State Champ Radio R&B/Hip-Hop
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The late Takeoff’s death on Nov. 1 sparked a surge of activity surrounding both his solo catalog and that of Migos, comprised of Takeoff, Quavo (his uncle) and Offset (his cousin).
The group’s song streams rallied 182.2% in the seven days after his death, while his solo material grew 434.9% in the same period, according to initial reports to Luminate. (The sums here include both official and user-generated content, the latter of which does not factor into Billboard’s charts.)
Among the chart impacts, Takeoff and Quavo’s collaborative album, Only Built for Infinity Links (released Oct. 7), rockets 84-12 on the all-genre Billboard 200 dated Nov. 12, in its fourth week on the list.
Takeoff, born Kirshnik Ball, was fatally shot on Nov. 1 in Houston at age 28. His death drew tributes from dozens of celebrities, including Beyoncé, Drake, Future, Cardi B and many other friends and musical collaborators.
Migos’ song catalog (defined as tracks where the group is the lead act) registered 56.6 million U.S. on-demand streams for Nov. 1-7, a 182.2% increase from the 20.1 million collected from Oct. 25-31. In addition, Takeoff’s solo material logged 46.4 million U.S. on-demand streams in the week after his death, compared with 8.7 million in the week prior, a swell of 434.9%.
For the latest chart tracking week, which ran Oct. 28 – Nov. 3, fans’ support through streaming in the latter half of the week leads to several gains across multiple charts. As mentioned, Only Built for Infinity Links, rallies 84-12 on the Billboard 200, with 23,000 equivalent album units, a 109% week-over-week upgrade. Streaming powers its rebound, with 32.1 million official streams of its songs in the week ending Nov. 3, up 110% from the prior week.
In addition to the Billboard 200 jump, Infinity Links leaps 40-6 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and 19-4 on the Top Rap Albums list.
Lead Links single “Hotel Lobby (Unc & Phew)” was the most streamed song of Takeoff’s solo offerings in the previous chart tracking week, with 7.5 million official U.S. streams (up 101% from the prior week). Three songs from the album — “Messy” (4.8 million, up 452%); “To the Bone,” featuring YoungBoy Never Broke Again, (4.2 million, up 41%); and “Nothing’s Changed” (3.2 million, up 78%) — were next in line, with the track “Last Memory,” from his 2018 solo effort, The Last Rocket, in fifth place, with 2.9 million clicks.
“Messy” debuts on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart at No. 43, aided by the release of its official music video on Oct. 31. “To the Bone” returned to Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at No. 45, having reached a previous No. 24 best upon its debut three weeks ago.
Among Migos cuts, the most streamed tracks were the group’s most successful hits: “Bad and Boujee,” featuring Lil Uzi Vert, led with 3.7 million official streams (up 93%), followed by “Stir Fry” (3 million, up 85%), “Walk It Talk It,” featuring Drake (2.98 million, up 85%), and “Motorsport,” with Nicki Minaj and Cardi B (2.4 million, up 71%). The four songs are the full slate of Migos’ top 10 hits on the multi-metric, all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart, with “Bad and Boujee” a standout as the group’s sole No. 1 with its three-week reign in 2017.
Busta Rhymes has joined the list of artists pausing their own grooves to pay tribute to late Migos rapper Takeoff. In a video to fans, Busta revealed that he has pushed back the release of his The Fuse is Lit EP until next week (Nov. 18) in order to honor the MC who was gunned down on Nov. 1 in an as-yet-unsolved killing in Houston.
“Let us all collectively send love and light to our brothers, you know Takeoff… sending love and light to his beautiful family… sending love and light to our brothers [Migos members] Quavo and Offset, Quality Control Family,” Busta said in the somber video. “Family and friends that has been affected directly and indirectly by this tragedy.”
In light of that and his desire to support Takeoff’s family and friends at the rapper’s public funeral service in Atlanta on Friday (Nov. 11), Busta said he decided to push the EP’s release date by a week. “Send our love and beautiful energy to our brothers Migos and Quality Control and their beautiful families,” he said. The five-track EP — featuring collabs with Bid Daddy Kane, Skillibeng and Conway the Machine, as well as production from Swizz Beatz, Marly Marl and Focus — is Busta’s first release since 2020’s Extinction Level Event 2: The Wrath of God.
