This Is the Artist With the Most No. 1 Hits

When star choreographer Paula Abdul released her debut album, “Forever Your Girl,” in 1988, it was a ridiculously massive hit, selling seven million U.S. copies and breaking the record for most No. 1 singles from a debut (four); “Straight Up” was the first to top the charts, and remains her signature hit. 1991’s “Spellbound” added two more chart-toppers to the collection (“Rush Rush” and “The Promise of a New Day”), for a grand total of six.

With Paul McCartney at the helm, Wings had a slew of hits in the 1970s, including the classic “Band on the Run.” Even though McCartney’s second band never achieved the renown of The Fab Four, Wings gave us plenty of upbeat ditties that went on to become hits, including the No. 1 “Listen To What The Man Said,” “Silly Love Songs,” and “With A Little Luck.”

Canadian singer Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye has sold over 75 million records in his career and shows no sign of slowing down soon. His second studio album, “Beauty Behind the Madness,” spawned his first two massive hits, “Can’t Feel My Face” and “The Hills,” and introduced millions to his soaring falsetto. His most recent hit, “Save Your Tears,” topped the charts in May 2021, bringing his grand total (for now) to six.

You can be forgiven for forgetting that Ariana Grande began her career a decade ago as a Nickelodeon star with red-dyed hair, now that she’s officially a pop queen with six No. 1 hits to her name. While “The Way” from her 2013 debut album, “Yours Truly,” reached the top 10, it wasn’t until 2018 that “Thank U, Next” became her first No. 1 hit. An astonishing five more chart-toppers followed in the next two years, with “Positions” being her most recent.

Like Grande, The Biebs also has six No. 1 hits in the books, and his 2010 debut studio album, “My World 2.0”, made him the youngest solo male act to top the chart in 47 years, at age 16. With such a long career and so many chart-topping singles (starting with “What Do You Mean?” in 2015 and most recently “Peaches” in 2021), it’s hard to believe that he’s not even 30.