Afrobeats artists are breaking the charts on the Billboard Hot 100. Public reactions confirm this could be a new beginning for the genre worldwide.
Billboard Hot 100 is a digital world chart that features the best 100 most trending music worldwide. Different musicians from several parts of the world with different genres feature on this world chart. So to, say, it holds an iconic tag and is profitable for artists in terms of global music distribution.
This article will discuss the six Afrobeats musicians who recently gained entry into the Billboard chart. Only a few have made it to the list, and the music industry expects more outcomes like this, with more Afrobeats artists topping the charts.
6 Nigerian Who Have Topped the Billboard Hot 100 Chart
Wizkid
Ibrahim Ayo Balogun is an Afrobeat artist who paved the way internationally for African artists. As a featured artist, he first appeared on Billboard Hot 100 in Drake’s One Dance. The track blew gradually until it earned the number-one spot on the list.
Wizkid’s ‘Essence’ featuring rising star Tems gained popularity worldwide. Although the song debuted at 82 on the list, it is undoubtedly the first Nigerian music to attain such a height.
Wizkid’s fourth album ‘Made in Lagos’ reached a new milestone on the Billboard World Album Chart. It has spent its fourth year in this category with over 100 weeks on the list.
‘Call Me Everyday’ by Starboy-protege feat. Chris Brown was featured at number 76. The same goes for ‘Brown Skin Girl’ by Beyonce, Wizkid, Blue Ivy, and Saint John.
Burna Boy
‘Last Last’ by Burna Boy banged within and across Nigeria and featured at 86 on the global Hot 100. The track sampled famous popular female artist Tony Braxton’s old release titled “He Wasn’t man enough.”
‘Last Last’ is one of the tracks in Burna’s ‘Love, Damini,’ which also took the 13th position on the Billboard Top 200 world albums. New agencies and celebrities’ TVs confirmed that the track’s release gained international appeal and is liked by many individuals of different nationalities.
‘Love, Damini’ is a 19-track album showcasing Burna’s unique personality and recent life events.
Justin Bieber’s ‘Loved by You’ featuring the outsider-protege also took the 87th position on the Billboard chart. Burna Boy now has two entries.
Fireboy DML
‘Peru Remix’ featuring Ed Sheeran is yet another megahit to have taken a position on the Billboard global chart. This makes Fireboy DML the fourth artist to gain entry into the digital world chart.
The track took the 97th spot on the chart and has gained massive waves since its release in July 2021. Fireboy DML is a new-generation Afropop artist, and ‘Peru’ is living proof of the genre’s relevance.
CKay
A few weeks after topping the YouTube Global Music Video Chart and acquiring over 15 billion views on TikTok, Ckay’s ‘Love Nwantiti’ debuted at no. 80 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song, which went viral as a TikTok challenge, broke into the chart without going through the Under 100 Billboard revealing chart.
The uproar of ‘Love Nwantiti’ and its sudden appearance in the chart makes it the first song to attain such a feat. Ckay also released El Grande Toto’s North African remix.
Rema
In the chart dated January 7th, 2023, Rema finally debuted at number 74 on the Billboard Hot 100 with ‘Calm Down Remix’ featuring Selena Gomez. The original song gained massive international success attracting the R&B international artist.
Rema’s ‘Calm Down’ remix remained on the Billboard chart for 17 weeks. The original song and remix gathered over 1 billion streams across all platforms.
Tems
Tems remains the first Nigerian artist to debut at number 1 on Billboard Hot 100. She was featured on Atlanta’s rapper Future’s ‘Wait for You,’ which also featured Drake. The song is part of Future’s album, ‘I Never Liked You.’
Before attaining this height, Tems had earlier debuted at number 82 on the same chart as a featuring artist on Wizkid’s ‘Essence.’
‘Free Mind’ by Tems debuted at number 46. ‘Fountains’ by Drake featuring Tems debuted at number 26, while ‘Move’ by Beyonce feat. Grace Jones & Tems debuted at number 55 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Afropop is hoping to have many more artists break the Billboard. So far, the genre has gained massive likes from music lovers worldwide and contributes to global digital music distribution.
There’s a recent slew of Afropop music breaking into the Billboard chart. It is no longer the type of music that stays concealed within the African region. It touches every soul irrespective of your color, region, or personality.
Think of it; which artist is likely to emerge next on the Billboard global chart?