Record-breaking, BRIT and GRAMMY Award-nominated, Billboard Music Award-winning global sensations Glass Animals have made history yet again. After their global hit “Heat Waves” smashed the record for “the longest charting song by a group in Billboard Hot 100 history,” the band has now achieved “the longest charting song by any artist in Billboard Hot 100 history,” as “Heat Waves” hits 91 total weeks on the chart.
In an exclusive piece for Billboard, lead singer Dave Bayley said: “Wow, all I can say is wow. Many of you know when I wrote this song I was writing about missing someone I loved very dearly. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that it would lead to so much love and connection across the globe. You all have done that. Thank you to everyone who has helped this song reach so many people. You know who you are. Thank you.”
The song has also gone 5x Platinum, in addition to amassing 9.5 billion global streams, 2 billion Spotify global streams and nearly 410 million YouTube views on the music video to date. It also ranks among the Top 20 “most streamed songs of all-time on Spotify.” Additionally, the band recently took home the top honor of “Song of the Year” at the 2022 SESAC Music Awards in a tie.
Fast forward to 2022, and “Heat Waves’” rise has been a story that “could be the script for a feel good British indie film” (The Times). With a historic climb to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, taking an unprecedented 59 weeks, the band remained in the top spot for 5 weeks in a row, #1 on the Billboard Global 200 Chart for 6 weeks in a row, and #1 on the Billboard Radio Songs Chart for 6 weeks and Billboard Global Excl. US Chart for 3 weeks. “Heat Waves” also tied for the 6th-longest #1 run by British Groups in the Hot 100’s history, alongside The Beatles’ “Can't Buy Me Love” & “Get Back” and Wings’ “Silly Love Songs.” Not to mention, frontman Dave Bayley hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Songwriters Chart—a career first, and “Heat Waves” became the first #1 written, produced, and performed by one artist since Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” in 2014.
This exciting news follows Glass Animals’ recent sold out shows at New York’s Brooklyn Mirage and London’s Village Underground as part of the special Dreamland.IRL shows to celebrate their special Dreamland: Real Life Edition release. Billboard chronicled the unforgettable nights and recalled, “Thousands of fans screaming back every word, so loud on crossover smash ‘Heat Waves’ that you couldn’t even hear Bayley sing. A video screen bigger than you could see peripherally. Multiple rooms connected to the venue bringing the album’s cover art aesthetic and stage design to life.” On the two year anniversary of their critically acclaimed third album Dreamland, the band unveiled Dreamland: Real Life Edition for fans who have been on this incredible journey as they’ve taken the world by storm over the past few years.
