Foo Fighters assume sole possession of the fourth-most No. 1s in the 44-year history of Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart, claiming the top spot on the Dec. 6-dated survey with “Asking for a Friend.”
The Dave Grohl-led band snags its 15th No. 1 on the tally, breaking out of a tie with Metallica.
“Asking for a Friend” takes over No. 1 from Five Finger Death Punch, who’s, incidentally, the next act in Foo Fighters’ sights on the all-time leaderboard, as “The End” became the rockers’ 17th ruler.
Most No. 1s, Mainstream Rock Airplay:
21, Shinedown
19, Three Days Grace
17, Five Finger Death Punch
15, Foo Fighters
14, Metallica
13, Disturbed
13, Godsmack
13, Linkin Park
13, Van Halen
With “Asking for a Friend,” Foo Fighters earn their first No. 1 since “The Glass” reigned for a week in April 2024. In between the two, “Today’s Song” peaked at No. 2 this August.
Each of the band’s 15 leaders has been in the past 20 years; its first, “Best of You,” was in 2005. That was after a decade of appearances on the survey that began with “This Is a Call,” which peaked at No. 6 in 1995.
“Asking for a Friend” reaches No. 1 in its fifth week on the ranking, wrapping the quickest coronation this year and the fastest since Linkin Park’s “The Emptiness Machine” took three weeks in October 2024. Foo Fighters’ 2025 high eclipses the six-week trips for Three Days Grace’s “Mayday,” Shinedown’s “Dance, Kid, Dance” and Disturbed’s “I Will Not Break.”
Concurrently, “Asking for a Friend” holds at its No. 5 best on Alternative Airplay and reigns for a second week on the all-rock-format, audience-based Rock & Alternative Airplay chart with 5.9 million audience impressions in the week ending Nov. 27, up 3%, according to Luminate.
The track is currently a standalone single promoting Foo Fighters’ 2026 stadium tour, which kicks off next August. It’s also the first contribution to the band’s discography with new drummer Ilan Rubin, who joined in July.
All Billboard charts dated Dec. 6 will update tomorrow, Dec. 2, on Billboard.com.
