The Weeknd’s ‘Starboy’ Scores Record-Tying 20th Week at No. 1 on Hot R&B Songs Chart
The Weeknd ties a chart record with "Starboy."
The Weeknd’s “Starboy” spends a 20th consecutive week atop Hot R&B Songs (on the chart dated Feb. 25), tying the record for most weeks at No. 1 on the nearly five-year-old chart. The song matches Drake’s 20-week reign with “One Dance,” featuring Wizkid and Kyla, which crowned the list between May and September in 2016.
“Starboy” remains at No. 1 due in part by 20 million domestic streams in the week ending Feb. 9, according to Nielsen Music (down 7 percent). At its height, the track logged 33 million streams in one week (chart dated Dec. 17). Digital sales also aid the No. 1 stay, with 22,000 downloads sold in the most recent week (down 9 percent) — in its bestselling week the track sold 101,000 downloads (week ending Dec. 29, 2016).
“Starboy” edges out Rihanna’s “Love On The Brain” (which is at No. 2 in its 41st charting frame) by a small margin of points. If her song reaches the peak, it will mark Rihanna’s fifth No. 1 on Hot R&B Songs and will be the longest-trek to the top. John Legend currently holds the longest trip to No. 1, achieved when “All Of Me” topped the list in its 38th week.
Big Sean’s Big Arrival: Big Sean earns the Hot Shot Debut on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart as “No Favors,” featuring Eminem, bows at No. 11 — Big Sean’s best entrance ever as a lead act. The arrival comes as the rapper’s latest album I Decided. debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts (151,000 equivalent album units earned).
In all, nine songs from the set dot the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, led by “Bounce Back,” which climbs 8-3 (a new peak). Elsewhere, “No Favors” starts at No. 1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales chart (45,000 downloads), marking his first chart-topping entrance as a lead act.
Over on the Billboard Hot 100, eight of the album’s songs make the list. Notably, “Moves” scores the biggest jump on the latest chart soaring 74-38 and taking Streaming Gainer honors with a 103 percent hike in streams (to 14.1 million).
“Bad Things” Tops Rhythmic: Lastly, Machine Gun Kelly and Camila Cabello step 2-1 on the Rhythmic airplay chart with “Bad Things” (despite a 2 percent dip in plays), earning their first No. 1s each. (Previously, Fifth Harmony — Cabello’s former group — topped the list with “Work From Home” on the May 21, 2016 chart).