Last week, hip-hop made headlines for a doubtful cause.
For the primary time in additional than 35 years, no rap songs appeared within the Billboard Hot 100’s prime 40. This got here after “Luther,” Kendrick Lamar’s duet with SZA, was faraway from the chart following the implementation of a new rule.
The information sparked dialogue concerning the lack of hits from rappers on the charts. Even with the dominant success of “Luther”—which spent 13 weeks at No. 1—rap has had a shaky yr commercially.
In some methods, the most recent information gave rap doubters extra ammunition for a sentiment that has been reoccurring because the finish of the pandemic: that the style is dying, being lapped by brisker, extra world appears like Ok-pop and Latin music, and that it’s unclear whether or not the previous couple of years are an aberration or the brand new regular.
One factor that complicates this narrative is that, traditionally, the charts haven’t all the time been an important think about hip-hop. In truth, among the biggest and most genre-defining rap songs of the previous 50-plus years—every part from Nas’ “N.Y. State of Mind” to Rick Ross’ “B.M.F.”—have been by no means Top 40 hits, though these songs are synonymous with hip-hop and, in some instances, have earned plaques. (“N.Y. State of Mind” went gold, whereas “B.M.F.” went platinum.)
This applies to the artists themselves, too. Some of the best and most completed rap artists of all time have by no means had a Top 40 hit. (We’re specializing in the Top 40 as a result of that’s historically been the excellence between a hit and a non-hit—a measure that goes again to the Fifties.)
So, in that spirit, and so as to add some context to this information, listed below are 20 rap artists who by no means had a Top 40 hit.
Highest charting track: “New Jack Hustler (Nino’s Theme)” (peaked at No. 67 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Ice-T is a gangsta rap pioneer who took Schoolly D’s framework and constructed a legacy that prolonged into rock albums, motion pictures, and finally TV exhibits. He was daring and controversial all through his profession, although he didn’t obtain important chart success. His most iconic track continues to be “Colors,” however even that solely reached quantity 70 on the Hot 100 chart.
Highest charting track: (*20*) (peaked at No. 57 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
KRS-One was the “Teacha”—a rapper who recorded among the most well-known songs of the Golden Age, from “The Bridge Is Over” to “South Bronx.” But he was by no means capable of conjure a top-charting hit.
Highest charting track: “Fast Life” that includes Nas (peaked at No. 74 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
When Nas and Jay-Z cite you as one in every of their key influences, you recognize you’re doing one thing proper. Kool G Rap nonetheless stands as some of the influential rappers of all time—the architect of a stylistic blueprint that impressed a era of legends to cosplay as mafiosos working drug empires. His immersive storytelling turned the kingpin into a type of god. And whereas his early albums with DJ Polo embrace a few of his most iconic songs (“Road to the Riches” and “Ill Street Blues”), it wasn’t till he linked up with a rising Nas on “Fast Life” that he lastly touched the Billboard Hot 100.
Highest charting track: (*40*) (peaked at No. 47 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Since their debut in 1990, A Tribe Called Quest has been thought of hip-hop royalty. Despite being platinum artists who produced among the most iconic rap data of the ‘90s, they were never major players on the charts. Ironically, Q-Tip would have to go solo and release more divisive music to find Top 40 success, with “Vivrant Thing” and Missy Elliott’s “Hot Boyz” remix.
Highest charting track: “Ante Up (Robbin Hoodz Theory)” (peaked at No. 19 on the Hot Rap Songs chart)
M.O.P.’s “Ante Up (Robbin Hoodz Theory)” remains one of the most hyped songs in hip-hop, decades after its release. Not only was it huge at the time, but it’s also become part of the cultural zeitgeist, appearing in movies like 30 Minutes or Less and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. This shows that chart positions don’t always reflect a group’s impact. The song can be heard in sports arenas, TV shows, and live performances, and fans still sing it back whenever they see the group out in the world.
Highest charting song: “C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me)” (peaked at No. 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Despite the fact that several members of the Wu-Tang Clan have achieved top 40 success as individuals, the group’s collective performance tells a very different story. As a group, they have only had two songs enter the Billboard Hot 100, both from their landmark debut, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). What’s crazier is that “Triumph,” their 1997 epic, went platinum…and still didn’t chart.
Highest charting song: “Passin’ Me By” (peaked at No. 52 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
At a time when West Coast rap leaned heavily into the gangsta lifestyle, The Pharcyde offered an alternative, embracing jazz-inspired grooves. Fans embraced it; in 1992, their debut album, Bizarre Ride II the Pharcydewas certified gold, thanks in large part to the success of “Passin’ Me By,” an all-time great rap jam that fell just a couple of slots short of the top 40.
Highest charting track: “What U See Is What U Get” (peaked at No. 50 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Xzibit has lived many lives—from underground rapper associated with The Alkaholiks clique, to collaborating with Dr. Dre, to his role as host of Pimp My Ride in 2004 (where most people on the internet probably still know him best).
So it’s a bit surprising that, despite his successful work with Dre—Man vs. Machine debuted in the top three—it was his earlier music, like “What U See Is What U Get” and “Paparazzi,” that gave him the largest charting hits of his profession.
