When We Reached Top of USA Charts!

[Historian]

When We Reached the TOP of the USA Charts!
A List of Jamaican “Billboard Hot 100” Chart’s Number One Hits
Researched and compiled by Historian

Jamaican popular music (ska, rock steady, reggae, and dancehall) have always found it rough going in making a major mark in the USA. Compared to our immense output of tracks over the past 50 years, the hits in the USA have been extremely few and far between. In fact, even the legendary Bob Marley, who I regard as the Third World’s only superstar, has never had a number one record on that all-important “Billboard Hot 100” chart!

The surprising fact is that we have had only about eight singles by Jamaican artists (if one includes Maxi Priest) that have made it all the way to the very top of the “Billboard Hot 100” chart.

The failure of Jamaican music in the USA, when one looks at the success of our music in parts of Europe and parts of Africa, is particularly frustrating when one considers the fact that the USA is the country with the world’s third largest population (right behind China and India), and thus th country with the world’s largest English-speaking population..

So, who have been the Jamaican artists whose record sales have been so successful that they’ve made it straight to the Number One slot on Billboard’s “Hot 100” chart?

We had early promises with recordings like Millie Small’s “My Boy Lollipop,” which cracked the Top 5 but failed to land the top spot, and Jimmy Cliff’s “Mother and Child Reunion,” which I think made the Top 10.

Jamaican No. 1 Billboard (Mainstream) Charts Hits

1974: “(Everybody Was) Kung Fu Fighting,” by Carl Douglas (a student in California at the time); spent two weeks in the number one slot in December. This was the first number one song in America by a Jamaican artist.

1990: “Close To You,” by Maxi Priest (British artist); spent one week at the top.

1994: “Here Comes the Hot Stepper,” by Ini Kamoze; spent two weeks in the number one slot in 1994.

2001: “It Wasn’t Me,” by Shaggy (featuring Rik Rok); two weeks at the top.

2001: “Angel of the Morning,” by Shaggy (featuring Rayvon); one week at the top.

2003: “Get Busy,” by Sean Paul; three weeks at number one slot in 2003

2006: “Temperature,” by Sean Paul; one week at the top

2007: “Beautiful Girls,” by Sean Kingston; spent four weeks at the top during the summer.

We often talk about Bob’s “Legend” album grossing diamond sales status (10 million or more units sold), but many forget that, unlike Shaggy’s “Hot Shot” album which shot straight to the top of the Billboard mainstream charts and achieved diamond sales status, Bob’s “Legend” album reached its diamond status over many years of gradual sales.

[Assasin]

This is not surprising as we have no real outlet in the US. In the major music markets in the US.

No Jamaican owned stations or stations specialising in Reggae. We get a one hour program here and there. Most of the music that hit the US chart number one feeds off been European success.

[Historian]

This is not surprising as we have no real outlet in the US. In the major music markets in the US.

No Jamaican owned stations or stations specialising in Reggae. We get a one hour program here and there. Most of the music that hit the US chart number one feeds off been European success.

Very good point, Assasin.

Also, the fact is that over the past two or three decades, several Jamaican recording acts were signed to major labels in the USA, but eventually they were all dropped for the cited reason, “Poor record sales.” We’re talking here about artists like Shabba Ranks, Diana King, Tony Rebel, Super Cat, Worl-A-Girls, and Mad Cobra, who were all attached to Columbia Records. Then there were Beres Hammond, Ini Kamoze, and Ziggy Marley and his group who were signed to Electra Records.

Stitchie, Shinehead, Morgan Heritage, Inner Circle and others were also signed at one time or another to US labels.

[Assasin]

Well it is not only Jamaican Artists that are been dropped but some very big US ones as well.

The fact is 500,000 in sales is not big for most US label and there is not many Jamaican artist who will consistently break that barrier based on the limited promotion, and the saturated areas that reggae is concentrated in, in the US. If you notice not even Bob Marley was a consistent hitmaker in the US.

