Sam Smith and Kim Petras become first out trans artists to go Number 1 on the Hot 100
25 October 2022, 11:39
Sam Smith and Kim Petras record Unholy in the studio
Sam Smith and Kim Petras' 'Unholy' is the Number 1 record on the Billboard Hot 100 this week.
Sam Smith and Kim Petras have just made music history and become the first openly trans artists to go Number 1 in the US.
Yesterday (Oct 24), Billboard announced that Sam Smith and Kim Petras' duet 'Unholy' had topped the Hot 100. The TikTok hit climbed to the summit in its fourth week on the chart and has surpassed recent Number 1s, such as Steve Lacy's 'Bad Habit', Harry Styles' 'As it Was' and Nicki Minaj's 'Super Freaky Girl'. This is Sam and Kim's first ever US Number 1.
In topping the charts, 'Unholy' has now become the first song by an out trans artist, in this case two, to ever go Number 1.
READ MORE: Sam Smith debuts new tattoo paying tribute to non-binary identity
Sam is yet to publicly react to the achievement but Kim has taken to her Instagram page to celebrate.
Kim wrote: "NUMBER ONEEEE HOT 100! I’m so grateful. 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".
Speaking to Billboard about being the first trans artists to ever the top the Hot 100, Kim said: "I just really don’t want to be the last. There’s always been incredible and talented trans artists. I’m just happy that Sam gave me the chance to shine here. It feels like people are finally ready for us to succeed, and that fills me with a lot of joy."
Following the song's immediate success, Sam also told Billboard: "People understanding us is just the best feeling in the world. Because there’s nothing bad happening here, it’s all love. No one’s taking anything from anyone. People are just trying to live in their own skin on this earth."
Sam Smith came out as non-binary in 2019 and has since opened up about their gender identity in multiple interviews.
Speaking with GQ this year, Sam said: "This is what I think people don’t understand: that the first five years of my career, I almost felt like I was a woman, at times, dressing up in male clothing. I’ve always felt queer. I’ve always felt gender non-conforming. And I’ve always felt non-binary trans. My whole life."
Meanwhile, Kim has been out as trans since she was a teenager. She even appeared on multiple German talk shows and documentaries during her adolescence where she spoke candidly about being trans and her gender identity journey.
In a Glamour interview last summer, Kim said: "I'm proud to be a transgender woman. I used to be scared of, or like, why can't I just be normal? Now I'm just proud to have overcome that and to like myself and to be openly transgender."
Congratulations Sam and Kim!
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