Billboard Declares ‘Christian Music Is Surging’ as Two Faith-Based Songs Enter Hot 100
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By Michael Foust, Crosswalk.com
A pair of Christian songs has broken into Billboard's Hot 100 chart, a much-watched ranking that tracks the most popular songs across all genres and regularly features artists like Drake, Lady Gaga and Morgan Wallen. Hard Fought Hallelujah by Brandon Lake and Jelly Roll currently ranks No. 44 after climbing as high as No. 40, while Your Way's Better by Forrest Frank is up to No. 62 after being ranked No. 72 last week.
Not counting holiday songs or Kanye West's gospel songs, it is the first time in 11 years that multiple Christian songs have appeared on the chart. Back in 2014, three Christian songs charted on the Hot 100: Carrie Underwood's Something in the Water, Craig Wayne Boyd's The Old Rugged Cross and Hillsong UNITED's Oceans (Where Feet May Fail).
In fact, the last time any Christian artist entered the Hot 100 outside of a holiday season was Lauren Daigle, for 2019's You Say.
"Say your prayers: Christian music is making a serious comeback," Billboard said in a feature story about the feat.
Lake and Frank have "emerged as breakout stars in the Christian music world, thanks in part to their growing popularity across social media platforms like TikTok," the story added.
The current No. 1 song on the Hot 100 is Luther by Kendrick Lamar and SZA, followed by Alex Warren's Ordinary, the Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars' song Die With a Smile, Shaboozey's A Bar Song (Tipsy) and Drake's Nokia.
Lake and Frank are staples of Christian music, with dozens of entries on a separate faith-focused ranking, the Hot Christian Songs chart -- 42 for Lake and 34 for Frank. Although this is Lake's first entry into the Hot 100, Frank previously did it as part of the pop duo Surfaces.
Meanwhile, two other Christian artists are ranked just outside the Hot 100 and may climb into it soon: Elevation Worship's Praise, featuring Brandon Lake, Chris Brown and Chandler Moore, and Frank's Good Day.
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
