PopBase: Chart-Topping Hits: Music Genres Dominating the Billboard Hot 100 This Year!

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For over 60 years, Billboard magazine has published a standard chart for music which ranks the top 100 songs of the week. Dubbed the Billboard Hot 100, the chart tracks music weekly from Friday–Thursday and is fully released on Tuesdays. The chart is based on physical and digital sales, along with online streaming, and radio airplay.

Over its history there have been 1,174 different number ones with the current being “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by American country artist Shaboozey. This year, there have been 15 songs to reach the coveted number one spot, but what genres are dominating the chart?

5. Holiday

The fifth most popular genre this year so far has been Holiday. The genre which usually dominates every chart during the holiday season also charted the first week in January this year. The song was Brenda Lee’s “Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree.” It was initially released in 1958 and took 65 years to reach the number one spot. With that achievement, Brenda Lee became the eldest to top the chart at 79 and her song is only the third Holiday song to top the chart.

This genre's success on the charts relies heavily on nostalgia. People want to hear the songs they heard growing up during this season. Because of this, the holiday genre spikes in popularity during the later months of the year. This has caused artists from multiple genres to release holiday music in hopes to recreate magic made by artists like Brenda Lee or Mariah Carey with “All I Want For Christmas Is You”.

4. R&B

The fourth most popular genre on the Billboard Hot 100 this year so far is R&B. R&B which got its start from blues and gospel music, has been popular for decades. The genre has adapted over the years and saw the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 in March thanks to Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control”.

This song was Swims’ first number one single. “Lose Control” comes after Swims started gaining popularity in 2019 after posting song covers. The covers led him to signing with Warner Records. The success of “Lose Control” then led to Swims releasing his debut studio album I've Tried Everything but Therapy (Part 1).

Although R&B has only had one number one song so far, the genre has done well on the Billboard charts. Artists like Chris Brown have infused the genre with trap elements, while some artists like Normani have been inspired by the ‘90s R&B sound.

3. Country

The third most popular genre was country. This genre has had a major resurgence over the years. Last year, the genre saw 11 songs in the top ten of the Hot 100. This marked one of the most successful years for country music. The success continued this year as Beyonce released her eighth studio album Cowboy Carter. The album featured chart-topper “Texas Hold 'Em” and collaborations with many black country artists. One of those artists being Shaboozey. The Virginia native first started gaining recognition for being featured on the soundtrack for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. His success grew even bigger after being featured in Cowboy Carter.

A few weeks after the album was released Shaboozey released “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” This song became extremely popular and spent many weeks in the top ten before reaching the coveted number one spot, marking Shaboozey’s first. Besides “Texas Hold 'Em” and “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” Post Malone and Morgan Wallen’s "I Had Some Help" also topped the chart. The song spent six weeks at number one, the longest for a song this year, and became one of 26 country songs to top the chart.  

1. Pop

Tied for the first position with Rap/Hip Hop is Pop. The genre full of catchy hooks and memorable lyrics has always been a popular genre in music. Although critics sometimes label it as simplistic, recent years have seen pop music churn out hits with an emphasized approach to the lyrics — telling deeper, and sometimes relatable, stories to listeners of the genre

Taylor Swift’s "Fortnight" with Post Malone spent two weeks at number one in May. Other pop songs that topped the chart this year include Ariana Grande’s “Yes, And?” and “We Can't Be Friends (Wait for Your Love)", Hozier’s "Too Sweet", and most recently Sabrina Carpenter’s "Please Please Please".

"Please Please Please" comes after Carpenter’s smash hit “Espresso”. Both songs will be featured on her upcoming sixth studio album Short n’ Sweet, which will also feature ten other songs. Pop music has long dominated the charts with hits from titans like Katy Perry, Michael Jackson, Bruno Mars, Kelly Clarkson, and so many others throughout the decades.

1. Hip Hop/ Rap

This year has seen five Hip Hop/Rap songs top the Hot 100 chart. Hip Hop, which originated in the early 1970s, sparked a way to express feelings through music, poetry, and dance. Over the years, the themes progressed to discussion about social and political themes, identity, unity, and expression. Hip Hop usually does well on the billboard charts and this year is no different. Jack Harlow’s “Lovin On Me" spent five weeks at number one sporadically in January and February. Other rap songs that reached number one this year so far have been Megan Thee Stallion’s “Hiss”, Future, Kendrick Lamar, and Metro Boomin’s “Like That”, “Carnival” by ¥$ (Ye and Ty DollaSign) and Rich the Kid featuring Playboi Carti and most recently Kendrick Lamar’s "Not Like Us".

"Not Like Us", which charted in May, is a diss track rap song coming after a series of diss tracks between Lamar and Drake. The song was the most critically-acclaimed and successful diss track between the two and immediately became viral upon release. The song also broke many streaming records and was Lamar’s fourth number-one single. These songs follow past chart-topping hits from rap veterans like Jay-Z, Tupac, and Eminem, among newer artists like Doja Cat and 21 Savage.

Genres aside, all these artists have achieved this major milestone. Whether it’s their first number one or fifth, these artists have made a mark on music this year. Being a chart-topper on this list comes with bragging rights along with many new eyes that eventually lead to bigger moments come award season, where a lot of these are likely to be recognized for their impact in shaping music this year. Since we are only halfway into 2024, we will surely see many more songs top the charts and make waves in the music scene.