John Legend notches his first No 1 on the Christian charts thanks to Carrie Underwood
The Voice coach John Legend nabbed his first No 1 on the Christian charts! It’s a milestone that he probably never expected. But it’s all thanks to Carrie Underwood. John co-wrote the original song “Hallelujah” with Toby Gad and recorded it with the American Idol season 4 winner as a duet track on her My Gift Christmas album.”My first #1 on the Christian charts!” wrote John on social media. “Thank you @carrieunderwood! Thank you to everyone supporting our song!” Carrie writes back, “Thank you @johnlegend for such a beautiful song!”
Thank you @johnlegend for such a beautiful song! #Hallelujah ??? https://t.co/8mRRX14hRH
— Carrie Underwood (@carrieunderwood) December 24, 2020
According to Billboard “Hallelujah” rose from No 2 to No 1 on Billboard’s airplay-, sales- and streaming-based Hot Christian Songs chart (dated Dec. 26). The chart placement marks Carrie’s third No. 1 and John’s first.
Who did Carrie kick out of the No 1 spot? Herself! Her “Favorite Time of Year” dips to No. 2 following two weeks on top.
Carrie Underwood matches a The Voice winner chart record
Carrie becomes the first woman to replace herself at No. 1. The only other artist to do so in the 17-year history of Hot Christian Songs is The Voice season 9 winner Jordan Smith. On the chart dated Dec. 12, 2015, his “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” was in its second week atop the tally. On Dec. 19, his “Hallelujah” (The Leonard Cohen cover) took over the top spot. Jordan performed both tracks on The Voice.
The Voice’s Jordan Smith “Angels We Have Heard (Glory Be) Music Video
In the tracking week ending Dec. 17, Carrie and John’s “Hallelujah” surged by 56% to 8.6 million U.S. streams, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data. It also sold 5,000 downloads in that timeframe (up 16%) and drew 1.6 million in radio airplay audience (up 14%) in the week ending Dec. 20.
‘My Gift’ is Carrie’s first on Top Christian Albums
The album My Gift debuted atop the Top Christian Albums and Top Country Albums charts dated Oct. 10 with 43,000 equivalent album units. It leads the former for a 12th week and the latter for a fourth week (47,000 units, after hitting a high of 53,000 the week before). The set is Carrie’s first on Top Christian Albums and her eighth No. 1, encompassing all her appearances, on Top Country Albums, making for a record career-opening No. 1 streak.
Plus, for a third straight week, Carrie holds the top three slots on Hot Christian Songs, as her version of “Silent Night” stays at No. 3. She is the first artist to control the top three positions on Hot Christian Songs for multiple weeks.
