Top 40

Top 40 is a music industry shorthand for the currently most-popular songs in a particular genre. When used without qualification it refers to the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. The term is derived from record music charts, a few of which traditionally consist of a total of 40 songs. Top 40 is also an alternative term for the radio format of such music, also known as Contemporary hit radio.

History

The term "Top 40" for a radio format appeared in 1960. The Top 40, whether surveyed by a radio station or a publication, was a list of songs that shared only the common characteristic of being newly released. Its introduction coincided with a transition from the old ten-inch shellac 78 rpm record format for single "pop" recordings to the seven-inch vinyl 45 rpm format, introduced in 1949, which was outselling it by 1954 and soon replaced it completely. The Top 40 thereafter became a survey of the popularity of 45 rpm singles and their airplay on the radio. Some nationally syndicated radio shows, like American Top 40, featured a countdown of the forty highest ranked songs on a particular music or entertainment publication. Although such publications often listed more than 40 charted hits, such as the Billboard Hot 100, time constraints allowed for the airing of only forty songs; hence, the term "top 40" gradually became part of the vernacular associated with popular music.

Greatest hits album

A greatest hits album, sometimes called a "best of" album or a catalog album, is a compilation of songs by a particular artist or band. Most often the track list contains previously released recordings with a high degree of notability. However, to increase the appeal, especially to people who already own the original release, it is common to include remixes and/or alternate takes of popular songs; even new material (previously unreleased). At times a greatest hits compilation is the original release for songs that have themselves been released as a single and charted successfully.

Notable compilations

Madonna's The Immaculate Collection is the best selling greatest hits compilation by a solo artist; all of the songs on it are presented in different versions than the original hit versions. The Eagles' Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) is the best selling greatest hits compilation by a group and also one of the ten best selling albums in history. Greatest hits albums are typically produced after an artist has had enough successful songs to fill out an album release. Some artists, such as Mariah Carey, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, The Beatles, Kenny Rogers, Aerosmith, Kiss, U2, Dolly Parton, Journey, Los Tigres del Norte, Queen, Kylie Minogue and Billy Joel, have released multiple greatest hits albums through their long careers. Some greatest hits albums are released only at the end of the artist or group's career. For example, My Chemical Romance released a greatest hits album after they disbanded. Other artists, like Eminem have released hits albums in the center of their success. He released Curtain Call: The Hits in 2005 and then Shady XV as a compilation album in 2014.

Windows Live Messenger

Windows Live Messenger (formerly MSN Messenger) is a discontinued instant messaging client developed by Microsoft for Windows, Xbox 360, BlackBerry OS, iOS, Java ME, S60 on Symbian OS 9.x, and Zune HD. It connected to the Microsoft Messenger service while also having compatibility with Yahoo! Messenger and Facebook Messenger. The client was first released as MSN Messenger on July 22, 1999, and was marketed under the MSN branding until 2005 when it was rebranded under Windows Live and has since been officially known by its present name, although its previous name was still used colloquially by most of its users. In June 2009, Microsoft reported the service attracted over 330 million active users each month, placing Messenger among the most widely used instant messaging clients in the world.

Following the acquisition of Skype Technologies in May 2011, Microsoft added interoperability between Skype and Microsoft accounts, allowing Skype (which had features unique to its platform and a wider user base) to communicate with Messenger contacts. In 2013, Windows Live Messenger was discontinued and Microsoft began ceasing service to existing clients. The service in China remained active for another 18 months, and ceased operations on October 31, 2014.

Dance music

Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded dance music. While there exist attestations of the combination of dance and music in ancient times (for example Ancient Greek vases sometimes show dancers accompanied by musicians), the earliest Western dance music that we can still reproduce with a degree of certainty are the surviving medieval dances. In the Baroque period, the major dance styles were noble court dances (see Baroque dance). In the classical music era, the minuet was frequently used as a third movement, although in this context it would not accompany any dancing. The waltz also arose later in the classical era. Both remained part of the romantic music period, which also saw the rise of various other nationalistic dance forms like the barcarolle, mazurka and polonaise.

Modern popular dance music initially emerged from late 19th century's Western ballroom and social dance music. During the early 20th century, ballroom dancing gained popularity among the working class who attended public dance halls. Dance music became enormously popular during the 1920s. In the 1930s, called the Swing era, Swing music was the popular dance music. In the 1950s, Rock and roll became the popular dance music. The late 1960s saw the rise of soul and R&B music. The rise of disco in the early 1970s led to dance music becoming popular with the public. By the late 1970s, a new form of dance music was developing. This music, made using electronics, is a style of popular music commonly played in dance music nightclubs, radio stations, shows and raves. Many subgenres of electronic dance music have evolved.

American Top 40

American Top 40 (commonly abbreviated to AT40) is an internationally syndicated, independent song countdown radio program created by Casey Kasem, Don Bustany, Tom Rounds and Ron Jacobs. The program is hosted by Ryan Seacrest, who took over the program from Kasem upon his 2004 departure. It is currently presented as an adjunct to Seacrest's weekday radio program, On Air with Ryan Seacrest.

Originally a production of Watermark Inc. (later a division of ABC Radio, now Cumulus Media Networks), AT40 is now distributed by Premiere Networks in the United States, Canada, Australia, the Philippines, Singapore, China, India, the United Kingdom, Malaysia and several other territories worldwide. It can also be heard on both the iHeartRadio application and the AT40 Mobile application on mobile smartphones and tablets as well as on Xbox 360 and Xbox One consoles.

Co-creator Casey Kasem hosted the original AT40 from its inauguration on July 4, 1970 until August 6, 1988 and returned to host the revived version from March 28, 1998 to January 3, 2004 (for much of the interim, he hosted the competing Casey's Top 40). AT40's other two regular hosts have been Shadoe Stevens, who replaced Kasem on the original AT40 and hosted until its 1995 cancellation, and the aforementioned Ryan Seacrest. Currently, AT40 with Seacrest airs in two different formats, with one distributed to Contemporary Hit Radio (Top 40) stations and the other to Adult Contemporary (formerly Hot Adult Contemporary) stations (which were previously served by two different Kasem-hosted shows; see below). There is no differentiation between the Top 40 and AC versions of AT40 made on air. Kasem is still heard in two weekly replays of vintage shows from the '70s and '80s, respectively.