‘Drag Race’ Brings Doja Cat’s ‘Boss Bitch’ Back To The Charts
Doja Cat's single "Boss Bitch" made its way back to a number of Billboard charts, thanks to being featured in a recent Drag Race episode.
Careful, spoilers ahead!
RuPaul’s Drag Race has become one of the most popular shows on television, gaining a massive following over the years. The reality staple has an undeniable ability to make stars out of its contestants, and it can also propel songs featured on the show to newfound popularity.
This week, Doja Cat’s single “Boss Bitch” made its way back to a number of Billboard charts, thanks in large part to its prominent feature in a recent Drag Race episode, and the song’s resurgence on the charts is a testament to the show’s reach and influence.
“Boss Bitch” reappears on Billboard’s R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales chart this week at No. 13, marking a new high point for the song.
The tune also returned to the Rap Digital Song Sales ranking, coming in at No. 5, similarly making it to a new peak. Cat has now claimed seven top 10 wins on that tally, which is an impressive feat.
Both of those Billboard charts focus solely on which tunes in a specific genre actually sold the most copies (as opposed to racking up streams or YouTube views) in the previous tracking week.
When an older cut returns to a sales-only list, it’s usually because of something that happened in media — a placement on a show or in a movie is a common cause — that led a large number of people to rush to purchase that single.
“Boss Bitch” was featured in the latest episode of Drag Race as the song the two queens who ended up in the bottom had to lip sync to in order to save their spot in the competition. It was a memorable performance that left a lasting impression on viewers, and it may go down as one of the more impressive of all time…or at least in recent memory.
The showdown was between Anetra and Marcia Marcia Marcia, and they both turned it out. The two queens delivered flips and kicks and the performance even saw one of them leap over the other in a move that may have been the deciding factor.
“Boss Bitch” was originally released in 2020 as a single from the soundtrack that accompanied the movie Birds of Prey. The cut somewhat underperformed at the time, only making it to No. 100 on the Hot 100 — Billboard‘s weekly ranking of the most popular tracks in the U.S. and the most competitive tally in America — as well as a handful of less prestigious genre-only charts.
This isn’t the first time a song featured on Drag Race has made it big. The show has a history of introducing new music — and also older tunes that some in the audience aren’t familiar with) — to its viewers, and some of those songs have gone on to become chart hits thanks to their being featured.
Support Metro Weekly’s Journalism
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
You must be logged in to post a comment.