State Champ Radio Chart Beat
Page: 444
First, the album version, then the cut featuring Jack Antonoff’s Bleachers. Now, Taylor Swift’s acoustic cut of “Anti-Hero” is keeping the pop superstar’s Midnights hit on high rotation.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Swift dropped “Anti-Hero (Acoustic Version)” last week, when Americans were tucking into their Thanksgiving turkey.
The impact can be felt across the Atlantic where, in the U.K., “Anti-Hero,” is on track for a sixth week at No. 1.
“Anti-Hero” completed a fifth week atop the Official Chart, published last Friday (Nov. 25), and it remains in pole position on the U.K.’s First Look chart, which ranks singles based on sales and streams from the first 48 hours.
“Anti-Hero” has led the chart every week since its release Oct. 21. A fresh version, featuring Bleachers, dropped on Nov. 7.
Meanwhile, Meghan Trainor’s “Made You Look” is showing strength and stamina in the U.K., where its challenging “Anti-Hero” for the chart crown.
Trainor’s doo-wop number is inching closer and lifts 3-2 on the chart blast, for what would be a chart peak.
If “Made You Look” unseats “Anti-Hero,” it would be Trainor’s third leader and first in seven years; her last was 2015’s Charlie Puth collaboration “Marvin Gaye.”
With England getting their World Cup campaign away to winning start, Baddiel, Skinner & The Lightning Seeds’ “Three Lions” looks set to kick another goal. The former chart leader is rolling towards the top 10, up 20-12 on the chart blast, and should enjoy a lift in the leadup to England’s final Group B fixture against Wales on Tuesday (Nov. 29).
A holiday-themed version of the track, “Three Lions (It’s Coming Home For Christmas),” could keep the song in the chart for the weeks ahead.
“Three Lions” would have company, with several Christmas classics making their annual march up the chart. Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” (up 18-8 on the chart blast) and Wham’s “Last Christmas” (23-10) are set to return to the top 10. Not far behind is Ed Sheeran & Elton John’s “Merry Christmas,” which hit No. 1 last December and lifts 40-16 on the chart blast.
All will be revealed when the Official U.K. Singles Chart is published Friday (Dec. 2).
Dermot Kennedy makes it two-from-two as Sonder (via Island) debuts at No. 1 on the U.K. albums survey.
The Irishman bows at the summit of the Official Albums Chart, published Nov. 25, and shifts a market-leading volume on vinyl.
Sonder equals the peak position of his 2019 debut, Without Fear, which saw the Dublin-born singer and songwriter became the first Irish act to top the U.K. chart with their debut album in over 20 years, the OCC reports.
The Christmas chimes are ringing in the top 5, as André Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra enter at No. 4 with Silver Bells (Decca), a Christmas classics collection. It’s the Dutch classical crossover artist’s 13th U.K. top 10 album entry.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Meanwhile, Queen enjoys a miracle return to the top 10. The legendary rock act’s 1989 LP The Miracle (Virgin) blasts to No. 6 on the latest list, thanks to an eight-disc reissue featuring previously-unreleased cuts, some with the late Freddie Mercury’s vocals. The Miracle led the U.K. chart following its original release in 1989.
Nickelback roll into the top 10 with Get Rollin’ (BMG), the Canadian rockers’ tenth studio album. It’s the band’s seventh top 10 appearance and first since 2017’s Feed The Machine went to No. 3.
Manchester rapper Meekz lands a career-best with his mixtape Respect The Come Up (Neighbourhood Recordings), new at No. 12, while U.S. heavy metal veterans Disturbed earn a fifth top 40 appearance with Divisive (Reprise), new at No. 17.
The late master David Bowie lands a 68th U.K. top 40 with the Moonage Dream OST, the companion to Brett Morgen’s feature length documentary film of the same name. The posthumous recording is new at No. 20.
Christmas is less that one month away, and that mean another burst of energy for Michael Bublé’s festive collection. The multi-platinum Christmas (Reprise) set soars 50-26, and will likely continue in that trajectory for the weeks ahead.
Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” (via EMI) continues to beat-up the opposition in the U.K., where it enters its fifth week at No. 1.
“Anti-Hero,” the first track from Swift’s chart-topping tenth studio album, Midnights, dominates the latest Official U.K. Singles Chart, published Nov. 25, with a market-leading 5.2 million streams, the OCC reports.
It becomes the longest-reigning song by a solo female artist since Olivia Rodrigo spent five weeks at No. 1 in 2021 with “Good 4 U,” and it’s among the biggest No. 1 hits of 2022.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Just three songs have enjoyed longest stints at the U.K. summit this year: Encanto’s “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” (seven weeks), LF SYSTEM’s “Afraid To Feel” (eight weeks) and Harry Styles’ “As It Was” (10 weeks).
Meanwhile, Meghan Trainor continues to climb on the latest tally with “Made You Look” (Epic), which makes its peak position of No. 3, up one position.
The highest new entry this week belongs to London rapper Clavish with “Rocket Science” (Polydor) featuring D-Block Europe. “Rocket Science” lifts off for a No. 9 debut, Clavish’s first appearance on the U.K. top 40, and D-Block Europe’s 27th appearance (including two top 10s).
The Christmas tunes are coming. Just one week removed from its earliest-ever return to the top 40, Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” (Columbia) is getting a move on, up 36-18. Good enough for the OCC’s “biggest gainer” honors.
