Hip-Hop hasn’t hit #1 for the first time in thirty years

The Future. A lack of big hip-hop hits this year has led to the longest stretch in thirty years that a song from the genre hasn’t topped the Billboard charts. While hip-hop is still insanely popular, mainstream tastes are expanding to include more country and Latin music… which could start to impact what we hear across popular Spotify playlists and film and TV.

Fresh out of new
Hip-hop is not in Billboard’s top rotation this year.

• There hasn’t been a single hip-hop album or song at the top of the Billboard 200 or Hot 100 all year.
• That’s the first time that has happened for this long since 1993. 
• Billboard believes it’s because there haven’t been any breakthrough artists this year and because the usual hitmakers (Kendrick, Drake, etc.) all released music last year.

All of that is not to say that hip-hop has been declining in popularity. Sales are actually up 6.3% from last year. But, the rise in popularity of country and Latin music is taking some overall market share.

But, back to Billboard. So, who has been crowding the top of the charts? It’s actually a small club — mostly Miley Cyrus and Morgan Wallen.