SZA’s ‘SOS’ Spends Seventh Straight Week at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart
Written by djfrosty on January 29, 2023
SZA’s SOS racks up a seventh consecutive week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart (dated Feb. 4) – the entirety of its chart run. The last album by a woman with seven weeks at No. 1 was Taylor Swift’s Folklore, more than two years ago, as it notched its eighth and final week atop the list on the chart dated Oct. 31, 2020.
SOS earned 111,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Jan. 26 (down 7%), according to Luminate.
Also in the top 10 of the latest Billboard 200 chart: Trippie Redd logs his seventh top 10-charting effort with the No. 3 debut of Mansion Muzik, while HARDY clocks his first top 10 with the No. 4 arrival of The Mockingbird & The Crow.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units, compiled by Luminate. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each unit equals one album sale, or 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams generated by songs from an album. The new Feb. 4, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Jan. 31. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Of SOS’ 111,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending Jan. 26, SEA units comprise 109,500 (down 7%, equaling 148.87 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks), album sales comprise 1,000 (up 37%) and TEA units comprise 500 units (down 8%).
In the last year, only three albums have spent at least seven weeks at No. 1: SOS, Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti (13 nonconsecutive weeks) and the Encanto soundtrack (nine nonconsecutive weeks).
Here are a few statistics about SOS’ seven-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard 200:
SZA Meets Whitney in Chart History: SOS is the first R&B/hip-hop album by a woman, or R&B album by any act, to spend its first seven weeks at No. 1 since Whitney Houston’s Whitney in 1987. The latter debuted at No. 1 on the June 27, 1987-dated list and spent its first 11 weeks at No. 1 (its total run at No. 1). Whitney was the first R&B/hip-hop album by a woman, or R&B album by a woman, to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart.
R&B/hip-hop and R&B albums are defined as those that have hit or are eligible for Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Top R&B Albums charts, respectively.
Drake’s Views was the last R&B/hip-hop set to spend its first seven weeks at No. 1 — it spent its first nine weeks at No. 1 (May 21-July 16, 2016 charts).
Most Consecutive Weeks at No. 1 in Nearly a Year: The last album, regardless of genre classification, with seven weeks in a row at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 was the Encanto soundtrack, with eight straight weeks atop the list (Jan. 29-March 19, 2022-dated charts). The Encanto soundtrack spent a total of nine weeks at No. 1, as it logged one earlier frame at No. 1 on the Jan. 15, 2022 chart.
The last album by a woman with seven consecutive weeks at No. 1 was Adele’s 25, which spent its first seven weeks at No. 1 in late 2015 and early 2016 (Dec. 12, 2015-Jan. 23, 2016). 25 spent 10 total nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1.
Most Weeks at No. 1 for an Album by a Woman Since 2020: Taylor Swift’s Folklore was the last album by a woman to score seven weeks atop the list. The album topped the list for its first six weeks (Aug. 8-Sept. 12, 2020) and then returned for two more nonconsecutive weeks (Oct. 3 and Oct. 31, 2020).
‘SOS’ Is the First Album by a Woman With its First Seven Weeks at No. 1 Since 2016: Adele’s 25 was the last album by a woman to spend its first seven weeks on the chart at No. 1. The 25 album ruled the list in its first seven weeks (Dec. 12, 2015-Jan. 23, 2016) and then logged three more later frames at No. 1, for a total of 10 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1. (The last album with its first seven weeks at No. 1 was Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album, which spent it first 10 weeks at No. 1 [its total run at No. 1] from the Jan. 23-March 27, 2021-dated charts.)
Only Three Women Have Had Albums With Seven Weeks at No. 1 in the Last 20 Years: In the last two decades – from February 2003 through the latest chart – only three women have spent at least seven weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. Before SZA’s SOS, there was Swift’s Folklore (eight weeks, 2020), Adele’s 25 (10, 2015-16), Swift’s 1989 (11, 2014-15), Adele’s 21 (24, 2011-12) and Swift’s Fearless (11, 2008-09). Before Fearless, the last album by a woman with seven weeks at No. 1 was Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill, with 12 weeks in 1995-96.
Most Weeks at No. 1 for an R&B/Hip-Hop Album Since Drake’s ‘Views’ in 2016: The last R&B/hip-hop album with seven weeks atop the list was Drake’s Views, which spent 13 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 (May 21-Oct. 8, 2016). Views was also the last R&B/hip-hop set to spend its first seven weeks at No. 1 (it spent its first nine weeks at No. 1: May 21-July 16, 2016).
SOS has the most weeks at No. 1 for an R&B/hip-hop album by a woman, or an R&B album by a woman, since Mariah Carey’s Music Box spent eight nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 in late 1993 and early 1994. SOS has the most weeks at No. 1 for an R&B album by any act since Usher’s Confessions ruled for nine nonconsecutive weeks in 2004.
At No. 2 on the new Billboard 200, Swift’s former No. 1 Midnights is a non-mover with 67,000 equivalent album units earned (down 8%). It has spent the entirety of its 14 weeks on the chart inside the top two. The last album by a woman to spend its first 14 weeks at either Nos. 1 or 2 was Swift’s own 1989, with its first 15 weeks in the top two (Nov. 15, 2014-Feb. 21, 2015).
Trippie Redd notches his seventh top 10-charting effort on the Billboard 200 as Mansion Muzik debuts at No. 3 with 56,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, SEA units comprise 50,000 (equaling 68.1 million official on-demand streams of the set’s 25 tracks), album sales comprise 5,000 and TEA units comprise 1,000. Mansion Muzik is the hip-hop artist’s seventh consecutive top five-charting effort, stretching back to 2018’s Life’s a Trip, which debuted and peaked at No. 4 (Aug. 25, 2018-dated chart).
HARDY hits the top 10 of the Billboard 200 for the first time as his new double album The Mockingbird & The Crow arrives at No. 4 with 55,000 equivalent album units earned – easily his best week ever in terms of units. Of the starting sum, SEA units comprise 34,000 (equaling 44.68 million official on-demand streams of the set’s 17 tracks), album sales comprise 19,500 and TEA units comprise 1,500. The half-country/half-rock project includes guest turns from Jeremy McKinnon (of A Day To Remember), Lainey Wilson and Morgan Wallen.
The Mockingbird & The Crow marks the highest-debuting rock album since Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Return of the Dream Canteen entered at No. 3 (Oct. 29, 2022) and highest-bowing country album since Luke Combs’ Growin’ Up started at No. 2 (July 9, 2022).
Four former No. 1s are next on the Billboard 200, as Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains falls 3-5 (53,000 equivalent album units; down 4%), Drake and 21 Savage’s Her Loss dips 4-6 (46,000; down 4%), Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti falls 6-7 (41,000; down 4%) and Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album descends 7-8 (nearly 41,000; down 2%).
Zach Bryan’s American Heartbreak falls 8-9 with 32,000 equivalent album units (though up 2%) and Lil Baby’s former No. 1 It’s Only Me slips 9-10 with 28,000 (down 5%).
Luminate, the independent data provider to the Billboard charts, completes a thorough review of all data submissions used in compiling the weekly chart rankings. Luminate reviews and authenticates data. In partnership with Billboard, data deemed suspicious or unverifiable is removed, using established criteria, before final chart calculations are made and published.