Tasha Cobbs Leonard posts her fifth (and third in succession) No. 1 on Billboard‘s opens in a new windowGospel Airplay chart with “Gotta Believe.” The song increased by 21% in plays in the tracking week ending March 13, according to MRC Data.
Cobbs Leonard penned her new leader solo.
The coronation also follows her March 9 opens in a new windowannouncement that she and her husband, producer Kenneth Leonard, have adopted a baby boy, Asher Amaris Leonard.
“I wrote ‘Gotta Believe’ as a testament of God’s faithfulness through a difficult time on our fertility journey,” Cobbs Leonard tells Billboard. “For this song to be the most-played song at gospel radio the same week we finalized adoption of my precious new baby is amazing! I am so grateful.”
“Gotta Believe” follows Cobbs Leonard’s “In Spite of Me,” which reigned for a week last June, and “You Know My Name (Live),” which led for a week in October 2019.
The singer-songwriter topped Gospel Airplay with her debut hit, “ opens in a new windowBreak Every Chain,” for seven weeks starting in June 2013, and added her second No. 1 as a featured artist on Kirk Franklin’s “ opens in a new windowMy World Needs You” (also featuring Sarah Reeves and Tamela Mann), a two-week leader in July 2017.
Tasha Cobbs Leonard Named Billboard’s Top Gospel Artist Of The Decade
With five No. 1s on Gospel Airplay, which launched in March 2005, Cobbs Leonard ties six other acts for the fourth-best total. Among women, she and Jekalyn Carr trail only Tamela Mann, with eight No. 1s; Mann and Kirk Franklin boast the most leaders among all acts.
