Good titles get recycled across genres and generations.
Anna Maria Alberghetti, Ty Dolla $ign and Ye
Designed by Lyanne Natividad; Photos: Duane Howell/The Denver Post via Getty Images; Zac Schuss
“Carnival” by Kanye West & Ty Dolla $ign featuring Rich the Kid and Playboi Carti, which moves up to No. 1 on this week’s Billboard Hot 100, has absolutely nothing in common with the Broadway cast album to Carnival, which topped the Billboard 200 in July 1961, except for having the same title and the fact that they both reached the top of Billboard’s flagship charts.
This is the 14th time that a No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 and a No. 1 song on the Hot 100 have shared a title – and nothing else. So, we’re not counting, say, “You Light Up My Life,” because Debby Boone’s No. 1 single by that name and LeAnn Rimes’ No. 1 album You Light Up My Life: Inspirational Songs are related. The title song of Rimes’ album is a cover of Boone’s smash.
Many of you have probably never even heard of Carnival, which starred Anna Maria Alberghetti. The show ran on Broadway for nearly two years, from 1961-63 (aka, the Kennedy years). Its best-known song is the melodic “Love Makes the World Go Round.” Even if you drew a blank on Carnival, I guarantee you that you’ve heard of songwriter Bob Merrill’s follow-up Broadway show – Funny Girl, which turned Barbra Streisand into a superstar. Here’s an oddity: the Funny Girl cast album peaked at No. 2, not quite following Carnival to the top of the ferris wheel.
Here are all the cases where a song that topped the Hot 100 had the exact same title as an unrelated album that topped the Billboard 200. We show the album, when it reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and how long it stayed on top. We also show the single, when it reached No. 1 on the Hot 100, and how long it stayed on top.
I’ll start off with 14 exact matches and, just for fun, follow it with a batch of 10 near-misses. The exact matches have the header “Shared Title:” The near-misses have the header “Near Miss:” Both groupings are arranged in alphabetical order.
Note: The Billboard 200 began as a weekly chart in March 1956. The Hot 100 originated in August 1958. This list doesn’t include songs that pre-dated the Hot 100 that would otherwise have made the list when coupled with like-titled No. 1 albums. That would have brought in “Because of You” (the title of a 1951 song by Tony Bennett and a 2007 album by Ne-Yo), “Cry” (the title of a 1951 song by Johnnie Ray & the Four Lads and a 2002 album by Faith Hill) and “Don’t Be Cruel” (the title of a 1956 smash by Elvis Presley and a 1989 album by Bobby Brown).
Additional research by Andrew Unterberger.
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Shared Title: “Believe”
Album: Disturbed, Oct. 5, 2002 (one week)
Album: Justin Bieber, July 7, 2012 (one week)
Single: Cher, March 13, 1999 (four weeks)
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Shared Title: “Butterfly”
Album: Mariah Carey, Oct. 4, 1997 (one week)
Single: Crazy Town, March 24, 2001 (two weeks)
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Shared Title: “Carnival”
Album: Original cast album, July 17, 1961 (one week)
Single: ¥$: Ye & Ty Dolla $ign featuring Rich The Kid & Playboi Carti, March 16, 2024 (one week so far)
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Shared Title: “Cheap Thrills”
Album: Big Brother & the Holding Company, Oct. 12, 1968 (eight weeks)
Single: Sia featuring Sean Paul, Aug. 6, 2016 (four weeks)
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Shared Title: “Closer”
Album: Josh Groban, Jan. 24, 2004 (one week)
Single: The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey, Sept. 3, 2016 (12 weeks)
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Shared Title: “Faith”
Album: Pop Smoke, July 31, 2021 (one week)
Single: George Michael, Dec. 12, 1987 (four weeks)
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Shared Title: “Fireflies”
Album: Faith Hill, Aug. 20, 2005 (one week)
Single: Owl City, Nov. 7, 2009 (two weeks)
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Shared Title: “Hypnotize”
Album: System of a Down, Dec. 10, 2005 (one week)
Single: The Notorious B.I.G., May 3, 1997 (three weeks)
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Shared Title: “Keep on Loving You”
Album: Reba McEntire, Sept. 5, 2009 (one week)
Single: REO Speedwagon, March 21, 1981 (one week)
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Shared Title: “Magic”
Album: Bruce Springsteen, Oct. 20, 2007 (two weeks)
Single: Olivia Newton-John, Aug. 2, 1980 (four weeks)
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Shared Title: “Music”
Album: Carole King, Jan. 1, 1972 (three weeks)
Single: Madonna, Sept. 16, 2000 (four weeks)
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Shared Title: “SOS”
Album: SZA, Dec. 24, 2022 (10 weeks)
Single: Rihanna, May 13, 2006 (3 weeks)
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Shared Title: “Stand Up”
Album: Dave Matthews Band, May 28, 2005 (one week)
Single: Ludacris featuring Shawnna, Dec. 6, 2003 (one week)
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Shared Title: “Wrecking Ball”
Album: Bruce Springsteen, March 24, 2012 (one week)
Single: Miley Cyrus, Sept. 28, 2013 (three weeks)
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Near Miss: Bad Habits, “Bad Habit”
Album: NAV’s Bad Habits, April 6, 2019 (one week)
Single: Steve Lacy’s “Bad Habit,” Oct. 8, 2022 (three weeks)
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Near Miss: Escape/“Escape (The Pina Colada Song)
Album: Journey’s Escape, Sept. 12, 1981 (one week), Dec. 22, 1979 (two weeks)
Single: Rupert Holmes’ “Escape (The Pina Colada Song),” Sept. 12, 1981 (one week)
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Near Miss: F.A.M.E./“Fame”
Album: Chris Brown’s F.A.M.E., April 9, 2011 (one week)
Single: David Bowie’s “Fame,” Sept. 20, 1975 (two weeks)
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Near Miss: Good Time/“Good Times”
Album: Alan Jackson’s Good Time, March 22, 2008 (one week)
Single: Chic’s “Good Times,” Aug. 18, 1979 (one week)
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Near Miss: Here We Go Again/“Here I Go Again”
Album: Demi Lovato’s Here We Go Again, Aug. 8, 2009 (one week)
Single: Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again,” Oct. 10, 1987 (one week)
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Near Miss: Loving You/“Lovin’ You”
Album: Elvis Presley’s Loving You soundtrack, July 29, 1957 (10 weeks)
Single: Minnie Riperton’s “Lovin’ You,” April 5, 1975 (one week)
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Near Miss: Monster/“The Monster”
Album: R.E.M.’s Monster, Oct. 14, 1994 (two weeks)
Single: Eminem featuring Rihanna’s “The Monster,” Dec. 21, 2013 (four weeks)
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Near Miss: ROCK-STAR, “Rockstar”
Album: Stray Kids’ ROCK-STAR, Nov. 25, 2023 (one week)
Single: Post Malone featuring 21 Savage’s “Rockstar,” Oct. 28, 2017 (eight weeks)
Single: DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch’s “Rockstar,” June 13, 2020 (seven weeks)
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Near Miss: Sevens, “Seven”
Album: Garth Brooks’ Sevens, Dec. 13, 1997 (five weeks)
Single: Jung Kook featuring Latto’s “Seven,” July 29, 2023 (one week)
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Near Miss: Up!/ “Up”
Album: Shania Twain’s Up!, Dec. 7, 2002 (five weeks)
Single: Cardi B’s “Up,” March 27, 2021 (one week)
