Diane Warren Earns Her 33rd Hot 100 Top 10 as a Writer Thanks to Taylor Swift’s ‘Say Don’t Go (Taylor’s Version)’

Gary Trust
·4 min read
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Renowned songwriter Diane Warren returns to the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 as Taylor Swift’s “Say Don’t Go (Taylor’s Version) [From the Vault]” launches at No. 5 on the chart dated Nov. 11. Warren and Swift co-wrote the song in 2013, and, released at last on Swift’s album 1989 (Taylor’s Version), it becomes Warren’s 33rd career top 10, and her first since 2001.

“Everything has its time, you know?” Warren told Rolling Stone about the track. “It took a while to see the light of day, but I’m glad it finally did. It was worth the wait.”

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As previously reported, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) blasts in at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, marking her 13th leader.

Warren — who has won a Grammy, a Primetime Emmy and an honorary Oscar, is a Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, among other honors — first reached the Hot 100’s top 10 as a writer in 1983 thanks to Laura Branigan’s No. 7-peaking single “Solitaire.” (Warren wrote English lyrics to Martine Clémenceau’s song, released in 1981.) She had last sent a composition to the region when Faith Hill’s “There You’ll Be” hit No. 10 in 2001.

Thanks to the debut of “Say Don’t Go (Taylor’s Version),” Warren’s span of appearing in the Hot 100’s top 10 as a writer extends to a milestone 40 years, and six months (May 14, 1983-Nov. 11, 2023).

Among Warren’s top 10s, she has penned nine Hot 100 No. 1s, from Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” in 1987 through Brandy’s “Have You Ever?” in 1999. (As for another of her leaders, after topping the Hot 100 for two weeks, Milli Vanilli’s “Blame It on the Rain” fell from the summit on the chart dated Dec. 9, 1989, the current ranking when Swift was born four days later.)

Swift, meanwhile, notches seven new Hot 100 top 10s, all of which she co-wrote, led by “Is It Over Now? (Taylor’s Version) [From the Vault]” at No. 1, marking her 11th leader. She now claims 51 career top 10s as a writer.

Here’s an updated recap of Warren’s 33 Hot 100 top 10s.

Diane Warren’s Hot 100 Top 10s as a Writer:

  • “Solitaire,” Laura Branigan / No. 7 peak, May 21, 1983

  • “Rhythm of the Night,” DeBarge / No. 3, April 27, 1985

  • “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now,” Starship / No. 1 (two weeks), beginning April 4, 1987

  • “Who Will You Run To,” Heart / No. 7, Oct. 3, 1987

  • “I Get Weak,” Belinda Carlisle / No. 2, March 19, 1988

  • “I Don’t Wanna Live Without Your Love,” Chicago / No. 3, Aug. 27, 1988

  • “Look Away,” Chicago / No. 1 (two weeks), beginning Dec. 10, 1988

  • “If I Could Turn Back Time,” Cher / No. 3, Sept. 23, 1989

  • “When I See You Smile,” Bad English / No. 1 (two weeks), beginning Nov. 11, 1989

  • “Blame It on the Rain,” Milli Vanilli / No. 1 (two weeks), beginning Nov. 25, 1989

  • “Just Like Jesse James,” Cher / No. 8, Dec. 23, 1989

  • “Love Will Lead You Back,” Taylor Dayne / No. 1 (one week), April 7, 1990

  • “How Can We Be Lovers?,” Michael Bolton / No. 3, May 5, 1990

  • “I’ll Be Your Shelter,” Taylor Dayne / No. 4, July 14, 1990

  • “When I’m Back on My Feet Again,” Michael Bolton / No. 7, Aug. 4, 1990

  • “Time, Love and Tenderness,” Michael Bolton / No. 7, Sept. 14, 1991

  • “Set the Night to Music,” Roberta Flack with Maxi Priest / No. 6, Nov. 16, 1991

  • “If You Asked Me To,” Celine Dion / No. 4, July 11, 1992

  • “Saving Forever for You,” Shanice / No. 4, Jan. 30, 1993

  • “I’ll Never Get Over You (Getting Over Me),” Expose / No. 8, July 17, 1993

  • “Don’t Turn Around,” Ace of Base / No. 4, June 18, 1994

  • “Because You Loved Me,” Celine Dion / No. 1 (six weeks), beginning March 23, 1996

  • “Un-Break My Heart,” Toni Braxton / No. 1 (11 weeks), beginning Dec. 7, 1996

  • “For You I Will,” Monica / No. 4, April 19, 1997

  • “The One I Gave My Heart To,” Aaliyah / No. 9, Nov. 15, 1997

  • “How Do I Live,” LeAnn Rimes / No. 2, Dec. 13, 1997

  • “The Arms of the One Who Loves You,” Xscape / No. 7, May 30, 1998

  • “I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing,” Aerosmith / No. 1 (four weeks), beginning Sept. 5, 1998

  • “Have You Ever?,” Brandy / No. 1 (wo weeks), beginning Jan. 16, 1999

  • “Music of My Heart,” *NSYNC & Gloria Estefan / No. 2, Oct. 16, 1999

  • “I Turn to You,” Christina Aguilera / No. 3, July 1, 2000

  • “There You’ll Be,” Faith Hill / No. 10, June 30, 2001

  • “Say Don’t Go (Taylor’s Version) [From the Vault],” Taylor Swift / No. 5 (to date), Nov. 11, 2023

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