Recently, Tencent Music Chart, under Tencent Music Entertainment Group (TME), partnered with Billboard China to officially unveil the China region results of the 2025 Billboard Global No. 1s, a prestigious annual global honor initiated by Billboard. Following two rounds of fan voting, rising Chinese artist Zi Yu emerged from a field of exceptional musicians to claim the honor as China’s sole representative, earning a place in Billboard‘s global hall of fame with an outstanding performance and overwhelming fan support.

The Billboard Global No. 1s China Honor Selection featured music by Chinese artists officially released between November 2024 and October 2025. Initial screening was based on annual performance across two authoritative Tencent Music Chart rankings, the TME Uni Chart, which reflects mainstream popularity, and the TME Wave Chart, which showcases professional quality. Final placements were then determined through two rounds of fan voting. Ultimately, Zi Yu’s “Ni Tan,” Shi Ge Qin Tian’s “Jun Zi Liao Ran,” THE 8’s “Cold Love,” Liu Yu’s “Si Jun Zhao Yu Mu” and Deng Jia Xin’s “Cheng De Shang Zhi De” secured the top five positions.

Zi Yu’s winning track “Ni Tan” captures a protagonist’s struggle to rise above adversity through poignant lyrics and a deeply compelling melody. As China’s sole representative for the 2025 Billboard Global No. 1s, Zi Yu joins an elite roster of Billboard artists from the U.K., Japan, South Korea and beyond in this year’s honor class, securing Billboard‘s annual special feature coverage and premium global cross-platform exposure. Additionally, Zi Yu and the track will receive comprehensive promotional support from TME Chart across its full domestic and international network, ensuring worldwide visibility.

In recent years, the partnership between Tencent Music Chart and Billboard has continued to deepen. The successful launch of the Billboard Global No. 1s China Honor Selection is built upon this increasingly robust strategic alliance. In 2023, TME Uni Chart became the sole music chart from mainland China featured on Billboard‘s global website, filling a significant gap in Billboard‘s Chinese music chart coverage. On Nov. 6 of this year, TME Chart announced a strategic partnership with Luminate, the internationally renowned music data provider behind Billboard’s charts, becoming its first in-depth data partner in mainland China. Music consumption data from TME platforms will now be integrated into globally authoritative chart systems including the Billboard Global 200 through the Uni Chart’s professional data system.

By deeply integrating its domestic data infrastructure with international music platforms, TME Chart is steadily building a bridge connecting Chinese music to the global stage, empowering exceptional artists and their works to achieve international reach. Looking ahead, as TME Group continues to strengthen its partnerships with Billboard and other global collaborators, even more Chinese artists will leave their mark on the worldwide music landscape.

The Contenders is a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. This week, for the upcoming Billboard Hot 100 dated Dec. 13, we look at the chances of Mariah Carey to claim her record-tying 19th week at No. 1 with her holiday perennial. 

Mariah Carey, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” (Columbia): “Christmas” came early to the Hot 100’s top 10 last month, with Carey’s holiday staple setting a record for its earliest visit in the calendar to the chart dated Nov. 15. In the weeks since, “Christmas” has continued to bound up the Hot 100, and ranks at No. 5 on this week’s chart (dated Dec. 6), the highest of the four holiday titles now ranking in the top 10.  

The song will undoubtedly jump on next week’s chart, with Thanksgiving last Thursday (Nov. 27) marking the semi-official start of the holiday season, and the beginning of seasonal playlist ubiquity on streaming and radio. Carey’s “Christmas” has dutifully ascended to the No. 1 position on the Apple Music real-time chart and the runner-up spot on Spotify’s Daily Top Songs USA listing, while also beginning its spread on the airwaves, trending towards the top 25 of next week’s Radio Songs chart after reentering at No. 40 this week.  

It all adds up to a convincing case for next week being the week that Carey captures the No. 1 spot for the seventh consecutive holiday season. If it does, it will dethrone Taylor Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia,” which has reigned for its first eight weeks on the chart — tying “Anti-Hero” for the longest-leading of Swift’s 13 No. 1s on the Hot 100 — and also technically mark the song’s earliest return to the top spot on the chart dated Dec. 13 (with last year’s return coming a day later in the calendar, on the Dec. 14-dated chart).  

“Christmas” will make additional chart history if and when it recaptures pole position. Its next week atop the chart will mark its 19th total, which will tie Lil Nas X’s Billy Ray Cyrus-featuring “Old Town Road” and Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” for the longest-reigning No. 1 in Hot 100 history. And with several chart weeks left before we turn the calendar on “Christmas,” it seems a strong likelihood that this will be the year the song captures week No. 20 atop the chart, giving Carey the gift of sole possession of the longest-running No. 1 in Hot 100 history. 

Brenda Lee, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (Decca/MCA Nashville/UMe): The lone other holiday song to capture the weekly crown since Mariah started her run of dominance, Brenda Lee’s fellow perennial should also be in the mix for No. 1 this holiday season. In fact, it’s ahead of Carey’s classic on Spotify’s Daily Top Songs USA chart, where it’s reigned since Thanksgiving. On the Hot 100, it rises to the top 10 this week for the first time this season, landing at No. 7. 

