Musical-comedy television show Glee breaks a 52-year record this week, toppling Elvis Presley’s record for having the most songs on the Billboard Hot 100.
With six new songs hitting the chart tomorrow (February 18), Glee will have 113 songs in the top 100 since the show’s debut in May 2009. This trumps Presley’s previous record of 108 chart entries, which he earned between 1958 and 2003.
Executives at 20th Century Fox and Columbia Records have capitalized on the instant nature of digital downloads, allowing the Glee singers to fast-track their way through the charts as each new episode’s broadcast is quickly followed with several matching digital tracks.
Thanks to technology, Glee managed this impressive accomplishment in record time – the show debuted less than two years ago – while Elvis amassed his hits over a 45-year time period.
With a total of nine songs on the chart, this week marks the most successful for the members of the fictional glee club, surpassing the eight songs they charted the week of December 18, 2010.
The first Glee song to hit the charts remains its most successful. Their cover of Journey’s classic Don’t Stop Believin’ climbed to number four on June 6, 2009 following the show’s premiere.