MAJOR. Scores First Gospel Airplay No. 1 With ‘I Prayed for You (Said a Prayer)’

Singer-songwriter MAJOR. (real name Major R. Johnson Finley), who has previously found chart success on Billboard’s Adult R&B Airplay list, notches his first No. 1 on Gospel Airplay (dated May 17). “I Prayed for You (Said a Prayer)” jumps three spots to the top, up 13% in plays among reporting stations during the May 2-8 tracking week, according to Luminate.

MAJOR. co-authored “I Prayed for You (Said a Prayer)” with Brunes Charles and Jeshua “Tedy P” Williams, with the latter also having produced the track.

“There’s a whole lot going on in the world and our hope is being challenged by the day,” MAJOR. tells Billboard. “‘I Prayed for You’ is my love letter to the ones I love, and to the heart of creation … we gon’ be alright. Hope ain’t ever canceled.”

“I Prayed for You (Said a Prayer)” was released from MAJOR.’s album The Hope of My Soul, which was released in June 2023.

MAJOR., who hails from Denton, Texas, has logged one additional entry on Gospel Airplay, as “Whole World in His Hands” hit No. 20 in November 2022.

Notably, the artist posted five titles on Adult R&B Airplay before wading into the gospel format pool. His first appearance in 2016, “Why I Love You,” hit No. 5 that December, becoming his first of two top 10s. Holiday track “Spend Christmas With You” peaked at No. 30 in December 2017; “Honest” reached No. 5 in February 2018; and “Better With You” rose to No. 19 that December.