To Mind?"
Me: *Does "Gitche Gitche Goo" From Phineas And Ferb Count?*
Really? I like the classic stuff like "Alien Heart" by Max Modem. Ooh, or an even better one- "I'm Lindana and I Wanna Have Fun". I wonder what ever happened to her?
BUSTED was also a classic. IMO Phineas and Ferb have too many classics to be a one hit wonder in my mind 😂
@@mauve9266 he’s talking about the one episode where phi was and ferb decide to become a one hit wonder and the song they make is called “glitche glitche goo”
@@EspeciallyWesley ahh I see
Absolutely not. Squirrels in my pants. Records on my fingers. Need I say more,
I do think one hit wonders are becoming less common but they're not going to go away completely. The fact that there's no wiki one hit wonders since 2017 is more down to how we haven't seen artists careers pan out. There may be an artist whose released one of their first songs recently and has become a hit but they can't be called a one hit wonder yet because they haven't had a chance to follow it up. Give it a few years and there may be many songs from 2016-20 that are seen as one hit wonders
I completely agree! You need to wait to tell if there one hit wonders.
Exactly,that kind of thing takes time
I feel like this video is interesting but looks past a crucial point. We are still living in this era, so parsing what will be remembered as a one hit wonder and what won't is impossible right now. The statement that social media and streaming make it easier for artists to connect with and maintain their most loyal following is ultimately true, but misses the point that even true one hit wonders frequently have a dedicated following but pre-social media there was no way for us to easily rally them. It also fails to recognize that the US billboard charts as defining a one hit wonder has always been a flawed metric (ask Todd in the Shadows about that one). To borrow an example from the video, Desiigner may still have a dedicated following but that in the grand scheme 2 million followers on insta does not necessarily translate to streams or to concert attendance or record sales. He has plenty of music, and a fan of his work may love all his output, but given time and distance, we re-focus on the songs that made them famous. We do this all the time to other older artists. Given enough time and distance, some artists who had limited or no chart success will be looked back on as legends of their era, while other artists, regardless of their actual chart numbers in the US will have much of their work lost to the memory hole.
I wish I could like this more than once.
True. Lil nas x, desiigner and even the floss kid are one hit wonders goven enough time.
I agree. Most of these albums had one hit on their first album to break through and most people thought their next album would probably have another one. You can't know who is a one hit wonder and who isn't until it has been a while without another hit.
@@kuaraba Your comment proves the point. Lil Nas X seemed like a one hit wonder 3 months ago. Then he regained popularity. Can't say one way or the other yet for newer artists. Too soon.
You said it better than I could. If anything social media has segmented things so much that most of us will never hear Designer, let alone hear his hit song within in the same week or month. That wasn't the case with Barbie Girl where most of the people who were going to hear it, heard it with in a few weeks maybe even days. Aqua easily spent a few years headlining festivals and getting mainstream media attention because of that one hit song. I really don't think we can look at 2018 and really see who the One Hit Wonders are. If there are less One Hit Wonders it's because that kind of peak in popularity is no longer possible.
The biggest one hit wonder I didn’t see on here was rude by magic
If that song was a person I would beat the shit out of it
Huge disagree. Magic has had at least three or four major songs. Perhaps they haven’t hit the USA the same way they have in Canada, but at least here I could name you three right off the bat if you had a gun against my head. I think it’s an issue with the USA being such a tough and ever-changing market.
I freaking hate that song
Criscora thriving in one country while one song was big everywhere else still means you're a OHW
@@peachyshoes4113 hahahaha my sister hates that song the same way you do XD
Somebody I used to know, Pumped Up Kicks, and Fireflies are 3 of the biggest one hits of my middle school years.
Owl city had multiple good songs though. I dont consider him just fore flies and that's it. Deer in the headlights, it's always a good time etc.
does fireflies count?? a lot of people know owl city from when can i see you again and good time with carly rae jepsen so i wouldnt call fireflies a ohw. also ive heard many popular radio stations play sit next to me by foster the people so i wouldnt even call pumped up kicks a ohw lmao.
skipsbruh if you have one song that’s vastly more popular than the rest of your discography, then you might not be a ohw but you’re pretty dang close.
Pumped Up Kicks got me into Foster the People (the band that sung it) and I've never stopped being a fan of their stuff. They full changed their style in the lastest album and they got even better.
