The release schedule hasn’t completely ground to a halt during lockdown, but it’s certainly become more scattered. Which means that every now and again we get a week as ludicrously uneventful as this.

1. DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch – “Rockstar”

Four weeks in total. And below it… not much, really. “Breaking Me” by Topic featuring A7S climbs one more place to number 4. “Dinner Guest” by AJ Tracey featuring Mostack, which has been hovering between 8 and 10 for five weeks, reaches the dizzy heights of number 6. “Secrets” by Regard & Raye climbs 18-12, and “Don’t Need Love” by 220 Kid & Gracey moves one place to 13. “Watermelon Sugar” by Harry Styles is another one-place climber, now at 15. “This City” by Sam Fischer, which spent three weeks at number 19, climbs to 17. “Party Girl” by Staysolidrocky climbs 24-18. “ILY (I Love You Baby)” by Surf Mesa featuring Emilee climbs, you guessed it, one place to number 25. “Who’s That What’s That” by Niko B climbs 33-26, which is practically eventful by the standards of this week. And behold this week’s highest – and indeed lowest – new entry…

40. Chris Brown & Young Thug – “Go Crazy”

If it wasn’t for the album releases, there wouldn’t be much going on at all this week…

1 DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch – “Rockstar”

Returning to number one for a third week, after being interrupted by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande last week. Number 5 is “Breaking Me” by Topic featuring A7S, climbing into the top 10 for the first time.

7. Tion Wayne featuring Dutchavelli & Stormzy – “I Dunno”

A quiet but relatively normal week…

1. Lady Gaga & Ariana Grande – “Rain On Me”

That’s a… somewhat unpleasant video. Not keen on the knives, personally. Anyway, this is the second single from the next Lady Gaga album, so we’re back to more of a normal promotional cycle. Good song, though – fitting enough for the times. Lady Gaga gets her sixth number one, following 2018’s “Shallow”, and four tracks from her imperial period in 2009-10 (“Just Dance”, “Poker Face”, “Bad Romance” and “Telephone”). Since “Shallow” was very much outside her normal style, this is a definite comeback. It’s Ariana Grande’s sixth number one too, though all of hers have come in 2014 or later.

New comics are apparently imminent once again. In the meantime, we have… well, an extremely uneventful chart, but a format’s a format.

1. DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch – “Rockstar”

Two weeks at number one, and with a comfortable lead. Below that… it’s a long list of climbers before we reach the highest new entry. Deep breath, then. “Say So” by Doja Cat returns to number 2 (after dropping to 3 last week). “Rover” by S1mba featuring DTG climbs 8-4. “Flowers” by Nathan Dawe featuring Jaykae climbs 17-13. A more notable one, moving 24-15, is “Breaking Me” by Topic featuring A7S. “This City” by Sam Fischer edges up one place to 19. “Don’t Need Love” by 220 Kid & Gracey is still climbing (22-20), which is a good performance for a throwback dance record. Doja Cat‘s other single “Boss Bitch” rebounds to 24, beating its previous peak of 28 from a month ago. “Kings & Queens” by Ava Max climbs 29-25. And finally we reach…

30. Regard & Raye – “Secrets”

A quiet, but otherwise relatively normal, week…

1 DaBaby featuring Roddy Rich – “Rockstar”

We’re back to relative normalcy after a couple of weeks of charity releases. If you’re wondering, the “Times Like These” cover drops straight from 1 to 9. The Michael Ball / Tom Moore track, which was number 1 two weeks ago, dropped to 21 last week, and is now out of the top 100 altogether – as I said at the time, it’s a “join in the moment” record, not a “listen to this for pleasure” record. Instead, this week we have the refreshing normalcy of…

1 Drake – “Toosie Slide”
10. Drake featuring Giveon – “Chicago Freestyle”
17. Drake featuring Playboi Carti – “Pain 1993”

It’s going to be like this for a while, isn’t it?

1. Live Lounge Allstars – “Times Like These (BBC Radio 1 Stay Home Live Lounge)”

Climbing to number 1 in its first full week on release., so that’s two charity number ones in a row. The Michael Ball / Tom Moore record, by the way, plummets from 1 to 21 – but that’s hardly surprising, because it’s a record designed to be a symbolic moment rather than… well, something you listen to for enjoyment. “Times Like These” is a perfectly listenable record, and so it’s likely to have a bit more staying power.

We are now well and truly into the lockdown chart. I mean… look.

1. Michael Ball, Captain Tom Moore & The NHS Voices of Care Choir – “You’ll Never Walk Alone”

Well, it’s zeitgeisty, you’ve got to give it that.

Now we’re starting to descend into the lockdown-era deep freeze.

1 The Weeknd – “Blinding Lights”

Eight weeks at number one – after a total of 20 weeks on release. But it heads up a virtually static top 10. Of very minor note, “Death Bed” by Powfu featuring Beabadoobee climbs 8-7, and “Blueberry Faygo” by Lil Mosey climbs 11-9, but it’s marginal stuff. A little further down, we have some slightly bigger climbers – “Flowers” by Nathan Dawe featuring Jaykae climbs 23-16, and “Savage” by Megan Thee Stallion goes 22-17. A properly notable climber is “Tequila” by … ahem… Jax Jones & Martin Solveig Present Europa featuring Raye, which climbs 32-21.

23. S1MBA featuring DTG – “Rover”

If last week’s chart was relatively normal, this time the lockdown has set in. The mainstream releases are drying up. So what is happening…?

1. The Weeknd – “Blinding Lights”

Seven weeks in total. It’s not completely devoid of challengers, though.

2. Drake – “Toosie Slide”