Whitney Houston's Unreleased Song, 'Never Give Up,' Debuts: Listen
Although bittersweet, the late great Whitney Houston achieves her 40th top 40 hit on the R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart as "Celebrate," her duet with Jordin Sparks, rises 49-39.
The song -- from 2012 film, 'Sparkle,' -- is diva's first top 40 hit since "Million Dollar Bill" climbed to No. 16 on the chart dated Dec. 19, 2009. Her first top 40 entry came way back in 1984 with her initial visit to the chart: the Teddy Pendergrass duet "Hold Me" (No. 5).
Op-Ed: Why 'Sparkle' Will Shine for Young Women
Of her 40 top 40 hits, a full 26 of them reached the top 10, while eight of those hit No. 1.
In other "Celebrate" news this week, the song also jumps into the top 10 on the Adult R&B airplay chart (viewable on billboard.biz/charts) -- Houston's 14th top 10 hit on that tally.
With a 14th top 10, she ties Toni Braxton and Alicia Keys for the second-most top 10s among women in the chart's history. Only Mary J. Blige has more with 16. This milestone is equally as important for Sparks as she pegs her very first top 10 on the tally. Her only previous hit came with "No Air," her duet with Chris Brown, which peaked at No. 31 in 2008. WWMG Montgomery, Ala., leads the audience wave with the most plays (290) through Aug. 19, according to Nielsen BDS.