beyonce
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Adele and Beyoncé are headed for a rematch. At the 59th Annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 12, 2017, the two singers went head-to-head in four categories, including the Big Three (album, record and song of the year). Adele won all four of these contests.
In the nominations for the 65th annual Grammy Awards, which were announced on Tuesday (Nov. 15), Bey and Adele are again competing in each of the Big Three categories. Adele’s 30 is vying with Bey’s Renaissance for album of the year. Adele’s “Easy on Me” is competing with Bey’s “Break My Soul” for both record and song of the year.
This isn’t the first time two artists have competed multiple times for album of the year as lead artists. Two pairs of all-time greats went head-to-head for album of the year three times.
With the number of album of the year nominees having jumped from five to eight in 2018 and then from eight to 10 in 2021, we’ll likely see more such recurring matchups. But it will be hard to top the rivalry between Adele and Beyoncé, who are both world-class artists as well as, by all accounts, friends and mutual admirers.
In her 2017 acceptance speech for the final award of the night, album of the year, a highly emotional Adele all but handed the Grammy to Beyoncé, who was standing in the front row with her husband, Jay-Z, as the audience rose to its feet to celebrate Adele’s win. Adele’s speech stands as one of the most selfless and gracious in awards show history.
After some introductory thanks, Adele addressed the issue of competing with a friend and an artist she greatly admires. “I can’t possibly accept this award and I’m very humbled and I’m very grateful and gracious, but my artist of my life is Beyoncé and this album to me – the Lemonade album – was so monumental.”
Addressing the singer directly, she continued: “Beyoncé, it was just so monumental and so well thought-out and so beautiful and soul-baring and we all got to see another side to you that you don’t always let us see, and we appreciate that. And all us artists here, we fu—ing adore you. You are our light. And the way that you make me and my friends feel – the way you make my Black friends feel – is empowering. And you make them stand up for themselves and I love you. I always have and I always will.”
Beyoncé didn’t go home empty-handed that night. She won two Grammys – best urban contemporary album for Lemonade and best music video for “Formation.” And she has won seven more Grammys since that night.
Take a look at all artists who have, as lead artists, competed against each other for album of the year two or more times. We start with the pairs who competed three times, followed by the pairs who vied twice.
Wearable Art Gala took over Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif., on Saturday night (Oct. 22), celebrating the fifth anniversary of WACO Theater Center, founded by co-artistic directors Tina Knowles-Lawson and Richard Lawson.
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The benefit, which is inspired by the aesthetics and Black excellence of the Harlem Renaissance era, aims to support the company’s artistic and youth mentorship programs through a fine art auction. The Keke Palmer-hosted event’s A-list guests arrived in vintage automobiles and stood against backdrops designed to look like a set in Harlem featuring locations like the Savoy Ballroom, Apollo Theater and the Cotton Club.
Among the list of stars at the event were all three members of Destiny’s Child. Beyoncé in particular supported of her mother at the benefit with her husband Jay-Z and daughter Blue Ivy. The “Break My Soul” singer shared her sleek black, white and pink gown in a series of photos posted to Instagram.
Lupita Nyong’o was also at the event, and took to Instagram to celebrate her role presenting the Film & TV Icon Award to Angela Bassett.
See below for some of the sweetest social media posts from the Wearable Art Gala, featuring Kelly Rowland, Chloe x Halle, Lori Harvey and many more.
Beyoncé’s Renaissance runs back up Billboard’s album charts (dated Oct. 22) following its wide vinyl release on Oct. 7. The set surges 69-2 on Top Album Sales and returns to No. 1 on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, Top R&B Albums and Vinyl Albums, and hits No. 1 on Tastemaker Albums for the first time. On the Billboard 200, the former No. 1 climbs 6-3.
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Renaissance sold 47,500 copies in the U.S. in the week ending Oct. 13 (up 2,401%) according to Luminate. Of that sum, vinyl sales comprised 45,500 (up from a negligible sum the week prior) – marking the largest week for an R&B album on vinyl since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991. It’s also Beyoncé’s single-largest week on vinyl ever.
Renaissance was initially released on July 29 via streaming services, and through all retailers as a digital download and CD. At the time, its vinyl LP was exclusively available only through Beyoncé’s official webstore and in a limited quantity. It did not reach general retail until Oct. 7.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Top R&B Albums rank the week’s most popular R&B/hip-hop albums and R&B albums, respectively, by equivalent album units. Vinyl Albums tallies the top-selling vinyl albums of the week. Tastemaker Albums ranks the week’s best-selling albums at independent and small chain record stores.
