State Champ Radio

by DJ Frosty

Current track

Title

Artist

Current show
blank

State Champ Radio Mix

1:00 pm 7:00 pm

Current show
blank

State Champ Radio Mix

1:00 pm 7:00 pm


Chart Beat

Page: 176

Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” tops the Billboard Hot 100 for a second consecutive week – as it logs a 14th total week at No. 1, dating to its first coronation in December 2019.
Notably, the modern Yuletide standard is Carey’s third Hot 100 leader of at least 14 weeks – as she becomes the first artist in the chart’s history with three such No. 1s. She previously reigned for 16 weeks with “One Sweet Day,” with Boyz II Men, in 1995-96 and for 14 weeks with “We Belong Together” in 2005.

“Christmas” has ruled the Hot 100 over five holiday seasons. It was originally released on Carey’s album Merry Christmas in November 1994 and, as streaming has grown and holiday music has become more prominent on streaming services’ playlists, it hit the top 10 for the first time in December 2017 and has now led during the holidays in 2019 (for three weeks), 2020 (two), 2021 (three), 2022 (four) and 2023 (two to date).

Elsewhere, José Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad” returns to the Hot 100’s top 10, dashing from No. 12 to No. 9.

In all, nine seasonal songs infuse the Hot 100’s top 10 – tying for the most in a single week; nine holiday hits first decorated the tier on the chart dated Jan. 2, 2021.

The Hot 100 blends all-genre U.S. streaming (official audio and official video), radio airplay and sales data, the lattermost metric reflecting purchases of physical singles and digital tracks from full-service digital music retailers; digital singles sales from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sites are excluded from chart calculations. All charts (dated Dec. 30, 2023) will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Dec. 27, a day later than usual due to the Christmas holiday). For all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.

[embedded content]

Streams, airplay & sales: Carey’s “Christmas,” on Columbia Records/Legacy Recordings, drew 48.4 million streams (up 15%) and 31.7 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 21%) and sold 7,000 downloads (down 7%) in the U.S. Dec. 15-21, according to Luminate.

The single holds at No. 2 on the Streaming Songs chart, following 18 weeks at No. 1; dips 3-4 on Digital Song Sales, following four frames at No. 1; and rises 22-17 on Radio Songs, where it hit a No. 11 high last season.

Carey’s record third Hot 100 No. 1 of 14 weeks or more: Carey is the first artist with three songs that have dominated the Hot 100 for 14 or more weeks each. She one-ups Boyz II Men, who have notched three leaders of 13 or more frames apiece, with Carey and the group having teamed for the 16-week No. 1 smash “One Sweet Day.”

Here’s a recap of Carey’s three such Hot 100 No. 1s:

16 weeks, “One Sweet Day,” with Boyz II Men, 1995-9614 weeks (to-date), “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” 2019-2314 weeks, “We Belong Together,” 2005

Carey’s record 93rd week atop Hot 100: With “Christmas,” Carey adds her record-extending 93rd week at No. 1 on the Hot 100, dating to the chart’s Aug. 4, 1958, inception.

Most Weeks at No. 1 on Hot 100:

93, Mariah Carey

60, Rihanna

59, The Beatles

56, Drake

50, Boyz II Men

47, Usher

43, Beyoncé

37, Michael Jackson

34, Adele

34, Elton John

34, Bruno Mars

34, Taylor Swift

“Christmas” became Carey’s 19th Hot 100 No. 1, the most among soloists and one away from The Beatles’ overall record 20. It also made Carey the first artist to have ranked at No. 1 on the chart in four distinct decades, dating to her first week on top in August 1990 with her debut hit, “Vision of Love.”

Holiday hits atop the Hot 100: Now up to 14 weeks, Carey’s “Christmas” extends its mark as the holiday song with the most time tallied atop the Hot 100, among three such No. 1s. “The Chipmunk Song,” by The Chipmunks with David Seville, spent four weeks on top beginning in December 1958, followed by Brenda Lee’s two weeks on top to begin this holiday season with “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” also released in 1958.

