SZA Spends First Week at No. 1 on Hot 100 Songwriters Chart Thanks to ‘SOS’ Tracks

13 January, 2023

SZA soars from No. 5 to No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Songwriters chart (dated Jan. 14), becoming the top songwriter in the U.S. for the first time, thanks to 15 charting songs on the latest Billboard Hot 100, all of which appear on her latest album, SOS.

Leading the way is the album’s standout track “Kill Bill,” which jumps 11-3 on the Hot 100, returning to its peak, with 28 million official streams (up 5%), 1.7 million radio airplay audience impressions (up a whopping 703%, as it’s now being promoted to pop radio, alongside the set’s “Nobody Gets Me”) and 1,000 downloads sold (up 1%) in the U.S. Dec. 30-Jan. 5, according to Luminate.

Here’s a recap of all 15 SZA songs on the latest Hot 100, with additional co-songwriters listed in parentheses:

Rank, Title (co-songwriters in addition to SZA)

  • No. 3, “Kill Bill” (Rob Bisel, Carter Lang)
  • No. 23, “Shirt” (Rodney Jerkins, “Freaky” Rob Gueringer)
  • No. 42, “Nobody Gets Me” (benny blanco, Rob Bisel, Carter Lang)
  • No. 45, “Low” (Rob Bisel, SANGE, Aire Atlantica, Jozzy)
  • No. 51, “Blind” (Rob Bisel, Carter Lang, Yuli, Will Miller)
  • No. 53, “Snooze” (Babyface, Khristopher Riddick-Tynes, Leon Thomas III, BLK Beats)
  • No. 56, “Love Language” (Rob Bisel, Carter Lang, ThankGod4Cody, Yakob, Pharrell Williams, Chad Hugo, Ty Dolla $Ign, Ant Clemons, Jazzae De Waal)
  • No. 66, “Seek & Destroy” (Rob Bisel, Carter Lang, ThankGod4Cody, Scum)
  • No. 76, “Used,” feat. Don Toliver (DJ DaHi, John Hill, Ely Rise, Danny McKinnon, John Key, Don Toliver)
  • No. 79, “Ghost in the Machine,” feat. Phoebe Bridgers (Rob Bisel, Carter Lang, Matt Cohn, Marshall Vore, Phoebe Bridgers)
  • No. 83, “Special” (benny blanco, Blake Slatkin, Shellback, Omer Fedi)
  • No. 85, “Open Arms,” feat. Travis Scott (Rob Bisel, Michael Uzowuru, Teo Halm, Dougie F, Travis Scott)
  • No. 90, “SOS” (Jay Versace, Rob Bisel, Gabriel Hardeman)
  • No. 94, “Gone Girl “(Rob Bisel, Carter Lang, ThankGod4Cody, Jeff Bhasker, Emile Haynie)
  • No. 100, “Notice Me” (Carter Lang, ThankGod4Cody, Teo Halm, Michael Uzowuru)

SOS debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 dated Dec. 24 and has ruled every week since (four and counting). The set tops the latest tally with 125,000 equivalent album units earned Dec. 30-Jan. 5. All 23 songs on SOS charted on the Hot 100 in the set’s opening week.

SZA is the first solo woman to lead Hot 100 Songwriters since Taylor Swift ruled for five consecutive weeks in November-December. Kate Bush is the only other woman to have led in 2022, with eight weeks at the summit, thanks to “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God),” her 1985 single that was revived thanks to its synch in Netflix’s Stranger Things.

SZA concurrently spends a 15th week at No. 1 on the R&B Songwriters chart and a fourth week atop R&B/Hip-Hop Songwriters.

On the latest Hot 100 Producers chart, Joey Moi returns to No. 1 for a 15th week on top, thanks to five production credits on the Hot 100, four via songs recorded by Morgan Wallen. Here’s a recap:

Rank, Artist Billing, Title (co-producers in addition to Moi)

  • No. 13, Morgan Wallen, “You Proof” (Charlie Handsome)
  • No. 22, Morgan Wallen, “Wasted On You” (Jacob Durrett)
  • No. 33, Morgan Wallen, “Thought You Should Know”
  • No. 38, HARDY feat. Lainey Wilson, “Wait in the Truck” (HARDY)
  • No. 77, Morgan Wallen, “One Thing at a Time”

Moi passes Greg Kurstin for the third-most weeks spent at No. 1 on Hot 100 Producers, dating to the list’s launch in June 2019. Dan Nigro has logged the most time at No. 1, 27 weeks, followed by Louis Bell (18).

Moi also adds a record-extending 90th week at No. 1 on the Country Producers chart.

The weekly Hot 100 Songwriters and Hot 100 Producers charts are based on total points accrued by a songwriter and producer, respectively, for each attributed song that appears on the Hot 100; plus, genre-based songwriter and producer charts follow the same methodology based on corresponding “Hot”-named genre charts. As with Billboard’s yearly recaps, multiple writers or producers split points for each song equally (and the dividing of points will lead to occasional ties on rankings).

The full Hot 100 Songwriters and Hot 100 Producers charts, in addition to the full genre rankings, can be found on Billboard.com.

Xander Zellner

Billboard