20 iconic musicians who never had a No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit

With a career spanning over six decades, Bruce Springsteen is no stranger to the Hot 100 chart. In fact, his seventh album Born in the U.S.A. had seven singles that all reached the top ten, but surprisingly, he’s never had a No. 1 hit. Springsteen got pretty close with his single “Dancing in the Dark” which reached No. 2. 

Rapper, singer, producer, songwriter, creative visionary–Missy Elliott is the ultimate renaissance artist. Whether she’s crafting dance tracks for her fans, or working with some of the best artists in R&B and hip-hop, Elliott is the type of artist you call on when you want a hit song. In fact, Elliott has had several hit songs that have reached the top five on the Billboard Hot 100 including “Lose Control” and “Hot Boyz.” She came very close to the top spot with “Work It,” that stayed at No. 2 for ten consecutive weeks. 

It’s hard to believe that One Direction stayed together as a band for four years before the members decided to venture off with solo projects. During their tenure together, they became one of the biggest-selling boy bands in music history, selling over 70 million records. While their songs like “What Makes You Beautiful” reached No. 4 and “Live While We’re Young” reached No. 3, their biggest single “Best Song Ever” peaked at No. 2. 

Babyface is one of the most recognized and respected songwriters in R&B and pop music. Throughout his career, he’s written hit songs for artists like Toni Braxton, Boyz II Men, Whitney Houston, Madonna, Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars, and more. Babyface has reached the point in his career in which he’s more of a collaborator than he is of releasing his own music. However, he’s had top ten hit songs with his own discography such as “Whip Appeal” and “Everytime I Close My Eyes.” His highest-charting song “When Can I See You” peaked at No. 4. 

There’s no doubt that the Backstreet Boys is one of the most recognizable boy bands in pop music. With hit songs like “I Want It That Way” and “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back),” they’ve become one of the best-selling artists in music history. The biggest hit they had on the Hot 100 is “Quit Playing Games (With My Heart),” which reached No. 2. 

With a career spanning nearly seven decades, Bob Dylan is widely known for his music that meshed folk, rock, and pop. Some of his hit songs include “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” and “Lay Lady Lay.” Dylan had two songs that came close to the top of the charts with “Rainy Day Women #12 and 35” and “Like a Rolling Stone,” which both reached No. 2. 

Throughout Sheryl Crow’s career, the singer has been known to blend the genres of country, rock, and pop. Since the ‘90s, Crow has gifted fans with songs like “If It Makes You Happy” and “Soak Up the Sun.” Her biggest Hot 100 song came in 1994 with her single “All I Wanna Do,” which peaked at No. 2. It didn’t reach the top spot because that entry was taken by R&B group Boyz II Men and their song “I’ll Make Love To You.”

James Brown is often revered as the Godfather of Soul, thanks to hit songs like “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag,” “The Payback” and “Say It Loud - I’m Black and I’m Proud.” With career spanning over five decades, his highest-charting song was his 1965 track “I Got You (I Feel Good),” which peaked at No. 3.

Since the ‘80s, R.E.M. has been recognized as one of the pioneer bands of alternative rock. Throughout their near 30-year career, they released several hit songs including “The One I Love” and “Everybody Hurts.” The band’s highest-charting single was “Losing My Religion,” which peaked at No. 4. 

Pearl Jam rose to fame in the early ‘90s as they helped usher in grunge rock music to mainstream audiences. With a career spanning over four decades, Pearl Jam has seen several of their songs make it on the Hot 100 including “Given to Fly” and “Wishlist.” Their biggest hit came in 1999 with their cover song of J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers’ 1963 track “Last Kiss,” which peaked at No. 2.

Bob Marley may be recognized as one of the most prolific artists in reggae, but surprisingly he didn’t have many songs that charted on the Hot 100. In 1976, he and his band known as Bob Marley and the Wailers released their eighth album Rastaman Vibration. Their single “Roots, Rock, Reggae” peaked at No. 51 on the chart. 

Pop rock band Imagine Dragons came onto the scene in 2012 with the release of their debut album Night Visions. While their first single “It’s Time” reached the top 15 on the chart, it was their second single “Radioactive” that became their biggest record, peaking at No. 3. Several other singles such as “Thunder” and “Believer” were pretty close as they both reached No. 4. 

Green Day has been a well-established punk rock band since the ‘90s with the release of their debut album 39/Smooth. Throughout their career, the band has had several Hot 100 entries such as “When I Come Around” and “Wake Me Up When September Ends.” In 2004, the band released their single “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” which reached No. 2 on the Hot 100. 

It was back in 2006 when rapper Rick Ross released his debut studio album Port of Miami. Throughout his career, he’s had several Hot 100 entries, many of which were collaborations alongside other artists. He teamed up with Drake on “Lemon Pepper Freestyle,” which reached No. 3, and also worked with DJ Khaled on “I’m On One,” which peaked at No. 10. 

Although Nirvana was a band that was around for only a few years, they’re still a band that had quite an impact on rock music fans. Throughout their tenure, Nirvana had several hit songs including “Come As You Are” and “Heart-Shaped Box.” In 1991, Nirvana saw massive success with their track “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” which reached No. 6 on the chart. 

E-40 has been releasing music for well over three decades and he continues to be one of the most respected rappers from the Bay Area. In addition to multiple hit songs like “Tell Me When To Go” and “1-Luv,” his highest-charting single came in 2006 with “U and Dat.” The track was produced by Lil Jon and featured T-Pain and Kandi; it peaked at No. 13 on the chart. 

Chaka Khan first came onto the scene in the ‘70s as a member of the band Rufus, and she easily has one of the most recognizable voices in soul music. Throughout her career, she’s had several hit Billboard songs such as “I’m Every Woman” and “Sweet Thing.” Khan had two singles that reached No. 3 on the chart: “I Feel For You” and “Tell Me Something Good.” 

The Red Hot Chili Peppers are still an in-demand rock band, even four decades after their debut. Throughout their career, they’ve released several hit songs including “Scar Tissue” and “Californication.” Their biggest Hot 100 hit came in 1992 with “Under the Bridge,” peaking at No. 2. 

Nas has been in the music industry for well over three decades with the release of his 1994 debut album Illmatic. Even with that much longevity in the industry, Nas continues to prove why he’s one of the best MCs that hip-hop has seen. Throughout his career, Nas has released several hit songs including “Oochie Wally” and “If I Ruled the World.” In 2003, Nas released his encouraging track “I Can,” which peaked at No. 12 on the Hot 100. 

It was back in 1969 when rock band Led Zepplin came onto the scene with their self-titled debut album. Throughout their career, the band released several hit songs such as “Immigrant Song,” “Black Dog,” and “D’yer Mak’er.” Their highest-charting track was “Whole Lotta Love,” which peaked at No. 4.