No. 1 in record 64th week on Hot 100: Carey’s “Christmas” rules the Hot 100 in its 64th week on the chart. It passes Glass Animals’ “Heat Waves” for the latest, by total chart weeks, that a song has led the list. The latter completed a record 59-week trip to No. 1 in March 2022 and reigned for five consecutive weeks, through its 63rd frame; it went on to amass a record 91 weeks on the chart.

No. 1 on Holiday 100: Plus, Carey’s “Christmas” concurrently keeps atop the multi-metric Holiday 100 chart, which uses the same methodology as the Hot 100. It leads for a 60th week, of the chart’s 67 total weeks since the list originated in 2011. It also rules as the top title on the Greatest of All Time Holiday 100 Songs recap.

At No. 2 on the Hot 100, Lee’s “Rockin’ ” adds a fifth week atop Streaming Songs (49.4 million streams, up 17%, good for top Streaming Gainer honors on the Hot 100).

The rest of the all-holiday top five on the Hot 100 holds in place: Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock,” released in 1957, at its No. 3 high; Wham!’s “Last Christmas,” from 1984, at its No. 4 best; and Burl Ives’ “A Holly Jolly Christmas,” from 1964, at No. 5, after reaching No. 4.

Jack Harlow’s “Lovin On Me” keeps at No. 6 on the Hot 100, four weeks after it became his third No. 1. The chart’s top nonholiday title wins the list’s top Airplay Gainer award (50.2 million, up 16%) and claims a sixth week each atop the multi-metric Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts.

Andy Williams’ “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” from 1963, repeats at No. 7 on the Hot 100, having hit No. 5. The late singer now sports a record span of 64 years, two months and three weeks from his first week in the top 10 with “Lonely Street” in October 1959 through his latest week in the bracket.

Dean Martin’s “Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!,” from 1959, rises 10-8 on the Hot 100, returning to its best first reached in the 2020 holiday season.

[embedded content]

José Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad” returns to the Hot 100’s top 10, jingling 12-9 with 24.9 million streams (up 19%), 23.8 million in airplay audience (up 5%) and 2,000 sold (up 12%). The 1970 classic hit a No. 6 high over the 2020 holiday season.

The beloved entertainer, 78, was honored with the first Billboard Legend Award at the 2022 Billboard Latin Music Awards.

Putting a bow on the Hot 100’s top 10, The Ronettes’ “Sleigh Ride” backtracks to No. 10 from its No. 8 high. The act now boasts a span of 60 years, three months and one week in the top 10, dating to its iconic No. 2-peaking “Be My Baby” in September 1963 – the longest among groups. (Excluding holiday fare, The Beatles broke the record for the longest top 10 span among all acts last month: 59 years, nine months and three weeks, from “I Want To Hold Your Hand” in 1964 to the debut of their newly-released single “Now and Then.”)

Again, for all chart news, you can follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on Billboard’s social accounts, and all charts (dated Dec. 30), including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh on Billboard.com tomorrow (Dec. 27).

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.

Hackney Diamonds are forever, it would seem, as the Rolling Stones return to No. 1 in the U.K.
The Stones’ latest album bumps 6-1 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart, published Friday, Dec. 22, for its second non-consecutive week at the top.

Featuring collaborations with Lady Gaga, Elton John Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney, and contributions from former bass player Bill Wyman and the group’s late drummer Charlie Watts, Hackney Diamonds (via Polydor) is the Stones’ first album of original material in 18 years– since A Bigger Bang, which peaked to No. 2 in 2005.

Following its release in October, the LP went straight to No. 1 for the rock legends’ 14th U.K. No. 1, by outselling the rest of the top 5 combined.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

“It’s a wonderful way to round off 2023,” the Stones say in a statement published by the Official Charts Company. “Thank you to everyone for listening to Hackney Diamonds. Have a very happy Christmas and New Year.”

The Christmas gift for the Stones also doubles-up as a late birthday present for guitarist Keith Richards, who turned 80 on Dec. 18.

Meanwhile, Michael Bublé’s Christmas (Reprise) holds No. 2 on the new chart, while Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) (via EMI) improves 4-3.

Cher brings some Christmas cheer to the latest tally with her Christmas (Warner Records) collection, which lifts 15-5 for a new peak position. Christmas features “DJ Play A Christmas Song,” which lifts 41-20 on the latest U.K. singles chart, an effort that sees the iconic entertainer become the first solo artist to achieve a top 40 hit with new material on the Official U.K. Singles Chart across seven consecutive decades, the Official Charts Company reports.

