They’re all here, from Paul Anka to Drake.
HOUSTON, TEXAS – MARCH 16: Rapper, songwriter, and icon Drake attends a game between the Houston Rockets and the Cleveland Cavaliers at Toyota Center on March 16, 2024 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
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Drake lands his 14th No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 this week as “Janice STFU” enters the chart (dated May 30) in the top spot. He is one of only five artists – and the only Canadian artist – to land 14 or more No. 1 hits. He trails The Beatles (England, 20) and Mariah Carey (United States, 19), and is tied with Rihanna (Barbados, 14) and Taylor Swift (U.S., 14).
This allows Drake to extend his lead on our list of Canadian artists who have topped the Hot 100, dating back to its launch in August 1958. He has had nearly as many No. 1 hits as his two closest Canadian rivals combined.
Paul Anka became the first Canadian artist to top the Hot 100, scoring in July 1959 with “Lonely Boy.” Anka’s U.S. hits predate the inception of the Hot 100. His 1957 breakthrough smash “Diana” topped Billboard’s Best Sellers in Stores chart.
Percy Faith, who in 1960 became the second Canadian artist to top the Hot 100, also had hits that predated that chart. His “Delicado” and “The Song From Moulin Rouge (Where Is Your Heart)” were major hits in 1952-53.
But which Canadian artists, besides Drake, have had the most No. 1 hits on the Hot 100? Rosie Long Decter of Billboard Canada prepared this comprehensive report, which we reformatted into a ranking.
Count down the chart-topping Canadian acts below – listed from fewest to most No. 1 hits. Artists with the same number of No. 1s are listed chronologically by the date that their earliest No. 1 hit reached the top spot.
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Percy Faith, 1
No. 1 Hit: “The Theme From ‘A Summer Place’ ” (1960, 9 weeks)
Notes: The shimmering film theme was the first instrumental hit to win a Grammy as record of the year. It was also nominated for song of the year, despite the fact that it was an instrumental. (That’s no longer allowed.)
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Lorne Greene, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Ringo” (1964, 1 week)
Notes: Greene was far better-known as the star of Bonanza, which was the No. 1-rated TV series for three consecutive seasons in the mid-1960s. The show’s run on top included the 1964-65 season, when Greene’s spoken-word hit reached No. 1.
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The Guess Who, 1
No. 1 Hit: “American Woman”/“No Sugar Tonight” (1970, 3 weeks)
Notes: The Guess Who became the first Canadian group or duo to top the Hot 100. The band’s original version of “American Woman” wasn’t even nominated for a Grammy, but Lenny Kravitz’s cover version won best male rock vocal performance in 2000. Go figure. The Guess Who was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1987.
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Neil Young, 1
Image Credit: Scott Dudelson/WireImage No. 1 Hit: “Heart of Gold” (1972, 1 week)
Notes: Young was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1982. He has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice – on his own in 1995 and as a member of Buffalo Springfield two years later.
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Terry Jacks, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Seasons in the Sun” (1974, 3 weeks)
Notes: Jacks just missed the top spot in 1970 when The Poppy Family’s “Which Way You Goin’ Billy” peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100. He was a member of that pop group, along with his wife Susan Jacks and others.
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Gordon Lightfoot, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Sundown” (1974, 1 week)
Notes: Lightfoot just missed landing a second No. 1 hit on the Hot 100 when “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” topped out at No. 2 in 1976. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2012.
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Andy Kim, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Rock Me Gently” (1974, 1 week)
Notes: Kim had teamed with Jeff Barry to write The Archies’ “Sugar, Sugar,” a No. 1 smash on the Hot 100 in 1969 (and one of the biggest and best bubblegum hits of all time). He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2019.
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Bachman-Turner Overdrive, 1
No. 1 Hit: “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” (1974, 1 week)
Notes: This stuttering smash was the fifth song by a Canadian artist to top the Hot 100 in 1974 – a record that wouldn’t be equaled until 2021. Randy Bachman was the first Canadian musician to top the Hot 100 as part of two groups – The Guess Who and BTO. He has been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame twice – in tandem with The Guess Who in 1987 and on his own in 2014.
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Nick Gilder, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Hot Child in the City” (1978, 1 week)
Notes: Gilder had been a member of the group Sweeney Todd, which had a minor Hot 100 hit in 1976 with “Roxy Roller.” There was nothing minor about “Hot Child in the City,” which remained on the chart for 31 weeks, a long run by 1970s standards.
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Anne Murray, 1
Image Credit: Doug Griffin/Toronto Star via Getty Images No. 1 Hit: “You Needed Me” (1978, 1 week)
Notes: Murray became the first Canadian woman artist to top the Hot 100. “You Needed Me” won a Grammy for best pop vocal performance, female, and was nominated for record of the year. In 1993, she was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. In 2025, she is receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Junos.
