Cardi B & Megan Thee Stallion's Record-Breaking "WAP" Debut Proves Women are Running Rap

Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion officially have the biggest song of the year.

Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s new single "WAP" just one of the best opening weeks ever. The song, which was released on August 7th, debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, for the week ending August13. Not only did it debut at number one but it made history. 

According to Billboard and Nielsen Music/MRC, the song garnered 93 million U.S. streams, which is the most for any track in its first week of release. The total broke the record established by Ariana Grande, for her hit single "7 Rings." (That song garnered 85.3 million streams in its debut week.)  "WAP" also easily had the best streaming week for a song, beating out Roddy Ricch's "The Box" which garnered  77.2 million streams for the week ending January 25th.

There have only been four female rappers to debut at number one on the Billboard charts: Lauryn Hill, Nicki Minaj, Megan Thee Stallion, and Cardi B. Crazy enough, three of the four happened this year. 

"WAP" is the third number one single this year to be led by multiple women of color, following Doja Cat and Nicki Minaj's  "Say So" Remix and The "Savage" Remix with Meg and Beyoncé.

"WAP" has easily been the most talked about track of the year. The song, which samples Baltimore house classic Frank Ski’s “Whores In This House,” is unapologetically raunchy, something that has pissed of conservatives, stuffy rap fans, and misogynists alike. 

But it is also a track that is getting a lot of love. "WAP" has become a huge TikTok and YouTube hit. And fellow rappers have shown a lot of love for the track. (Plies dropped a preview of freestyle for the track and started trending off of the strength.) 

"WAP" is Cardi's fifth number one, while this is Megan's second.