Kendrick Lamar’s “Luther” tops Hot 100 for 13th week, longest rap reign since 2018

Kendrick Lamar and SZA are shattering records as their Luther track clocked in on the dominating position for Billboard's Hot 100 for its 13th week.

In a report published by the outlet just last week, Luther, which sampled Luther Vandross and Cheryl Lynn's 1982 track If This World Were Mine, allowed Lamar and SZA to join the ranks of the Hot 100’s reigning musicians for its May 3 chart, as it now becomes the longest rap reign since 2018.

Hot New Hip Hop reported last month that the GNX collaboration's music video, which further pays homage to the R&B and soul singer, is likely contributing to its success. As pointed out by the outlet, Billboard also offered statistics on the song's popularity last month, noting:

It "totaled 63.1 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 3% week-over-week), 22.7 million official streams (down 7%) and 2,000 sold (down 8%) in the U.S. April 4-10."

Kendrick Lamar and SZA shatter records with Luther: Read more

Kendrick Lamar and SZA's track has since earned 63.4 million radio airplay audience impressions, 18.3 million in official streams, and has sold over 2,000 units in the United States as of May 15.

Forbes reported this week that Kendrick Lamar is now officially the owner of the two longest-running tracks on the Hot Rap Songs, with his track Not Like Us clocking in with 26 weeks.

Prior to his feat, Lil Nas X boasted the same title, with his track Old Town Road, a collaboration with Billy Ray Cyrus, dominating the Hot Rap Songs chart for 20 weeks. His other track, Industry Baby, featuring Jack Harlow, tracked closely with 19 frames, Forbes has pointed out. Old Town Road now sits in third place.

Billboard has also reported that reigning musicians who have dominated its Hot 100 chart for double-digit weeks include Shaboozey, whose A Bar Song (Tipsy) reigned for 19 weeks. Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas Is You follows suit with 18 weeks, while Morgan Wallen's Last Night clocked in 16 weeks.

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As for Luther's accompanying visual, which dropped last month ahead of the duo's Grand National Tour kicking off, Hype Beast describes it as a "cinematic envisioning of the fan-favorite Luther Vandross and Cheryl Lynn sampling song."

The music video was directed by Karena Evans, and it features its two singers tackling their respective lovers, with B&W clips interweaved among a few colored shots. Kendrick Lamar and SZA can only be seen sitting together in one scene, in a colored shot of the two on a bench in a hallway. The video concludes with an ode to the original track, If This World Were Mine.

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