Cardi B makes music history and dethrones Taylor Swift from the charts
"Bodak Yellow" is No. 1 on the Billboard 100 chart, replacing "Look What You Made Me Do."
It had been nearly two decades since a solo female rapper topped Billboard's Hot 100 chart. And then Cardi B burst onto the scene.
The Bronx native's breakout anthem "Bodak Yellow (Money Moves)" secured the No. 1 spot on the latest chart, Billboard announced Monday. The last time a female rapper held that spot without the assistance of any other credited artists was Lauryn Hill in 1998 with "Doo Wop (That Thing)."
Aside from Hill, the only female rappers to top the Billboard Hot 100 had songs with other musicians: Lil' Kim ("Lady Marmalade"); Shawnna ("Stand Up"); and Iggy Azalea ("Fancy").
Cardi B's ascent also means she toppled Taylor Swift, who had occupied the No. 1 spot for three weeks with "Look What You Made Me Do." Although Swift broke plenty of streaming records with that much-buzzed single, her reign was more short-lived than expected.
Read more: Why we all seem to be loving Cardi B
Cardi B once worked as an exotic dancer — a past she raps about on her breakout single: "I don't dance now, I make money moves." She then gained notoriety through viral videos on Vine and Instagram and even appeared on the VH1 reality show "Love & Hip Hop."
[Warning: The following video contains explicit language.]
"Bodak Yellow" dropped in early summer and became one of the year's most streamed songs. Cardi B plans to release her first studio album next month; she already has put out two mix tapes. She graced the Liberty Stage earlier this month at the Made in America festival in Philadelphia.
Her unapologetic, unfiltered and outrageous presence, both on her tracks and on social media, has a down-to-earth quality that has brought her legions of fans.
Even Janet Jackson has been dancing along to "Bodak Yellow" while on tour.
"It feels amazing and it's overwhelming. It's like, it fills me up with lot of happiness and a lot of joy," Cardi B told the Associated Press about her song's success. "It's just, like, unbelievable. I've been through so many things and I worked so hard for me to be here, and it's like I'm finally here getting what I wanted, [and getting] the respect from other artists and from everybody."