@@jdamourep sure but he wasn't on the radio much and he was still forgotten by most people
Gotye hasn't made music by that name. He's in his own small band and he may make a song sooner or later
A lot of the songs you mentioned were made by artists that are big in there own genre or other countries
yes thats what ive seen from most, ive seen artists whos most popular songs are the most mainstream tipe off songs and the others are still good but not mainstream
"in the future everyone will get their 60 seconds of fame" Andy Warhol
Not to be argumentative✌ but:
What he actually said was that "In the future everyone will get fifteen (15) MINUTES of fame".
@@KC______ Yeah I think we passed that. It's only 60 seconds now. Too many people, not enough time in the day!
he was right
Where’s my 60 seconds?
@@roddor7254 I guess you didn’t get the memo, we’re going in order by number. Don’t worry though, you’re only the 5.4 billionth person in line. You’ll get your 60 seconds in no time, just be glad you’re not the 7.8 billionth person in line, that guys never getting his 60 seconds
In the UK, Dexy’s Midnight Runners had plenty more hits than just ‘Come On Eileen’. ‘Gino’; ‘Jackie Wilson Says’ etc. It’s just because they didn’t break America very well people think they’re one hit wonders.
Exactly! When I think Dexy's I think Gino.
I’ve met too many people who think Radioheads ‘creep’ is a One Hit Wonder.
Deserved
Yeah they're probably the biggest band in the indie world, but it's not something outrageous to suggest they're a one hit wonder. Have they ever released another song that has done as well commercially? The answer is no and I feel if you say that about Radiohead, you can say that about nearly anybody who was had one hit and then gone on to have a lengthy career, it's all about the communities you're active in. Looking at the past 10 years, two of the most obvious contenders for biggest one hit wonder would be Carly Rae Jepsen and Lorde and yet they have both still got incredibly dedicated fanbases and a ton of critical acclaim, but if you only follow pop music at a surface level, you're probably not going to know that, just as somebody who doesn't follow indie music wouldn't really know about Radiohead's later critical acclaim.
@@josephhughes1325 dude radiohead has had 17 top 40 hits lmao...
@Grand Xa hit doesnt mean that its on billboard charts...
@@josephhughes1325 "Two of the most obvious contenders for the biggest one-hit wonders would be Lorde and Carly Rae Jepsen."
Bruh none of the two aren't even close of being the biggest one-hit wonder. There are way bigger candidates such as Gotye, PSY, Baauer or Magic.
Gotye is the most underrated artist of the 2010s. He also fully disappeared but that album that somebody I used to know was on is fantastic. And so was his previous album.
I feel like The Outfield’s “Your love” should have been on this list. (I dont want to lose your love tonight).
They had 7 top 40 songs though some that ranked even higher than your love
They're more famous in my England.
Shouts out to Toddintheshadows for teaching me that Chumbawumba is actually a long running Anarcho-punk band thatbwas around way before and way after Tubthumping.
Love Todd in the Shadows!!!! He's taught me so much about one hit wonders! My favorite was his episode on the Scatman.
Just a side note: the day the organe dictator left office, my husband and I popped a bottle of champagne and drank to "the day the nazi died" over and over just singing at the top of our lungs. It was awesome
Came here to speak up for Chumbawamba! They live their ideals, too: aside from getting a new 2nd hand truck, or other modest necessities, they gave away the millions generated by Tubthumping to worthy causes.
Came to say the same thing. Chumbawumba was fucking hardcore.
YES! todintheshaddows is awesome for pointing it out.
Calling jimmy Hendrix a one hit wonder would be a crime.
but you know what isnt a one hit wonder but basically is? warrant
Not if using the criteria set forth in the video: any group or performer who had only one release to reach the top forty in sales.
I don't remember uf the video said what chart or agency data source was used and I think data was restricted to sales in the U.S.A. only.
Then again, Hendrix's 'Band of Gypsys' Lp was certified gold by the RIAA which indicates a million dollars in sales (in 1970 when it was released) which should have put it in the top forty at least.
@@connormartinson7619 hmm Warrant is a tough one.
Connor Martinson that’s one cursed pfp
I'm sorry, did you just spell Jimi with a y?
There’s also the concept of a “one album wonder”, an act that has a couple hits early and then fades from existence shortly after.
Like Vengaboys..
That sounds like the band fun.
