Billboard introduces Canadian Hot 100

This is a bit off topic, but I know there are quite a few fellow Canadians who frequent this board who might be interested that this week Billboard introduced a Canadian Hot 100 chart using the same methodology used for the U.S. chart - a combination of radio airplay (monitored from about 100 stations - Top 40, rock, country, and adult contemporary (there are no strictly R&B/Hip-Hop stations in Canada)) and sales (both physical and downloads).

The #1 song in both countries is 'Umbrella' by Rihanna featuring Jay-Z.

When comparing the two charts, there are two main differences that jump out at you - and they are the two you'd expect: The Canadian Hot 100 has much more Canadian content and much less hip-hop. In addition to 'Umbrella', there are five other songs in the Top 10 in both countries (Fergie's 'Big Girls Don't Cry', Maroon5's 'Makes Me Wonder, Daughtry's 'Home', Justin Timberlake's 'Summer Love', and Carrie Underwood's 'Before He Cheats'). Furthermore, one current U.S. Top 10 song has already fallen out of the Canadian Top 10 (Avril Lavigne's 'Girlfriend') and one current Canadian Top 10 hit has already fallen out of the U.S. Top 10 (Timbaland's 'Give It To Me').

The remaining three songs in the Canadian Top 10 are all by Canadian artists, 'Paralyzer' by Finger Eleven (#3), 'All Good Things (Come To An End)' by Nelly Furtado (#7), and 'Everything' by Michael Buble (#10). Of these, only the Nelly Furtado song is on the U.S. Hot 100 (at #94).

Of the three remaining songs in the U.S. Top 10, 'Party Like A Rockstar' by Shop Boyz (#2), 'Buy U A Drank' by T-Pain (#3), and 'Pop, Lock & Drop It' by Huey (#9), only the T-Pain song is on the Canadian Hot 100 (at #45).

One curious thing is that a couple of songs by U.S. artists seem to be doing better in Canada. 'Little Wonders' by Rob Thomas, which on the U.S. Hot 100 is at #72 and has never been higher than #58, is at #22 in Canada. And '4 In The Morning' by Gwen Stefani is #61 in the U.S. but #21 in Canada.

Unfortunately, the full Canadian Hot 100 is only available to subscribers of billboard.biz. The Top 10 will appear in the print edition.