Rap absent from Hot 100 top 40 as chart rules purge long-running hits

For the weekly chart dated Oct. 25, 2025, there were no rap songs in the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, the first time that has occurred since Feb. 2, 1990. The departure of Kendrick Lamar and SZA's "luther" from the list after 46 weeks on the chart left the upper half of the Hot 100 without an entry classified as rap, with YoungBoy Never Broke Again's "Shot Callin" the highest-ranking rap-eligible song at No. 44 that week.

The immediate cause was a change in chart recurrence rules that removes older, descending songs once they exceed specified week and position thresholds. One such threshold removes songs that have spent more than 26 weeks on the Hot 100 and fall below No. 25; "luther" had slipped to No. 38 in its final week and was ruled recurrent. The change affected "luther" and seven other top-40 tracks on the Oct. 25 chart, clearing room for lower-ranked songs to move into the top 40. None of the rap songs below those positions, however, were close enough to cross into the top 40 that week.

The absence of rap in the top 40 also reflects broader chart dynamics. All 12 tracks from Taylor Swift's new album have occupied top-40 positions in recent weeks, limiting available...