The shortest song to reach number one in chart history
There is no perfect length for a pop song, and no official rules exist on how long or short a composition should be. However, typically, tracks with a running time of less than two-and-a-half minutes are rarely elected as singles and, therefore, seldom trouble the charts. However, there are always outliers.
In recent years, as streaming platforms have taken control of the music industry, pop songs have generally become shorter because they no longer have to bend to the specifications of traditional broadcasters. Additionally, TikTok is a major reason why artists are no longer worried about the length of their music, as long as it can still go viral on the social media app.
Discussing the growing trend with Billboard, producer Elie Rizk said: “Generally, a song that pops off on the platform is based around a little moment. Subconsciously you think about that: ‘Let’s pack a track with moments and try to hit the jackpot.’ I don’t feel the need to repeat a section three times — they’ve already heard that part; it doesn’t matter.”
The line between music and content has become blurred, encouraging artists to only worry about creating a hook rather than a full-blown song. A prominent example is Lil Nas X’s 2019 hit ‘Old Town Road’, with a running time of less than two minutes; it became the shortest number one on the Billboard Hot 100 since 1965.
‘Old Town Road’ was the catalyst for contemporary pop songs becoming shorter, but it didn’t reinvent the wheel. During the 1960s, it was common for tracks in the chart to last less than two minutes, and the record belongs to ‘Stay’ by Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs. The former number-one single has a running time of 1:38.
The hit record was released in 1960 and lasted one week at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 before Elvis Presley knocked Williams off his perch. Thanks to its inclusion on the Dirty Dancing soundtrack, ‘Stay’ later enjoyed a renaissance and has sold over eight million copies.
Williams later said of the song to Classic Bands: “It took me about thirty minutes to write ‘Stay’, then I threw it away. (Laughs) But I did have a tape of it. This was about 1958. We were looking for songs to record as Maurice Williams and The Zodiacs.”
He continued: “I was over at my girlfriend’s house playing the tape of songs I had written when her little sister said, ‘Please do the song with the high voice in it.’ I knew she meant ‘Stay’. She was about 12 years old, and I said to myself, she’s the age of record buying, and the rest is history. I thank God for her.”
Despite never having another hit, Williams denied the notion of him being a one-hit wonder, stating: “To me, that means an artist who gets one chartbuster and you never hear from him or her again. But I know in my case, when you work every week in the year, when you keep a payroll going for nine other guys and their families; well, I think you’re still a hit. Of course, a hit record today would be nice, but hell, if I never get another one, just to have ‘Little Darlin” and ‘Stay’, I feel I’ve been truly blessed.”
Listen to ‘Stay’ below.
