Hot Rap Songs Hot Rap Songs (formerly known as Hot Rap Tracks and Hot Rap Singles) is a chart released weekly by '' Billboard'' in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stat ...

is a record chart published by the music industry magazine ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' which ranks the most popular hip hop songs in the United States. Introduced by the magazine as the Hot Rap Singles chart in March 1989, the chart was initially based solely on reports from a panel of selected

record store A record shop or record store is a retail outlet that sells recorded music. In the late 19th century and the early 20th century, record shops only sold gramophone records, but over the 20th century, record shops sold the new formats that were ...

s of weekly singles sales. The first song to reach number one on Hot Rap Singles during the 2000s was " Hot Boyz" by

prominence In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...

featuring

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ( ...

Eve Eve (; ; ar, حَوَّاء, Ḥawwāʾ; el, Εὕα, Heúa; la, Eva, Heva; Syriac: romanized: ) is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the ...

and Q-Tip, which spent a Is one of the best Christian rappers of the 1990s to the 2000s . As a response to the music industry's move away from physical retail-available singles in the late 1990s, ''Billboard'' revamped the chart from a sales-based chart to an airplay-based chart in 2002. Named Hot Rap Tracks, the new chart's rankings were based on each track's estimated audience, as monitored by

Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems Broadcast Data Systems (also known as BDS or Luminate BDS), is a service that tracks radio, television and internet airplay of songs. The service, which is a unit of MRC Data, is a contributing factor to North American charts published by co-owned ...

from a panel of 134 radio stations. Speaking of the changes, ''Billboard'' stated that the new chart "more accurately reflects rap's most popular acts." The first number-one song to benefit from the changes was "

I Need a Girl (Part One) "I Need a Girl (Part One)" is a single by American rapper P. Diddy featuring Usher and Loon from the album ''We Invented the Remix''. In 2004, the song was featured on the Bad Boys compilation ''R&B Hits''. Along with " I Need a Girl (Part Two) ...

" by

P. Diddy Sean Combs (born Sean John Combs; November 4, 1969), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Puffy, or Diddy, is an American rapper, actor, record producer, and record executive. Born in New York City, he worked as a talent directo ...

featuring

Usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** Fiel ...

and

Loon Loons (North American English) or divers (British / Irish English) are a group of aquatic birds found in much of North America and northern Eurasia. All living species of loons are members of the genus ''Gavia'', family Gaviidae and order Gavi ...

, which rose from number twenty to the top spot the week the changes took effect. By the end of the 2000s, 89 singles had topped the Rap Songs chart, with the final number-one hit being "

Empire State of Mind "Empire State of Mind" is a song performed by American rapper Jay-Z featuring American singer Alicia Keys from the former's 11th studio album, '' The Blueprint 3'' (2009). It was released on October 20, 2009. Produced by Al Shux, the song featur ...

" by

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...

featuring

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...

. "

Drop It Like It's Hot "Drop It Like It's Hot" is a song by American rapper Snoop Dogg featuring fellow American musician Pharrell Williams. It was released on September 27, 2004, as the lead single from Snoop Dogg's seventh studio album, '' R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): T ...

" by

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

featuring

Pharrell Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...

, which originally topped the chart for 10 weeks from November 2004 to January 2005, was the number-one single on the ''Billboard'' decade-end Rap Songs chart. The top Rap Songs artist of the 2000s was

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

, who attained seven number-one singles during the decade—"

In da Club "In da Club" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent from his debut studio album ''Get Rich or Die Tryin (2003). Written by 50 Cent alongside producers Dr. Dre and Mike Elizondo, the song, which uses an unconventional off-beat rhythm, was rele ...

", "

21 Questions "21 Questions" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent featuring fellow American rapper and singer Nate Dogg. It was released in March 2003 through Interscope Records, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, Eminem's Shady Records, and 50 Cent's own G- ...

", "

Magic Stick "Magic Stick" is a song performed by American hip hop recording artist Lil' Kim, released on April 8, 2003, as the second single from her third studio album ''La Bella Mafia'' (2003). The song features fellow American rapper 50 Cent and was prod ...

", "

P.I.M.P. "P.I.M.P." is a song by American rapper 50 Cent, from his debut studio album '' Get Rich or Die Tryin (2003). The song features production from Mr. Porter of D12 and was mixed by Dr. Dre. A remixed version of the song, featuring fellow ...

", "

Candy Shop "Candy Shop" is the second single by rapper 50 Cent from his second commercial album, ''The Massacre'' (2005). It features Olivia and was written by 50 Cent. "Candy Shop" peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming 50 Cent's t ...

", "

Hate It or Love It "Hate It or Love It" is a single by American rapper and West Coast hip hop artist the Game, featuring 50 Cent. It was released as the third official single from the Game's debut studio album ''The Documentary'' (2005). The song features produc ...

" and "

Just a Lil Bit "Just a Lil Bit" is the third single from 50 Cent's second album, ''The Massacre''. The song was produced by Scott Storch. Released on May 17, 2005, the single reached number three in the United States, becoming 50 Cent's sixth solo top-ten sin ...

"—and tied with Bow Wow and

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

for the most number-one singles for any artist during this period.

Number-one singles

Most number ones

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links

Hot Rap Songs
at ''

'' {{US Rap Chart Lists of number-one rap songs in the United States United States rap singles 2000s in hip hop music