At 77 year and 7 months, Cher is also the oldest solo female performer to snag a top 40 U.K. single, besting previous record holder Shirley Bassey, who was 70 years, 4 months old when “The Living Tree” reached No. 37 in 2007.

The Whamageddon didn’t transpire in the U.K., as “Last Christmas” (Epic) finally claims the coveted Christmas No. 1 spot.
Wham’s holiday classic from 1984 holds at No. 1 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, published Dec. 22, for its first Christmas-time stint at the summit.

According to the Official Charts Company, “Last Christmas” clocked up 13.3 million plays during the seven-day chart cycle – making it the most-streamed Christmas No. 1.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

It’s not the first time “Last Christmas” has reigned over the national tally; it first did so at the start of 2021, breaking a 36-year hoodoo, and returned to the top later in 2022.

Following its initial release, “Last Christmas” was famously beaten to the Christmas No. 1 by Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” on which Wham’s co-founders George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley contributed.

With its latest feat, a full 39 years in the making, “Last Christmas” sets a new mark for the longest journey to the U.K. Christmas No. 1, the Official Charts Company reports.

Across its lifetime, the pop number has raked-in 5.34 million chart units, including 1.93 million sales and nearly 413 million streams, the OCC reports. It’s now the U.K.’s third biggest song of all time, behind Elton John’s “Something About the Way You Look Tonight” / “Candle in the Wind 1997” and “Do They Know It’s Christmas?,” respectively.

With Wham taking the glory, Britain’s Eurovision 2022 entrant Sam Ryder misses out, as his Amazon Music Original “You’re Christmas To Me” (EastWest/Rhino) lifts 10-2, while Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” (Columbia) completes the podium.

Predictably, Christmas tunes dominate the latest survey. Ed Sheeran and Elton John’s former leader “Merry Christmas” (Atlantic/EMI) improves 6-5; The Pogues’ “Fairytale of New York” (Rhino) featuring the late Kirsty MacColl dips 5-6; while holiday favorites from Brenda Lee, Michael Buble, Shakin’ Stevens, Andy Williams, Kelly Clarkson, Dean Martin, Chris Rea and more impact the top 40.

Finally, Cher cracks the top 20 — and cracks a new record — with “DJ Play A Christmas Song” (Warner Records). The legendary entertainer’s Xmas effort lifts 41-20, for her 34th U.K. top 40 single. At 77 year and 7 months, Cher is the oldest solo female performer to snag a top 40 U.K. single, the OCC reports.

Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) rises 2-1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated Dec. 30), marking the fourth nonconsecutive week atop the list for the set. It earned 136,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Dec. 21 (up 25%) according to Luminate. The set, along with many of Swift’s titles, continues to benefit from vinyl sales encouraged by holiday shopping and promotions.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

1989 (Taylor’s Version) spent its first two weeks at No. 1 (Nov. 11-18), had another week in the lead on the Dec. 9 chart, and then bounces back to the top on the new chart.

Swift has a total of three albums in the top 10 on the new chart, as 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is joined by former No. 1s Midnights (7-3 with 75,000 – up 31%) and Lover (9-7; 60,000 – up 22%).

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 Dec. 30, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Dec. 27, one day later than normal due to the Christmas Day holiday on Dec. 25. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.

Nicki Minaj’s Pink Friday 2 falls to No. 2 with 100,000 equivalent album units (down 56%) after debuting atop the list a week ago. Michael Bublé’s former No. 1 Christmas climbs 5-4 (70,000; up 10%), Morgan Wallen’s chart-topping One Thing at a Time bumps 6-5 (just over 64,000; up 2%), and Drake’s former leader For All the Dogs dips 3-6 (64,000; down 6%).

Nat King Cole’s The Christmas Song ascends 11-8 (56,000 equivalent album units; up 17%), SZA’s former leader SOS falls 8-9 (54,000; up 2%), and Mariah Carey’s Merry Christmas returns to the top 10 for the first time this season, rising 12-10 (52,000; up 14%). Merry peaked at No. 3 in its initial chart run, on the Dec. 17, 1994-dated chart. This is the sixth consecutive season the album has revisited the top 10.

