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L.N.'s Chart Analysis
date: June 7, 1999
source: Billboard Mag et. al.

The release of another extended-only commercial single causes a leap on the main singles chart this week: "It's Not Right But It's Okay" by Whitney Houston. In the report on the 5/29/99 issue, it was stated that

"there is no way "It's Not Right But It's Okay" can be given a sales boost, since it has already been released on the "Heartbreak Hotel" single and that singles sales points are now and will always be applied to "Heartbreak Hotel"'s singles chart position. "Heartbreak Hotel" is #11 on the singles chart this week."

This was an incorrect statement. There was confusion over whether a rule preventing a track appearing on successive commercial singles from impacting chart position that was in effect under the previous singles chart formula would apply under the new formula. In fact, the situation with Sarah McLachlan's "Adia" and "Angel" singles provided a precursor to what has happened with "It's Not Right But It's Okay."

Under the new system, a commercial single with more than one track will always only be associated with the track receiving the most activity at radio when the single makes its chart impact. Thus, sales of the original "Heartbreak Hotel/It's Not Right But It's Okay" single have been and will continue to be associated with the "Heartbreak Hotel" listing on the main singles chart (it ranks #23 in its 25th week, on a #21 radio rank and #39 in sales). "It's Not Right But It's Okay" first appeared on the main singles chart 6 weeks ago based on its radio activity. Sales of the first "HH/INRBIO" single were never and will never be applied to the rank of the "INRBIO" listing on the main singles chart, even though "INRBIO" as of this week ranks higher at radio than "Heartbreak Hotel" (at #19). Sales of the newly released "It's Not Right But It's Okay" extended-single will be applied exclusively to the "INRBIO" listing on the main singles chart. The impact of 14,000 in sales, ranking #21, causes "It's Not Right But It's Okay" to leap from #32 to #21 on the main singles chart. "It's Not Right" is #2 in sales among extended singles, after Ricky Martin.

"It's Not Right" is Whitney's 27th Top 40 single and looks to become her 25th Top 20 single. It's only her third single to hit the Top 20 that is not a duet since 1996's "Count On Me." Moreover, prior to "Heartbreak Hotel," the last Whitney song to hit the top 20 at radio was 1995's "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" (six singles missed the top 20). Whitney has achieved that with both "Heartbreak Hotel" and "It's Not Right But It's Okay," but the radio activity of both of these songs has been boosted by the inclusion of black radio stations in the main radio panel, which was not the case prior to last December.