Kendrick Lamar saw his chart-topping streak come to a halt as “Luther,” his 13-week No. 1 collaboration with SZA, dropped off the Billboard Hot 100 dated October 25—leaving the top 40 without a single rap track for the first time in over three decades.
The song’s removal wasn’t due to fading popularity. Billboard’s updated chart policy now classifies songs as “recurrent” if they fall below No. 25 after spending more than 26 weeks on the chart. “Luther” had slipped to No. 38 in its 46th week, triggering its removal under the new rule.
With that, Hip-Hop’s uninterrupted 35-year run in the Hot 100’s top 40 came to a close. The last time rap was completely absent from the top 40 was February 2, 1990, when Biz Markie’s “Just a Friend” sat at No. 41 before jumping to No. 29 the following week and kicking off a historic streak.
The highest-charting rap song on the October 25 chart was YoungBoy Never Broke Again’s “Shot Callin” at No. 44. Cardi B’s “Safe” featuring Kehlani and BigXthaPlug’s “Hell at Night” featuring Ella Langley followed at Nos. 48 and 49, respectively.
The genre’s presence on the charts has been gradually thinning. According to Billboard, Hip-Hop peaked in 2020 with nearly 30% of the market share. That number dipped to just over 25% in 2023 and currently sits at 24% through the week of October 23, 2025.
For context, five years ago, on the chart dated October 24, 2020, 16 of the top 40 songs were rap. By October 28, 2023, that number had fallen to eight.
The lull comes as the genre’s most bankable names take a breather. Drake, who holds the record for the most Hot 100 entries ever, has yet to release his long-awaited album “Iceman.”
Kendrick Lamar, after dominating the cultural and commercial landscape for a year and a half, has remained relatively quiet.
Still, there’s been activity. Cardi B and BigXthaPlug both dropped new albums since August, and Drake has continued releasing singles since announcing Iceman in July.
“Luther” was the last rap song to crack the top 10, hitting No. 9 on the August 2 chart before slipping to No. 12 the following week.
Since then, the closest any rap song has come was BigXthaPlug’s “All the Way” featuring Bailey Zimmerman, which reached No. 22 on September 6 after peaking at No. 4 in April.
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