What many of these labels need to do is forge Partnership as VP did with Atlantic and if a song look like it is going to break the barrier they put the tools behind it. The taste of the American music lover is not consistent with the taste of Jamaican and European market and to think that the Jamaican musician will consistently write songs and music to suit the US market is not a true one.

Heavy D in his days as a big rapper was told if you want to make money forget about the Reggae.

[Historian]

For Those Who Missed It....

Information such as presented in this thread is not always readily available, so I’m taking this research to the top once more for those who might have missed the details. Information such as this has its historical relevance in the context of some of our music discussions.

[Mosiah]

Thanks for the info.

My problem with these facts is, some of us seem to think that breaking into the US market is important, that that is the gold standard.

Well, I don't think so and citing such facts is merely trivia.

(Yeah, there I go again, haytin' America!)

[Assasin]

No you right, No specific chart is that important to Reggae.
There are so many open markets which includes Europe, Japan, Brazil, Australia, and a few others and even within those markets like the US market there are segments which can give you a big eatings and rep. Of course the Jamaican market and the caribbean market are also of value but any which way it comes, it comes.

[Historian]

USA Population!

No you right, No specific chart is that important to Reggae.
There are so many open markets which includes Europe, Japan, Brazil, Australia, and a few others and even within those markets like the US market there are segments which can give you a big eatings and rep. Of course the Jamaican market and the caribbean market are also of value but any which way it comes, it comes.

Assasin and Mosiah:
Thanks for your comments, and I understand where you are coming from (and agree with you to a certain extent). But think about this: The United States of America is the country with the third largest population in the world. (It is also the fourth largest country in the world.) The only countries on the planet with a larger population than the USA are China and India!

A population size such as this cannot be ignored or lightly written off! The fact that English is the primary language is an added plus.

In the case of the islands, when we consider that Cuba alone has a larger population than the entire English-speaking Caribbean, then we realize that the Caribbean market is ultimately not as important as we might think!

[Willi]

I agree to a certain extend. The US population is the dominate population in the Western Hemisphere, but is still far littler than India and China. Irregardless of that, its still a big market and with it's purchasing power, its still the principle commercial music market. Basicly, your in affect correct about you're primary assertion.

Sorry, but I couldn't resist. LoL

[Assasin]

The US population can't be ignored not at all but it is very hard to get the publicity and mainstream media in the US to break through. Imagine a man like Berres Hammond has never made an impact on the US market.

I listen to Micheal Basden show and he is impressed with Berres but said he never knew nothing of Berres. Now Berres is on his show in Ja and he called compare him to an RB great.

To make it consistently in the US we have to do what the hispanic do and that is buy the radio stations. A no doubt can put Lady Saw and Bounty Killer on their songs and it go number one. Kenny Chesney cna't do the same with the wailers. The hip hop artist can sample Barrington Levi, Junior Reid, Tenasaw etc. and make huge hits but it is hard for our songs to become hits because of lack of promotion.

In England most major towns have reggae playing on Kizz, Galaxy, etc. so it isnot as hard. Places like Atlanta have NO reggae on mainstream media and no national syndicated show play any reggae except Micheal Bazden.

If you see how Jasmine Sullivan reggae song get rotation you will see that with promotion it is possible.

[Mosiah]

And a quite ordinary song was Sullivan's!

Now don't get me worng - if we can conquer the US market, great! And we should try to do so, but we should never mek it look like acceptance or success in that market is some sort of gold standard.

[Muadib]

Yuh lucky DonQuixote not in dis thread !!

[Muadib]

Platinum would be more appropriate...

[Assasin]

As you say we shouldn't have to get acceptance in any single market to justify a good song. If Bob was doing that in US he would just be ordinary.

The quest should be to make good music and produce and promote it. It is a game of chance and if it hit any or all a the market then so be it.

[Bricktop]

You do realise that artists like BEENIE MAN routinely sell in excess of 3 million copies of their albums on the continent of Africa right? Of course these numbers are "unofficial"