Like Alanis Morissette.
lil pump
Billie eilish
Feel It Still was a weird one for me. I was listening to Portugal. The Man in the late 00s. Never thought they would have a top 40 hit. But also not that surprising because Feel It Still is nothing like what they were making when I first heard them
Me too.. Totally took me by surprise..I was like the same guy?? Had to look that up... Yeah pretty different stuff... Totally agree.
Yoo I completely forgot about that song wow
I'm guessing that in the case of modern meme one-hit wonders, it's still possible for them to fade into obscurity once the meme itself dies along with them.
Some that come to mind are Baby Powder by Bandingo and Mia Khalifa by ILoveFriday. In Bandingo's case, his latest releases only got a max of 3k views on YT and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't get enough money off of those new songs. His meme song has been stagnant and is only used in old outdated memes.
ILoveFriday however still has a solid fanbase of around 500k so they're still good. So it depends on the artist but yeah it's still possible to be a one-hit wonder nowadays.
true
Roxanne guy too
@Intisar Iqbal ¿? Where was their peak?
If I ever make it to the music industry,this is the most terrifying thing for me.
You guys sick of me already? My musics aren't good anymore? Am I being too aggressive? Was my joke bad? Did I sing terrible?
Things will just get in my mind,but I still love music tho.
A bit late but good luck hope you succeed
I've made plans for a music project in time with my role being acting as manager, i deeply fear the idea of being a one hit wonder as at best i aim at two hits.
Imagine thinking The Verve are a one hit wonder! They’ve headlined Glastonbury, had four top 10 hits in the UK and The Drugs Don’t Work was a number one.
Nobody cares about the UK.
@@mirewalker nobody asked
@@georgememmott4398 You have wooden teeth.
@@mirewalker you have an anime profile pic. You're opinion is invalid
Satanael_CTGO wtf, the aggression in your comments
The reason I think one hit wonders stopped is that whenever there would be a one hit wonder some label picks that artist up. Like Lizzo and Truth Hurts. It was a song that was played constantly on the radio and it was the first time I’ve heard of her. Now her songs are pushed everywhere. No one is allowed to fade into obscurity anymore because there’s still money to be gained from their sudden burst of popularity.
Lil nas x is definitely NOT a one hit wonder
@That rat Charles That's why he shouldn't have been included from this list lmao. He made this vid not so long after Nas made a hit...
@@jaredwonnacott3073 what kind of a retarded statement is that 😂 that doesn't make sense in any way
Yeah, he said that. He said that Old Town Road would've been a one-hit wonder years ago. But now people have the ability to ride that success to their next big song.
@@un.kwn.2999 did you watch the same video as us that explained exactly why he means?
Tell me you didn't watch the video without telling me you didn't watch the video
"When I say 'One Hit Wonder'-"
Todd
"What comes to mind?"
Todd
Hyuna
Lil Pump
...in the shadows
Land
Read more
theres one song that i consider a one hit wonder:
"u was at the club" by boyboy west coast
Mikey Plummer one viral wonder instead. man could've blew up but he waited too long
Lani Jones waited too long for what
Dan Sulio to release the song
that song was amazing at how bad it did, the snippet had millions of views but I remember when he eventually released the music video months later he was struggling to do 10k views. Shit was so sad
@@slick3996 he still releases music to this day and it rarely tops 10k on spotify
Bitter sweet symphony is not the only song people know the drugs don’t work, lucky man and sonnet are all incredibly famous
Depends where you are in the world really. The verve only have one really well known in the US but yet have quite a few in the UK
The same with the Killers
agreed
And dexys midnight runners
@@RoboSlaughter Geno is a banger is makes me really sad people don't know it worldwide
And Aqua were quite big in Scandinavia with several hits.
I don't know if it's disappearing as much as evolving with the times. I think the one hit wonder formula still exists, but social media, like you say, allows OHW to stay afloat if they are smart. With social media lowering the barrier to entry, OHW are allowed to use the momentum generated off of their hit and find a groove. OHWs aren't going away, I would actually say they're getting stronger.
Some of those random songs became temporarily popular after they were featured in a famous TV show, movie, or commercial - example "When I'm Small by Phantogram" was on a TV show and commercial and then I heard it everywhere.
Alfo: One hit wonders aren't a thing anymore
Tik Tok songs: *OBSERVE*
Somebody’s watching me is probably one of the best one hit wonders
I firmly believe that the only reason most people remember that song is because Michael Jackson is featured. I know nobody else is clamoring for more Rockwell.
