Ella Mai
Ella Mai reaches the top of the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop airplay chart as “Boo’d Up” advances 2-1. The tune climbs five percent in plays in the week ending July 15, according to Nielsen Music.
With the coronation, Mai is the first woman billed in a lead role to top the chart in 2018. Before this week, Cardi B sported the last No. 1 for a woman in a lead role when “Bodak Yellow (Money Moves)” ruled for nine frames in September to November 2017.
“Boo’d” also holds at No. 1 on Adult R&B Songs and R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay for a second and fifth week, respectively. Adult R&B Songs ranks titles according to their number of plays across monitored adult-leaning stations, while R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay ranks songs according to audience impressions from both monitored mainstream-oriented and adult-leaning stations.
As “Boo’d” now governs all three charts, it is the first R&B song to earn that triple crown since Bruno Mars’ “That’s What I Like” last year. “Like” dominated for six weeks on Adult R&B Songs, one week on Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop and 12 weeks atop R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay.
Among songs by women, “Boo’d” ends a six-year drought: Beyoncé’s “Love on Top” was the last tune by a woman – in either a lead of featured role – to hit No. 1 on all three charts, in 2012. “Top,” fittingly, was tops on Adult R&B Songs and R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay for seven frames each and earned a lone week in charge of Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop.
The airplay gains also help “Boo’d” earn a new peak on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (No. 4). Also a heavy contributor: the first full tracking week of its remix with Nicki Minaj and Quavo, which dropped July 4. The new rendition accounted for nearly half of the song’s 27,000 sales in the week, up 27 percent from the prior frame. An influx of sales pushed “Boo’d” 4-3 to a new high on R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales.