In a remarkable testament to the enduring power of music, the late singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley has secured his first-ever entry on the prestigious US Billboard Hot 100 chart, a full 29 years after his untimely death. The poignant acoustic ballad Lover, You Should Have Come Over has debuted at position No 97 this week, propelled by a surge of popularity on the social media platform TikTok.
The TikTok Effect: A New Generation Discovers Buckley
The song's unexpected chart success is directly attributed to a viral trend on TikTok, where a new generation of listeners has been pairing Buckley's emotive and romantic track with their own video content. While TikTok views themselves do not contribute to official US chart calculations, the platform's immense influence drives significant traffic to streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music, where plays are counted.
This phenomenon highlights the modern music industry's shift, where social media virality can resurrect and catapult older works into the contemporary mainstream, introducing legendary artists to fresh audiences.
A Heartfelt Ballad from a Seminal Album
Lover, You Should Have Come Over is a deeply personal track featured on Buckley's only completed studio album, Grace, released in 1994. The song is a raw lament of a fractured relationship, with Buckley's haunting vocals pleading for a lover's return. Lyrics such as "All my blood for the sweetness of her laughter … she’s the tear that hangs inside my soul for ever" encapsulate the track's profound emotional resonance.
Although Grace initially peaked at a modest No 82 in the US upon release, it gradually achieved cult status, becoming a platinum-selling touchstone for university students and romantics worldwide, celebrated for its spiritual intensity and Buckley's virtuosic guitar work.
A Legacy Cut Short
Tragically, Jeff Buckley's promising career was abruptly ended in 1997 when he accidentally drowned while swimming in the Mississippi River in Memphis, Tennessee. He never released a follow-up to Grace. Posthumous compilations, including Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk (1998) and You and I (2016), have offered glimpses into his unfinished second album and early cover recordings of artists like Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin.
Not an Isolated Case: TikTok's Chart Power
Buckley is not the first artist from the 1990s alternative scene to experience a belated chart breakthrough via TikTok. Notably, Radiohead's 1997 track Let Down from OK Computer also charted for the first time in 2025, demonstrating a consistent pattern.
The platform's influence on the music industry is now undeniable. TikTok's own Year in Music report for 2025 claimed that eight of the year's ten US No 1 singles first gained momentum through a viral moment on the app, and that all thirteen UK No 1 singles that year had a viral phase on TikTok.
This latest chart entry for Jeff Buckley serves as a powerful reminder of his lasting artistic impact. It proves that great music transcends its era, finding new life and new listeners through the digital channels of the modern age, ensuring that his voice continues to be heard by generations to come.
