In hindsight, when SZA signaled the discharge of her SOS album, it was much less a misery sign and extra a warning shot – go up towards this blockbuster, and also you’re the one in bother.
Such it’s that SZA caps a dominant yr with prime honors on the 2023 Billboard year-end R&B/hip-hop recaps, together with her first No. 1 end on the Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Artists rating. Along with her victory because the style’s prime performer through the chart yr (as measured by exercise weekly charts dated Nov. 19, 2022 – Oct. 21, 2023), SZA ends an eight-year run of male acts atop the record, changing into the primary girl to take the annual crown since Beyoncé in 2014.
Report-breaking achievements on each the style’s main albums and songs charts energy SZA’s triumph. Whereas the five-year anticipation for her sophomore full-length album, SOS, was all the time more likely to garner large outcomes, the set advanced from immediate hit to full-on powerhouse. Its 22-week run at No. 1 on the Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart demolished a number of data, together with the longest-running champ by a feminine artist and essentially the most weeks atop the chart for any venture since 1990. Because of that historic efficiency, SOS docks at No. 1 on the 2023 Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Albums overview.
Along with prime artist and prime album honors, SZA completes the hat-trick with the No. 1 year-end title on the Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, “Kill Invoice.” The fan-favorite SOS monitor joined the historical past books, breaking the report for the track with essentially the most weeks at No. 1 on the weekly Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart with an unprecedented 21-week siege. With gold medals for herself, SOS and “Kill Invoice,” SZA turns into the primary act to prime all three main year-end R&B/hip-hop rankings since Drake in 2018. The highest artist that yr, he additionally walked off with the No. 1 album, Scorpion, and No. 1 track, “God’s Plan.”
Explore All of Billboard’s 2023 Year-End Charts
Whereas “Kill Invoice” paved the way, SZA scored further SOS hits with hits corresponding to “Snooze” and “Shirt,” which nab the No. 4 and No. 16 spots on the year-end Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Because of her co-writing credit on these and all different SOS tunes, SZA additionally earns the No. 1 rank on the yr’s Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songwriters record.
Behind SZA, Drake closes 2023 because the yr’s No. 2 act on the Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Artists chart. The famous person was the two-time defending champ and had dominated the rating for a report seven complete years. Regardless of the slip to second place within the total standings, he heads the recap for the yr’s Prime Male R&B/Hip-Hop Artists for a 3rd consecutive yr.
A lot of the 6 God’s exercise stems from Her Loss, his 2022 collaborative album with 21 Savage, that is available in at No. 2 on the yr’s Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Albums rankings. The set’s greatest single, “Wealthy Flex,” finishes at No. 5 on the annual Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs survey, spurred by a four-week command of the weekly chart in November – December 2022. Along with Her Loss, Drake’s station as one of many prime streaming artists is on show on the Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Albums record, with 4 LPs within the chart’s prime 20 (Her Loss – No. 2, Licensed Lover Boy – No. 9, take Care – No. 18, Scorpion – No. 19), double the quantity of some other act.
Behind SOS and Her Loss, Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains takes third place on the 2023 Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Albums standing. The album marked the tremendous producer’s third (of 4) straight No. 1 initiatives on the weekly chart and launched the smash single “Creepin’” with The Weeknd and 21 Savage. The tune, an up to date remake of types of Mario Winans’ 2004 hit, “I Don’t Wanna Know,” with P. Diddy and Enya, debuted at No. 1 on the Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and spent its first 34 weeks on the chart within the prime 10. Because of that longevity, the tune wins the No. 2 spot on the yr’s Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs leaderboard. Moreover, with the runaway “Creepin’” success and extra charted hits from Heroes & Villains, Metro Boomin takes the prize for the No. 1 Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Producer. It offers the hitmaker his first year-end title, having beforehand completed as excessive as No. 2 in 2017.
Along with the beforehand named champs, right here’s an extra have a look at a few of Billboard’s key 2023 R&B/Hip-Hop No. 1s:
- Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Artist: SZA
- Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Artist – Feminine: SZA
- Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Artist – Male: Drake
- Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Artist – New: Ice Spice
- Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Label: Republic Data
- Prime R&B/Hip-Hop Album: SOS – SZA
- Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs: “Kill Invoice” – SZA
- Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Author: SZA
- Scorching R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Producer: Metro Boomin
- R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay Tune: “Free Thoughts” – Tems
- R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Tune Gross sales: “Cuff It” – Beyoncé
- R&B/Hip-Hop Streaming Songs: “Kill Invoice” – SZA
- Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay: “Underneath the Affect” – Chris Brown
- Grownup R&B Airplay: “Free Thoughts” – Tems
Billboard’s year-end music recaps characterize aggregated metrics for every artist, title, label and music contributor on the weekly charts from Nov. 19, 2022, by means of Oct. 21, 2023. Rankings for Luminate-based recaps replicate equal album items, airplay, gross sales or streaming through the weeks that the titles appeared on a respective chart through the monitoring yr. Any exercise registered earlier than or after a title’s chart run isn’t thought of in these rankings. That methodology element, and the November-October time interval, account for among the distinction between these lists and the calendar-year recaps which are independently compiled by Luminate.
