Linkin Park makes their No. 1 debut on the Rock & Alternative Airplay Chart with ‘Friendly Fire’

With “Friendly Fire,” Linkin Park makes its seventh No. 1 debut in the history of Billboard’s Rock & Alternative Airplay chart. The list is dated March 9 and has the song’s premiere at the top.

According to Luminate, “Friendly Fire” concludes with 7.9 million radio listener impressions obtained between February 23 and 29.

“Lost” by Linkin Park was the latest song to debut at No. 1; it peaked at No. 1 on the poll dated February 25, 2023.

Actually, since the ranking’s inception in 2009, Linkin Park has had three of the five No. 1 debuts. On August 21, 2010, the group made history as “The Catalyst” appeared at the top of the chart.

Green Day’s “Oh Love” (Aug. 4, 2012) and Foo Fighters’ “Rope” (March 12, 2011) are the other two No. 1 beginnings.

With five No. 1s on Rock & Alternative Airplay thus far, Linkin Park is tied for the fifth-most in the history of the chart with Imagine Dragons and The Black Keys. With eleven, Foo Fighters top all acts.

The majority of No. 1 songs are by Rock & Alternative Airplay11, Foo Fighters7, Green Day6, Cage the Elephant6, 21 Pilots5, Imagine Dragons5, Linkin Park4, Red Hоt Chili Peppers3, and Weezer.Other Rock & Alternative Airplay No. 1s for Linkin Park include “Bur𝚗 It Down” (2012) and “New Divide” (2009), both of which had their No. 2 debuts.

Meanwhile, “Friendly Fire” debuts on Mainstream Rock Airplay at position eight and on Alternative Airplay at position nine. On each count, it’s the band’s 19th top 10. In the 35-year history of the chart, Linkin Park now holds the exclusive record for the sixth-most top 10s on the latter. With 30, Foo Fighters are ahead.

Alternative Airplay 30, Foo Fighters 28, Red Hоt Chili Peppers 26, Green Day 23, U221, Weezer 20, Pearl Jam 19, Linkin Park 18, Pearl Jam 17, Muse 17, and The Smashing Pumpkins are among the most popular acts.In addition to its radio exposure, “Friendly Fire,” which was released on February 23, is anticipated to score well on the multimetric Hоt Rock & Alternative Songs list based on its first-week sales and streams. On Tuesday, March 5, Billboard.com will update with all of the March 9 Billboard charts.

Before vocalist Chester Bennington passed away in 2017, Linkin Park recorded “Friendly Fire” during recording sessions for One More Light, their last studio album. The track will appear on Papercuts, the band’s upcoming April 12 compilation of tracks from throughout their career.