Originally posted by Lord Blackout

Which one happens more in one year? Serious question.

Originally posted by Rihinvention

Critically, a grammy. Commercially, a #1 single. Over time, a #1 single. With the exception of ATRL stans and people in the industry, no one remembers who has won what grammys. Everyone remembers a successful single that dominated radio at a specific point in time though. It creates nostalgia and reminds people of that time.

Originally posted by umichgrad07

Back in the mid 2000s, it was almost common practice for labels to hold back the digital release of a song for weeks (or months) after sending it to radio. This would ensure that sales would be at a great maximum, and the song could jump high on the charts to reach #1, combined with its already-exsitng and growing airplay. Many songs saw great benefit from it:

Ne-Yo, So Sick
Rihanna, SOS
Shakira f/ Wyclef Jean, Hips Don't Lie
Justin Timberlake, SexyBack
Akon f/ Snoop Dogg, I Wanna Love You
...and the list goes on.

And there were a handful of songs that have debuted at #1 (or leapt to #1) due to sales:

Britney Spears, Womanizer
Kelly Clarkson, My Life Would Suck Without You
Britney Spears, 3
Kesha, We R Who We R
Lady Gaga, Born This Way
Katy Perry, Part of Me
Taylor Swift, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together

Most of those songs were mid-to-late 2000s, so I'm sure consumership has changed since then. With streaming being a factor in the Hot 100 now, I think you have to be strong in all three areas (sales, airplay, streaming) to reach the summit, judging on the #1s we've had in the past 2 years. Of course, you have your anomalies such as Harlem Shake.