Hours after the world learned that Takeoff (born Kirshnik Khari Ball), 28, was killed by an unknown assailant while partying with uncle Quavo at a Houston billiard hall, Rhymes penned a moving tribute to the Migos’ lyrical secret weapon. “It took a lot of time today and a lot of thoughts to try to figure where to start with this today,” he wrote. “There is no perspective that is the right perspective to look at things from when you experience the loss of life, especially when you love the life of people we loose.”
Takeoff’s funeral will kick off at noon at State Farm Arena in his hometown of Atlanta on Friday, with Alicia Keys slated to perform at the event that was open to Georgia residents only. The public memorial will have a strict no photo/no video policy, with all devices subject to gate check in Yondr bags prior to entering the arena. The rapper’s family requested that in lieu of flower or gifts, donations should be made to The Rocket Foundation, recently established to support programs supporting community-based solutions to prevent gun violence.
Drake announced earlier this week that he was postponing his planned show at Harlem’s Apollo Theater in order to mourn Takeoff.
Check out Busta’s announcement below.
Drew Barrymore is taking a break from her eponymous talk after testing positive for COVID-19. She announced on Thursday (Nov. 10) via Instagram that two celebs will be filling in for her while she recuperates.
“I’ve got covid and lucky the cat! Im good and will be back soon. In the meantime @helloross and @50cent are taking over,” Barrymore captioned a photo of herself lying in bed with pink glasses on and a cat at her side. “So only good news to report!!!!! Maybe some other special surprises too!”
While 50 Cent did not share a personal statement regarding his temporary stint on The Drew Barrymore Show, he did use his Instagram Story to repost a message from his PR company, AKR PR, wishing Barrymore well. “Feel better @drewbarrymore the show is in good hands with @50cent,” the post read.
Ross Mathews, TV show host and personality, hopped in the comments section to give his love to the actress. “LOVE YOU SO MUCH!! I’ll keep your seat warm for you until you come back. Rest. Take care of you. Watch the new season of The Crown. Text me if you need anything,” he wrote.
Mathews also shared a repost to his Instagram Story of his husband Dr. Wellinthon García wishing the actress well. “Sending love to our favorite flower girl @drewbarrymore – my hubby @helloross has you covered! We love you!!!” García wrote.
The hosting gig is hardly the first time the “In da Club” rapper has dabbled in the talk show space. In 2016, he guest co-hosted a 2016 episode of The View, and gave interviewing a try on the 2018 episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, when he asked Colbert some burning questions.
See Drew Barrymore’s announcement below.
Robert Glasper had quite the busy October… or should we call it Robtober? From Oct. 4 to Nov. 6, the pianist took over New York’s legendary Blue Note Jazz Club for his fourth annual “Robtoberfest” residency.
Over the course of 26 nights, the Grammy winner performed 52 shows, with special guests including Dave Chappelle, Jill Scott, Andra Day, Lalah Hathaway, Common, Rapsody, Miguel and more. “My approach to Robtober is kind of, like, anything goes,” Glasper says of organizing the residency. “I get to curate my favorite musicians, my favorite artists. Literally, it’s a musical playground, so it’s like all of the thoughts that are in my head, I can actually do those.”
Blue Note’s director of programming Alex Kurland tells Billboard: “This year’s fourth iteration of Robert Glasper’s annual month-long fall residency at Blue Note was another mesmerizing experience. Every night was a feast of unbelievable artistic and culturally iconic moments led by Robert. This residency is more than a series of shows, it’s a playlist of unique happenings and experiences within our intimate jazz club setting with the greatest artists and bands bobbing and weaving in and out of Blue Note, and on and off stage.
“Robert is a legend and embodies what it means to be authentic as an artist and as a person,” he continued. “With this iconic residency, we are literally watching history unfold in real time – led by truly the coolest person alive.”
Glasper’s five-week run of shows also attracted many a famous face to the longstanding Greenwich Village hotspot, from Chris Rock, Lupita Nyong’o and married couple Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost to Questlove, Sway and more.
Below, check out exclusive videos of Glasper performing with Chappelle, Hathaway, Day, Scott and more — plus, see the backstage perspective as A-listers rub elbows before and after the shows. Take a step inside the residency with these clips.
Rihanna unveiled “Born Again,” her second single from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, on Friday (Nov. 11).
On the track, the superstar takes us back into ballad territory. It’s a mid-tempo, stripped-down number that places RiRi’s vocals over piano and strings, and provides some dramatic flourishes.
