Reflecting that the race to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 can sometimes be more a marathon than a sprint, 18 songs have debuted at No. 99 and eventually made their way to No. 1. Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control” is the latest such leader, reaching No. 1 on the chart dated March 30, 2024, after it arrived at No. 99 on the survey dated Aug. 26, 2023.
The song’s steady Hot 100 ascent – the longest to No. 1 ever for a song by a solo male – largely mirrors its rise at multiple radio formats. It likewise debuted on the Adult Pop Airplay chart last August and this week spends a second week atop the tally.
“Lose Control” is just the third Hot 100 hit to have traveled to the top after starting at No. 99 this century, after Camila Cabello’s “Havana,” featuring Young Thug (2017-18), and T.I.’s “Whatever You Like” (2008). Before that, Cher’s “Believe” completed such a climb (1998-99), after no song had done so since 1976.
Over the Hot 100’s history, which dates to the chart’s Aug. 4, 1958, inception, No. 1s have debuted at wildly varying average positions. From the list’s launch through late 1991, when self-reported airplay and sales data drove the chart, No. 1s debuted, on average, at No. 70. Upon the chart’s evolution to electronically monitored Luminate data in late 1991 to now, No. 1s have opened, on average, at No. 46.
This decade – with streaming central to Hot 100 hits, and high-profile releases often receiving prominent first-day placement on digital service providers – No. 1s have launched, on average, at No. 17. (Prior to “Lose Control,” all five songs to spend their first weeks at No. 1 in 2024 all debuted in the top three, including three at No. 1.)
Over the Hot 100’s entire history, No. 1 hits have debuted, on average, at No. 62.
In honor of Teddy Swims’ Hot 100 win with “Lose Control,” below is a look at all 18 songs that have debuted at No. 99 and ultimately triumphed.
As for the Hot 100’s bookending positions, 76 singles have debuted at No. 1 – the most of any rank (and all since 1995) – and 12 have entered at No. 100.
(In case you were wondering, or only 99% sure: Nena’s “99 Luftballoons” debuted on the Hot 100 at No. 74 before hitting No. 2, and Jay-Z’s “99 Problems” at No. 94 before reaching No. 30. Plus, Drake’s “Started at the Bottom” began at No. 63 on its way to a No. 6 peak.)