At No. 1 on Top Album Sales, Stray Kids lock up their second chart-topper, as MAXIDENT debuts atop the tally with 110,000 copies sold — the fourth-largest sales week of any album in 2022. Of its sales sum, 97% were CD sales while 3% were digital albums. The set was not available in any other configuration for purchase.
The CD configuration of the album was issued in collectible packages (10 total, including exclusive variants for Barnes & Noble, Target and the group’s official webstore), each with a standard set of internal paper items and randomized elements (such as photocards, mini posters and stickers). CD sales were also aided by autographed editions sold via the act’s webstore.
Lamb of God collects its sixth top 10-charting effort on Top Album Sales as the rock band’s latest studio effort, Omens, bows at No. 3 with 19,000 copies sold. NCT 127’s 2 Baddies rises 9-4 with 11,000 sold (up 49%), following its Oct. 7 release in a CD digipack edition (available in nine different cover variations – one for each of the group’s members – each with a standard set of paper goods and randomized photocards).
Charlie Puth’s third full-length studio album, Charlie, debuts at No. 5 on Top Album Sales with 10,000 sold. It’s the third consecutive top five-charting album for Puth on Top Album Sales. The set was available in a handful of configurations, including two deluxe CD boxed sets (each with a branded T-shirt), a Target-exclusive version packaged with a poster, and a cassette tape and a signed CD sold through his official webstore. A vinyl edition of the album is due out on Nov. 25.
Alvvays notches its first top 10 on Top Album Sales as the act’s third album, Blue Rev, arrives at No. 6 with nearly 10,000 sold – largely from vinyl sales (6,500; a No. 4 debut on Vinyl Albums). Mac Miller’s Macadelic re-enters Top Album Sales at No. 7 with 9,500 sold (up from a negligible sum the week prior) after the album was reissued on colored vinyl for its 10th anniversary. Essentially all of the album’s sales for the week were on vinyl, and it re-enters the Vinyl Albums chart at No. 2.
Slipknot’s The End, So Far falls tumbles to No. 8 (8,500; down 83%) from its chart-topping debut a week ago.
The all-star charity compilation album Good Music to Ensure Safe Abortion Access to All debuts at No. 9 on Top Album Sales with nearly 8,500 sold – the largest sales week for a non-soundtrack compilation album in two years. The 49-track digital download album – boasting music from Death Cab for Cutie, Fleet Foxes and Pearl Jam, among others – was exclusively available via Bandcamp’s webstore for one day only, on Oct. 7. According to a press release, the album’s net proceeds will benefit non-profit organizations working to provide abortion care access to all: Brigid Alliance and NOISE FOR NOW (who are working with Abortion Care Network).
The last time a non-soundtrack compilation album sold more in a single week was two years ago, when the last Good Music charity album, Good Music to Avert the Collapse of American Democracy, Volume 2 debuted at No. 10 on Top Album Sales with 13,500 sold (Oct. 17, 2020 chart).
Good Music to Ensure Safe Abortion Access to All also debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Compilation Albums chart, No. 8 on Top Current Album Sales and in the top 40 on Independent Albums, Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums and Top Alternative Albums.
In 2020, the two Good Music to Avert the Collapse of American Democracy albums raised over $600,000 for voting-rights organizations (according to the Good Music organization).
Rounding out the new Top Album Sales chart is Pink Floyd’s Animals, which gallops 23-10 with a little over 8,000 sold (up 122%) following the Oct. 7 release of a deluxe box set edition. The four-disc set (containing vinyl LP/CD/DVD and Blu-ray discs) sold for $99.98 in Pink Floyd’s official webstore and is packaged in a hardcover book with a 32-page booklet.
In the week ending Oct. 13, there were 1.896 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 14.3% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 1.53 million (up 18.1%) and digital albums comprised 366,000 (up 0.5%).
There were 715,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Oct. 13 (up 17.5% week-over-week) and 804,000 vinyl albums sold (up 18.9%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 26.758 million (down 7.9% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 30.031 million (up 1.8%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 73.152 million (down 7.6% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 57.202 million (down 2.9%) and digital album sales total 15.95 million (down 21.4%).