Adult Contemporary is a chart published by Billboard ranking the top-performing songs in the United States in the adult contemporary music (AC) market. In 2012, nine different songs topped the chart in 52 issues of the magazine, based on weekly airplay data from radio stations compiled by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems.
On the first chart of the year, the number one position was held by Michael Bublé with "All I Want for Christmas Is You", the song's fifth consecutive week at number one. [1] The following week it was replaced in the top spot by British singer Adele's song "Someone like You", which had first reached number one the previous December [2] and now returned to number one for a further four weeks. Adele would return to the top spot in March with "Set Fire to the Rain", and was the only act to achieve more than one AC number one in 2012. After four weeks, "Set Fire to the Rain" was displaced by "Just a Kiss" by the country music trio Lady Antebellum. The song had reached number one on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart the previous summer, [3] but was not serviced to adult contemporary radio until August 2011, [4] and subsequently took 24 weeks to reach the top spot on the AC listing. [5]
The longest unbroken run at number one on the Adult Contemporary listing during 2012 was 16 weeks, achieved by "Somebody That I Used to Know" by Belgian-Australian singer-songwriter Gotye and New Zealand singer Kimbra, which reached the top of the chart in August. Although both acts had experienced success in their native countries, the song was the international breakthrough for both. [6] [7] In the United States it was successful across multiple genres, topping a number of Billboard charts, including Alternative Songs and Dance/Mix Show Airplay, as well as reaching number one on the magazine's all-genre chart, the Hot 100. [8] [9] It was replaced at number one on the AC chart in the issue of the magazine dated December 8 by veteran British singer Rod Stewart's recording of the 1945 song "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", which went on to be the year's final chart-topper, holding the top spot for the final four weeks of 2012. Stewart's song continued a trend of Christmas-themed songs topping the AC chart at the end of the year, reflecting the fact that adult contemporary radio stations usually switch to playing exclusively festive songs in December. [10] [11]
![]() | Indicates best-performing AC song of 2012 [12] |
Issue date | Title | Artist(s) | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
January 7 | "All I Want for Christmas Is You" | Michael Bublé | [1] |
January 14 | "Someone like You" | Adele | [13] |
January 21 | [14] | ||
January 28 | [15] | ||
February 4 | [16] | ||
February 11 | "Just a Kiss" | Lady Antebellum | [5] |
February 18 | [17] | ||
February 25 | [18] | ||
March 3 | [19] | ||
March 10 | [20] | ||
March 17 | [21] | ||
March 24 | "Brighter Than the Sun" | Colbie Caillat | [22] |
March 31 | "Set Fire to the Rain" | Adele | [23] |
April 7 | [24] | ||
April 14 | [25] | ||
April 21 | [26] | ||
April 28 | [27] | ||
May 5 | [28] | ||
May 12 | [29] | ||
May 19 | [30] | ||
May 26 | [31] | ||
June 2 | [32] | ||
June 9 | [33] | ||
June 16 | "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" ![]() | Kelly Clarkson | [34] |
June 23 | [35] | ||
June 30 | [36] | ||
July 7 | [37] | ||
July 14 | [38] | ||
July 21 | [39] | ||
July 28 | [40] | ||
August 4 | [41] | ||
August 11 | "Drive By" | Train | [42] |
August 18 | "Somebody That I Used to Know" | Gotye featuring Kimbra | [43] |
August 25 | [44] | ||
September 1 | [45] | ||
September 8 | [46] | ||
September 15 | [47] | ||
September 22 | [48] | ||
September 29 | [49] | ||
October 6 | [50] | ||
October 13 | [51] | ||
October 20 | [52] | ||
October 27 | [53] | ||
November 3 | [54] | ||
November 10 | [55] | ||
November 17 | [56] | ||
November 24 | [57] | ||
December 1 | [58] | ||
December 8 | "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" | Rod Stewart | [59] |
December 15 | [60] | ||
December 22 | [61] | ||
December 29 | [62] | ||
"I Knew I Loved You" is a song by Australian pop duo Savage Garden, released as the second single from their second studio album, Affirmation. The song went straight to number one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's second number one in the United States after "Truly Madly Deeply". It was the last song by an Australian artist to reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for over twelve years, until Gotye peaked at number one with his single "Somebody That I Used to Know" in 2012. The song also reached number one in Canada and Romania, number three in New Zealand and Sweden, number four in Australia and the top 10 in Norway and the United Kingdom.
Wouter "Wally" De Backer, better known by his stage name Gotye, is a Belgian-born Australian multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter. The name "Gotye" is a pronunciation respelling of "Gauthier", the French cognate of his Dutch given name "Wouter".
Kimbra Lee Johnson is a New Zealand singer, songwriter, record producer, actress and model who mixes pop with R&B, jazz and rock musical elements. Her musical influences range from Prince and Minnie Riperton to Björk and Jeff Buckley. Her debut album, Vows, was released in Australia in 2011. Singles from the album include "Settle Down", "Cameo Lover", "Good Intent" and "Two Way Street".
"Somebody That I Used to Know" is a song written by Belgian-Australian singer-songwriter Gotye, featuring New Zealand singer Kimbra. The song was released in Australia and New Zealand by Eleven Music on 5 July 2011 as the second single from Gotye's third studio album, Making Mirrors (2011). It was later released by Universal Music in December 2011 in the United Kingdom, and 20 January 2012 in the United States and Ireland. "Somebody That I Used to Know" was written and recorded by Gotye at his parents' house on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Australia, and is lyrically related to the experiences he has had with relationships.
Adult Alternative Airplay is a record chart currently published by Billboard that ranks the most popular songs on adult album alternative radio stations. The 40-position chart is formulated based on each song's weekly radio spins, as measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems. The earliest incarnation of the chart was first published on January 20, 1996, as a feature in Billboard sister publication Airplay Monitor. In 2006, Airplay Monitor ceased publication after Billboard parent company VNU Media's acquisition of rival radio trade magazine Radio & Records, which then subsequently incorporated Airplay Monitor's Nielsen-based Triple A chart.
The discography of Kimbra, a New Zealand indie pop singer, consists of three studio albums and sixteen solo singles, as well as fifteen music videos. Her biggest international hit to date is her collaboration with Gotye, "Somebody That I Used to Know", which reached #1 in several countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, as well as in Kimbra's native New Zealand.