For the first time in over three decades, the Billboard Hot 100 chart dated October 25, 2025, featured no rap songs within its top 40. This significant shift occurred after Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s long-reigning 13-week No. 1 hit “Luther” fell off the chart. The highest-ranking rap song on that chart was YoungBoy Never Broke Again’s “Shot Callin” at No. 44, followed by Cardi B’s “Safe” (featuring Kehlani) at No. 48 and BigXthaPlug’s “Hell at Night” (featuring Ella Langley) at No. 49.

This absence marks the end of an extraordinary 35-year, eight-month, and three-week streak of rap songs continuously present in the Hot 100’s top 40. The last time such a drought occurred was on February 2, 1990, when Biz Markie’s “Just a Friend,” an eventual top 10 hit, had just reached No. 41. The following week, “Just a Friend” jumped to No. 29, initiating the lengthy streak that has now concluded.

Recent changes to Billboard’s Hot 100 methodology played a role in ending this streak. Effective for the October 25 chart, songs that had exceeded specific durations on the chart and fallen below certain updated thresholds were deemed recurrent and removed. For instance, a song falling below No. 25 after spending over 26 weeks on the chart would be removed. This rule change directly led to the departure of “Luther,” which had dropped to No. 38 the previous week in its 46th week on the listing. While these rule changes opened up additional slots in the top 40, no rap songs were positioned closely enough on the chart to capitalize on these vacancies.

Further impacting the chart landscape was the strong performance of Taylor Swift’s new album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” which saw all 12 of its songs lodged in the top 40 for three consecutive weeks, further limiting available spots for other genres, including rap.

The current lack of top 40 rap representation is indicative of a broader dip in rap’s commercial dominance. Hip-hop’s overall market share peaked near 30% in 2020, but has since slipped to just over 25% in 2023, and stands at 24% through October 23, 2025. This contrasts sharply with the equivalent chart week five years prior (October 24, 2020), which featured a remarkable 16 rap songs in the top 40, and even two years prior (October 28, 2023), which still had eight rap songs in the top 40.

The rap world is also experiencing a transitional period regarding its biggest names. Drake, a consistent chart presence for the past 15 years, has yet to release his highly anticipated “Iceman” album. Meanwhile, Kendrick Lamar has been relatively dormant following an 18-month period of significant cultural and commercial impact. Despite this, the last few months have seen notable rap releases from artists like Cardi B and BigXthaPlug, both of whom are currently close to the top 40. Drake has also released a steady stream of new singles since announcing his album in July.

Prior to its recent departure, “Luther” was the most recent rap song to appear in the Hot 100’s top 10, last charting at No. 9 on August 2, before falling to No. 12 the following week. In the subsequent two months and three weeks, the closest another rap song came to the top 10 was BigXthaPlug’s “All the Way” (featuring Bailey Zimmerman), which peaked at No. 4 in April and ranked at No. 22 on the September 6 chart.

On the most recent Hot 100 chart, dated November 1, 2025, the rap song-less streak in the top 40 continued for a second consecutive week. However, YoungBoy Never Broke Again’s “Shot Callin” did climb one spot from No. 44 to No. 43, edging slightly closer to potentially ending the drought.