Drake has broken his tie with Ariana Grande and BTS to be crowned the artist with the most No.1 debuts on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.
Until his latest hit with Future, ‘Wait for U’, stormed to the top of the US chart, the rapper was in joint place with the pop megastar and K-Pop boy band.
However, he now has six No.1 debuts to his name, with ‘Wait for U’ joining ‘God’s Plan’, ‘Nice for What’, ‘Toosie Slide’, ‘What’s Next’ and ‘Way 2 Sexy’.
The hip-hop star has a total of 10 No.1 hits on the chart.
Ariana made Billboard chart history with five No. 1 debuts towards the end of 2020, including ‘7 Rings’, ‘Thank U, Next’, ‘Stuck With U’ with Justin Bieber, ‘Rain On Me’ with Lady Gaga, and ‘Positions’.
As for BTS, they shot straight to the top of the Hot 100 with ‘Dynamite’, ‘Life Goes On’, ‘Butter’, ‘Permission to Dance’, and most recently, ‘My Universe’ with Coldplay.
Drake smashing yet another chart record comes after it was revealed that the ‘Nonstop’ rapper re-signed with Universal Music Group in a deal said to be worth a whopping $400 million.
UMG’s chairman Sir Lucian Grainge confirmed the Grammy winner inked an “expansive, multi-faceted deal” covering “recordings, publishing, merchandise and visual media projects” during the firm’s latest earnings call.
Variety reported that the deal was signed off in 2021, and a source told the publication it’s “Lebron-sized”.
The 35-year-old superstar – who has sold more than 37 million albums worldwide – had previously hinted at his riches from his deal in his lyrics.
On ‘Lemon Pepper Freestyle’ from 2021’s ‘Scary Hours 2’ EP, he raps: “Three-sixty upfront, it all comes full circle,” suggesting he landed a $360 million paycheque.
And on Migos’ ‘Having Our Way’, he spits: “Billionaires talk to me different when they see my pay stub from Lucian Grainge.”
Drake’s mega-money deal came after The Weeknd – whose real name is Abel Tesfaye – agreed a similar deal.