“Born Again” marks RiRi’s second song to be featured in the Marvel sequel after “Lift Me Up,” the emotional ballad that heralded the singer’s long-awaited return to music more than six years after her last studio album, 2016’s Anti. The superhero film is now in theaters nationwide. “Lift Me Up” debuts at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week (chart dated Nov. 12) behind only Taylor’s Swift’s “Anti-Hero.”
The official Wakanda Forever soundtrack also features offerings from Tems (“No Woman, No Cry”), Stormzy (“Interlude”), Fireboy DML (“Coming Back for You”), CKay and PinkPantheress (“Anya Mmiri”), Burna Boy (“Alone”) and more.
In other news, Rihanna also just held the fourth iteration of herSavage X Fenty lingerie fashion show with the likes of Sheryl Lee Ralph, Taraji P. Henson, Johnny Depp and Simu Liu among the models, while Anitta, Maxwell, Don Toliver and Burna Boy provided musical performances throughout the evening. The entire show can be streamed on Amazon Prime Video now.
Stream “Born Again” below.
Baby2Baby shared the news Thursday (Nov. 10) that Diddy will take the stage at the organization’s upcoming gala honoring Kim Kardashian.
While the Bad Boy Records founder will provide the musical entertainment for the evening, the SKIMS mogul will be presented with this year’s Giving Tree Award by Tyler Perry for her commitment to helping underprivileged children around the world.
Hosted by Mindy Kaling, the Baby2Baby gala will take place Saturday in Los Angeles, with Olivia Wilde, Ciara, Kelly Rowland, Zooey Deschanel and Kerry Washington among the night’s other presenters.
The announcement follows Diddy’s headlining-making feud with Kardashian’s ex-husband Kanye West, after the controversial rapper/designer wore a shirt emblazoned with “White Lives Matter” to his Yeezy season 9 show during Paris Fashion Week. (Several models in the show were also fitted with ensembles bearing the contentious phrase, as was conservative firebrand Candace Owens, whom Ye invited to share the stage.)
Last month, West leaked a private text conversation with Diddy, in which the now-estranged pals faced off over the incident. In the weeks since, Ye has created an increasingly troubling spiral of scandal for himself by spouting off antisemitic rhetoric on social media and in the press, resulting in brands including Balenciaga, Adidas and Gap to sever ties with him.
Meanwhile, Diddy recently rang in his 53rd birthday earlier this month, just a few weeks after hosting the REVOLT Summit 2022 in Atlanta featuring Coi Leray, Gucci Mane, Big Freedia and more.
Slow and steady wins the race for Tems, whose “Free Mind” reaches No. 1 on Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart. The single tops the tally, rising 2-1, dated Nov. 12 in its 33rd week on the list, the second-longest climb to the summit in the chart’s 30-year history.
“Mind” rolls to its coronation with 19.2 million in audience in the week ending Nov. 6, according to Luminate.
As “Mind” reigns for the first time in its 33rd week on the list, it shuffles the leaderboard for the longest wait for a song to reach No. 1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay list. “Mind” is now second in that count, behind only the 35-week journey for R. Kelly’s “Step in the Name of Love,” which completed its trek in December 2003. Among women, Tems takes the mark from Rihanna’s “Needed Me” and its 25-week travel to the top.
Here’s an updated look at the songs with the most weeks needed to reach No. 1 on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay:
Weeks to No. 1, Song Title, Artist, Date Reached No. 1
35, “Step in the Name of Love,” R. Kelly, Dec. 6, 2003
33, “Free Mind,” Tems, Nov. 12, 2022
31, “You,” Lloyd featuring Lil Wayne, Feb. 17, 2007
29, “I Wanna Know,” Joe, April 1, 2000
29, “Snap Yo Fingers,” Lil Jon featuring E-40 & Sean Paul of The YoungbloodZ, July 29, 2006
29, “There Goes My Baby,” Usher, Aug. 14, 2010
25, “Needed Me,” Rihanna
“Free Mind,” from Tems’ 2020 EP For Broken Ears, debuted on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay charted dated April 2, amid the Nigerian singer-songwriter’s increasing prominence in the U.S. In 2021, she featured on a pair of top 40 hits on the all-genre multi-metric Billboard Hot 100 – Wizkid’s “Essence,” which earned a boost after a Justin Bieber remix helped the song reach No. 9 that August, and on Drake’s Certified Lover Boy cut “Fountains,” which reached No. 26.
Her profile kept progressing thanks to a supporting turn alongside Drake on Future’s “Wait for U,” which debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100 in April 2022. As fans’ turned to more of her catalog, “Free Mind” emerged as a favorite, sparking its official radio promotion to R&B/hip-hop and rhythmic formats. On Rhythmic Airplay, the song reached a No. 10 peak last month and slides 12-19 on the newest list.
