No black performer had a Hot 100 no. 1 single during 2013, a first for the chart

Soundcheck, a music site operated by radio station WNYC, points out an alarming trend from 2013: The year was the first in the history of the Hot 100 (began during 1958) to not feature a single track from a black performer at no. 1 in the charts. It seems difficult to believe in a year featuring new albums from Beyoncé, Jay Z and Drake, but not one managed to release a single that topped the Hot 100. Even more bizarre is that the more specific R&B and Hip-Hop Songs chart was topped by a white performer for 44 weeks out of 52 during 2013.

It's easy to explain the latter stat to some degree: The year was dominated by Robin Thicke's soulful crooning during "Blurred Lines" (the top-selling single of 2013), and Justin Timberlake's The 20/20 Experience topped album sales. It may seem like panic-mongering to question the lack of a black no. 1 single, but during 2003 every single that reached no. 1 was by a black artist.

The lack of black permeates throughout all year-end lists. The bestselling album by a black performer was Nothing Was The Same by Drake, coming in at no. 7. Rihanna had the most downloaded single, with "Stay" placing at no. 10. None of the Top 10 most streamed songs on Spotify were from black performers. Even the top Grammy categories are conspicuously short of black contribution: Kendrick Lamar's Good Kid, M.A.A.D City earned a Best Album nod, but no Best Song or Best Record nominees.

Some things to note: If Beyoncé had one more week of 2013, the albums discussion would seem more moot. She placed at no. 7 for the year in album sales after only three weeks of Beyoncé being on the charts, and another week would have pushed her up to no. 4. She seems to have crushed the efforts from white female "competition" such as Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Miley Cyrus. The success of Daft Punk's Grammy-nominated "Get Lucky" or Thicke's "Blurred lines" without the contributions of Pharrell Williams, or Macklemore's "Thrift Shop" sans Wanz.

It's easy to blame this on Big Music, but ultimately listeners are in control. And it's tough to tell listeners that they should listen to something else. But still, something to consider.