(Hot 100 table: What You Need, debut 2/14/26, peak 29, peak date 8/08/26, 30 wks). Weekly positions from a chart archive: Oct 17 #33, Oct 10 #30, Oct 3 #29, Sep 26 #29.
The No. 29 return on the new chart and Rhythmic Airplay No. 1 come from one secondary music site only; Confirm on billboard charts hot 100 and rhythmic-airplay.
The record claim (longest Hot 100 run for a solo African act) is not confirmed; check Water and Love Nwantiti week totals on Billboard before publishing any record wording.
Tems is still holding America down. Her solo single “What You Need” has now spent 30 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, according to Billboard’s chart history for the singer.
As of 10:20 PM WAT on Tuesday, 20 October, Billboard lists the song with a debut date of 14 February 2026, a peak of No. 29 (first reached in the chart dated 8 August) and 30 total weeks on the chart.
The run has not been a straight line. The song entered at No. 93 in February, dropped off, and fought its way back, settling in the 30s through September before touching No. 29 again in late September and early October. It sat at No. 33 on the chart dated 17 October.
Chart watchers say the song has climbed back to No. 29 on the newest chart and has reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Rhythmic Airplay chart, her first No. 1 there as a lead artist. Billboard has not yet posted the full new chart, so we will confirm both once it does.
Fans are also calling it the longest Hot 100 run ever for a song by an African act without a featured superstar. Earlier long runs by African-led songs include Tyla’s “Water” and CKay’s “Love Nwantiti”. We are checking the exact week counts before calling it a record.
Either way, this is Tems doing it on her own name. “What You Need” first came out on a surprise EP last November before being pushed again as a standalone single, and radio has kept it alive for most of the year.
For more on what Tems has been saying about her next move, read our https://naijahousegist.com/?s=tems Tems coverage, including her plans for a melancholic, R&B-leaning second album and her dream collaboration with Sade.
Is “What You Need” your Tems favourite, or does “Free Mind” still hold the crown? Tell us in the comments.