The Alchemist has weighed in on rap's historic absence from the Billboard Hot 100's Top 40.
After 35 years straight of rap dominating the charts, hip-hop has officially hit a lull, with zero songs from the genre landing inside the Top 40. The news sparked waves of conversation across social media, but the legendary producer offered a grounded take that instantly resonated.
"No rap in top 40 has nothing to do with the music being bad or good," ALC wrote in a post on X.
His comment arrives as hip-hop experiences a rare speed bump in its mainstream dominance. On the chart dated October 25, 2025, Kendrick Lamar and SZA's 13-week No. 1 hit "Luther" officially fell off the Hot 100, leaving no rap songs within the Top 40 for the first time since February 1990.
The highest-charting rap entry this week belongs to NBA YoungBoy's "Shot Callin" at No. 43, followed by BigXthaPlug's "Hell at Night" featuring Ella Langley, and Tyler, the Creator's "Sugar On My Tongue," at No. 50 and 51, respectively.
While hip-hop's absence has sparked debates over rap's cultural standing and mainstream momentum at the moment, Alchemist's response suggests the moment is less about quality and more about industry mechanics.
Billboard recently adjusted its chart methodology, removing older "recurrent" songs that had spent extended time on the chart, a rule that knocked out "Luther" after 46 weeks. Seven other non-rap songs were also removed.
At its peak in 2020, hip-hop as a genre accounted for nearly 30 percent of U.S. music consumption. That number dipped to just over 25 percent by 2023 and has hovered around 24 percent through October 2025. For comparison, the same chart week in 2020 featured 16 rap songs in the Top 40; two years ago, there were eight.