Without a major narrative hook to “Rockin’” this year — especially compared to the chart history Carey is staring down — it might be hard for it to get past “All I Want” on the weekly chart. But “Rockin’” does usually amp up a little closer to the holidays, and it is up 47% in radio reach through the first four days of this tracking week (Nov. 28-Dec. 1), compared to the previous week, according to Luminate.  

Wham!, “Last Christmas” (Columbia/Legacy): The George Michael-penned Christmas classic edged out Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock” for the bronze medal on last year’s Christmas-week Hot 100, helped by the song’s 40th-anniversary celebration (and vinyl re-release). It should be in contention for the No. 3 spot, its peak to date, again this year — and in fact currently ranks ahead of “Rockin’” on the Hot 100, where it sits at No. 6 as the second-highest-ranking holiday title.  

It might be tough for Wham! to get in the mix for the top two once the holidays approach, however, as “Rockin’” has passed on both the Spotify and Apple Music charts (as well as on iTunes), and “Rockin’” is also growing faster on radio (with “Last Christmas” up just 19% in airplay audience so far this tracking week). But in 2026, the song should be the holiday title to watch, as the 10th anniversary of George Michael’s death — which occurred, too fittingly, on Christmas night in 2016 — is commemorated.  

Tina Knowles is that girl. As Billboard can exclusively reveal, the mogul’s Matriarch memoir finishes in first place among the most-listened music memoirs on Spotify in 2025.

The news comes on the same day Spotify unveiled its annual Wrapped on Wednesday (Dec. 3), providing users with custom summaries of their listening habits in addition to announcing which artists and podcasters got the most streaming love on the platform over the past 12 months. This year, audiobooks are included in Wrapped for the first time ever.

With Matriarch finishing the year as Spotify’s top music memoir audiobook, Fahrenheit-182 by Mark Hoppus and Dan Ozzi and Night People: How to Be a DJ in ‘90s New York City by Mark Ronson earned second and third place, respectively. Behind them, in order, were Bread of Angels by Patti Smith, Only God Can Judge Me by Jeff Pearlman, Last Rites by Ozzy Osbourne, Truly by Lionel Richie, Cudi by Kid Cudi, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You by Neko Case and Heartbreaker by Mike Campbell.

The top books overall on the platform were the novels Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros, Lights Out by Navessa Allen and Iron Flame, also by Yarros.

Published in April, Matriarch shares Knowles’ insights into raising daughters Beyoncé and Solange from childhood to their adulthood as two of the biggest names in music. She also delved into her recent breast cancer battle, from receiving the diagnosis last year to undergoing surgery, during which doctors successfully removed the entire tumor.

When the memoir topped The New York Times‘ hardcover nonfiction bestsellers list, Bey wrote on Instagram, “The Mama T was that good?? Ha … You deserve it, I’m so proud!”

Shortly afterward, the 35-time Grammy winner brought her mom out on stage at a Cowboy Carter Tour show so that the crowd could join her in congratulating the author.

Nogizaka46’s “Biryani” soars to No. 1 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100, on the chart released Dec. 3.

This marks the popular girl group’s 30th No. 1 on the Japan Hot 100. Serving as the title track of the group’s 40th single, the song sold 736,722 copies in its first week to debut at No. 1 for sales, while hitting No. 8 for downloads, No. 22 for streaming and No. 20 for radio airplay.

At No. 2 is Kenshi Yonezu’s “IRIS OUT,” holding steady from last week. Karaoke for the Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc theme rose to 103% of the prior frame, and the track leads streaming, video views and karaoke. As of last week’s report, cumulative streams for the song have topped 200 million.

MAZZEL’s “Only You” jumps 57-3. Released Nov. 26 as the title track of the group’s fourth single, the song sold 96,954 copies to bow at No. 2 for sales. It also rules radio and hits No. 5 for downloads, No. 54 for streaming, and No. 12 in video.

Yonezu and Hikaru Utada’s “JANE DOE” is at No. 4, down a spot from last week. The poignant ending theme for the Reze Arc movie holds at No. 2 for streaming for the tenth straight week, while radio rises 139% from last frame and karaoke climbs to 103%.

INI’s “Present” falls to No. 5 after topping last week’s chart. Launching with 1,213,001 copies last week to become the group’s first million-seller, it adds 28,774 copies this week to take No. 3 in sales. The single also comes in at No. 27 for downloads, No. 55 for streaming and No. 10 for radio.

Two tracks from the RADWIMPS tribute album Dear Jubilee -RADWIMPS TRIBUTE- again land in the top 10 this week: Mrs. GREEN APPLE’s “Kyoshinsho” at No. 8 and Vaundy’s “Zenzenzense” at No. 9. Elsewhere, M!LK’s “Suki Sugite Metsu!” jumps 19-10, earning the group its first top 10 entry. Downloads rise to 170% of last week, streaming to 101%, and video to 185%.

Billboard JAPAN’s year-end charts for 2025 will be revealed on Friday, Dec. 5 at 4 a.m. Japan Time.

The Billboard Japan Hot 100 combines physical and digital sales, audio streams, radio airplay, video views and karaoke data.

See the full Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart, tallying the week from Nov. 24 to 30, here. For more on Japanese music and charts, visit Billboard Japan’s English X account.