Adult Alternative Airplay
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 current number-one song on the chart is "Rubber Band Man" by Mumford & Sons and Hozier.
History
The earliest incarnation of the chart was first published on February 21, 1992 by a music industry trade publication The Hard Report.It was included in the January 20, 1996 edition of Billboard, 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 Monitors Nielsen-based Triple A chart.
Billboard itself began publishing the Triple A chart in the issue dated July 5, 2008, through their Billboard.biz website, appropriating the same airplay data as Radio & Records. Radio & Records closed in June 2009, leaving Billboard as the sole publisher of the chart. In February 2014, the chart's reporting panel was expanded from 23 to 32 stations, including non-commercial reporters for the first time.
Following a re-design of their website, Billboard officially incorporated the history of the Airplay Monitor/Nielsen chart from 1996 to 2008 into their Adult Alternative Songs chart. The Billboard website and its official chart archive now show the first Adult Alternative Songs chart as having been published on January 20, 1996, with "The World I Know" by Collective Soul as its first number one single. Radio And Records first charted their Adult Alternative chart in the September 22, 1995, issue. It was a 30 position chart, and "Til I Hear It from You" by the Gin Blossoms was the first number one.
All-time achievements
In 2021, for the 25th anniversary of the chart, Billboard compiled a ranking of the 50 best-performing songs and artists on the chart over the 25 years. "One Headlight" by The Wallflowers was ranked as the #1 song, while Dave Matthews Band was ranked as the #1 artist. Listed below are the top 10 songs and the top 10 artists.Top 10 Greatest of All Time Adult Alternative Songs (1996–2021)
Source:Top 10 Greatest of All Time Adult Alternative Artists (1996–2021)
Source:Song records
Most weeks at number one
| Number of weeks | Artist | Song | Year | Source |
| 16 | U2 | "Beautiful Day" | 2000-01 | |
| 15 | Coldplay | "Clocks" | 2003 | |
| 15 | Kings of Leon | "Waste a Moment" | 2016-17 | |
| 14 | The Wallflowers | "One Headlight" | 1996-97 | |
| 14 | Matchbox Twenty | "3AM" | 1997-98 | |
| 14 | Matchbox Twenty | "Bent" | 2000 | |
| 14 | Train | "Drops of Jupiter " | 2001 | |
| 14 | Adele | "Rolling in the Deep" | 2011 | |
| 13 | Santana featuring Rob Thomas | "Smooth" | 1999 | |
| 13 | Jack Johnson | "Upside Down" | 2006 | |
| 13 | Pearl Jam | "Just Breathe" | 2010 | |
| 13 | Gotye featuring Kimbra | "Somebody That I Used to Know" | 2012 |
Most weeks on the chart
| Number of weeks | Artist | Song | Year | Source |
| 52 | Kings of Leon | "Use Somebody" | 2009-10 | |
| 51 | John Mayer | "No Such Thing" | 2001-02 | |
| 48 | James Morrison | "Nothing Ever Hurt Like You" | 2008-09 | |
| 47 | Imagine Dragons | "It's Time" | 2012-13 | |
| 46 | Coldplay | "Clocks" | 2002-03 | |
| 46 | The Head and the Heart | "Lost in My Mind" | 2011-12 | |
| 44 | David Gray | "Babylon" | 2000-01 | |
| 43 | Los Lonely Boys | "Heaven" | 2003-04 | |
| 42 | Fitz and the Tantrums | "Out of My League" | 2013-14 | |
| 41 | One eskimO | "Kandi" | 2009-10 |
Highest debut
| Debut Position | Artist | Song | Debut Date | Source |
| No. 1 | U2 | "Get On Your Boots" | February 7, 2009 | |
| No. 2 | Hootie & the Blowfish | "Old Man & Me " | April 20, 1996 | |
| No. 2 | Coldplay | "Speed of Sound" | May 7, 2005 | |
| No. 3 | The Rolling Stones | "Anybody Seen My Baby?" | September 20, 1997 | |
| No. 4 | Gin Blossoms | "Follow You Down" | February 10, 1996 | |
| No. 4 | Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | "Walls" | August 3, 1996 | |
| No. 4 | Coldplay | "Adventure of a Lifetime" | November 28, 2015 | |
| No. 5 | Natalie Merchant | "Kind & Generous" | May 16, 1998 | |
| No. 5 | Coldplay | "Violet Hill" | May 17, 2008 | |
| No. 5 | Mumford & Sons | "Believe" | March 28, 2015 |
Artist records
Most number-one singles
| Number of singles | Artist | Source |
| 14 | U2 | |
| 13 | Coldplay | |
| 11 | Dave Matthews | |
| 11 | Jack Johnson | |
| 9 | The Black Keys | |
| 8 | Death Cab for Cutie | |
| 8 | John Mayer | |
| 8 | The Lumineers | |
| 8 | Hozier | |
| 7 | Cage the Elephant | |
| 7 | Counting Crows | |
| 7 | Nathaniel Rateliff | |
| 7 | R.E.M. | |
| 7 | Sheryl Crow |
Most cumulative weeks at number one
Most top 10 singles
| Number of singles | Artist | Source |
| 28 | U2 | |
| 26 | Dave Matthews | |
| 25 | Coldplay | |
| 19 | Jack Johnson | |
| 19 | John Mayer | |
| 16 | Counting Crows | |
| 16 | The Black Keys | |
| 15 | Beck | |
| 15 | Mumford & Sons | |
| 14 | Sheryl Crow |
Most chart entries
| Number of entries | Artist | Source |
| 36 | Dave Matthews | |
| 33 | U2 | |
| 30 | Coldplay | |
| 27 | Jack Johnson | |
| 25 | John Mayer | |
| 25 | Sheryl Crow | |
| 21 | The Black Keys | |
| 20 | Beck | |
| 19 | Counting Crows | |
| 18 | Death Cab For Cutie | |
| 18 | Kings of Leon | |
| 18 | Mumford & Sons | |
| 18 | R.E.M. |