R&B/Hip-Hop Is the Dominant Genre in the U.S. For the First Time

Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick Lamar (Photo credit: Ollie Millington/Redferns)

Rock is no longer the dominant genre in the US in terms of overall consumption, according to research company Nielsen. That title now belongs to R&B/hip-hop.

The company’s mid-year report shows that R&B/hip-hop accounts for 25.1% of all consumption in the US, while rock claims 23%. It’s the first time that R&B/hip-hop has ranked No. 1 since Nielsen began measuring music consumption in the US; rock had always been at the top.

The report, which looks at the period from Dec. 30, 2016 to June 29, 2017, measures album and track sales along with audio and video streams.

Nielsen also revealed the best performing R&B/hip-hop albums and songs for the period.

Top 10 Selling R&B/Hip-Hop Albums

1. Kendrick Lamar, DAMN. (678,000)
2. Bruno Mars, 24K Magic (494,000)
3. Drake, More Life (343,000)
4. Logic, Everybody (224,000)
5. The Weeknd, Starboy (213,000)
6. Beyoncé, Lemonade (185,000)
7. Rick Ross, Rather You Than Me (156,000)
8. Big Sean, I Decided (142,000)
9. J. Cole, 4 Your Eyez Only (127,000)
10. Mary J. Blige, Strength of a Woman (127,000)

Top 10 Selling R&B/Hip-Hop Songs

1. Bruno Mars, “That’s What I Like” (1,377,000)
2. Bruno Mars, “24K Magic” (769,000)
3. DJ Khaled featuring Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper & Lil Wayne, “I’m The One” (761,000)
4. Kyle featuring Lil Yachty, “ISpy” (732,000)
5. The Weeknd featuring Daft Punk, “I Feel It Coming” (730,000)
6. Kendrick Lamar, “Humble.” (696,000)
7. Migos featuring Lil Uzi Vert, “Bad And Boujee” (688,000)
8. Post Malone featuring Quavo, “Congratulations” (586,000)
9. Rihanna, “Love On The Brain” (577,000)
10. Future, “Mask Off” (524,000)

Top 10 On-Demand R&B/Hip-Hop Song Streams (Audio and Video Combined)

1. Migos featuring Lil Uzi Vert, “Bad And Boujee” (648,129,000)
2. Kendrick Lamar, “Humble.” (519,887,000)
3. Future, “Mask Off” (505,473,000)
4. Kyle featuring Lil Yachty, “ISpy” (494,113,000)
5. Post Malone featuring Quavo, “Congratulations” (483,252,000)
6. Lil Uzi Vert, “XO Tour Llif3” (474,220,000)
7. Kodak Black, “Tunnel Vision” (388,186,000)
8. Migos, “T-Shirt” (357,219,000)
9. Rae Sremmurd, “Swang” (334,765,000)
10. DJ Khaled featuring Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper & Lil Wayne, “I’m The One” (331,488,000)

Source: Billboard, Nielsen

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