It's a great day to be a Sam Smith and Kim Petras stan — the popstars have made history as the first openly transgender and non-binary artists to hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This also marks the first time each artist has earned the top spot on the chart, after putting out hits over the years.
Sam is most notably known for ballads like "Stay" and "No Good at Goodbyes" and has even won an Oscar for their Bond song, "Writing's On The Wall." Kim has spawned infectious songs like the TikTok-viral "Coconuts," "Heart to Break," and "Unlock It" alongside Charli XCX. Now, their bass-heavy pop collaboration, "Unholy," is the number one song in the U.S. after climbing up the charts for nearly a month.
The track initially gained popularity on TikTok, where Sam and Kim respectively teased snippets with several videos ahead of its official release in September.
In a 2017 interview with PAPER, Kim opened up about the expectations she faces as a pop artist who happens to be transgender. "A lot of people didn't believe that I could be a great songwriter, or be super talented, and be transgender. I feel like a lot of people felt like 'transgender' would set you up to not be able to do that," she told the outlet at the time. "I just want to prove people wrong. I want to get a Number 1 on the [Billboard] Hot 100."
Kim achieved the career milestone alongside British hitmaker Sam, who identifies as non-binary. She gave them a shoutout on social media upon receiving the news that their song went number one. "NUMBER ONEEEE HOT 100! I'm so grateful," the Turn Off The Light singer wrote. "Sam I can't thank you enough for riding with me for years at this point. I'm so honored to be a part of your first number one in the US which you should have 500 of at this point. I love you forever angel Sam."
Sam also shared the news on Instagram Stories, where they reposted an article from the No H8 Campaign that highlighted the milestone.
Leading up to their number one, Kim told Billboard that she felt it was "her job" to stand up for the LGBTQ+ community through her music and career.
"I think I grew up in a more difficult time than now — 10 years ago, I could not have imagined how accepted my presence would be," she said. "As long as the music is good and you're really freaking good at what you do, you can make it. I've built this fanbase over the last five years, which is all kids that are like me; it's my job to stand up for my community and my fans who have been there since the beginning."
If you haven't already, check out Sam and Kim's number one song, "Unholy," now.
Sam is an assistant news editor at Cosmo, covering all things pop culture, entertainment, and celebrity news. She previously covered those same topics along with health, lifestyle, and beauty at Seventeen. When she isn't draping her cheeks in blush, you can probably find her live-tweeting awards shows or making SwiftToks.
