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Every #1 Song of 1989 (Billboard Hot 100) | Full Year in Order

Published:February 20, 2026 Video Decade:80s Topic:Music

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Billboard Hot 100 1989 Rewind

All the #1 Songs of 1989 — The Final Blast of the 80s

Crank the boombox and rewind to 1989 — the year the 80s went out with power ballads, dance-pop, MTV polish, boy-band fever, big soundtrack emotion, and one last avalanche of Billboard Hot 100 #1 songs before the decade handed the keys to the 90s.

This Smells Like Gen X music rewind runs through every Billboard #1 hit from 1989 in exact chart order — from Poison’s “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” rolling in from late ’88 to Phil Collins’ “Another Day in Paradise” carrying the year into 1990. In between, you get Paula Abdul, Milli Vanilli, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Bon Jovi, Bobby Brown, Roxette, and a whole mall-jukebox worth of late-80s chaos.

1989 was a monster chart year: 32 different singles hit #1, with Paula Abdul and Milli Vanilli each scoring three number-one hits. The radio was crowded, MTV was glossy, and the decade was basically sprinting toward the finish line in acid-washed denim.

Featured Hits

A few chart-toppers from the 1989 lineup

Poison “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” The power-ballad hangover from late 1988 that helped kick off 1989 with maximum hair-metal heartbreak.

Paula Abdul “Straight Up,” “Forever Your Girl,” “Cold Hearted” Three #1 hits in one year. Choreography, pop hooks, and late-80s video-star energy working overtime.

Milli Vanilli “Baby Don’t Forget My Number,” “Girl I’m Gonna Miss You,” “Blame It on the Rain” Pre-scandal, they were everywhere — three #1 hits and enough late-80s gloss to blind a food court.

Madonna “Like a Prayer” One of Madonna’s biggest, boldest, most unforgettable late-80s moments — pop spectacle with actual gravity.

Janet Jackson “Miss You Much” The Rhythm Nation era hit hard and made it very clear Janet was not playing supporting character to anyone.

Phil Collins “Two Hearts” / “Another Day in Paradise” Phil helped bookend the year, because apparently 1989 required emotional adult-contemporary supervision.

Why It Hits

Why this 1989 playlist still feels like the end of an era

Dance-pop took over Paula Abdul, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Bobby Brown, Fine Young Cannibals, and Milli Vanilli kept the late-80s beat factory running hot.

Ballads refused to die Poison, Sheriff, Bette Midler, Richard Marx, Bad English, Bon Jovi, and Phil Collins made sure feelings stayed dramatically overproduced.

The 90s were already knocking New Kids on the Block, Janet Jackson, Roxette, Paula Abdul, and Bobby Brown point straight toward the pop and R&B shifts coming next.

Chart Notes

Fun 1989 Billboard Hot 100 notes

Paula Abdul: 3 #1s “Straight Up,” “Forever Your Girl,” and “Cold Hearted” made Paula Abdul one of 1989’s defining pop forces.

Milli Vanilli: 3 #1s Before the scandal, “Baby Don’t Forget My Number,” “Girl I’m Gonna Miss You,” and “Blame It on the Rain” ruled the chart.

Bookended by ballads Poison rolled in from late ’88, while Phil Collins’ “Another Day in Paradise” carried the Hot 100 into early 1990.

Song List

All the Billboard #1 hits featured in this 1989 countdown

Every Rose Has Its Thorn — Poison
My Prerogative — Bobby Brown
Two Hearts — Phil Collins
When I’m with You — Sheriff
Straight Up — Paula Abdul
Lost in Your Eyes — Debbie Gibson
The Living Years — Mike + the Mechanics
Eternal Flame — The Bangles
The Look — Roxette
She Drives Me Crazy — Fine Young Cannibals
Like a Prayer — Madonna
I’ll Be There for You — Bon Jovi
Forever Your Girl — Paula Abdul
Rock On — Michael Damian
Wind Beneath My Wings — Bette Midler
I’ll Be Loving You (Forever) — New Kids on the Block
Satisfied — Richard Marx
Baby Don’t Forget My Number — Milli Vanilli
Good Thing — Fine Young Cannibals
If You Don’t Know Me by Now — Simply Red
Toy Soldiers — Martika
Batdance — Prince
Right Here Waiting — Richard Marx
Cold Hearted — Paula Abdul
Hangin’ Tough — New Kids on the Block
Don’t Wanna Lose You — Gloria Estefan
Girl I’m Gonna Miss You — Milli Vanilli
Miss You Much — Janet Jackson
Listen to Your Heart — Roxette
When I See You Smile — Bad English
Blame It on the Rain — Milli Vanilli
We Didn’t Start the Fire — Billy Joel
Another Day in Paradise — Phil Collins

More 80s Music Rewinds Are Coming

If you dig these deep-cut chart runs, smash Like, tell us your personal 1989 anthem in the comments, and subscribe for more Gen X nostalgia, 80s music countdowns, Billboard Hot 100 history, retro playlists, forgotten pop-culture stories, and every #1 hit of the 80s.

Topics: 1989 Billboard Hot 100 #1 songs, 1989 number one hits, 80s music countdown, Poison Every Rose Has Its Thorn, Bobby Brown My Prerogative, Paula Abdul Straight Up, Milli Vanilli Baby Don’t Forget My Number, Madonna Like a Prayer, Bon Jovi I’ll Be There for You, Janet Jackson Miss You Much, New Kids on the Block Hangin Tough, Billy Joel We Didn’t Start the Fire, Phil Collins Another Day in Paradise, Gen X nostalgia, Smells Like Gen X.