When Teddy Swims released Lose Control in June 2023, it did not take off straight away. The song entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 99 and then started to climb, week after week, for 32 weeks before it reached number one in March 2024. By the time it finished its run, it had spent longer on that chart than any song before it.
Years of covers before the hit
Swims, whose real name is Jaten Dimsdale, grew up in Conyers, Georgia. Before going solo he sang in a range of Atlanta bands, from heavy rock groups to soul cover acts. That mix of styles still shapes the way he sings today.
His solo career began on YouTube. In 2019 and 2020 he posted covers of other people’s songs, and his team made a habit of releasing a new one every Tuesday at the same time. Fans started calling it Teddy Tuesday, and the audience grew one video at a time.
Those covers showed off a voice that could move from soul to country to pop within a single song. They also gave him a loyal following long before most people had heard his name. When his own songs arrived, there was already a crowd waiting.
What a slow-burn hit means for live shows
A song that grows slowly tends to stay with people. Listeners find it in their own time, on the radio, in a friend’s car or at a wedding. By the time they see it performed live, it feels like their song rather than something they were told to like.
That shows at his concerts. Fans looking for Teddy Swims tickets are often coming for Lose Control, but many stay for the covers and the other songs from his albums. The voice that built his following on YouTube sounds even bigger in a full room.
It also helps that he has kept touring steadily. His team has said that touring around the world was a big part of how the song kept growing. The climb of his career has looked a lot like the climb of the song that made his name.
A hit that grew rather than exploded
Lose Control was not a viral sensation when it came out. His manager told Pollstar that it began with steady daily streams that rose a little each day. Radio picked it up, live performances spread it further and the song kept building.
That slow build is unusual in an age of instant hits. Most songs that reach number one arrive there quickly and fall away just as fast. Lose Control did the opposite, and it went on to become the top song on Billboard’s year-end chart for 2024.
In 2025 it passed the record for the most weeks on the Hot 100, which had been held by Glass Animals’ Heat Waves at 91 weeks. Stereogum reported the moment it logged its 92nd week. For a song that started at number 99, it was a remarkable journey.
Why London took to him
London has always had a soft spot for soul singers with big voices. Swims fits that tradition well, with a sound that owes as much to old soul records as to modern pop. His tattoos and beard may suggest a rock singer, but the voice tells a different story.
He also has an easy way with people that suits the city. In March 2025, he was photographed arriving at a Brit Awards after-party in London. For many London listeners, Lose Control was simply part of that year.
New music after a record run
Few songs ever match the run of Lose Control, and Swims knows it. He has said that the hit gave him a taste of what was possible and left him hungry for more. New music has followed, and the tours have kept growing.
For anyone who has only heard the song on the radio, a live show is the easiest way to understand how a cover singer from Georgia ended up with a record-breaking hit. It took years of work and a great deal of patience. Above all, it took a voice that people wanted to hear again.