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.

Ado’s “Show” returns to No. 1 on the Billboard Japan Hot 100, dated Dec. 20, extending the song’s record to 11 weeks at the top.
[embedded content]

Despite an overall drop in points, the Universal Studios Japan Halloween event theme makes its comeback atop the list after slipping to No. 2 last week, boosted mainly by the mysterious singer’s recent string of appearances on TV, among other factors. The track holds at No. 1 for streaming for the 13th consecutive week, though figures are down by about 7% at 10,355,342 weekly streams. It’s also in its 11th straight week at No. 1 for video views, while also coming in at No. 3 for downloads (up 3%, 10,302 units) and No. 7 for karaoke.

YOASOBI has two tracks in the top 5 this week, with “Idol” at No. 2 and “The Brave” at No. 5. The former — Billboard Japan’s 2023 No. 1 Song of the Year — is still going strong and currently at No. 3 for streaming (down 5%, 8,225,278 streams), No. 11 for downloads (down 2%, 3,458 units), No. 2 for video, and No. 8 for radio.

Explore

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

Sexy Zone’s “Jinsei Yuugi” debuts at No. 3 on the Japan Hot 100 with 203,299 copies sold in its first week. Although the group’s 25th single falls short of the first-week figures of its predecessor, “Honne to Tatemae,” the new song hits No. 1 for physical sales and comes in at No. 31 for video.

[embedded content]

Angerme’s “RED LINE” bows at No. 7 on the Japan Hot 100, launching with 70,397 CDs to hit No. 2 for the metric. The track is part of the Hello! Project group’s double A-side single RED LINE / Life is Beautiful! released Dec. 13 and also hits No. 13 for downloads with 3,302 units. 

[embedded content]

Another debut at No. 8 this week is BUMP OF CHICKEN’s “Sleep Walking Orchestra,” the opening theme song for the upcoming anime series Delicious in Dungeon, set to begin airing in January. The anime is being shown in theaters for a limited three-week run starting Dec. 8. The veteran four-man band’s new number rules downloads with 14,494 units and is also at No. 1 for radio. While still not charting in the top 100 for streams, the number of listeners is expected to increase after the TV premiere of the series.

[embedded content]

The Billboard Japan Hot 100 combines physical and digital sales, audio streams, radio airplay, video views and karaoke data.

See the full Billboard Japan Hot 100 chart, tallying the week from Dec. 11 to 17, here. For more on Japanese music and charts, visit Billboard Japan’s English Twitter account. 

It’s the biggest honor that an act can claim on Billboard’s charts each year: the coveted No. 1 spot on the annual Top Artists recap.

As of 2023, the category ranks the year’s best-performing acts based on activity on the Billboard 200 albums chart and the Billboard Hot 100 songs survey, as well as Billboard Boxscore, which recaps touring data.

Taylor Swift rules the 2023 Top Artists tally, making history in the process: As the superstar previously reigned in 2015 and 2009, she is the first act to finish at No. 1 in three distinct decades, dating to the award’s origin in the year-end 1981 Billboard issue.

Further demonstrating Swift’s sustained success on Billboard’s charts, the span from her first Top Artists triumph in 2009 to her latest in 2023 marks the longest in the retrospective’s history.

Meanwhile, Swift and Adele are the only acts to achieve No. 1 successes on Top Artists three times each, as Adele won in 2011, 2012 and 2016.

Eight other artists have each earned the honor of leading Top Artists twice: 50 Cent (2003, 2005), Chris Brown (2006, 2008), Destiny’s Child (2000, 2001), Drake (2018, 2021), Garth Brooks (1992, 1993), New Kids on the Block (1989, 1990), Post Malone (2019, 2020) and Usher (1998, 2004).

Swift’s latest No. 1 finish on Top Artists follows Bad Bunny’s rule in 2022, when he became the first leading act that primarily records Spanish-language music.

From the first list in 1981 to 2023, browse every act that has dominated the annual Top Artists chart, as revealed in every year-end Billboard issue, encompassing superstars in pop, country, R&B/hip-hop, rock and more.

