These 12 Artists Reached No. 2 on the Hot 100 With Their First Hit — Then Never Made the Chart Again
Categoria: Musica
From The Jaynetts to Nicki French to the Shop Boyz, Hot 100 history is full of one-hit wonders whose lone chart stop was to the runner-up spot.
Por Billboard | 12/08/2026
Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Missy Elliott, Dua Lipa, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Isley Brothers — these are just a handful of the iconic artists who know the pain of getting as close as one possibly can to the apex of the Billboard Hot 100 without ever quite securing that top spot. But while those pop and rock greats have yet to discover the joy of a No. 1 Hot 100 hit, they at least have the comfort of being intimately familiar with the rest of the chart, each visiting it double-digit times over the course of their esteemed careers. (See the list of our staff’s 100 favorite No. 2 hits here , featuring all of these classic hitmakers, and 15 fun facts about those hits here .) Some artists were not so fortunate. Over the nearly-70-year history of the Hot 100, over a dozen artists have gotten all the way to the No. 2 spot on the chart with their first-ever entry — and then never made a return visit. These artists may have gone on to do additional great things in their lives and careers, but as far as the Hot 100 goes, they are true one-hit wonders, singers and rappers and bands who cracked the code a single time and then couldn’t quite repeat the combination. (And unlike Hot 100-topping true one-hit wonders like Zager & Evans, Crazy Town and Daniel Powter, they also had to settle for the silver with their single entry.) However, the difficulty these artists had returning to the Hot 100 shows what an accomplishment it is to make it onto the chart at all, even with just a single entry — particularly one that comes just a spot short from going as high as it can possibly go. Today, we salute 12 artists whose sole representation on the Hot 100 comes with a No. 2 hit, presented in chronological order.