BROCKHAMPTON feel like a big example for me - for a while in the late 10s they had so much online hype and felt like the next big thing, you'd always hear them at houseparties but SUGAR (#58) was their only big hit chartwise. It's interesting bc they always seemed to be grouped in with Tyler The Creator but they never made the rise he did and obviously won't now they've broken up.

Other artists from the same era that felt big among young people but never fully smashed: Declan McKenna (even though Brazil is a hit), Rex Orange County, Blossoms (I really would've thought Charlemagne got to like 37 or something!), Pale Waves.

Phoebe Bridgers feels like she could get there one day if things aligned right, lots of big indie names like Mitski are so recognisable to anyone moderately online that they could totally make it if record labels were willing to be a bit more adventurous.

The main one for me is (obviously!!!!) Tinashe (If you don't count 'All My Friends' which was a collab with Snakehips & Chance The Rapper - which is a BANGER)

 

She consistently delivers for me and it's really frustrating seeing someone of her calibre get so under-looked for her own material. :( & very similarly (although I blame her/her label for not capitalising on a more pop/r&b sound sooner before she did the Gospel stuff!!!!) Tori Kelly.

 

Here was me thinking 2 On was a Top 20 smash and it didn't even reach the Top 100 in the UK! It was definitely everywhere in 2014

Imogen Heap feels like a reasonably big one.

For many years it would have been Led Zeppelin who released no singles period when they were together but a later release of 'Whole Lotta Love' made no.21 in 1997 (being their only official single released to celebrate their 30th anniversary). 'Stairway to Heaven' went top 40 on downloads too in 2007.

 

Leonard Cohen was a legendary songwriter but only ever made the charts once when his original version of 'Hallelujah' made the top 40 the week Alexandra Burke went to no.1 (and the Jeff Buckley cover version was at no.2)

 

 

I suppose one could arguably include lots of artists who are massive elsewhere in the world but can't get top 40 hits here due to language/cultural barriers - artists like Karol G. That said several of the other ones i was going to post seem to have got a feature on a top 40 (Becky G, Maluma, Ozuna) but you get the general drift.

 

And lots of huge country artists (although the UK firewall against that seems to be failing somewhat recently with allowing Oliver Anthony, Morgan Wallen and Luke Combs in) but likes of Kane Brown, Sam Hunt, Jason Aldean, Walker Hayes yet to score here.

Edited August 30, 20231 yr by Smint

Tom Waits is one of the most respected and covered artists ever, yet doesn’t have a top 75 hit to his name in his own right.

 

Love this guy especially his ultra avant garde later period stuff like 'Alice', 'Blood Money' and 'Real Gone' albums.

 

Such a beautiful soul.

Markus Feehily, Helena Paparizou

First Aid Kit- 3 top 10 albums, regular TV and radio appearances in the UK and a gold certified single, but no top 100 hits.

I suppose one could arguably include lots of artists who are massive elsewhere in the world but can't get top 40 hits here due to language/cultural barriers - artists like Karol G. That said several of the other ones i was going to post seem to have got a feature on a top 40 (Becky G, Maluma, Ozuna) but you get the general drift.

 

And lots of huge country artists (although the UK firewall against that seems to be failing somewhat recently with allowing Oliver Anthony, Morgan Wallen and Luke Combs in) but likes of Kane Brown, Sam Hunt, Jason Aldean, Walker Hayes yet to score here.

 

One of these things is not like the other things :whistle:

 

('Fancy Like' was obviously huge - and thank GOD the surge in support for country in the UK didn't kick in early enough for that to cross over here - but he's more of a quasi one hit wonder in the US compared to the rest of those names who chart much more consistently)

 

Your list of Latin names does remind me Peso Pluma is a big one, he's been rivalling Bad Bunny levels of dominance globally this year but we're yet to see even the faintest whiff of interest in him in the UK. Bad Bunny himself has of course only ever charted when collaborating with big Western names too, and same for ROSALÍA (although they both did make the albums chart with their most recent releases).

 

A lot of US hip-hop acts are nowhere near as big here as in the US too of course, Moneybagg Yo comes to mind as a big one who has never made the top 40 here, and I believe only 2 top 100 hits (one of which was a Digga D collab which naturally isn't among his US hits).

 

BROCKHAMPTON feel like a big example for me - for a while in the late 10s they had so much online hype and felt like the next big thing, you'd always hear them at houseparties but SUGAR (#58) was their only big hit chartwise. It's interesting bc they always seemed to be grouped in with Tyler The Creator but they never made the rise he did and obviously won't now they've broken up.

 

Funny to think that pretty much all of their (very limited) chart success actually came after half of the Internet decided they had already 'fallen off' as well. 'SUGAR' was never one of my favourite songs from them but it was a bit anticlimactic when it looked like it was on its way to being a big hit and then just never quite got there :'(

 

I want to believe there's still the chance of future solo material from Kevin making commercial waves but I shouldn't have hope x

 

I think it's definitely only a matter of time before Phoebe Bridgers and/or Mitski manage to get a hit single.

 

Also not exactly sure you can call this a hit in the truest sense, but James Blake has been releasing albums for years and his only chart hit was a #39 hit from 2010 with this;

 

 

Honestly it's quite a miracle James Blake even has one top 40 hit here! (surprisingly enough he actually has 2 top 40 hits - 3 including one that's technically uncredited - in the US now as of a couple of weeks ago, both thanks to his hip-hop connections (Kendrick Lamar / Travis Scott))

For another big US RnB/hip hop artist who's never had a UK top 75, there's Rod Wave whose had over 50 Billboard Hot 100 tracks, most of them are album tracks at the lower reaches but 4 top 20s to his name.

 

 

That Petrol Emotion had 7 top 75 entries, with their biggest hit being 'Big Decision', which reached #43 in April 1987.

 

A great act if you're into 80s music

 

 

 

Several adult-oriented artists who sell a lot of albums have had few/no hit singles e.g. Alfie Boe.

Several adult-oriented artists who sell a lot of albums have had few/no hit singles e.g. Alfie Boe.

If only “You’ll Never Walk Alone” was a Ball & Boe release!

If only “You’ll Never Walk Alone” was a Ball & Boe release!

 

It should have been tbh, with a spoken word intro from Captain Tom so he got the credit on the track.

 

Would have been a lot better to listen to.

Tame Impala was the first name that came to my mind too, huge influence and always lots of listeners but never had a top 40 hit (and no top 100 hits until 2019 either)!