Chris Brown breaks a four-way tie to take sole possession of the third-most No. 1s on Billboard’s Rhythmic Airplay chart, as “Residuals” crowns the list dated Nov. 16. The single enjoyed a 6% gain in the Nov. 1-7 tracking week and was the most-played song on U.S. monitored rhythmic radio stations in the tracking window, according to Luminate.
With “Residuals,” released on CBE/RCA Records, Brown scores his 14th leader on the airplay list. He moves one ahead of a trio of fellow R&B/pop superstars – Bruno Mars, The Weeknd and Usher – who each have 13 champs. As Brown adds another chart-topper to his account, he now trails only Drake (39) and Rihanna (17) for the most No. 1s on Rhythmic Airplay since the chart began in 1992.
Here’s a review of Brown’s No. 1s on Rhythmic Airplay:
Song Title, Artist (if other than Chris Brown), Weeks at No. 1, Peak Date
“Run It!,” seven, Nov. 19, 2005
“Kiss Kiss,” featuring T-Pain, five, Nov. 17, 2007
“With You,” six, March 1, 2008
“Get Like Me,” David Banner featuring Chris Brown, two, Aug. 2, 2008
“Look at Me Now,” featuring Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes, one, May 7, 2011
“Show Me,” Kid Ink featuring Chris Brown, three, Feb. 8, 2014
“Loyal,” featuring Lil Wayne & French Montana, Too $hort or Tyga, two, May 10, 2014
“New Flame,” featuring Usher & Rick Ross, one, Nov. 15, 2014
“Post to Be,” Omarion featuring Chris Brown & Jhene Aiko, one, July 4, 2015
“No Guidance,” featuring Drake, four, Aug. 3, 2019
“Heat,” featuring Gunna, one, Nov. 23, 2019
“Go Crazy,” with Young Thug, one, Aug. 1, 2020
“Under the Influence,” six, Dec. 3, 2022
“Residuals,” one (to date), Nov. 16, 2024
Notably, Brown’s latest two Rhythmic Airplay leaders prove how fan-led engagement can yield big radio successes. “Residuals” was released in April 2024 on the deluxe edition of Brown’s 11:11 album and emerged as a fan-favorite on social media, with many clips shared from the hitmaker’s performances on his The 11:11 Tour. Streams and sales pushed the track up the Hot R&B Songs chart by June, ahead of its official push at radio in August. Given its proven ground support, the radio wins followed quickly: In addition to topping Rhythmic Airplay, “Residuals” climbs 4-3 on the newest Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart.
“Under the Influence,” likewise, built off social media support, particularly on TikTok. The 2019 track went viral in 2022, sparking big returns on several charts, including No. 1 results on both Rhythmic Airplay and Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay and a No. 12 peak on the Billboard Hot 100.
Elsewhere, “Residuals” advances 5-4 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, which ranks songs by combined audience totals on the adult R&B and mainstream R&B/hip-hop stations, with an 11% gain to 13.4 million in format listenership. Gains from rhythmic and R&B/hip-hop audiences push “Residuals” 27-25 on the all-genre Radio Songs chart. There, it improved 10% to reach 24.8 million in total audience.
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