From 'Volare' to 'Mi Gente,' Every ForeignLanguage Top 10 Hit on the Billboard Hot 100

publish date: 2017-10-13
source: billboard

'Mi Gente' is just the 13th non-English-language single to hit the Hot 100's top 10.
As J Balvin and Willy William's Spanish-language smash "Mi Gente," featuring Beyonce, scores its first week in the Hot 100's top 10, vaulting from No. 21 to No. 3 (on the chart dated Oct. 21), we wondered: how many non-English language songs have hit the top 10 in the Hot 100's 59-year history?
Thanks to the expert analysis of Paul Haney at Joel Whitburn's Record Research, it turns out that, of the 4,763 singles that have reached the Hot 100's top 10, "Mi Gente" is just the 13th non-English-language hit. And, of those select 13 songs, "Mi Gente" and "Despacito," by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber (at No. 9 this week after a record-tying 16 weeks at No. 1), make for the only pair to chart in the top 10 together.
Note that the list below of 13 songs includes songs sung entirely or mainly in a foreign language and does not include songs with minor foreign-language parts, such as Enrique Iglesias' "Bailamos" or Bobby Vinton's "My Melody of Love," for example.