VOA常速英语2013--Top 5 Songs for Week Ending September 7

 

Top 5 Songs for Week Ending September 7

We’re sharing the five most popular songs on the Billboard¹ Magazine Hot 100 pop singles chart, for the week ending September 7, 2013.

Last week, Katy Perry steamrolled her way to second place with “Roar.” Does she go the distance this week? The answer’s on the way. First, let’s check in with Imagine Dragons, slipping a slot² to number five with “Radioactive.” In the long run, however, this Las Vegas rock band has a winner: it’s the United States’ third most-downloaded song of 2013, behind Macklemore’s “Thrift Shop” and Robin³ Thicke’s “Blurred Lines.” 

Jumping two slots to number four is Lady Gaga and “Applause” - Gaga's 12th Top 10 single in only five years. Has this colorful singer ever hit number one on the Hot 100? The answer: yes, three times. She hit the jackpot with “Just Dance,” “Poker Face,” and “Born This Way.”

Holding steady at number three is shy, retiring Miley Cyrus with "We Can't Stop" - hey, just kidding! The 20-year-old singer's controversial performance at the August 25 MTV Awards ceremony has legitimized the term “twerking.” The saucy⁴, rump-shaking dance has now officially entered the Oxford⁵ English Dictionary. 

While you recover from that piece of news, let's catch up with Katy Perry, whose  “Roar” holds at number two. Last week, Katy threatened to highjack the Hot 100, as “Roar” zoomed⁶ from 85th to second place. This week, she stops for a breather before attempting the final ascent⁷. Her Prism album arrives on October 22 in the United States.

That means the winner and still champion is none other than Robin Thicke. He shares the title with T.I. and Pharrell for a 12th straight week with “Blurred Lines.”

Only four other songs have held the gold for 12 weeks - the latest being “Boom⁸ Boom Pow” by the Black Eyed Peas, back in 2009.

Will they make it 13 weeks? We’ll find out in seven short days. 

1 billboard   

n.布告板，揭示栏，广告牌

参考例句：

• He ploughed his energies into his father's billboard business.他把精力投入到父亲的广告牌业务中。
• Billboard spreads will be simpler and more eye-catching.广告牌广告会比较简单且更引人注目。

2 slot   

n.（口）位置，职位，狭长孔，狭槽

参考例句：

• Put a coin in the slot.将硬币放入投币口。
• He's been given a regular ten-minute slot on the radio.电台定期给他十分钟的节目广播时间。

3 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

4 saucy   

adj.无礼的；俊俏的；活泼的

参考例句：

• He was saucy and mischievous when he was working.他工作时总爱调皮捣蛋。
• It was saucy of you to contradict your father.你顶撞父亲，真是无礼。

5 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

6 zoomed   

v.（飞机、汽车等）急速移动( zoom的过去式 )；（价格、费用等）急升，猛涨

参考例句：

• Traffic zoomed past us. 车辆从我们身边疾驰而过。
• Cars zoomed helter-skelter, honking belligerently. 大街上来往车辆穿梭不停，喇叭声刺耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 ascent   

n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高

参考例句：

• His rapid ascent in the social scale was surprising.他的社会地位提高之迅速令人吃惊。
• Burke pushed the button and the elevator began its slow ascent.伯克按动电钮，电梯开始缓慢上升。

8 boom   

n.隆隆声；vt.发隆隆声

参考例句：

• The country is having a great boom in industry.这个国家的工业正蓬勃发展。
• Boom!Boom!Boom!A series of explosions shook the valley.轰！轰！轰！一连串爆破声震撼山谷。