Tbh i though Doja cat would become a one hit wonder but she keeping up her teams is just amazing
The internet has us so eager to move into the future that we treat last year like 10 years ago🤦🏾♂️
Mike Posner is the only musician who has been a one hit wonder twice
Mike posner wrote Justin Bieber’s “boyfriend”
Not really man writes songs for all your favorite musicians pick a high charting pop song he probably has some influence
69
I'd say Billy Ray Cyrus counts. Achy Breaky Heart and then Old Town Road
@@Lilstain999 pretty sure that doesn't make him not a one hit wonder. It's only his own songs that count.
You sir are a novice one hit wonder connoisseur at best. How dare you leave out what in inarguably the greatest O-H-W of all time. Lou bega
- mambo no. 5
How can talk about one hit wonders without bringing up aha’s take on me
Thats k8nda both a one hit wonder wna modern day meme now too
A-ha actually has two international hits and 4 single hits. They were a Norwegian band so the US wasn’t their direct market
"I'd rather be a one hit wonder than a no hit nobody" H.R.
The Verve aren't a one hit wonder, they had multiple hits in the UK. Same with Aqua.
but their other hits i believe are EXPONENTIALLY less popular
@@marmolejomartinezjoseemili9043 the drugs wont work is almost as big as bittersweet symphony
@@ala0284 wait how much numbers are in views for each ones (i mean both in spotify and on yt)
@@marmolejomartinezjoseemili9043 "The Drugs Don't Work", "Lucky Man", and "Love Is Noise" broke the UK top 10, with "The Drugs Don't Work" hitting #1, and their singles from _A Northern Soul_ as well as the album itself charted well. The band did well in Continental Europe and Australia, too.
@@reillywalker195 oh ok
One hit wonders are now just youtube videos of songs which never came through record companies and never got another viral hit
Steelers Wheel "Stuck in the middle with you" was a true one hit wonder.
Funny how making fun of Bob Dylan gave them their biggest hit.
Automaticman88 lmao yeah, it is a really great song though
Not exactly, gerry rafferty went on to have quite a career
@@scallysays Just a little, eh? He was pretty awesome.
But that it's only because Gerry went solo and then had the hit Baker Street.
Some of these bands were popular just less so in the US. The Verve, for instance, had multiple #1 albums and singles beyond Bittersweet Symphony.
Alfo media: What comes to your mind when you hear one hit wonders
Me:One inch wonder lol
Thats how alot of my friends describe themselves
Spose is actually good tbh, I’m awesome is corny and ridiculous but he has a pretty consistently good discog too.
Man, your first example of a one hit wonder really made me sad because it’s true, but it shouldn’t be. Vanessa Carlton is an extremely talented songwriter and pianist, and it’s such a shame it’s not more recognized. Her song ‘The Wreckage’ gives me chills every single time I listen to it. To date, still one of my all time favorite songs and artists
Vanessa is amazing! I've seen her in concert and she sounds exactly the same as she does on all her tracks which no artists do. There doesn't seem to be any editing on hers. It shocks me how she hasn't had another huge hit either. Her music is really good!
"Yo when am I gonna get more Spose?" 😂😂😂
Soft Cell had another hit song "Say Hello, Wave Goodbye."
Harvey Danger is one of my favorite bands of all time, and I hate that people only know plagpole sitta
So you're saying I should check out some of their other songs coz I fucking love flagpole sitta so I'm surprised I haven't bothered to already
TrapT is Still Bragging about their one hit
If we could just get every single one hit wonders from the past (50-100) years together and just have a one hit wonder concert. I'd go to that concert it would be 1,000 different artists NOT getting the Star treatment. They could seriously just chill with the crowd and still be awesome on stage and just put on a show and then just go back to sitting in the crowd and hanging out
If I remember correctly, by a technical standpoint A-Ha is a one-hit wonder in the USA with Take on Me, but in Norway they have had at least 5x #1.
"Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice
Without watching the video, I think it's just a lot easier to M I L K your 1 hit and keep the momentum. Look at how many music videos and lyric videos old town road has. Then his mainstream appeal and old town road had him EVERYWHERE. eventually he started working with better producers to make his sound even better and he managed to make a career.
I have to wonder if an artist gets royalties just for their song being played out places;I hear one hit wonders all the time,mainly 80s!
