This Day in Top 40 History: March 19

Breakthrough Hits and Milestones

• 1990: Salt-N-Pepa dropped Blacks' Magic, including guest contributions from Jacci McGhee and Kid 'n Play. It cracked the Top 40 on both the Billboard 200 and the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The set also delivered several successful singles that charted in the Top 40 on the Hot 100, including “Do You Want Me” and “Expression.” 
• 2010: Goldfrapp's fifth studio album, Head First, came out, featuring “Rocket” and “Alive.” The record peaked at No. 6 in the U.K., and earned praise for its infectious energy and slick production.  
• 2013: Kacey Musgraves released Same Trailer Different Park, her debut album. Although the project missed the top of the Billboard 200 by one spot, it reached No. 1 on the Top Country Albums chart. This album produced three Top 40 hits, too: "Merry Go 'Round,” "Blowin' Smoke," and "Follow Your Arrow.”
• 2015: The two-time BRIT Award-winning pop singer Ed Sheeran broke records by selling the 2 millionth copy of his second album X in the U.K. Other artists who hold similar sales records include Adele, Emeli Sande, Take That, and Michael Bublé.
• 2016: Mega pop star Adele performed at the O2 Arena in London, England, as part of her Adele Live Tour. Today, Adele is one of the Top 40's biggest stars and recently finished her Las Vegas, Nevada, residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace.

Cultural Milestones

• 1946: Paul Atkinson was born in Cuffley, Hertfordshire. He was best known as The Zombies' lead guitarist. With his contribution, the band placed a few Top 10 singles on the Billboard 100, such as “She's Not There” and “Tell Her No.” Atkinson died in April 2004 at 58. He was battling multiple illnesses, including kidney and liver disease, as well as cancer.
• 2022: Shawn Mendes and Sebastián Yatra performed together during the Samsung Galaxy + Billboard Present at THE STAGE at the South by Southwest music festival. During the show, Mendes warmed the crowd with upbeat songs and even invited a fan on stage to sing with him.
• 2024: Dr. Dre was awarded the 2,775th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6840 Hollywood Boulevard. His collaborators, Jimmy Iovine, 50 Cent, Snoop Dogg, and Eminem, also attended the ceremony to show their support. Note that the “Let Me Ride” hitmaker's star sits right next to Snoop's, signifying their enduring legacy and friendship.
• 2024: Pop singer Meghan Trainor appeared on the Live Kelly & Mark TV show. Trainor is best known for her megahit "All About That Bass," which topped the charts for eight weeks and was widely played on TV shows and radio stations across the U.S.

Notable Recordings and Performances

• 1974: Jefferson Airplane performed their first show under the name “Jefferson Starship” at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago, Illinois. In some ways, the Starship was considered more successful than the Airplane. For instance, the former scored a No. 1 record on the Billboard 200, Red Octopus, a feat the latter didn't achieve. 
• 2005: Queen and Paul Rogers performed “Radio Ga Ga,” “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,”  “We Are The Champions,” and other hits at the 46664 festival in South Africa. With Men in Black star Will Smith as the host, this concert honored Nelson Mandela and supported his foundation's HIV/AIDS awareness campaign. 
• 2010: A young Justin Bieber released his debut album My World 2.0.
• 2024: Pop star P!NK performed at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia, during her P!nk Summer Carnival 2024 tour.

Industry Changes and Challenges

• 1957: With $1,000 as a down payment, Elvis Presley signed a sales contract for $102,500 to buy Graceland, a mansion for his parents. This was after their first house was overwhelmed by fans. Graceland, which was situated in Memphis, Tennessee, would later become the “One Night” hitmaker's home as well. 
• 1988: In Tacoma, Washington, at the Community World Theater, Nirvana performed under the name “Nirvana” for the first time. Previously, the “Come As You Are” hitmakers went by aliases such as Skid Row, Ted Ed Fred, Bliss, and Pen Cap Chew. All of these were listed on the concert's flyer, which their frontman, Kurt Cobain, designed. 
• 1990: Mother Love Bone frontman Andrew Wood died at 24. He had slipped into a coma on March 16 after overdosing on heroin. Wood didn't have a Top 40 hit to his name. But he paved the way for the growth of the Seattle grunge scene, which led to the rise of Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, and other rockers in the 1990s.
• 2012: Madonna's new studio album MDNA was leaked online via an illegal file-sharing website a week before its official release, exemplifying challenges those in the modern music industry face due to easy access to the internet and hackers.
• 2020: Niall Horan, formerly of One Direction, performed a virtual concert as part of the Together, At Home: WHO-Global Citizen Solidarity Sessions. Many other artists performed these sessions when COVID-19 restrictions forced venues to close.