Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums

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Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LP's in the issue dated January 30, 1965, in an effort by the magazine to further expand into the field of rhythm and blues music.[1] It then went through several name changes, being known as Soul LPs in the 1970s and Top Black Albums in the 1980s, before returning to the R&B identification in 1990 and affixing a hip hop designation in 1999 to reflect the latter's growing sales and relationship to R&B during the decade.

From 1965 through 2009, the chart was compiled based on reported sales at a core panel of stores with a "higher-than-average volume" of R&B and/or hip-hop album sales to monitor buying trends of the African-American community. This panel included more independent and smaller chain stores compared to the high percentage of mass merchants that account for overall album sales.[2] The core panel of stores continued to be monitored with the advent of SoundScan technology in the early 1990s but was dissolved at the end of 2009 when the methodology of the chart changed to "recap overall album sales of current R&B/hip-hop titles."[3]

Chart name history[]

The chart debuted in 1965 as the Hot R&B LPs. In 1969, Billboard renamed both singles and albums contingents of the R&B charts as Soul charts. In 1978, they were renamed again as Hot Black Singles and Top Black Albums. In 1990, the charts returned to the R&B designation (Top R&B Albums, Hot R&B Singles). In 1999, Billboard renamed them again as Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks, in an effort to recognize the growing sales of hip hop music and the genre's influential relationship to contemporary R&B.[4]

Album achievements[]

Most weeks in top ten[]

Weeks Album Artist Source
77 Stoney Post Malone [5]
76 Thriller Michael Jackson [5]
64 Whitney Houston Whitney Houston [5]
63 The E.N.D. The Black Eyed Peas [5]
59 The Heist Macklemore & Ryan Lewis [5]
58 Recovery Eminem [5]
Can’t Slow Down Lionel Richie [5]
56 Control Janet Jackson [5]
55 Rapture Anita Baker [5]
54 24K Magic Bruno Mars [5]

Most weeks on chart[]

Weeks Album Artist Source
268 Take Care Drake [6]
185 Breathless Kenny G [6]
179 2014 Forest Hills Drive J. Cole [6]
175 Curtain Call: The Hits Eminem [6]
156 Views Drake [6]
153 Greatest Hits 2Pac [6]
146 good kid, m.A.A.d city Kendrick Lamar [6]
145 Beauty Behind The Madness The Weeknd [6]
140 The Eminem Show Eminem [6]
140 Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) Wu-Tang Clan [6]

Top R&B Albums[]

Billboard began a Top R&B albums chart in 2013 for only R&B albums. The Weeknd's "After Hours" leads all acts with 40 weeks at #1 on the chart.

Most weeks at #1[]

Weeks Album Artist Source
40 After Hours The Weeknd
33 24K Magic Bruno Mars
19 Lemonade Beyonce
18 Planet Her Doja Cat
American Teen Khalid
15 17 XXXTENCION
14 Over It Summer Walker
Beauty Behind The Madness The Weeknd
The 20/20 Experience Justin Timberlake
13 Merry Christmas Mariah Carey

References[]

  1. ^ "Billboard's R&B Section". Billboard. Vol. 77 no. 5. January 30, 1965. p. 14. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  2. ^ "New Store Panel Updates R&B Charts". Billboard. Vol. 116 no. 49. December 4, 2004. p. 16. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  3. ^ Trust, Gary (November 17, 2009). "Billboard 200 Undergoes Makeover". Billboard. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  4. ^ "Billboard R&B Charts Get Updated Names". Billboard. December 11, 1999. p. 8. Retrieved May 26, 2020 – via Google Books.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Anderson, Trevor (September 8, 2018). "Post Malone's 'Stoney' Tops Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' for Most Weeks in Top 10 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved September 8, 2018.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Anderson, Trevor (15 March 2019). "Drake's 'Take Care' Breaks Record for Most Weeks on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
  • Whitburn, Joel (2000). Top R&B Albums: 1965-1998. Record Research. ISBN 978-0-89820-134-5

External links[]


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