Lil Wayne's "Lollipop" reclaims U.S. singles crown
By Jonathan Cohen
NEW YORK (Billboard) - After a three-week break, rapper Lil Wayne returned to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart on Thursday with his first No. 1 single "Lollipop" featuring late songwriter Static Major.
It's the longest chart-topping hiatus since Usher's "U Got It Bad" went four weeks between No. 1 stints in January 2002. "Lollipop" was also No. 1 for a fourth week on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs tally.
Lil Wayne, a.k.a. Dwayne Carter, is expected to release his sixth studio album, "Tha Carter III," next month. Static Major, a.k.a. Stephen Garrett, died suddenly in February, a few weeks before the song's release, aged 33. A posthumous album, "Suppertime," is in the works.
Meanwhile, British singer Leona Lewis' former chart-topper "Bleeding Love" was No. 2 for a second week, while last week's champ, R&B star Rihanna's "Take a Bow," slipped to No. 3.
Usher's "Love in This Club" featuring Young Jeezy rose one to No. 4, trading places with Jordin Sparks' "No Air" featuring Chris Brown.
Ray J & Yung Berg's "Sexy Can I" held at No. 6, and Madonna's "4 Minutes" featuring Justin Timberlake at No. 7. Natasha Bedingfield's "Pocketful of Sunshine" rose one to No 9. 8, trading places with Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body." Danity Kane's "Damaged" was steady at No. 10.
The top debut came from the reunited New Kids On The Block with "Summertime" at No. 57.
Reuters/Billboard
