Yet Another Year In America March 11, 2010

Taio Cruz wtf? He jumps out of nowhere (well, out of Britain) to nab number 1, denying Lady Antebellum their rightful place. "Rude Boy" at 4 looks like it's going to be Rihanna's first sustained hit from Rated R. A couple of country tunes, one by Blake Shelton and one by Easton Corbin, are just bubbling under the Top 40.

( Taio Cruz )

( Justin Bieber )

( Jason DeRulo )

( Daughtry )

How did Taio break so big?

Any idea how Taio Cruz's first U.S. single "Break Your Heart" hit the Billboard number 1 only a week-and-a-half after it was released? Any tie-ins or visibility that I don't know about? It's getting decent beginner's airplay (19th rhythmic and 26th top 40, in the fifties overall), but nothing that would explain all the downloads. It helps that he's had a British career, and that the song fits into the DeRulo, Iyaz, Jay Sean pretty-boy sweet-AutoTuned r&b-dance amalgam, but still, this is his first U.S. single. To leap so high and so fast right off, you usually need to win American Idol.