This Day in Top 40 History: April 4

Breakthrough Hits and Milestones

• 1995: Montell Jordan's debut studio album, This Is How We Do It, came out. It reached No. 12 and No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, respectively. The title track would become one of Jordan's biggest hits, peaking at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. This project delivered another Top 40 single, "Somethin' 4 da Honeyz," which reached No. 21 on the Hot 100.
• 2000: P!nk issued her debut studio album, Can't Take Me Home. In addition to selling at least four million copies worldwide, it delivered two Top 40 singles on the Hot 100, “Most Girls” and “You Make Me Sick.” This record stalled at No. 26 on the Billboard 200.
• 2017: Singer Halsey released her music video for "Now or Never," which featured graphic scenes of shootings, blood spatters, and broken windshields. This song was from her album Hopeless Fountain Kingdom.
• 2019: Now a superstar, a younger Ed Sheeran, known for his hit "Shape of You," performed at Taoyuan City Stadium in Taoyuan City, Taiwan. This was part of his ÷ Tour (pronounced Divide Tour).

Cultural Milestones

• 1932: Clive Davis was born in Brooklyn, New York. Although the four-time GRAMMY winner is a lawyer, most people know him for leading the RCA Music Group, which included J Records, Arista Records, and RCA Records. As such, he helped shape the careers of many successful Top 40 artists, such as  Billy Joel, Whitney Houston, and Aerosmith.
• 1946: Dave Hill was born in Devon, England. He is best known as a member of Slade. He has contributed to the band's Top 40 singles on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Airplay chart. These include “Run, Runaway,” which peaked at No. 1, “Little Sheila,” and “My, Oh My.” Hill is also an actor and has played roles in a number of films, including Slade in Flame. 
• 1972: Jill Scott was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She's a three-time GRAMMY winner who has placed many Top 40 singles, such as “A Long Walk” and “Gettin' In The Way” on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Additionally, she founded the  North Philadelphia-based Blues Babe Foundation, which offers scholarships and empowering educational opportunities for underprivileged children.
• 1989: In a shocking move, the Pepsi-Cola company dropped its ad featuring pop diva Madonna and her song "Like a Prayer." The company stated they had received complaints and boycotts due to religious imagery used in the music video, and Pepsi said they would no longer use Madonna in their ads.
• 2008: Twenty years after the release of their Multi-Platinum album Hangin' Tough, the boy band New Kids on the Block reunited on The Today Show and announced they would go on tour. One of the most popular band members is Donnie Wahlberg, brother of the megacelebrity Mark Wahlberg.
• 2008: Pop star Beyoncé and rapper Jay-Z got married on April 4. They were wed in a top-secret ceremony at Jay-Z's 13,500-square-foot penthouse in Manhattan, New York. Today, both these musicians and performers are top names in their genre.
• 2022: Pop performer Doja Cat was named global ambassador for the audio company JBL. 

Notable Recordings and Performances

• 1998: The Spice Girls kicked off the U.K. leg of their Spiceworld Tour with a memorable performance at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECCE) in Glasgow, Scotland. This event's setlist featured their No. 1 hit, “Wannabe,” “Too Much,” “Spice Up Your Life,” and “Walk of Life.” 
• 2018: Pop star and extravagant performer Harry Styles performed at the Unipol Arena in Casalecchio di Reno, Italy, for his Harry Styles: Live on Tour concert.
• 2023: On April 4, pop group The Jonas Brothers announced they would perform a one-night show at Yankee Stadium in New York on April 12.
• 2024: Justin Timberlake and Olivia Rodrigo headlined the Tecate Pa'l Norte Music Festival in Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico. Other notable performers included Green Day, Kings of Leon, and Massive Attack.
• 2025: “I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)” hitmaker Pitbull performed at the March Madness Music Festival in San Antonio, Texas. Other artists who headlined this event, which ran from April 4-6, included “White Horse” singer Chris Stapleton, Jelly Roll, Benson Boone, Doechii, and T-Pain. 

Industry Changes and Challenges

• 2003: Despite a heavy downpour, the Rolling Stones delivered their first performance in India at the Palace Grounds in Bangalore. They began the show about 40 minutes late, but fans were still excited to watch them play some of their greatest hits, which included “Honky Tonk Women,” “Brown Sugar,” and “Start Me Up.” 
• 1996: Deborah Koons Garcia and Bob Weir scattered half of Jerry Garcia's ashes into India's Ganges River. Jerry, who died in August 1995, was the lead vocalist of the Grateful Dead, whose only Top 40 hit on the Hot 100 is “Touch of Grey.”  According to sources, none of his family members were pleased with Koons and Weir's actions — in fact, the pair didn't even inform Jerry's four daughters, ex-wife Carolyn, and brother Cliff.