2023 – Taylor Swift

Image Credit: John Shearer/TAS23/Getty Images

After two months at No. 2, a reunited RBD takes the lead as the highest grossing touring act of November. According to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore, the group’s Soy Rebelde Tour grossed $71.1 million and sold 734,000 tickets from Nov. 3 to 30. The tour is the act’s first trek since 2008’s Tour del Adios.
Current through Nov. 30, the Soy Rebelde Tour has grossed $197.1 million since launching in August. About half a million dollars shy of Daddy Yankee’s 2022 farewell tour, RBD’s reunion will become the second-highest grossing tour by a Latin act once its December shows are reported, behind Bad Bunny‘s World’s Hottest Tour.

RBD’s monthly crown is due to hustle. Other than Trans-Siberian Orchestra, the perennial holiday favorite that includes two touring ensembles for either coast of the U.S., RBD played more shows in November than any act among the top 30. With 17 shows split between seven markets, the group earned its spot atop the heap by playing hard.

After sitting at No. 2 behind Beyoncé and Pink in September and October, respectively, RBD levels up, and its routing has much to do with it. Not only did the group play more shows than in either of the previous months, but after touring the U.S., RBD took on Latin America in November, transitioning to a primarily Spanish-language audience.

That move allowed RBD to move from arenas to stadiums, multiplying its nightly audience by more than two. In the U.S., the group paced about 18,000 tickets per night before rocketing to more than 43,000 each show in Colombia, Brazil and Mexico.

But the ticket pricing economy is much different in these geographical regions, and RBD’s average ticket price went from $241.30 in the U.S. to $96.81 in Latin America. In all, its average gross stayed almost the same, even dipping by 4%. But the pure volume of seats that RBD could sell made up the difference, giving RBD its first monthly win yet.

At No. 1 for November, RBD is only the third Latin act to lead the monthly Top Tours chart. Los Bukis first broke ground in September 2021, and Bad Bunny pushed the boundaries further, ruling in February, March, August and September of 2022. Aventura, Daddy Yankee, Maluma, and Rauw Alejandro have also hit the top five.

That means that RBD is the source for the genre’s first female artists to hit the top tier. The mixed-gender group’s reunion features original members Anahi, Dulce Maria and Maite Perroni, all hailing from Mexico. Beyond Latin music, they continue a hot streak for women atop the chart: after a nearly four-year drought, Beyoncé, Pink and RBD have kept women at No. 1 for six of the last seven months.

Beyond the No. 1 act, Pink and Madonna add support at Nos. 3 and 5, respectively. Mariah Carey, Shania Twain, Ms. Lauryn Hill, and in her monthly Boxscore debut, Doja Cat, follow. While a grand total of seven women acts in the top 30 doesn’t give them a majority, the 23.3% gender split is up from the 2023 year-end wrap, where women’s representation doubled from the previous year.

Doja leads a growing list of hip-hop acts on the Top Tours chart. Travis Scott, Rod Wave, Ms. Lauryn Hill & The Fugees and 50 Cent appear between Nos. 22-29. Though they miss the top 10, five rap acts on the chart foreshadow a promising year, when the genre’s share among the top 100 tours of 2023 dipped below 3%.

Four of RBD’s seven stops in November crack the 30-position Top Boxscores chart. Four shows at Allianz Parque in Sao Paulo, Brazil (Nov. 16-19) earned $17.4 million and sold 191,000 tickets, while another four at Estadio Antanasio Girardot (Medellin, Colombia; Nov. 3-6) took in $17.2 million from 150,000 tickets.

In Sao Paulo, RBD played another two shows at Estadio do Morumbi on Nov. 12-13, grossing $11 million. If the group had consolidated their Sao Paulo run at one venue, the combined gross would’ve given them the No. 1 spot with more than $28 million.

Instead, Mexico City’s Corona Capital festival took top honors among individual engagements, as the three-day festival grossed $26.5 million and sold 216,000 tickets. It’s followed by the final three shows of U2’s first leg at Las Vegas’ Sphere. Those shows earned $19.4 million, making up a small part of the $109 million run that began in late September. It’s enough to put Sphere at No. 4 on the Top Venues (15,001+ capacity) chart and situate U2 at No. 12 on Top Tours.

