At the beginning of every year, Hit Songs Deconstructed publishes its year-end trend report, which takes an in-depth look at compositional and industry related trends for the previous year's Billboard Hot 100 Top 10.
In 2018, there were 75 songs, 70 credited performing artists, 264 credited songwriters, 112 credited producers, and 16 record labels that landed in the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10.
12 songs charted at #1, eight of which were Hip Hop and four of which were Pop.
With another standout year, Drake remained the top artist of 2018 with three #1 hits. In addition, he had the most Top 10 hits (13), with nine as a primary artist and four as a featured artist. The rapper also spent the most time at #1 (29 weeks) and had the most co-writes, being credited on 15 songs. Coming in second with seven writing credits was Louis Bell.
When it comes to labels, Republic came out on top, landing the most songs in the Hot 100 Top 10 (22) and the most #1 hits (5).
Hip Hop dominated 2018, both as a primary genre and as an influence across genres. Over half of the Top 10 had multiple lead vocalists and featured a combination of sung and rapped vocals. And, interestingly, while the majority of the year's songs were in a minor key, over half of #1 hits were in a major key.
What other compositional characteristics were trending in the Hot 100 Top 10 in 2018?
Download this complimentary PDF with select highlights from The State of the Hot 100 Top 10: 2018 in Review for trends related to:
- Genres
- Influences
- Lead Vocal Gender
- Lead Vocal Delivery
- Key
- Lyrical Themes
- Song Structure
- And more