Alicia Keys Celebrates ‘Trillions’ Hitting No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart: ‘I Told You!’
Alicia Keys extends her record for the most No. 1s on Billboard’s Adult R&B Airplay chart as “Trillions,” featuring Brent Faiyaz, crowns the chart dated Jan. 28. The single advances from No. 2, and, despite its 1% decrease in weekly plays, it became the most-played song on U.S. monitored adult R&B radio stations in the week ending Jan. 19, according to Luminate.
With her new champ, Alicia Keys improves her career total of Adult R&B Airplay No. 1s to 13. She remains atop the leaderboard for the most No. 1s among all acts since the chart began in 1993. Now, she moves two ahead of her nearest competitor, Toni Braxton, and her 11 leaders. Here’s a look at the artists with the most chart-toppers in Adult R&B Airplay history:
13, Alicia Keys
11, Toni Braxton
9, Charlie Wilson
8, Bruno Mars
8, Kem
8, Maxwell
7, H.E.R.
7, Mary J. Blige
7, R. Kelly
7, Tank
“Big love to my AK fam,” Keys said in an Instagram post celebrating the accomplishment. “Big love to Brent Faiyaz – I told you we were going to get that No. 1!,” the singer-songwriter said.” The R&B legend also noted the feat occurred during her birthday week, as she turned 42 on Jan. 25.
At 22 weeks, “Trillions” ties for Keys’ second-longest trek to the summit among her 13 champs. “Fire We Make,” her duet with Maxwell, also required 22 weeks on its way to a seven-week reign in 2013; they both rank behind “So Done,” featuring Khalid, which reached No. 1 in its 28th week on the chart.
For Brent Faiyaz, his featured turn on “Trillions” yields his first Adult R&B Airplay No. 1 with his debut appearance on the chart.
“Trillions” also marks Keys and Faiyaz’s second charted collaboration; their prior release, “Ghetto Gatsby,” from Faiyaz’s Wasteland album, reached No. 8 on the Hot R&B Songs chart in July 2022. “Trillions” appears on the deluxe edition of Keys’ 2021 album Keys, dubbed Keys II, that dropped in August 2022. (All versions of the Keys album are combined for tracking and charting purposes.)
Elsewhere, “Trillions” climbs to a new peak of No. 17 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, which ranks songs by combined audience listenership from adult R&B and mainstream R&B/hip-hop stations. There, the song climbs again, despite, a 5% drop to 6.7 million in audience.
Trevor Anderson
Billboard