This Day in Top 40 History: May 4

Breakthrough Hits and Milestones

• 1993: Run-DMC's sixth studio LP, Down with the King, came out.  The album cracked the Top 10 on both the Billboard 200 and the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Additionally, the title track peaked at No. 21 on Billboard's Hot 100 and No. 9 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. 
• 2018: Frank Turner unleashed his seventh studio album, Be More Kind. It featured “Blackout,” “There She Is,” “1933,” and 10 other tracks. This record peaked at No. 3 in the U.K. and spent two weeks on the charts. Notably, it earned the favor of many fans and critics, thanks to its simple yet profound message, which encouraged listeners to be kinder and more compassionate.
• 2019: On the Billboard Hot 100 for May 4 was Post Malone's “Wow.” at No. 2, which spent 18 weeks on the charts. In addition, Post Malone and Swae Lee's “Sunflower” came in at No. 3 after 27 weeks on the charts. 
• 2024: Swift and Post Malone's “Fortnight” was at No. 1 on the chart, and her single “Down Bad” hit No. 2. Moving down the charts, her “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart” was at No. 3, and her album The Tortured Poets Department was at No. 4 on the charts.
• 2024: There was no stopping this mega superstar as Swift's “So Long, London” was No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, and “My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys” was at No. 6. Swift had several other successive hits, including “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived” at No. 14.
• 2024: After thousands of paid performances in her decades of touring, Madonna held a free concert at the historic Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Interestingly, Lady Gaga followed in Madonna's footsteps and held a free show at this same place on May 3, 2025, which she titled Mayhem on the Beach.

Cultural  Milestones 

• 1951: Indiana native Jackie Jackson was born. He was a founding member of The Jackson 5, who placed chart-toppers such as “ABC” and “I Want You Back” on the Billboard Hot 100. The “Stay” singer shares his birthday with his mother, Katherine Jackson, who was also born on this date in 1930.
• 2020: Grimes welcomed her son X Æ A-12, whose name was later changed to X Æ A-Xii to comply with California's birth certificate regulations. The Miss Anthropocene artist shares him with Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, with whom she has two more children, Exa Dark Sideræl and Techno Mechanicus. 

Notable Recordings and Performances

• 1968: The Beach Boys performed at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York. The “I Get Around” hitmakers were on The ‘Maharishi' Tour with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Besides The Beach Boys, Yogi worked with many big names as a “spiritual advisor,” including The Beatles. Unfortunately, this tour was a flop, and the Beach Boys were forced to cancel it due to low ticket sales. 
• 1973: Deep Purple took their Who Do We Think We Are tour to the Henry Levitt Arena in Wichita, Kansas. Among the songs on the setlist were “Lazy,” “Highway Star,” “Smoke on the Water,” and “Strange Kind Of Woman.” Note that this trek supported their Top 20 album of the same name. 
• 2019: Pop star and sometime country star, Miley Cyrus, performed at the Beale Street Music Festival in Memphis, Tennessee.
• 2024: Madonna lit up the stage at the Praia de Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This concert's setlist featured over 20 songs, including “Ray of Light,” “Crazy For You,” “Erotica,” and “Bad Girl.” It was part of Madonna's The Celebration Tour, a trek that honored her four-decade-long career, during which she has earned the moniker “Queen of Pop.”
• 2024: AJR played the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 4 as part of their The Maybe Man tour. The top songs they sang included “Yes I'm a Mess” and “Touchy Feely Fool.”

Industry Changes and Challenges

• 1991: Ann Richards, the 45th governor of Texas, declared this date ZZ Top Day, honoring their contribution to the music industry. With at least 8 Top 40 singles in both the U.K. and the U.S., these Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees are known for blending hard rock, boogie, and blues. Their music, which includes classics such as “Sleeping Bag” and “Legs,” has influenced countless other artists. 
• 2011: Pop singer turned country artist Marie Osmond remarried her former husband, Steve Craig. They were previously married in 1982. They had a child, got divorced, and then remarried proving love has a way of finding each other's hearts again.
• 2012: Adam “MCA” Yauch passed away at 47 following a nearly three-year battle with parotid cancer. He was a founding member of The Beastie Boys, whose 1986 album Licensed to Ill was the first rap record to hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The trio, which also included Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz and Mike "Mike D" Diamond, would then score more chart-toppers in the U.S., such as Ill Communication and Hello Nasty.
• 2024: Pop fans anticipated fun under the sun at the Lovers & Friends music festival at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds with headliners such as Usher, Alicia Keys, T-Pain, and Mary J. Blige. However, the National Weather Service issued high wind warnings due to severe weather, and the festival organizers canceled the event for May 4.