Rihanna Grabs 22nd Top 10 Single, Placing Her With Madonna and Mariah Carey

By ABS Contributor | Published on June 7, 2012 | Updated on June 7, 2012 6:49 PM EDT

Following close behind the accomplishments of entertainment icon Whitney Houston, pop star Rihanna has grabbed her 22nd top ten single. Where Have You Been currently sits at number nine on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, shooting up two spots in the last seven days. Breaking chart-topping records and musical barriers, Rihanna has solidified herself as this year’s pop culture queen.

With her crazy antics and outlandish statements, Rihanna appears to be the most talked about artist on the scene today. Not only is the pop star’s bad-girl personality entertaining, but she’s actually cranking out big hits at a head-spinning clip. Where Have You Been, debuting off her most recent album Talk That Talk (2012), is Rihanna’s 22nd top ten single, pushing the singer closer to joining the elite group of women with the most top tens ever recorded.

Madonna currently holds the spot at number one, having recorded 38 top 10 singles. Following behind the Like a Virgin hitmaker are Mariah Carey and Janet Jackson with 27 top 10’s each. Whitney Houston comes in fourth place, sitting with 23.

Rihanna scored her first top ten single in July of 2005 with debut hit, Pon De Replay. In her seven year time frame Rihanna leads all males and female artists in number one hits.

Subscribe To The ABS Newsletter — Get our stories in your inbox.

Independent journalism still matters.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

The wider picture isn't any steadier. Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under, it's rarely the ones built to center a Black perspective from the ground up that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way