Twenty years. That’s how long Beenie Man had gone without a song on Billboard’s Rhythmic Airplay chart before For You showed up three weeks ago. Now the track is doing something a lot of comeback singles don’t manage, which is keep climbing.
For You entered the tally at No. 39, moved to No. 34, and this week ticks up again to No. 33. It’s credited to producer Kemar McGregor, Beenie Man and Snoop Dogg, with a crowded guest list that includes Elephant Man, Dyani, Shaneil Muir, Tifa, Vanessa Bling, Stefflon Don, Kraff and Pamputtae.
That lineup reads like a cross section of dancehall generations, from Elephant Man’s era right through to newer voices like Vanessa Bling and Stefflon Don.
Pairing all of that with Snoop gives the song a foot in both Kingston and the West Coast, which probably helps explain why rhythmic radio is paying attention.
The single lives on Eminence, Beenie Man’s latest album. The 16 song set dropped on August 20 through Billboard King Records and leans hard into American collaborations, with Rick Ross, T.I., Ashanti, Mýa, Rotimi and Lola Brooke all making appearances.
For You is Beenie Man’s sixth entry on Rhythmic Airplay. His high point there is still Feel It Boy with Janet Jackson, which climbed as far as No. 13 back in 2002, so there’s a clear benchmark if this one keeps moving.
Dancehall’s footprint on Billboard this week isn’t limited to Beenie Man, though. Karol G’s Bby Wow, which samples the Coolie Dance rhythm, holds No. 1 on Hot Latin Songs for a seventh week and also logs a seventh week atop Hot Latin Rhythm Songs. It rises from No. 4 to No. 2 on Latin Airplay and stays put at No. 2 on Latin Rhythm Airplay.
The picture is softer elsewhere for Bby Wow. It slips from No. 1 to No. 3 on the Billboard Global 200, gives up the top spot on Global Excluding US, and falls from No. 6 to No. 10 on the Hot 100.
On the Reggae Albums chart, the story is a familiar one. Bob Marley and the Wailers‘ Legend leads again, now at 351 non consecutive weeks, with Shaggy’s Best of Shaggy: The Boombastic Collection at No. 2 and Sean Paul’s Dutty Classics Collection and Dutty Rock at No. 3 and No. 4. Damian Marley’s Welcome to Jamrock returns to the chart at No. 10.
Regional radio tells a fresher story. Cham and Jada Kingdom’s Move takes over No. 1 on Voice of the Caribbean’s Florida Reggae and Dancehall Top 20, while 1 Psalm by Masicka and Damian Marley rises to No. 3.
Up north, Steele’s Yesterday Once More is the new leader on the Reggae North Canadian Top 20. In New York, Morgan Heritage’s Come Feel the Love grabs No. 1, Richie Stephens’ The Girl in His Mind jumps from No. 11 to No. 8, and new entries from Marcia Griffiths, Queen Ifrica and JC Lodge land near the bottom of the top 30.
Joanna Marie’s Strings Attached has risen to No. 1 on the South Florida Reggae chart, and Racquel Jones’ Puppet on a String debuts there at No. 23. As for For You, next week’s Rhythmic update will show if Beenie Man can keep inching toward that 2002 high.