It was a banner month for Latin American shows. Not only did RBD and Corona Capital dominate Top Tours and Top Boxscores, Luis Miguel, Paul McCartney and Red Hot Chili Peppers all charted from shows south of the U.S. Even on Top Promoters, Mexico’s OCESA is No. 2 with $123.9 million and 1.5 million tickets sold, pushing perennial top-two candidate AEG Presents to No. 3, also above $100 million.

On the venue charts, Mexico City and Sao Paulo take the top four spots on Top Stadiums, plus Medellin’s Estadio Atanasio Girardo and Rio de Janeiro’s Estadio Nilton Santos at Nos. 6-7. The former market adds notices on three of the four capacity-based venue charts, notably with Auditorio Nacional at No. 2 among venues with a capacity between 5,001-10k.

Even more, the November recap captures a thriving global box office. Just among the month’s top five tours, RBD and Red Hot Chili Peppers hit Latin America, Coldplay played in Asia and Australia, Pink toured the U.S. and Canada, and Madonna celebrated in Europe. Only two of the top 10 – Morgan Wallen and The Trilogy Tour, starring Enrique Iglesias, Pitbull and Ricky Martin – played exclusively in the U.S. during November.

Taylor Swift once again crowds the top 10 of Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart, as the superstar has five titles lodged in the top 10 of the Dec. 23-dated tally. It’s the fifth time she’s held at least half of the top 10, with three of those weeks happening this month.

Explore

See latest videos, charts and news

See latest videos, charts and news

Her most recent release, 1989 (Taylor’s Version), is a non-mover at No. 2 with 65,000 copies sold (up 21%) in the tracking week ending Dec. 14, according to Luminate. Folklore rises 5-4 (24,000; up 17%), Midnights climbs 8-5 (24,000; up 29%), Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) steps 7-6 (22,000; up 15%) and Lover returns to the top 10, ascending 12-8 (20,000; up 50%). The five former No. 1s all experience gains largely due to sales of their vinyl configurations, as retailers continue to promote music on vinyl during the holiday shopping season.

Swift isn’t the only big news in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, as Nicki Minaj’s Pink Friday 2 debuts at No. 1 with 92,000 copies sold. As earlier reported, that marks the biggest sales week for any rap album by a woman in the 2020s decade and the largest sales week for an R&B/hip-hop album by a woman in 2023. In total, Pink Friday 2 is Minaj’s third No. 1 on Top Album Sales, following Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded in 2012 and Pink Friday in 2011.

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.

As for the rest of the top 10 on the new Top Album Sales chart, ATEEZ’s The World EP. Fin: Will moves to No. 3 (30,000; down 79%) after debuting on top a week ago, Stray Kids’ former leader ROCK-STAR falls 4-7 (20,000; down 8%), Olivia Rodrigo’s chart-topping Guts rises 11-9 (19,000; up 40%, mostly from vinyl sales) and Dolly Parton’s former No. 1 Rockstar is a non-mover at No. 10 (18,000; down 4%).

In the week ending Dec. 14, there were 3.075 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 13.6% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 2.713 million (up 15.8%) and digital albums comprised 362,000 (up 1.1%).

There were 1.058 million CD albums sold in the week ending Dec. 14 (up 4.7% week-over-week) and 1.640 million vinyl albums sold (up 24.3%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 34.921 million (up 3.3% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 46.149 million (up 16.4%).

Overall year-to-date album sales total 99.256 million (up 6.2% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 81.604 million (up 10.3%) and digital album sales total 17.652 million (down 9.2%).

Billie Eilish’s “When the Party’s Over” returns to Billboard’s charts thanks to its sample in “Are You Gone Already,” the first track on Nicki Minaj’s new album, Pink Friday 2. The 2018 track bows at No. 25 on the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs ranking dated Dec. 23. (Older songs are eligible for Billboard’s multi-metric […]

JID’s “Surround Sound” tops the TikTok Billboard Top 50 for a second week with Lana Del Rey and Nicki Minaj securing spots in the Top 10. Tetris Kelly:JID holds on to the top spot while Lana Del Rey and Nicki Minaj break into the Top 10. JID’s “Surround Sound” featuring 21 Savage and Baby Tate […]