The Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter consistently highlights various songs, artists, and musical trends that are capturing the music industry's attention. This week showcases several instances where older hits are experiencing significant resurgences, often propelled by cultural phenomena, new media integrations, or renewed fan engagement across different platforms.

Michael Jackson's illustrious catalog has recently witnessed an unprecedented surge in streaming, largely attributed to the ongoing impact of the "Michael" biopic. For the third consecutive week, Jackson has obliterated his personal-best weekly streaming count. During the May 1-7 tracking week, his solo catalog amassed an astounding 181.6 million official on-demand song streams in the United States, according to Luminate. This new seven-day total represents a remarkable 32% increase from the previous week's haul of 137.6 million, which itself was a 146% improvement over a then-high of 55.9 million clicks. This substantial boost has translated into numerous chart placements, with "Billie Jean" maintaining its top position among his songs with 14.8 million streams, a 31.7% rise from the prior week, propelling it from 38-17 on the Billboard Hot 100. Other iconic "Thriller" singles, "Beat It" and "Human Nature," also saw impressive gains, finishing second and third in Jackson's catalog with 11.4 million and 10.8 million plays, respectively. Early indicators suggest the "King of Pop" is poised for another nine-digit streaming sum in the coming week, potentially even making a play for a 200 million-plus week if the current pace continues.

Intriguingly, even Janet Jackson, despite her notable absence and lack of portrayal or mention in the "Michael" biopic, has experienced her own significant streaming gains. For the week ending May 7, Janet accumulated over 9.4 million official on-demand U.S. streams – easily her best weekly total for the current year – marking a substantial 31% gain from the 6.9 million streams she totaled two weeks earlier. A healthy portion of this surge is attributable to the increased streaming presence for "Scream," the lone song co-credited to the two superstar Jacksons, which amassed nearly 1.2 million plays on its own in the most recent tracking week. Even when removing this duet from the equation, Janet’s catalog still showed a robust 20% increase in streams from two weeks prior, a difference of nearly 1.4 million streams, indicating a broader renewed interest in her extensive discography.

Another compelling case of a music resurgence is "Go," a 2015 track by The Chemical Brothers, which has found new life thanks to its prominent placement in Netflix's new survival thriller "Apex." The Grammy-nominated track plays a key role in the film's official trailer, released on March 25, and is featured significantly within the movie itself, which hit Netflix on April 24. As viewers engaged with "Apex," a viral TikTok meme challenge emerged, with people recreating actor Taron Egerton’s unnerving dance scene set to "Go." The official "Go" sound now boasts over 68,000 clips on TikTok and nearly 60,000 Instagram Reels. According to Luminate, "Go" earned over 91,000 official on-demand U.S. streams the week before "Apex" debuted. During the film’s premiere week, "Go" soared by over 431% to exceed 487,000 streams. By the following week (May 1-7), that number jumped a further 167% to a whopping 1.3 million official on-demand U.S. streams, representing an explosion of over 1,319% in streaming activity within two weeks. Thanks to these remarkable gains, "Go" is now The Chemical Brothers’ highest-charting hit on the Dance/Electronic Songs chart, reaching No. 9.

Similarly, Katy Perry's 2011 hit, "The One That Got Away," is enjoying a notable streaming resurgence, primarily driven by emotional fan engagement across social media platforms. Over the past year, the song has experienced a slow but steady surge. This winter, many fans gravitated towards the song to bid farewell to their favorite fictional romances, particularly spurred by the final season of "Stranger Things." By spring, social media users began employing the ballad’s wistful chorus in diverse contexts, from soundtracking narratives of escape from domestic violence or epic defenses of loved ones, to mourning fictional romances from shows like "Euphoria" and even perceived real-life friendships. Other users have also leaned into the song's nostalgic power, remarking on its enduring emotional impact 15 years later. During the week of March 6-12, "The One That Got Away" logged over 2.8 million official on-demand U.S. streams, a number that leaped nearly 40% the following month to over 3.9 million streams. By the week of May 1-7, streams further increased by 56% to over 6.2 million, marking a 118% surge in streaming activity over two months. Katy Perry herself has adeptly capitalized on this momentum, sharing a "director’s cut" of the music video (narrated by Stevie Nicks), using an acoustic version for her MET Gala glam sessions, and playfully trolling an ex-boyfriend’s engagement announcement with the song. On May 13, Perry released a new compilation album titled "The One That Got the Plays," with the resurgent track opening the tracklist. This renewed interest has propelled "The One That Got Away" to No. 37 on the Billboard Global 200, making it Perry’s highest-charting entry on the chart since its inception in September 2020.

These varied instances collectively highlight how cinematic releases, viral social media trends, and strategic artist engagement can breathe new life into established music catalogs, demonstrating that the right cultural moment can transform an older hit into a trending sensation once again across global audiences.