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Sheriff, 1
No. 1 Hit: “When I’m With You” (1989, 1 week)
Notes: This record stalled at No. 61 on the Hot 100 when it was first released in 1983. Capitol Records tried again more than five years later, when the ballad made it all the way to No. 1.
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Alannah Myles, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Black Velvet” (1990, 2 weeks)
Notes: This marks the first hit by a Canadian woman to log multiple weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100. It won a Juno Award as single of the year in 1990 and a Grammy for best rock vocal performance, female.
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Snow, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Informer” (1993, 7 weeks)
Notes: “Informer” became just the third song by a Canadian artist to top the Hot 100 for seven or more weeks. At the time, only Percy Faith’s “Theme From ‘A Summer Place’ ” (nine weeks) and Bryan Adams’ “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You” (seven) had remained on top as long.
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Barenaked Ladies, 1
No. 1 Hit: “One Week” (1998, 1 week)
Notes: How appropriate that this song was No. 1 for exactly “One Week”? This won a Juno Award as best single in 1999. The band was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2018.
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Nickelback, 1
No. 1 Hit: “How You Remind Me” (2001-02, 4 weeks)
Notes: This power ballad won a Juno Award as best single in 2002 and received a Grammy nod for record of the year. The group was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2023. Not bad for a band that has taken a lot of abuse from critics and tastemakers.
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Daniel Powter, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Bad Day”(2006, 5 weeks)
Notes: Powter is a true one-hit wonder. He topped the Hot 100 with his one and only chart entry. But what a smash.
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Avril Lavigne, 1
Image Credit: MJ Kim/Getty Images No. 1 Hit: “Girlfriend” (2007, 1 week)
Notes: Lavigne just missed topping the Hot 100 with her 2002 breakthrough hit, “Complicated,” which peaked at No. 2. Five years later, she went all the way. “Girlfriend” received a Juno nod for single of the year in 2008.
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Carly Rae Jepsen, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Call Me Maybe” (2012, 9 weeks)
Notes: This smash boasts the longest run atop the Hot 100 of any hit by a Canadian woman. It won a Juno for single of the year in 2013 and received a Grammy nod for song of the year.
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MAGIC!, 1
No. 1 Hit: “Rude” (2014, 6 weeks)
Notes: This hit sports the longest run atop the Hot 100 of any hit by a Canadian group. It won a Juno Award for single of the year in 2015.
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Shawn Mendes, 1
No. 1 Hit: Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello’s “Señorita” (2019, 1 week)
Notes: Mendes also made the top 10 with “Stiches,” “Treat You Better” and “There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back,” but he has so far reached the top spot only with this duet with then-girlfriend.
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Daniel Caesar, 1
No. 1 Hit: Justin Bieber’s “Peaches” feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon (2021, 1 week)
Notes: This is the only collab involving two Canadian artists – Caesar and Bieber – to top the Hot 100. It received Grammy nods for record and song of the year and a Juno nod for single of the year.
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Tate McRae, 1
No. 1 Hit: Morgan Wallen’s “What I Want” featuring McRae (2025, 1 week so far)
Notes: McRae nearly topped the Hot 100 in January 2024 with her smash “Greedy,” which peaked at No. 3. She finally accomplishes the feat this week as the featured artist on Morgan Wallen’s “What I Want.”
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Paul Anka, 2
Image Credit: Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix via Getty Images No. 1 Hits: “Lonely Boy” (1959, 4 weeks); “(You’re) Having My Baby” (with Odia Coates, 1974, 3 weeks)
Notes: Anka became the first Canadian artist to top the Hot 100 – and also the first Canadian to top the Hot 100 twice. He was voted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1993. In 2008, he received the SHOF’s highest honor, the Johnny Mercer Award, which each year recognizes a previously-inducted songwriter for a legacy of outstanding creative works.
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Nelly Furtado, 3
No. 1 Hits: “Promiscuous” (feat. Timbaland, 2006, 6 weeks); “Say It Right” (2007, 1 week); Timbaland’s “Give It to Me” (feat. Nelly Furtado and Justin Timberlake, 2007, 2 weeks)
Notes: Furtado became just the second Canadian woman to amass three No. 1 hits. “Promiscuous” won a Juno Award as single of the year in 2007.
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Bryan Adams, 4
No. 1 Hits: “Heaven” (1985, two weeks); “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You” (1991, seven weeks); Bryan Adams/Rod Stewart/Sting’s “All for Love” (1994, 3 weeks); “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?” (1995, 5 weeks)
Notes: Adams stands as the first Canadian artist to top the Hot 100 three times, and also the first to top it four times. “(Everything I Do) I Do It for You” received Grammy nods for record and song of the year and an Oscar nod for best original song. It also received a Juno nod for single of the year. “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?” also received Oscar and Juno nods. Adams received the Junos’ International Achievement Award in 1992 and was voted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2006.