It’s been four years since the death of Jahseh Onfroy, better known as XXXTentacion. But even after his unexpected passing following a shooting in Deerfield Beach, Fla., on June 18, 2018, at age 20, the rapper’s art is still reaching milestones.
YouTube announced on Thursday (Nov. 10) that XXXTentacion’s video for his single “Moonlight” has reached a billion views. While the visual — which arrived in October 2018 — was directed by JMP, it was written and creative directed by X himself.
The video show the rapper wearing headphones under the moonlight in the middle of an outdoor party with some friends. In certain scenes, X is walking through the gathering — which is set in the wilderness — flashing a smile. At the end of the video, a message memorializing the artist comes on the screen: “Energy Never Dies. He is Amongst Us. Long Live Jah!”
“Moonlight” topped out at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. It’s also not the only song of the rapper to reach a billion views on YouTube. His smash hit “Sad!” had also reached the milestone mark on the video platform, and was his only single to top the Hot 100.
Music sales for the MC increased by 1,603% in the U.S. following his death. X is the first soloist in a lead role to posthumously reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 since Notorious B.I.G.’s “Mo Money Mo Problems” featuring Diddy and Mase in 1997.
Check out the “Moonlight” music video above.
Rising Philadelphia phenom Fridayy is in a rare class of hitmakers: the kind with two top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 — alongside some of the biggest names in hip-hop and R&B of the 21st century — both of which were released before he even dropped an EP of his own.
The 25-year-old artist born Francis LeBlanc — a singer, writer, producer and multi-instrumentalist — grew up influenced by both R&B and gospel, with his mighty voice, modern touch, studio proficiency and versatility earning him production credits with Chris Brown and Rae Sremmurd in June. DJ Khaled called his name for an even bigger opportunity soon after, featuring him as a vocalist on his epic God Did title track, a star-studded affair that also included appearances from John Legend, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne and Jay-Z. The track, which Fridayy also co-produced, earned a No. 17 debut on the Sept. 10-dated Hot 100, marking his first entry on the all-genre songs chart.
But perhaps the biggest look Fridayy has received amid his breakout year came in October with “Forever,” from Lil Baby’s Billboard 200-topping It’s Only Me. The song, which boasts impassioned bars from Lil Baby, is based on a collaboration of Fridayy’s with singer-rapper Vory that the latter posted to Instagram. Upon hearing it, Lil Baby demanded to know who the piercing voice on the clip’s hook belonged to — and after Fridayy elevated its production (with help from Bizness Boi and Fortune), it became an early fan favorite on It’s Only Me, debuting at No. 8 on the Hot 100.
Still riding the momentum from his two spotlight-stealing guest appearances, Fridayy talks with Billboard about the different receptions to those two top 20 hits — as well as his recent debut EP Lost in Melody, released Oct. 21, and what other collaborations are currently in the works.
How did you first get hooked up with Lil Baby?
It was actually through an artist named Vory. The song was originally me and Vory — I was on the hook and Vory was on the verses — and Vory posted it on Instagram. And then Lil Baby hit up Vory, like, “Who’s singing on the hook?” And then Vory was like, “That’s Fridayy.” And Lil Baby was like, “Man, I need that hook.” That’s how it came about: Vory showed love and helped me out on that part.
Had you ever gotten in contact with Lil Baby before? Did you have any kind of relationship with him?
Nah, I talked to him after, though. He FaceTimed me and all that, we talked. And then we was just choppin’ it up about the record.
At first, when I produced it, it was just piano. And then when I got on the phone with him, he was like, “Bro, I need like a beat.” He said it was so crazy, he forgot it ain’t had no beat! So I was like, “Bro, I’mma add the beat for you. And I’mma send it back to you tonight.” So I called my brothers Bizness Boi and Fortune — two producers that produced on it with me — and we got that right.
Did he give you any kind of instruction on what he wanted it to sound like, or did you just take it from what was already there on the song?
Yeah, at first I sent him like a couple ideas. But it was similar to, like, trap drums. But when I sent him it, he was like, “Bro, I want it more simple. You know what I mean? I don’t want too much going on.” So he kinda explained it to me how he wanted it, when it was like, a kick and a snare — just some simple vibes, not too much hi-hats. Once he told me that, we got it in the first try.
Had you been a fan of Lil Baby’s before this?