I agree with some artist categorised here as "one hit wonders" but not others like Verve. Like WTF? Urban Hymns is one of the best albums from the 90's with several huge songs: Bittersweet symphony, Sonnet, The drugs don't work, Lucky man. And those are just the well known singles. There were plenty of other tracks just as good (Space and time, Velvet morning, One day). So, Verve is definitely not a one hit wonder band. A one hit album wonder maybe (although I wouldn't call them that either since they made 4 albums) but that's already so much more. If people remember and cherish a whole album by some artist I think it changes the perspective of how that artist is remembered: not as a one hit wonder but already as a great artist/band (like Jeff Buckley). So Verve is definitely remembered as a great band.
There's maybe a bit too American perspective in this video although I do agree with many of the other examples picked.
Damn you forgot " U was a the club bottoms up when I first met you"
Tainted love was a Gloria Jones cover. Do you think that had anything to do with their one hit wonder status? Maybe their original stuff didn’t catch on as easily?
So was all along the watchtower. Or inversely a song successful original and cover, "I'll always love you"
soft cell are very talented and have many other good songs, but yeah everyone only knows their tainted love cover
Mr371312 no jimi hendrix isn't a one hit wonder
@@mcfly4959 no they don't, only young people who can't be bothered to go past radioplay (who only ever seem to play one song from some artists) can think bands or singers are one hit wonders when there clearly not
Dude this is the 4th video in a row that Im watching... Your content is really good. and they way you talk is "Cachty"! Im really glad that I found this channel hahah
"When I say the word one hit wonder,what comes to mind?"
SOMEBODY ONCE TOLD ME
Not true, walking on the sun and their cover of I’m a believer were big
@@daishoryujin95 it's almost like it's a joke
@@daishoryujin95 funny enough, if it weren't for Shrek, Smash Mouth would be a One-Hit Wonder with Walking on the Sun.
@@asserakram1725 the joke doesn’t make sense
'All Star' was a hit song years before Shrek even existed. Shrek isn't even the first movie that song was in, 'Mystery Men' with Ben Stiller is the real movie that song is for the soundtrack. They were cast was even in the music video. Also, 'Then The Morning Comes' was a huge hit as well, that used to get played on MTV all the time in '99/00
The tik tok song “Remember the times we had” made by those SoundCloud rappers were one hit wonders.
its not an exclusively tik tok song lol.
from my experience with music ive seen that most one hit wonders have their one hit be a very popy or very mainstream tipe where as their other songs are less mainstream so i think thats also an important thing to point out
Dexys Midnight Runners are the furthest thing from a one hit wonder band. They produced three masterpiece albums, and managed to be popular in the U.K. and across Europe throughout the 80s and 90s
Word. Shouldn't be here!
Definitely still sounds like farm disco tho
They are definitely not the "furthest" thing from a one hit wonder band. They only have three songs on Spotify with more than 10 million streams, and they are all "Come on Eileen". When one song by a group has nearly 400 million total streams and their next biggest song has under 10 million streams, it's hard to deny that their mainstream popularity was simply a flash in the pan. That disparity in popularity is the definition of a one hit wonder. Also, let's talk about their albums. They only have one platinum album (hint: it's the one with "Come on Eileen" on it) and none of their other albums even went gold. It doesn't matter if a group puts out masterpieces. Being a one hit wonder has nothing to do with long term quality and everything to do with short term popularity.
Ethan Rappeport mate you walk round the north of England, or Birmingham, Paris, Dublin, everyone knows who Dexys are and can speak about them with knowledge of songs other than just Come On Eileen. Geno was number 1 as well so instantly taking away from the one hit wonder category
gotye had a legal problem and i belive that held him back
Nah he didn’t want to be famous
@@Hendrixcks well you can not want to famous, but why he stopped to make music?
Ferencs Salvoski he’s still making music, it’s just with other groups and super weird
@@noahsimpson7530 what group?
@@paradiis_ check out The Basics
man, vanessa carlton was my crush back in 2001, didnt like the song but damn she was so beautifull making her way downtown with her piano ^^
Good job!
I remember when "Babylon Zoo" had success with "Spaceman", the artist predicted in an interview "it will be the act of the century".
I love Babylon Zoo!
The Verve also had the beautiful and sad “The Drugs Don’t Work”.
As well as the uplifting "Lucky Man", the upbeat "Love Is Noise", the hard-rocking "This Is Music", the melancholic "On Your Own", and the poignant love song "History". All of those songs charted well in the United Kingdom.
Trust me TikTok is going to be a breeding ground for one hit wonders
The verve are massive in Britain, they're a massive britpop band here