User:Kiac/Record charts
This page provides guidelines for using and displaying record chart information in music-related articles. Record charts are a ranking of recorded music according to popularity, notably by tracking sales and/or airplay, during a given period of time. The page also covers the use of sales certifications in articles.
The use of a charts table should be deemed appropriate on a case-by-case basis, if an album or single charts in only one or two countries, a table may not be necessary (and the information could be published in the prose).[1] A section of prose may also be created if sufficient coverage of chart information can be established.
Chart usage: Inclusion/exclusion
[edit]There is numerous sources that have, through community discussion, been deemed unreliable and unsuitable for inclusion. These are available in the below deprecated charts section. An expansive list of reliable sources for record charts and certifications is also provided below.
Charts from non-IFPI countries should not normally be included in tables, and should only be used in cases where there is a very specific reason, such as charts representing the home country of the artist or composer,[2] or releases with a strong link to the country in question (e.g. Eurovision entries).
A maximum of 18 charts should be featured in a table for an album or single article. In the case of more popular releases, there will obviously be more than this available to add. They should then be selected in accordance with the chart's relevance to the artist (eg. home country[2]) and the general notability and/or the size of the music market.
Component charts
[edit]Component charts are charts which are used to calculate a more primary chart. For example: the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay, Hot 100 Singles Sales and Hot Digital Songs charts are all used to construct the leading singles chart in the United States, the Billboard Hot 100. Component charts should not be used in record chart tables or an article's prose when the song has featured in the coinciding primary/main chart. In the case where the song has failed to enter the main chart, but appears on an airplay or sales chart, the component chart may be used. In certain circumstances, such as with the Bulgarian airplay chart, where no valid singles sales charts are known to exist, an airplay-only chart may also suffice (and are always to be used instead of deprecated and dubious charts such as the Bulgarian National Top 40).
Component charts should not be confused with sub-charts. Sub-charts are often simply off-shoots from the main chart, as opposed to charts used in the formation of the main chart. Example of sub-charts are the genre-specific Rock Albums and Alternative Albums charts, which off-shoot from the Billboard 200. Sub-charts may be used, though discussion on the article's talk page is encouraged to discuss issues of undue weight to avoid systemic bias.
Retailers and countdowns
[edit]Charts pertaining to only one specific retailer (such as iTunes, Amazon.com or Wal-Mart) should never be used in either tables or prose. In addition, unofficial charts from countdown shows (such as MTV's TRL or BET's 106 & Park) should not be used as they are not derived from verifiable sales and/or airplay totals.
Still under construction below
[edit]Method
[edit]The chart positions should be organized into one table, and the table should be formatted using class="wikitable sortable". Artist discographies should adhere to the Discography style guidelines.
Within the table, no peak positions should be boldfaced, as this violates Wikipedia's policy regarding neutral point of view and breaches WP:MOSBOLD. Weeks spent at peak position should not be inserted into the table, instead a mention within the article text is preferable.
All of these example tables include indicators to show correct location of references. These are not legitimate references for information contained in this article. References should be as specific as possible, and generally should be to a URL that will display the exact charting information being included, not simply to the website where the chart may be found.
For clarity, the text should indicate the relevant country name, and a wikilink should be provided to the relevant chart or music association.
Charts should be arranged by country in alphabetical order.
Certifications are usually determined by shipments, not sales.[3] Thus, creating a separate column with sales derived from certifications, is forbidden.
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
Certifications (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 1[4] | Gold[5] |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 1[6] | Platinum[7] |
| French Singles Chart | 1[8] | |
| German Singles Chart | 1[9] | Gold[10] |
| Netherlands Singles Chart | 1[11] | |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 1[12] | |
| UK Singles Chart | 1[13] | 5× Platinum[14] |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 1[15] | Platinum[16] |
| US Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs | 1[17] | |
| US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs | 1[18] |
The specific charts included should change depending upon the genre of the song. For hip hop music, the dance chart should be replaced with Hot Rap Tracks. For an R&B ballad, the dance chart should be replaced with the adult contemporary chart. For rock music, both the R&B and dance charts should be replaced with Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks and Alternative Songs. The number of charts should include no more than ten official national charts, and up to ten additional or secondary charts, but no more than eighteen charts total.
Albums and singles which appear on different charts during different years are formatted with the charts for the most recent year furthest down the table:
| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 1[19] |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 1[20] |
| Spanish Singles Chart | 1[21] |
| UK Singles Chart | 1[22] |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1[23] |
| U.S. Billboard Alternative Songs | 1[24] |
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
| Japanese Airplay Chart | 1[25] |
Alternative versions, such as remixes or radio edits, of the same song should be indicated on the table with superscript numbers:
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 1[26] |
| German Singles Chart 1 | 1[27] |
| UK Singles Chart 2 | 1[28] |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1[29] |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 1[30] |
1 German radio version
2 Extended dance remix
References should always be individual, and next to each figure that is sourced. Sources per row, column, or table are insufficient.
Chart trajectories
[edit]A song/album's chart trajectory should not be included in an article, even if it is verifiable. Including the chart trajectory constitutes an indiscriminate collection of information. Chart trajectories should instead be briefly described in the text of the article or in a table for charts.
- ^ For further information, see the relevant Wikiprojects; either for Songs or Albums. For further assistance or in the case of a dispute, notify or ask for help at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Albums or Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Songs.
- ^ a b This can mean country of origin, country of residence, official nationality or any country where the artist or composer has lived for a substantial part of their lives
- ^ "Certification - The Process". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2009-10-25.
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