Yuki Chiba, Loco and BabyTron all notch their first career entries on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (dated July 13) thanks to a series of A-list collaborations.
Yuki Chiba is already established in the Japanese hip-hop scene, but he earns his first crossover hit in the United States thanks to his featured appearance on Megan Thee Stallion’s “Mamushi.” Released June 28 on her third studio album Megan, the song debuts at No. 68 on the Hot 100 with 7.3 million official U.S. streams and 1,000 downloads sold in its opening week, according to Luminate. It also starts at No. 18 on Hot Rap Songs and No. 21 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The bilingual track features Megan dishing a few bars in Japanese. (Megan debuts at No. 3 on the Billboard 200.)
The Japanese-Korean artist, who primarily releases music under the name KOHH (his father’s surname), hails from Oji, Kita, Tokyo, and has been releasing music for over a decade. He has released six studio LPs (all as KOHH), most recently The Lost Tapes in 2022. Before “Mamushi,” Yuki Chiba had appeared on Billboard’s charts with Dirt II (Side A), which reached No. 14 on World Albums in July 2016.
Loco (real name: Kwon Hyuk-woo) makes his Hot 100 arrival thanks to his new track with Jimin, “Smeraldo Garden Marching Band.” The song, released June 28 via BigHit Music/Geffen/ICLG, debuts at No. 88 with 6.8 million U.S. streams and 11,000 sold. It also launches at No. 3 on Digital Song Sales, as well as No. 1 on World Digital Song Sales, earning Loco his first leader and Jimin his fifth (apart from BTS).
Loco, from South Korea, has been releasing solo music for over a decade, including two studio albums — Bleached in 2017 and Weak in 2023, with the former reaching No. 7 on World Albums. The rapper has additionally charted four tracks on World Digital Song Sales, including three top 10s: “Can’t Help Myself” (by Eric Nam featuring Loco; No. 4 peak), “Young” (with Baekhyun; No. 4) and “All I Wanna Do” (by Jay Park featuring Hoody and Loco; No. 9).
BabyTron (aka, James Johnson IV) likewise reaches the Hot 100 for the first time, thanks to his co-billed turn on Eminem’s “Tobey,” also with Big Sean. Released July 2 on Shady/Aftermath/Interscope/ICLG, the song debuts at No. 95 after just three days of tracking. It earned 5 million streams and sold 3,000 units. The song concurrently opens at No. 23 on Hot Rap Songs and No. 26 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
BabyTron, from Ypsilanti, Mich., is a member of hip-hop trio ShittyBoyz. He has also released five solo albums and multiple mixtapes, three of which have charted on the Billboard 200: Bin Reaper 3: Old Testament (No. 69 peak in 2022), Bin Reaper 3: New Testament (No. 100; 2023) and MegaTron II (No. 43; 2023).
