Chart Watch: Kendrick Lamar Enters Hot 100 at No. 2

Kendrick Lamar’s “Humble” enters the Hot 100 at No. 2, just behind Ed Sheeran’s smash hit “Shape of You.” It’s the highest-debuting rap single since Eminem’s “Love the Way You Lie” (featuring Rihanna) debuted at No. 2 in 2010.

This is Lamar’s first top 10 hit as a lead artist. He previously reached the top 10 as a featured artist on ASAP Rocky’s “F**kin’ Problems” (No. 8 in 2012), Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood” (No. 1 in 2015), and Maroon 5’s “Don’t Wanna Know” (No. 6 earlier this year).
Lamar’s previous highest-charting hit as a lead artist was “Swimming Pools (Drank),” which reached No. 17 in 2012.

“Humble” sold 111K digital copies this week, which allows it to enter Top Digital Songs at No. 1. It displaces “Shape of You,” which led for 10 weeks. This is Lamar’s second No. 1 digital hit. “Bad Blood” led for five weeks in 2015.

“Humble” also enters Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at No. 1, displacing Bruno Mars’s “24K Magic.” It’s Lamar’s first No. 1 on that chart.

Lamar’s new album (which may be titled simply ALBUM) is expected to enter the Billboard 200 at No. 1 in two weeks. It would be Lamar’s second album in a row to debut in the top spot. To Pimp a Butterfly spent its first two weeks at No. 1 in April 2015. Lamar’s previous album, good kid, m.A.A.d. city, debuted and peaked at No. 2 in 2013.

Top Songs

Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” this week becomes the third song by an English artist to log 11 or more weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100. It follows Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind 1997” (which spent 14 weeks on top in 1997-98) and Mark Ronson’s “Uptown Funk!” (featuring Bruno Mars, which spent 14 weeks on top in 2015).

This is the longest run at No. 1 by any song since the Chainsmokers’ “Closer” (featuring Halsey) had 12 weeks on top last year.

“Shape of You” logs its 13th week at No. 1 on The Official U.K. Singles Chart. That’s the longest run since Drake’s “One Dance” (featuring Wizkid and Kyla) logged 15 weeks on top last year. It’s the longest run by a U.K. lead artist since Wet Wet Wet’s “Love Is All Around” had 15 weeks on top in 1994. Wet Wet Wet is from Scotland. Sheeran is from England. (I specify “lead artist” because Kyla is from the U.K.)

Bruno Mars’s “That’s What I Like” dips from No. 2 to No. 3 in its 12th week. Unless it reverses course, it will go down as Mars’ first single to peak at No. 2.

KYLE’s “iSpy” (featuring Lil Yachty) inches up from No. 5 to No. 4 in its 15th week. Deep trivia: This matches the peak position of Bill Cosby’s “Little Ole Man (Uptight-Everything’s Alright)” from October 1967. Why on earth would I bring that up? Cosby starred in the classic 1960s TV show I Spy. Well, I told you it was deep trivia.

“Something Just Like This” by the Chainsmokers and Coldplay drops from its No. 3 peak to No. 5 in its seventh week. The Chainsmokers’ other current hit, “Paris,” holds at No. 9 in its 12th week. The song has climbed as high as No. 6. This is the 49th consecutive week that the Chainsmokers have had one or more songs in the top 10, which allows them to set a new record for the longest continuous run in the top 10 by a group or duo. They surpass Ace of Base’s old record of 48 weeks.

Sam Hunt’s “Body like a Back Road” leaps from No. 12 to No. 6 in its 10th week, a week after Hunt performed the song on the Academy of Country Music Awards telecast. It’s the first country song to make the top 10 on what is often called the “pop” chart since Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise” (featuring Nelly), which reached No. 4 in July 2013. “Body like a Back Road” is the first song by a male country solo artist to crack the top 10 since Jason Aldean’s “Dirt Road Anthem,” which reached No. 7 in July 2011.

“Body like a Back Road” is No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart for the ninth week. It’s Hunt’s fourth No. 1 country hit, following “Leave the Night On” (which reached No. 30 on the Hot 100), “Take Your Time” (No. 20 on the Hot 100), and “House Party” (No. 26).

The Weeknd’s “I Feel It Coming” (featuring Daft Punk) drops from its No. 4 peak to No. 7 in its 20th week.

Kodak Black’s “Tunnel Vision” holds at No. 8 in its seventh week. It peaked at No. 6.

Clean Bandit’s “Rockabye” (featuring Sean Paul & Anne-Marie) rebounds from No. 11 to No. 10 in its 18th week. The song has climbed as high as No. 9. The song was No. 1 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart for nine weeks (just before “Shape of You” took over). This is the biggest hit with the word “Rockabye” in its title since Al Jolson’s “Rock-A-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody” in 1918. Jolson sang the song in the Broadway musical Sinbad. Comedian Jerry Lewis revived the song in 1956. His version reached No. 10.