Highest charting track: “3 Dollars” with Oh No (peaked at No. 9 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Sales chart)
MF DOOM remained underground for almost all of his profession, however he’s the North Star for thus many modern rappers. From his quirky, lo-fi manufacturing to his dense verses, a lot of what we’ve come to like and respect in at present’s underground will be traced again to what he completed.
Still, this implies his affect on the charts all through his profession was sparse. In truth, the legendary rapper simply acquired his first platinum plaque final yr, for the enduring anti-telling anthem “Rapp Snitch Knishes.”
Highest charting track: “Definition” as a part of Black Star with Talib Kweli (peaked at No. 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Yasiin Bey (previously Mos Def) has constantly used his music to touch upon social and political points affecting Black Americans. Although identified for his lyrical prowess, he has created anthems that really feel timeless, whether or not it’s “Umi Says,” famously featured within the Air Jordan XVI industrial, or “Oh No,” his rap-heavy banger with Pharoahe Monch. Still, it was “Definition,” one in every of his collaborations with Talib Kweli, that earned him the highest-charting single of his profession on the Billboard charts.
Highest charting track: “Ensalada” that includes The Alchemist (peaked at No. 40 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart)
It could have taken Freddie Gibbs virtually 20 years to hit his prime, however the 43-year-old rapper has carved a particular place within the business with a rap model as prickly as his hate-it-or-love-it character. His partnership with the Alchemist has produced two traditional albums, and his current plans to collaborate with Kaytranada show that he’s keen to develop his sound.
Highest charting track: “Whoa” that includes Tyler, the Creator (peaked at No. 46 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Earl Sweatshirt’s transformation from a shock-value teenage rap prodigy to an introspective, lyrically subtle auteur has been breathtaking to observe. He’s by no means launched a track that dominates popular culture with a TikTok dance craze, however his albums have constantly earned crucial acclaim—I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside and Some Rap Songs each peaked inside Billboard’s Top 20.
Highest charting track: “Opps” that includes Yugen Blakrock (peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart)
Vince Staples has completed a lot in so many varieties, it’s straightforward to neglect he’s an especially gifted lyricist—one who has by no means had a Top 40 hit, regardless of being identified for his critically acclaimed songs and albums.
Highest charting track: “Infinity (888)” with XXXTENTACION (peaked at No. 83 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Joey Badass got here into the sport as a teenager with a ‘90s rap obsession that shaped his early releases, especially his debut project 1999. Over the years, his style has evolved. His beats may have changed, but his dedication to lyricism has remained the same. He’s solely had one charting hit—a collaboration with XXXTENTACION.
Highest charting track: “Ultimate” (peaked at No. 38 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales chart)
XXXTENTACION, Lil Uzi Vert, and Juice WRLD could get many of the consideration for ushering within the SoundCloud period, however you possibly can’t speak about that interval with out mentioning Denzel Curry. After spending years working with SpaceGhostPurrp’s Rvidxr Klvn, Curry would grow to be one of many SoundCloud period’s most proficient rappers, deploying a knack for deep storytelling and vulnerability into a sound that’s fueled a lasting profession almost a decade later. So what if he’s by no means appeared on the Hot 100?
Highest charting track: “From The Garden” that includes Lil Uzi Vert (peaked at No. 99 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
It’s no secret that Top Dawg Entertainment boasts (and boasted) among the most influential rappers within the historical past of hip-hop. Isaiah Rashad will not be the primary particular person you consider if you learn that, however his affect on the business is simple to see. There’s private raps, then there’s Rashad’s raps—so deep, so inner, so uncooked, that if you hear him talk about his grapples with habit and psychological well being, you are feeling such as you’re within a remedy session listening to him spill out his insecurities.
Highest charting track: “Doomsday” with Lyrical Lemonade and Juice Wrld (peaked at No. 58 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
All it took was an Instagram message to vary Cordae’s life. He reached out to affix YBN Nahmir and YBN Almighty Jay’s collective, then shortly made a title for himself together with his J. Cole-inspired raps on “Old N***s”—mockingly, a response to “1985.” Though he finally left the collective to forge his personal path, he has remained a constant presence within the rap scene, even with out main chart hits.
Highest charting track: “Johnny P’s Caddy” that includes J. Cole (peaked at No. 72 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Benny The Butcher was in his 30s when he started gaining consideration for embracing Griselda’s boom-bap sound, rooted within the gritty, street-oriented rap of the Nineties. He has remained in keeping with this model, refusing to desert it, even because it restricted his mainstream chart success. Even his major-label debut, Everybody Can’t Godidn’t produce a track that cracked the Billboard Hot 100.
Highest charting track: “Let’s Go” with Young Dolph (peaked at No. 59 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Inspired by his late mentor and cousin Young Dolph, Key Glock channels the uncooked streets of Memphis, mixing it with town’s soulful historical past. He is likely one of the extra notable modern rappers, however he has but to attain the Top 40 entry his cousin loved when he appeared on O.T. Genasis’ “Cut It.”
Highest charting track: “Overseas” (peaked at No. 79 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart)
Opium’s influence can be seen everywhere: Black-painted nails, bleached dreads, and neo-punk aesthetics. Playboi Carti is the leader of the collective, but you can’t deny Ken Carson’s role in the label’s success. He doesn’t have a Top 40 hit, yet, but he has over 7 million monthly streams on Spotify.