Year on the R & B / Hip-Hop charts 2021 – Billboard

Drake lives up to his “6 God” nickname, with the superstar lifting the year-end trophy as BillboardBest R & B / Hip-Hop Artist for a sixth time, a record.

He first dominated the standings in 2012 and followed with a quadruple peat in 2015-18. With his sixth time in the winner’s circle, Drake overtakes his second-place competitor R. Kelly, who finished four years as Best Actor of the genre.

As Drake returns to familiar territory on the Top R & B / Hip-Hop Artist Rankings, he’s the inaugural champion of the new rundown of the best rap artists. The Weeknd tops the ranking of the best R&B artists for 2021.

Billboard Year-End Music Recaps represent aggregated metrics for each artist, title, label, and music contributor in weekly rankings from November 21, 2020 through November 13, 2021. Recap rankings based on MRC data reflect units of album equivalents, release, sales or streaming during the weeks the tracks appeared on a respective chart in the tracking year. Any activity recorded before or after the ranking of a title is not taken into account in these rankings. This methodological detail and the period from November to November partly explain the difference between these lists and the calendar year summaries which are compiled independently by MRC Data.

Explore all of Billboard’s 2021 year-end charts

Drake secures his sixth crown for Top R & B / Hip-Hop Artists thanks in large part to a massive fourth quarter performance on his new album, Boy in love certified, and her singles. The album, released on September 3, arrived with the highest week-long total for any album – 613,000 units – during the 2021 chart eligibility period (chart dates of November 21, 2020 until November 13, 2021). The album’s massive streaming entry also spilled over to the Hot R & B / Hip-Hop Songs chart, where Drake achieved an unprecedented lockdown of the top 14 spots on the list at once, including the No.1 prize. for “Way 2 Sexy,” starring Future and Young Thug.

Two more # 1 hits of # 1 R&B / Hip-Hop songs rounded off Drake’s resume for 2021. His single “Laugh Now Cry Later,” starring Lil Durk, reached the top of the league. weekly list in November 2020 for a six week stay. The achievement also gave Drake a 21st record champion, overtaking Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder for the most leaders per artist since the charts began in 1958. In March 2021, he followed with a 22nd No.1 – ” What’s Next ”- the same week he also placed at # 2 and # 3, respectively, with“ Wants and Needs, ”with Lil Baby, and“ Lemon Pepper Freestyle, ”with Rick Ross.

Beyond his accomplishments as an artist, Drake also won honors as the # 1 year-end songwriter on the Hot R & B / Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts.

Pop Smoke’s ‘Moon’ Rises: The late Pop Smoke claims 2021 end-of-year number 1 on the list of best R & B / Hip-Hop albums as Aim for the stars, aim for the moon regulates the annual balance sheet. The album was released in June 2020 – four months after Pop Smoke died at the age of 20 in a home invasion – and finished at No.5 on the 2020 year-end recap. release date, consistent performance in the charts allows it to finish at the top of the charts – the album made it to the weekly top 10 of the R & B / Hip-Hop Best Albums chart for all but two weeks during of the 2021 rankings year.

This longevity dates back to a string of hits that kept the album afloat, with a radio hit for the singles “For the Night”, starring Lil Baby and DaBaby; “What you know about love”; and “Hello”. The trio made their biggest impression on the rhythm and rap formats, with the former duo both topping the Rhythmic Airplay and Rap Airplay charts, while “Hello” peaked in the top five on each list. Thanks to the sustained radio presence, Pop Smoke finishes as No. 1 artist for 2021 on Rhythmic Airplay and Rap Airplay, and “What You Know Bout Love” is the most popular song for both formats.

Supersonic detonation: Silk Sonic – Bruno Mars and Anderson’s duo .Paak – captures end-of-year 2021 number 1 on the Hot R & B / Hip-Hop Songs chart as “Leave the Door Open” finishes first. The R&B song, released in February, reigned for eight non-consecutive weeks between March and August, and spent all but one of its 26 weeks in the top 10.

“Door” also tops Hot R&B Songs for 2021, as well as the Adult R&B Airplay year-end chart. On the latter’s corresponding weekly tally, the Silk Sonic track recorded 13 weeks at No.1.

Giveon takes on a new artist: In addition to Silk Sonic, R&B groups are reestablishing their claims to other top honors that have followed the path of their rap contemporaries in recent years.

Giveon ends 2021 as the best new R & B / Hip-Hop act of the year and is only the second predominantly R&B artist in the past decade to achieve the feat, after Khalid in 2016. Much of it The singer’s activity in 2021 centered on his single “Heartbreak Anniversary,” which was originally released in 2020 but found a new lease of life in the US market after it became a worldwide hit.

“Anniversary” peaked at No. 3 on the Hot R&B Songs chart, one of the top four 10 for the rising R&B star in 2021. Beyond the breakout, he posted the top 10 results with “Like I Love You, ”“ For Tonight, ”and as a featured actor on Justin Bieber’s“ Peaches, ”which also starred fellow R&B hitmaker Daniel Caesar. “Peaches” reigned at the top of Hot R&B Songs for 10 weeks and gave Giveon their No. 1 debut hit there.

With four long-standing top 10 hits in his arsenal, Giveon is also the top performer on the Hot R&B Songs chart for 2021, and his behind-the-scenes contributions have propelled him to # 1 songwriter on the charts.

The HER “damage” control radio: Likewise, HER brings R&B artists back to number one in the annual R & B / Hip-Hop Airplay rankings. With her year-end triumph # 1, she is only the third R&B performer to earn this honor in the past decade, joining Miguel (2013) and Bruno Mars (2017).

The singer-songwriter also won the sister award, as his single “Damage” was the top song on the R & B / Hip-Hop Airplay charts. Although HER already racked up a record for broadcast R & B / hip-hop success, “Damage” surpassed many of his previous exploits: he peaked at # 2 on the weekly roster – his best performance as a lead performer – and remained on the chart for 52 weeks, more than doubling the stay of any of his previous lead efforts.

As with many of the biggest R&B radio hits of recent times, “Damage” has also reaped the top rankings as it finds favor with both adult and mainstream-oriented stations, both of which fuel the R & B / Hip-Hop Airplay rankings. . “Damage” first landed with the general public – reaching No. 1 on the Mainstream R & B / Hip-Hop Airplay chart in March – before translating into the Adult R&B Airplay chart, which he led for five weeks in June. -July.

Other top radio honors from year-end radio go to Moneybagg Yo, who earns a victory as the best act on the Mainstream R & B / Hip-Hop Airplay charts of 2021. The Memphis rapper has established himself as a new frontrunner on the airwaves this year, with successive hits – five hits as lead actor for his tracks “Said Sum” (# 2), “Time Today” (# 1 for two weeks) and “Wockesha” (# 2). ° 1, two weeks).

Yung Bleu, meanwhile, won the Mainstream / Hip-Hop Airplay song award, because “You’re Mines Still”, with Drake, crowns the 2021 ranking.