Three songs drop out of the top 10 this week. They are: Migos’s “Bad and Boujee” (featuring Lil Uzi Vert), the Zayn/Taylor Swift collabo “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever (Fifty Shades Darker),” and Drake’s “Passionfruit.”

Top Albums

Male solo artists hold down the top four positions on the Billboard 200 for the first time in nearly four years. This last happened in September 2013 when Keith Urban, the Weeknd, 2 Chainz, and Luke Bryan held down the top four spots. (This nearly happened in October 2015, when Fetty Wap, Drake & Future, Don Henley, and George Strait held down the top four spots. Strictly speaking, Drake & Future is a collaboration composed of two male solo artists, which isn’t quite the same thing.)

Drake’s More Life is No. 1 for the third week. It’s the first album to spend its first three weeks at No. 1 since Drake’s previous release, Views, which spent its first nine weeks at No. 1.

By now you know that the Billboard 200 is based on a “multi-metric formula,” which takes into account streaming and digital track sales as well as traditional album sales (which was the sole metric from the start of the Nielsen era in 1991 until the change to multi-metric in December 2014). Drake has benefited from the new chart formula more than any other artist. Views was the best-seller in traditional album sales for just the first two of its 13 weeks at No. 1. More Life was the bestseller in traditional album sales for just the first of its three (so far) weeks at No. 1.

Ed Sheeran’s ÷ holds at No. 2 in its fifth week. It spent its first two weeks at No. 1. The album logs its fifth week at No. 1 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart.

Kodak Black’s debut album, Painting Pictures, opens at No. 3. (With a name like Kodak Black, shouldn’t the title be Taking Pictures?!) The album’s lead single, “Tunnel Vision,” reached No. 6 on the Hot 100.

Bruno Mars’s 24K Magic rebounds from No. 6 to No. 4 in its 20th week. The album has never ranked lower than No. 7. It logged four weeks at No. 2.

The soundtrack to the live-action reboot of Disney’s 1991 animated classic Beauty and the Beast dips from No. 4 to No. 5 in its fourth week. The album debuted and peaked at No. 3. It’s No. 1 on Top Soundtracks for the fourth week.

The Moana soundtrack inches up from No. 7 to No. 6 in its 20th week. The album peaked at No. 2.

Mastodon lands its third top 10 album as Emperor of Sand debuts at No. 7. This was the week’s bestselling album in traditional album sales, but lost out when streaming and digital track sales were factored in. This is the first time that the week’s bestselling album has ranked as low as No. 7 on the Billboard 200. (It breaks a record set just last week when Metallica’s Hardwired … to Self-Destruct, that week’s best-selling album, ranked No. 5.)

Future’s Future rebounds from No. 9 to No. 8 in its seventh week. The album debuted at No. 1.

Migos’s Culture rebounds from No. 11 to No. 9 in its 10th week. The album debuted at No. 1 and spawned a No. 1 single.

MercyMe lands its third top 10 album as Lifer debuts at No. 10. (Note that we have More Life at No. 1 and Lifer at No. 10.)

Four albums drop out of the top 10 this week. Trey Songz’s Tremaine the Album drops from No. 3 to No. 19. Metallica’s Hardwired … to Self-Destruct drops from No. 5 to No. 28. Rick Ross’s Rather You Than Me drops from No. 8 to No. 16. The Weeknd’s Starboy dips from No. 10 to No. 11.

Miranda Lambert’s The Weight of These Wings rebounds from No. 192 to No. 12 in its 20th week in the wake of winning Album of the Year at the ACMs. The album has climbed as high as No. 3. The album returns to No. 1 on Top Country Albums, displacing RaeLynn’s WildHorse. This is the third week on top for Lambert’s album. That’s the longest run at No. 1 for an album by a female solo artist since Lambert’s previous album, Platinum, had six nonconsecutive weeks on top in 2014.

Sam Hunt’s 2014 debut album, Montevallo, drops from No. 42 to No. 45 in its 128th week on the Billboard 200. It peaked at No. 3. The album jumps to No. 1 on Top Catalog Albums, displacing Paul McCartney’s Flowers in the Dirt. Montevallo is the first studio album by a country artist to top the catalog chart since Zac Brown Band’s first major-label album, The Foundation, in July 2012. Montevallo has sold 1,290,000 copies in traditional album sales.

Coming Attractions: Look for the Chainsmokers’ first full-length album, Memories … Do Not Open, to debut at No. 1 next week. Pentatonix’s PTX, Vol. IV — Classics is headed for a debut in the top 10.