Bruno Mars' 'I Just Might' Breaks 68-Year R&B Chart Record
By @sharedot · · 6 pages
- Hip Hop
- Bruno Mars
- Charts
- Billboard
That Grape Juice reports Bruno Mars' 'I Just Might' logged a 32nd week at No. 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, breaking the all-time record.
The record falls after 32 weeks on top
That Grape Juice reports that Bruno Mars' retro-kissed single 'I Just Might' has become the longest-running number-one single in the 68-year history of Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
The song returned to the summit for a record-breaking 32nd week on the chart dated October 24, moving past the previous 31-week benchmark set by 'Luther'. Published Wednesday, October 21, the outlet frames it as another milestone in an era already overflowing with achievements for the superstar.
Why a 32-week reign is so rare
What makes it more striking for genre watchers is that the chart's previous long-runner, 'Luther', was itself a modern blockbuster, meaning Mars did not break a decades-old relic but knocked off a recent era-defining hit.
The magazine also notes the campaign keeps stacking firsts: the song arrived in January as the lead single from his fourth solo album 'The Romantic', debuted atop the Hot 100 as his tenth chart-topper and first-ever number-one debut there, then returned to the Hot 100 summit as the album push accelerated.
An album era full of firsts
According to That Grape Juice, 'The Romantic' became Mars' first project to debut at number one on the Billboard 200, completing a sweep that spans singles and albums simultaneously.
The outlet adds that Mars is currently commanding stadiums on his mammoth world tour, so the chart milestone lands while the live business around the record is also peaking. The magazine calls it a history-making romantic era.
Rap's place in the breakup canon nearby
In adjacent list culture, Neon Music this week ranked OutKast's 'Ms. Jackson' eighth on its scored rundown of the 30 best breakup songs of all time, awarding it 83 points and noting André 3000's account that it was partly inspired by his relationship with Erykah Badu and her mother.
The same list places Kanye West's 'Heartless' 17th, Lauryn Hill's 'Ex-Factor' 21st and Boyz II Men's 'End of the Road' 22nd, while also crediting Miley Cyrus' 'Flowers' as an answer to Bruno Mars.
That juxtaposition shows Mars' chart dominance sits inside a wider canon where hip-hop breakup records keep proving their longevity.