Kanye West Tops Billboard's Artist 100 Chart For First Time Off The Strength Of "Ye"

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Kanye West at Milk Studios on June 28, 2016 in Hollywood, California. adidas and Kanye West announce the future of their partnership: adidas + KANYE WEST
Kanye West hit number one on the Billboard 200 and now, the Artist 100.

Kanye West is in the middle of one of the most iconic album release runs to date. Not only did he deliver his own solo project, Ye, he came through with the long-awaited collaboration project with Kid Cudi, Kids See Ghosts. On top of that, he's also producing three other albums including the previously released Daytona by Pusha T, Nas new album which drops tonight and Teyana Taylor's project which is expected to be released next Friday. Clearly, all the hard work has paid off to an extent because 'Ye has topped Billboard's Artist 100 for the first time ever.

Kanye West is at the top of the Billboard Artist 100 off the strength of his latest project, Ye. The album ultimately sold 205K equivalent album units within its first week and debuted at the top of the Billboard 200. This is the first time Kanye has reached this high on the charts. He previously peaked at number 3 in 2016 following the success of The Life Of Pablo

In addition to the strength of Ye on the Billboard 200, every song off of the album debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 top 40 with "Yikes" leading the way at number 8. This also marks Kanye's 16th top 10 single. 

The Artist 100 chart is measured by artist activity through music consumption through album and track sales, radio airplay, streaming and social media fan interaction. 

The top three acts is currently made up of all hip hop artists. Following Kanye West is Post Malone and Drake snags the number three spot on the chart. 


About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.
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