Lady Gaga has become the third-ever act to have achieved multiple Number One songs across three different decades.
The accomplishment comes as her collaboration with Bruno Mars, ‘Die With A Smile’, has finally hit the top spot on the Billboard charts – nearly five months since it was first released.
Arriving back in August, the song was written to feel “super ‘70s” and inspired by the collaborations between Carole King and James Taylor. It would debut at the Number Three slot, and remained in the upper parts of the charts for months, frequently blocked by Shaboozey’s ‘Tipsy (A Bar Song)’ from reaching Number One.
Now, with all of the Christmas tracks off the charts, ‘Die With A Smile’ has claimed the top position after 20 weeks on the charts. This, Billboard highlights, means that the singer has become one of a very select group of artists who have landed multiple chart-topping tracks in three different decades.
Up until now, the only two artists to make the feat were Michael Jackson, who had multiple Number One hits across the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s, and his sister Janet Jackson, who did so across the ‘80s, ‘90s and ‘10s.
For Gaga, she landed two chart-topping tracks around the time of her 2009 debut, with ‘Just Dance’ and ‘Poker Face’ going to Number One. In the ‘10s she landed the pole position with 2011’s ‘Born This Way’ and 2019 duet with Bradley Cooper ‘Shallow’. In the 2020s, she has now hit two number ones, the first of which being the 2020 collaboration with Ariana Grande titled ‘Rain On Me’ and now with ‘Die With A Smile’.
As highlighted by Stereogum, there are countless artists who have had chart-toppers across three decades, but very few have had more than one in each of the 10-year-spans.
Paul McCartney, for instance, didn’t release his first chart-topping single as a solo artist until 1971, meaning he would only qualify for the list if he could include his ‘60s work with The Beatles.
Similarly, Madonna would need one more Number One in the ‘00s to qualify, Britney Spears would have to have more than one Number One in the ‘90s to make the cut, and Stevie Wonder would need one more song peak on the charts in the ‘60s.
Taking to Instagram to celebrate ‘Die With A Smile’ reaching the top of the Billboard Hot 100, Lady Gaga spoke to fans and shared her gratitude for the milestone. “I am so honoured to be an artist and to have had your ears for this long,” she said. “Thank you for listening and dancing and making your art along with mine.”
As for Mars, the collaboration with Gaga marks the singer’s ninth Number One song, and he landed his first two chart-toppers in 2010.
He has also been making moves on the singles charts with his collaboration with BlackPink member ROSÉ, ‘APT’, which has risen to Number Five.
Last month, Gaga revealed that the sound of ‘Die With A Smile’ is set to be a large part of her upcoming album. The singer first teased her as-yet-untitled seventh solo studio album back in October, two months after dropping the Mars collab.
English (US) · 