Harry Styles’ “As It Was” Ties The Record For Longest Running Solo #1 Hit
Harry Styles’ “As It Was” refuses to go away. Released way back on the final day of March, the A-ha-meets-Vampire-Weekend pop hit has not relented, even with another Harry’s House track, “Late Night Talking” also making a recent surge. “As It Was” is in the midst of its fifth separate run on top of the Hot 100. And now, as Billboard reports, it has reached 14 nonconsecutive weeks at #1.
That’s a significant number. “As It Was” is now tied for the fourth-longest run at #1 in the 63-year history of the chart, pulling even with seven other smashes: Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You,” Boyz II Men’s “I’ll Make Love To You,” Los Del Rio’s “Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix),” Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind 1997” / “Something About the Way You Look Tonight,” Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together,” the Black Eyed Peas’ “I Gotta Feeling,” and Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk!”
Furthermore, “As It Was” ties the Whitney Houston, Elton John, and Mariah Carey tracks as the longest running #1 hit credited to one artist. The three songs with longer tenures at #1 were all collabs: Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day” (16 weeks); Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, and Justin Bieber’s “Despacito” (16 weeks), and Lil Nas X and Billy Cyrus’ “Old Town Road” (19 weeks). I like “As It Was,” but after so many months I feel like Chris Pine with this song looming over me.
The continued reign of “As It Was” means Steve Lacy’s “Bad Habit” is again stuck at #2. Nicki Minaj’s “Super Freaky Girl” is back up to #3, followed by Nicky Youre and dazy’s “Sunroof” holding at its #4 peak. Although Post Malone took a big fall this weekend, his Doja Cat duet “I Like You (A Happier Song)” rises to a new #5 peak, giving him his eighth top-five hit (and first since “Circles” in 2019-2020).
Morgan Wallen’s “You Proof” returns to its #6 peak, followed by Lizzo’s “About Damn Time” at #7. OneRepublic’s “I Ain’t Worried” maintains its #8 peak, while Styles’ “Late Night Talking” falls to #9 after climbing all the way to #3 last week. Rounding out the top 10 is Future, Drake, and Tems’ former chart-topper “Wait For U.”