Of course. Like, that My Turn album? Even before that! I had been listening to Baby for a minute, since 2017, around “My Dawg,” around like “Freestyle” days. He one of them rappers today that like everybody look up to — my little cousin, my brothers look up to [him], you know what I mean? So that’s crazy to me.
How does being on a song with Lil Baby compare to being on a song with legends like Jay-Z and Lil Wayne and Rick Ross?
That’s a great question right there, bro. It’s like — the Jay-Z record, it was cool, it was great. Them the legends. But that one was more of, like, icon music-wise. And then Lil Baby one was like… for now. ‘Cause my little cousins are not listening to “God Did” every day. But the Lil Baby one? It opened me up to the youth.
Do you feel like those two songs prepared audiences for what to expect with you with your solo stuff? Or do you feel like that’s more just one side to you and there’s a lot more of you still to come on the EP and whatever else follows?
No, I feel like it was a good balance. Because “God Did” is really like a part of who I am. Even if you listen to the song, you hear the choirs, you hear the three-part harmony, you hear the piano. And if you listen to my EP, that’s how I’m coming on: with piano, choirs [and] soulful notes. So “God Did” was definitely like the perfect introduction to me. And “Forever” was like the perfect introduction to me, too. Just to show that side, with like the females and all that. Which, I got like two records [like that] on my EP.
How has the reaction been to the EP so far? Are you happy with the sort of response you’ve gotten to it?
Man, bro. I ain’t even have no expectations for my EP… So when I woke up the next day [after releasing it], I’m like, “Lemme just check the charts.” I’m thinking maybe I’d be like No. 199 R&B — like, late, late in the joint. I woke up, we was like No. 30 R&B on iTunes! I’m like… the f–k? And the sh-t kept going up! Right now, we at No. 11 R&B on iTunes! It went up to 7! Right now it’s sitting at 11.
But just to see my album next to SZA, next to The Weeknd, next to Summer Walker… it’s like, “damn!” I just look it at every day, like, “What the f–k?”
What is up next for you? Do you have any singles, any features, maybe an album coming?
Yeah, you already know. We working on the next project. We don’t know if it’s an album or an EP, but I’m already working on that. And I’m producing for a lot of [people in] the industry. I got two songs on Lil Tjay’s project coming out. I just produced a track on G Herbo’s album that just came out. You know, I’m still producing and writing for a lot of people. And then, it’s like, a lot of features coming, too. Just expect a lot of Fridayy features, for sure.
A version of this story originally appeared in the Nov. 5, 2022, issue of Billboard.
Lizzo was pumped to share the first official trailer for her upcoming HBO documentary Love, Lizzo on Thursday (Nov. 10). How excited? “Girl.. I’m bouta have a panic attack,” she tweeted along with the 90-second trailer for the film that documents her rise from a shy kid writing pop songs in her bedroom to the world-beating pop superstar who made the flute rock.
“No matter what part of my story you come in at, I’m always chasing the music,” the rapper/singer says at the beginning of the trailer for the HBO Max doc that drops on Nov. 24. “Y’all have no idea how close I was to this not being a thing.” The high-energy preview opens with Lizzo getting glammed up before taking the stage for a massive show and sitting for a photo shoot before taking us all the way back to Melissa Jefferson chilling in her childhood Detroit bedroom where Lizzo informs us that even as she was learning the pop songwriting craft as a child, she lacked the confidence in her voice to sing them for anyone.
We then watch as she grows from a shy tween to a more confident young woman trying to figure out how to make it in the business. “Nobody was trying to sign a fat, black girl that rapped, sang and played the flute,” she says as we see her progress from a bleach-blonde punk to the global woodwind wonder — including footage of her recent visit to Washington where she got to play some seriously old-school historical instruments.
An official press release about the doc says it will explore “the journey of a trailblazing superstar who has become the movement the world desperately needed just by being herself. The HBO Max documentary shares the inspirational story behind her humble beginnings to her meteoric rise with an intimate look into the moments that shaped her hard-earned rise to fame, success, love and international stardom.”
The trailer ends with Lizzo in the studio and on stage in front of tens of thousands, marveling at finding her voice and being a mirror for the fans who come out to see themselves in her at shows. “Music gave me the opportunity to be who I am,” she says as her anthem “To Be Loved” blasts from the speakers.
The documentary is the second streaming release for the superstar this year, arriving several months after Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrrls, which premiered on March 25 via Prime Video.
Watch the Love, Lizzo trailer below.
