ARIA Announces New Rules For Singles And Albums Charts
“Our aim is to support the discovery and celebration of great Australian music at every stage of its life," says ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd.
ARIA logo (Source: Supplied)
The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) has announced new rules for its Singles and Albums charts, alongside the addition of the nascent On Repeat chart.
The charts update comes after 12 months of modelling and consideration by ARIA to determine how best they can “promote the dynamism of new music consumption and remove barriers for new Australian music.”
As a result, the calculation methodology of ARIA’s Singles and Albums will change as of September 1st to focus exclusively on music released within the last two years, while the On Repeat Charts (previously called the Catalogue Chart) will feature titles released more than two years ago.
Notably, the changes will take effect after the ARIA Awards' current eligibility period, so this year’s nominees will not be affected.
While the new rule would ostensibly bar suddenly-viral hits from clogging up the top 50, a special provision is on offer to allow older titles to appear on the Singles and Albums charts to capture those zeitgeist moments.
Specifically, the title must not have appeared in the top 100 for at least ten years, it must take place upon label request if there’s sufficient activity for placement in the top 30 or higher, and these eligible titles will be able to remain on the Singles and Albums charts for up to ten weeks.
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“These updates ensure the ARIA Charts continue to evolve in step with the listening habits of Australian music fans,” ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd said in a statement. “We’re creating clear space to spotlight exciting new music while recognising the lasting impact and relevance of timeless classics through our ARIA On Repeat Charts.
“Our aim is to support the discovery and celebration of great Australian music at every stage of its life.”
So, why is this being done? Well, for years now, the unveiling of the weekly ARIA charts results has brought widespread criticism from music lovers and onlookers who have pointed to older releases often populating the top 50. As a result, this can hamper newer releases from getting a fair go at chart success and can be a potential explanation for the lack of Australian releases in the charts of late.
Most notably, ARIA released their year-end charts for 2024 in January, and on the singles chart, only five tracks were by local artists. The highest of these was Vance Joy’s Riptide at #24, followed by Cyril's remake of Stumblin' In is at #29; Dom Dolla's Saving Up is #50, and The Kid LAROI reached #84 with Nights Like This and at #96 with Justin Bieber collab Stay.
The album charts weren’t much different. Only three Aussies were present, with Cold Chisel’s 50 Years at #44, The Kid LAROI’s The First Time at #67, and INXS’ The Very Best at #81.
A look at the current Singles chart indicates that not much would change in the top end, with the likes of Alex Warren, Sabrina Carpenter, and sombr filling out the top spots, though the likes of Fleetwood Mac's Dreams at #33 and the Goo Goo Dolls' Iris at #17 would be relegated to the On Repeat Charts, making way for newer titles.
The Albums chart would look markedly different, however, with multiple records from the likes of Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, and Lady Gaga now being deemed ineligible to appear, alongside compilation records from the likes of Eminem, Green Day, and more. On last week’s chart data, 27 of the top 50 would be shipped across to On Repeat.
Although it is not clear that the replacement titles would markedly improve Australian representation over the long term, in this week’s chart, the changes would have given Spacey Jane a top ten position, and Brisbane Indigenous indie artist Jungaji would have had a #38 debut.
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