VOA标准英语2014--Top 5 Countdown for Week Ending Aug. 23

 

Top 5 Countdown for Week Ending Aug. 23

We’re rolling out the five most popular songs in the Billboard¹ Hot 100 pop singles chart, for the week ending August 23, 2014.

Today we get to dust off the welcome mat, because we get a new title. That’s on the way; first let’s begin in fifth place, where Nico & Vinz fall a slot with “Am I Wrong.” These two Norwegians are preparing to unveil their next album…On August 14, the Norwegians revealed the cover art for their first global album Black Star Elephant. The title pays tribute to their parents’ African nationalities - Ghanaian and Ivory Coast. The album drops later this year.

Everybody, give a big Top Five welcome to your new hit: “All About That Bass” by Meghan Trainor jumps from eighth to fourth place. Twenty-year-old Meghan grew up on the island of Nantucket, Massachusetts. She’s been writing songs since age 11, and became a professional songwriter at 18. She’s written for Rascal² Flatts, among other acts…and “All About That Bass” earned her a solo deal at Epic³ Records.

Holding in third place are Iggy Azalea and Charli XCX with “Fancy.” Charli’s about to hit us with a new single and album… This week, she announced that her next album will be titled Sucker, and we’ll get it on October 21. She also dropped a new single, “Break The Rules.”

Holding in second place is Sam Smith, with “Stay With Me.” The 22-year-old Englishman has enjoyed a meteoric⁴ rise to stardom, both here and overseas. Sam says it’s exciting…but he still fears it could stop at any time.

When will the ride end for MAGIC? Not right now: the Canadian reggae crew makes it five weeks atop the Hot 100 chart with “Rude.” It’s proving a durable⁵ hit…but it sure didn’t take long to write. Stick around for more. Band leader Nasri Atweh tells the Daily Star that the song came to him out of nowhere…and it took all of 20 minutes to write.          

Our five minutes are just about up, but no worries: we’ll do it all over again next week.

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 rascal   

n.流氓；不诚实的人

参考例句：

• If he had done otherwise,I should have thought him a rascal.如果他不这样做，我就认为他是个恶棍。
• The rascal was frightened into holding his tongue.这坏蛋吓得不敢往下说了。

3 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

4 meteoric   

adj.流星的，转瞬即逝的，突然的

参考例句：

• In my mind,losing weight is just something meteoric.在我眼中，减肥不过是昙花一现的事情。
• His early career had been meteoric.他的早期生涯平步青云。

5 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。