2023 Rapped: Highest-Selling Album, Most-Streamed Song & More

Kanye might still release Vultures before 2024, but his 20-year streak of charting a song on Billboard since the beginning of his career officially ended in 2023. In other news today:

• Billboard’s Hot 100 📈 

• Kanye’s releasing this Vultures single tonight 👀 

• 2023 Rapped: highest-selling album, most-streamed song & more 🏆️ 

• Metro Boomin teases another 2024 joint album 🔥 

• Industry Insights 🔎 

Billboard’s Hot 100

The above chart shows Billboard’s Hot 100 ranking for this week. The Hot 100 ranks songs based on streaming activity, radio airplay audience impressions, and sales data—all measured by Luminate.

Jack Harlow’s “Lovin On Me” holds steady at #6 even in the midst of a holiday chart takeover. Nicki Minaj’s “Everybody” drops from #26 to #39 in its second week, and “FTCU” holds the same position at #42.

Kanye’s Allegedly Dropping This ‘Vultures’ Single Tonight

Kanye’s allegedly releasing Vultures before the end of the year and dropping a single from the album tonight. According to the subreddit u/GoodAssSub, a frequent source for Kanye leaks, the song “Everybody” ft. Charlie Wilson was sent to distributors and is scheduled to hit streaming services at midnight

The song sparked controversy when it first premiered at the Vultures rave in Miami due to its use of the Backstreet Boys’ 1997 song of the same name. Clearance issues were brought up, but it’s possible Kanye got it cleared. Here’s why:

• “Everybody” uses an interpolation, not a sample

• Interpolations are like a cover of a segment of a song 

• Charlie Wilson re-created the original Backstreet Boys chorus 

• Kanye only needs clearance from the publisher (which is not Backstreet Boys)

When is Vultures dropping? After delaying the release of the album to Dec 31st, fans noticed the date on Apple Music changed to Jan 12th, 2024.

But subreddit u/GoodAssSub posted a recap of Vultures info that said the album is targeting a Sunday (Dec 31st) or Monday (Jan 1st) release, and Apple Music has officially changed the date back to Dec 31st.

In other Kanye news, he issued a formal apology in Hebrew to the Jewish community via IG for his many antisemitic remarks. He also released YZY PODS, a compact sock-like shoe that folds up to fit in a bag easily, on the YEEZY SPLY website for $269 each.

2023 Rapped: Highest-Selling Album, Most-Streamed Song & More

As 2023 comes to a close, rap music wasn’t the favorite child it used to be, facing allegations of declining market share and chart dominance compared to its Latin and country music siblings. But did rap have a bad year?

2023 brought Lil Uzi Vert’s first album in three years, Travis Scott’s long-awaited Utopia, a Yeat x Drake collab, and new Playboi Carti music. See rap’s year in review below (via HipHopAllDayy) and test your knowledge with a bonus quiz at the end.

5 highest-selling rap albums of 2023

1. Utopia by Travis Scott 1.7M

2. Heroes & Villains by Metro Boomin 1.6M

3. Her Loss by Drake, 21 Savage 1.4M

4. For All The Dogs by Drake 1.4M

5. My Turn by Lil Baby 970K

10 most-streamed rap songs globally of 2023 on Spotify

1. “Paint The Town Red” by Doja Cat 713M

2. “Sprinter” by Central Cee, Dave 529M

3. “fukumean” by Gunna 524M

4. “Barbie World” by Nicki Minaj, Ice Spice 386M

5. “I KNOW ?” by

6. Travis Scott 283M

7. “Search & Rescue” by Drake 282M

8. “All My Life” by Lil Durk, J. Cole 271M

9. “FE!N” by Travis Scott, Playboi Carti 248M

10. “MELTDOWN” by Travis Scott, Drake 241M

11. “Agora Hills” by Doja Cat 237M

10 rappers who charted on Billboard’s Hot 100 for the most weeks in 2023

1. Drake 52 weeks

2. 21 Savage 52 weeks

3. Travis Scott 46 weeks

4. Nicki Minaj 45 weeks

5. Ice Spice 42 weeks

6. Future 37 weeks

7. Cardi B 34 weeks

8. Coi Leray 33 weeks

9. Rod Wave 33 weeks

10. J. Cole 33 weeks

2023 Rapped: Quiz

Test your rap knowledge with the questions below. Once you submit the answer you think is correct, you’ll find out if you were right or wrong.

Metro Boomin Teases Another 2024 Joint Album

Metro Boomin just added another name to his list of loading collab albums. Instead of a rapper, it’s fellow Atlanta producer Zaytoven. Metro teased the news on X, posting a screenshot of his conversation with Zaytoven discussing a beat they were cooking.

“The sound of these beats me and @zaytovenbeats make together are so unique like nothing my ears have heard before,” Metro tweeted. The duo previously worked together on “RIP Luv” from 21 Savage’s album Savage Mode II and are frequent collaborators with Future but don’t appear on the same songs often.

Metro’s been active on X this week, answering fans’ questions and giving updates on his pending projects. He’s promoted his collab album with Future the most, which is reportedly “on the way,” although no release date has been confirmed.

He teased an album with J.I.D earlier this year and told fans this week that, unlike the Future project, it’s not done and is still a work in progress. He was also in the studio with 21 Savage right after Christmas, likely working on Savage’s upcoming album.

• Chief Keef hops on Sexyy Red’s “Bow Bow Bow (F My Baby Dad)” remix. Delivering four solo verses, he dominates the track flipping to the chorus to rap, “F*ck my baby mama.”

• Takeoff’s father joins $1M USD wrongful death lawsuit. It was filed against 810 Billiards & Bowling in Houston, where the late rapper was shot.

• Jay Rock says a TDE compilation album is coming “at the top of the year.” Black Hippy, the group composed of Rock, Schoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, and Kendrick Lamar, is set to appear on the album.

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