A decade after its release, Michael Jackson’s “Chicago” becomes his thirty-sixth top 10 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. VARIOUS, VARIOUS – JUNE 25: Michael Jackson performs in concert circa 1986. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage)
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The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart is one of Billboard‘s oldest genre-specific rankings, and the tally lists the most-consumed tracks in the United States that can be classified using the genre labels hip-hop, rap or R&B. The roster has changed its name frequently throughout the decades, but many artists have seen their wins transfer from one iteration to another.
Before streaming aided a plethora of rap superstars in scoring dozens, if not 100 or more smashes, Michael Jackson reigned as one of the most successful names of all time on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs tally. More than a decade after his death, he collects yet another top 10 win this week with a tune that millions of Americans discovered recently after his catalog surged in popularity thanks to his biopic Michael.
Michael Jackson Reaches the Top 10 With “Chicago”
“Chicago” lifts from No. 15 to No. 10 on this week’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The tune, featured on his posthumous collection Xscape, landed on the roster back in June 2014, but it has spent the majority of its six frames on the rundown in spring 2026. “Chicago” was never pushed as a single around the time that it was initially released, but it’s become a standout win for Jackson during the post-Michael box office conquest.
Michael Jackson Scores His Thirty-Sixth Top 10 Smash
Jackson scores a thirty-sixth top 10 smash on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart as “Chicago” advances. That’s more than half of the 56 tunes he’s pushed to the ranking – a winning streak that stretches back into the ’70s. To this day, Jackson claims the seventh-most No. 1s with a lucky 13 champions. He’s on the same level as Marvin Gaye and Usher on the list of the most successful acts of all time.
Here are all of Michael Jackson’s top 10 hits on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
- “Another Part of Me”
- “Bad”
- “Beat It”
- “Ben”
- “Billie Jean”
- “Black or White”
- “Butterflies”
- “Chicago”
- “Dirty Diana”
- “Don’t Matter to Me” with Drake
- “Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough”
- “Get It” with Stevie Wonder
- “Got to Be There”
- “Human Nature”
- “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You” with Siedah Garrett
- “I Wanna Be Where You Are”
- “In the Closet”
- “Jam”
- “Just a Little Bit of You”
- “Love Never Felt So Good” with Justin Timberlake
- “Man in the Mirror”
- “Off the Wall”
- “Remember the Time”
- “Rock With You”
- “Rockin’ Robin”
- “Say, Say, Say” with Paul McCartney
- “Scream” with Janet Jackson
- “Smooth Criminal”
- “The Girl Is Mine” with Paul McCartney
- “The Way You Make Me Feel”
- “They Don’t Care About Us”
- “Thriller”
- “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’”
- “We’re Almost There”
- “Who Is It”
- “You Are Not Alone”
“Chicago” Hits New Peaks on Almost Every Chart
“Chicago” lives on eight Billboard charts this week, and impressively, it climbs to new peaks on all but two of them. The track is steady at its most impressive placements on the R&B Streaming Songs and Hot R&B Songs registers, where it’s comfortable at Nos. 2 and 4, respectively. “Chicago” also surges to never-before-seen highs on the R&B/Hip-Hop Streaming Songs (No. 8), Streaming Songs (No. 17), Billboard Global 200 (No. 19), Billboard Hot 100 (No. 26) and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. (No. 35) charts. The track debuted on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Streaming Songs chart just last week.
Michael Jackson Charts 18 Songs in America This Week
“Chicago” is one of 18 songs by Jackson that appear on at least one Billboard tally, but it is the only one that lifts to new peak placements. Several other smashes, such as “Billie Jean,” “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” and “Beat It,” hold in their top positions, but do not advance any higher.