Rhythm Section

"NAME' CALLING: After six weeks at No. 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott's "Hot Boyz" (The Gold Mind/EastWest) is dethroned to make room for Destiny's Child's "Say My Name." Columbia released a commercial single of "Name" to retail stores Feb. 29, giving the track just the stamina needed to reach the No. 1 slot, and it scans 22,215 units at the R&B core store panel.
Radio across the country has embraced this single, and now, it seems, the public has as well. Look for a maxi-single containing new remixes by Timbaland and Nitro and a version featuring Kobe Bryant. Not only is the single making noise but the videoclip is as well; it was the most played video in a weekly period at the Box its first week out.

HISTORY'S MADE: Santana moves into the top 10 this issue with "Maria Maria" (Arista). The track moves into the No. 7 spot, which marks the first time in Billboard history the band has had a top 10 R&B single. Santana's last R&B-charted single was "One Chain (Don't Make No Prison)" (Columbia), which peaked at No. 68 in 1979.
Carlos Santana has been making music for more than 30 years and is now making better strides than ever on the R&B charts. Part of the proceeds from the album "Supernatural," on which "Maria Maria" is featured, are going to the Milagro Foundation, a foundation started by Santana and his wife to fund education, medical, and housing needs for children in need across the globe. Considering that 7 million copies of "Supernatural" have been scanned thus far, the foundation should be well on its way to helping unfortunate children everywhere.
Santana begins a U.S. tour in April, with Macy Gray as the opening act.

GHOST HAUNTS AGAIN: Ghostface Killah's "Cherchez LaGhost" (Wu-Tang/Razor Sharp/Epic) returns the rhyme guru to the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart with a debut this issue at No. 72. This single contains the famous "Tommy Mottola" hook from "Cherchez La Femme" by Dr. Buzzard's Original "Savannah" Band (RCA).
This Wu-Tang member is garnering critical acclaim for the single, which is also likely to propel his album "Supreme Clientele," released Feb. 29. Ghostface is taping a BET/Docugroove that will air soon. BET will follow him in concert and ask him all about his past, present, and future music-making.

GRAMMAR NECESSARY: This issue's Hot Shot debut comes from Nelly and his No. 55 single, "(Hot S**t) Country Grammar" (Universal). This Texas-born, well-traveled, resident of St. Louis MC has lots to say about his debut project.
He was once interested in playing organized baseball and even had a few offers to play professionally. But once he got started with his rap career, he says, that took priority, and this project shows his progress to date. Nelly notes that the idea for "Grammar" came to him from the children's rhyme "Down, Down Baby . . ."
Nelly brings many different vibes to his album, which even contains tracks with St. Lunatic, of which he was a member back in the day.