The Billboard Hot 100 chart has long been seen as a measure of success for musicians across all genres, with placement on the list solidifying years of hard work. For the first time in 35 years, Hip-Hop, one of the most successful genres of modern times, has fallen out of the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 list, and it could signal a shift in consumer tastes.
Billboard reports that, surprisingly, not one Hip-Hop song occupies the top 40 slots of the Billboard Hot 100, with the highest ranking song being YoungBoy Never Broke Again’s “Shot Callin” at the No. 44 slot. Following are Cardi B’s “Safe” featuring Kehlani from Cardi’s latest album, Am I The Drama?, and BigXthaPlug’s “Hell at Night” featuring Ella Langley, sitting at No. 48 and 49 in that order.
The outlet adds that the last time this happened was on February 2, 1990, with Biz Markie’s classic “Just A Friend” at No. 41 on the charts, ahead of becoming a top 10 hit for the late rapper and DJ. The following week, the song leaped to the No. 29 slot.
More from Billboard explaining how this happened:
Recent rule changes to Billboard’s Hot 100 methodology did play a part in the streak coming to an end. For the chart dated Oct. 25, descending songs were deemed recurrent and removed from the chart if they had exceeded certain durations on the chart while also falling below certain updated chart thresholds — for instance, if they had fallen below No. 25 after spending over 26 weeks on the chart. That particular change resulted in the departure of “Luther,” which had fallen to No. 38 on the previous week’s Hot 100 in its 46th week on the listing.
The headline itself does sound alarming on the surface, but it seems that a technicality is the reason for this, not a dip in quality. As we try to highlight at Hip-Hop Wired via our CRT FRSH playlist, the music and culture are thriving well, and it should be expected that another artist or more will make their way to the top of the charts again. Given the chart dominance of acts like Drake, Kendrick Lamar, and the aforementioned BigXThaPlug, we should see Hip-Hop near or back at the top soon.
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Photo: Billboard
