The 'N***as in Paris' hitmaker has passed the King of Pop on the list of Billboard's most Top 40 hits of all time.
- August 9, 2016
AceShowbiz -
Kanye West now has more top 40 hits than Michael Jackson. The "Saint Pablo" rapper has surpassed the King of Pop on the list of Billboard's most Top 40 hits of all time with his collaboration with ScHoolBoy Q, "THat Part".
"THat Part" rose to No. 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week, making it the 40th time Kanye has landed in the Top 40. Kanye and Michael were previously tied with 39 top 40s each, but "That Part" recent chart rise gave the "Gold Digger" rapper a boost in the rankings.
With the success of "THat Part", Kanye now has the tenth most Top 40 hits of all-time amongst male musicians, including Elvis Presley (80), Lil Wayne (69), Elton John (57), Drake (53), Stevie Wonder (46), Jay-Z (45), James Brown (44), Chris Brown (42) and Marvin Gaye (41).
Kanye has been very vocal about how Michael influenced his career. In his song "I Am a God", Kim Kardashian's husband raps that he's "the only rapper who compared to Michael."
In a 2013 interview with Zane Lowe, Kanye credited Michael for rising to his current level of superstardom. "Like, for me, as Kanye West, I would not be Kanye West if it wasn't for Michael Jackson," he shared, "So for me, in my life and creativity it's been challenging, yeah, it's been challenging and everything."
"But I was able to ascend to massive heights because of the foundation that my mother and my father and my grandfather laid through civil rights, what Michael Jackson did with music videos and the ground he broke. There would be no Kanye West if it wasn't for Michael Jackson," he added.