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Celine Dion, 4
No. 1 Hits: “The Power of Love” (1994, 4 weeks); “Because You Loved Me” (1996, 4 weeks); “My Heart Will Go On” (1998, 2 weeks); R. Kelly and Celine Dion’s “I’m Your Angel” (1998-99, 6 weeks)
Notes: Dion has had more No. 1 hits on the Hot 100 than any other Canadian woman. “My Heart Will Go On,” the iconic love theme from Titanic, won an Oscar for best original song and won Grammys for record and song of the year. “Because You Loved Me” was nominated for all three of those awards. Both of those songs received Juno nods for single of the year, as did “The Power of Love.” It’s a chart oddity that the little-remembered (and now best-forgotten) “I’m Your Angel” had three times as many weeks at No. 1 as Dion’s signature song, “My Heart Will Go On.” Dion is the only artist to receive the Junos’ International Achievement Award twice (in both 1997 and 1999), which seems both a little redundant and entirely appropriate.
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The Weeknd, 7
No. 1 Hits: “Can’t Feel My Face” (2015, 3 weeks); “The Hills” (2015, 6 weeks); “Starboy” (feat. Daft Punk, 2017, 1 week); “Heartless” (2019, 1 week); “Blinding Lights” (2020, 4 weeks); The Weeknd and Ariana Grande’s “Save Your Tears” (2021, 2 weeks); “Die for You” (feat. Ariana Grande, 2023, 1 week)
Notes: “Can’t Feel My Face” won a Juno for single of the year and received a Grammy nod for record of the year. “Blinding Lights” – No. 1 on Billboard’s Greatest of All Time Hot 100 Songs retrospective – also won a Juno for single of the year. “Starboy” was nominated in that category. “Blinding Lights” inexplicably wasn’t nominated in any Grammy categories. The Weeknd was understandably a little miffed.
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Justin Bieber, 8
Image Credit: George Pimentel/Getty Images No. 1 Hits: “What Do You Mean?” (2015, 1 week); “Sorry” (2016, 3 weeks); “Love Yourself” (2016, 2 weeks); DJ Khaled’s “I’m the One” feat. Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper and Lil Wayne, 2017, 1 week); Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito” feat. Justin Bieber (2017, 16 weeks); Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber, “Stuck with U” (2020, 1 week); “Peaches” (feat. Daniel Caesar and Giveon, 2021, 1 week); The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber’s “Stay” (2021, 7 weeks)
Notes: With 16 weeks atop the Hot 100, “Despacito” is the longest-running No. 1 hit involving a Canadian artist. “Love Yourself” was Grammy-nominated for song of the year; “Despacito” and “Peaches,” for both record and song of the year. “What Do You Mean?” and “Peaches” were both nominated for Junos for single of the year. Bieber received the Junos’ International Achievement Award in 2022.
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Drake, 14
No. 1 Hits: Rihanna’s “What’s My Name?” (feat. Drake, 2010, 1 week); Rihanna’s “Work” (feat. Drake, 2016, 9 weeks); “One Dance” (feat. WizKid & Kyla (2016, 10 weeks); “God’s Plan” (2018, 11 weeks); “Nice for What” (2018, eight weeks); “In My Feelings” (2018, 10 weeks); “Toosie Slide” (2020, 1 week); “What’s Next” (2021, 1 week); “Way 2 Sexy” (feat. Future and Young Thug, 2021, 1 week); Future’s “Wait for U” (feat. Drake and Tems, 2022, 1 week); “Jimmy Cooks” (feat. 21 Savage, 2022, 1 week); “Slime You Out” (feat. SZA, 2023, 1 week); “First Person Shooter” (feat. J. Cole, 2023, 1 week); “Janice STFU” (2025, 1 week so far).
Notes: “God’s Plan” logged the longest run at No. 1 of any song by a Canadian lead artist. Drake’s seven most recent No. 1 hits each had just a single week on top. Even so, he has had more songs with multiple weeks on top (five) than any other Canadian artist. Drake received a Grammy nod for best new artist in 2011 (when he went head-to-head with Bieber, both losing to jazz phenom Esperanza Spalding). Drake received the Hal David Starlight Award (for fast-rising talents) at the Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala in 2011. He received the Junos’ International Achievement Award in 2017. He landed Grammy nods for record of the year for both “Work” and “God’s Plan.” The latter was also nominated for song of the year. “One Dance” and “Starboy” both received Juno nods for single of the year.
