Hip Hop Ranked No. 1 Despite Slow Sales Start
While Hip Hop encountered a sluggish start in the commercial realm in 2023, year-end reports affirm its dominance as the primary genre, surpassing other music categories.
According to data shared by Chart Data on January 10, “R&B/Hip Hop was the #1 genre in the US in 2023, with 277.27 million total album equivalents sold (25.3% of the market).” Luminate’s annual tally further revealed a noteworthy 11.3% growth in catalogue streaming volume for R&B/Hip Hop tracks in the U.S. on On-Demand Audio over 2022, although streaming of current titles (those less than 18 months old) experienced a 7.1% decline.
Despite this positive year-end outcome, concerns about the state of rap music were raised by artists like Juicy J. In October, the Three 6 Mafia star took to Instagram to address what he described as Hip Hop’s “40 per cent decline” in 2023, urging stakeholders in the community to come together and find solutions.
“Rap music is down 40 per cent this year. I don’t make the rules, I do not make the rules. It’s down 40 percent. What are we as rappers, producers, composers, etc. gonna do about this shit?” he emphasized.
The Billboard Hot 100 in 2023 faced an unusual situation with a rapper topping the charts only by the end of July. Latto achieved this feat with her collaboration “Seven” with BTS star Jung Kook. Additionally, the Billboard 200 experienced the longest drought of a No. 1 rap album since 1993 until Lil Uzi Vert’s “Pink Tape” broke the streak on July 10.
Check out the stats below.