Close behind are two holiday-themed chart-toppers in Wham’s “Last Christmas” (RCA), up 42-23, and Ed Sheeran and Elton John’s “Merry Christmas” (Atlantic), which reennters at No. 40.
Christmas isn’t the only major event on British minds right now.
The World Cup of soccer is in full swing, with England and Wales both active in the early rounds. Following England’s first-up demolition job on Iran, 6-2, David Baddiel, Frank Skinner and the Lightning Seeds’ “Three Lions” reenters the chart, at No. 20. The unofficial England football anthem and former leader gets a boost from a new cut, “Three Lions (It’s Coming Home For Christmas).”
Finally, British singer and songwriter Raye lands her 10th top 40 single with “Escapism” (Human Re Sources), a collaboration with U.S. electronic artist 070 Shake, new at No. 31; while another collaboration, Meekz and Dave’s “Fresh Out The Bank” (Neighbourhood Recordings), cracks the top 40 on debut, at No. 35.
Taylor Swift’s Midnights spends a fourth nonconsecutive week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart (dated Dec. 3) as it holds atop the list with 177,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending Nov. 24 (down 13%), according to Luminate.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Also in the new Billboard 200’s top 10: Michael Jackson’s former No. 1 Thriller returns to the region after its 40th anniversary reissue, vaulting 115-7; Rod Wave’s new Jupiter’s Diary: 7 Day Theory bows at No. 9; and Michael Bublé’s chart-topping Christmas jingles its way back to the top 10 with a 19-10 climb.
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. 3, 2022-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Nov. 29. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Of Midnights’ 177,000 equivalent album units earned, SEA units comprise 118,000 (down 16%, equaling 155.8 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks), album sales comprise 57,000 (down 4%) and SEA units comprise 2,000 (down 49%).
Four former No. 1’s follow Swift on the new Billboard 200, as Drake and 21 Savage’s Her Loss is a non-mover at No. 2 (119,000 equivalent album units; down 30%), Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti is steady at No. 3 (56,000; up less than 1%), Lil Baby’s It’s Only Me is also stationary at No. 4 (48,000; down 9%) and Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album rises 6-5 (42,000; up 2%).
Jackson’s former No. 1 Thriller returns to the top 10, jumping from No. 115 to No. 7 after it was reissued in celebration of its 40th anniversary. It earned 37,000 equivalent album units (up 283%). Of that sum, album sales comprise 27,500 (up 820%), SEA units comprise 9,000 (equaling 13.17 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks) and TEA units comprise 500.
Thriller spent 37 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in 1983-84 — the most weeks at No. 1 for an album by a singular artist. The only album with more weeks at No. 1 is the soundtrack to the film West Side Story, with 54 weeks in 1962-63.
Thriller was last in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 on the June 30, 1984-dated chart, when it ranked at No. 8. During its initial chart run, its last week on the list was April 20, 1985. It didn’t return to the list until Dec. 5, 2009, when the chart began allowing catalog (older) albums to chart again. (From May of 1991 through November 2009, catalog albums were generally not allowed to chart on the Billboard 200.)
For its 40th anniversary, Thriller was reissued in a variety of new configurations and formats, some with additional bonus tracks. All versions of the album, old and new, are combined together for tracking and charting purposes. Thriller has seen a few high-profile reissues in the past, including a remastered “special edition” in 2001 with previously unreleased bonus tracks and a 25th anniversary edition in 2008 with an unreleased song and new remix collaborations with Akon, Fergie, Kanye West and will.i.am.
Harry Styles’ former leader Harry’s House rises 9-8 on the new Billboard 200 with 33,000 equivalent album units (up 10%).
Rod Wave’s new eight-song Jupiter’s Diary: 7 Day Theory debuts at No. 9 on the Billboard 200 with nearly 31,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, SEA units comprise a little more than 30,000 (equaling 43.32 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks), while album sales and TEA units comprise the remaining units. It’s the fifth consecutive and total top 10-charting album for the artist, and follows a pair of No. 1s in Beautiful Mind (2022) and SoulFly (2021).
Rounding out the new top 10 is Bublé’s former No. 1 Christmas, which rises 19-10 with 31,000 equivalent album units (up 51%%). The set was originally released in 2011 and spent five weeks at No. 1 in late 2011 and early 2012. It has returned to the top 10 in every Christmas season since.
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.
Manuel Turizo’s “La Bachata” spends an 11th week at No. 1 on the Billboard Argentina Hot 100 chart (dated Nov. 19). It’s the longest reign for any song in 2022, and the fifth-most among all titles.With Turizo adding another week at the summit, let’s look at the longest leads since the chart launched in 2018:
25 weeks, “Tusa,” Karol G & Nicki Minaj16 weeks, “Entre Nosotros,” Tiago pzk, LIT Killa, Nicki Nicole & Maria Becerra13, “Otro Trago,” Sech, Darell, Nicky Jam, Ozuna & Anuel AA12, “Hawai,” Maluma & The Weeknd12, “Calma,” Pedro Capo & Farruko11, “La Bachata,” Manuel Turizo
Meanwhile, Rosalía’s “Despechá” holds strong at No. 2 for an 11th nonconsecutive week. Bizarrap and Quevedo’s “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 52” rebounds to No. 3 for a fifth week after its eight-week atop the ranking, while María Becerra’s “Automático” dips 3-4.
Further, Argentinian Ysy A scores his 15th entry as every song from his latest album, Ysysmo, debuts on the tally. One song from the 12-track set, which released on Nov. 11 through Sponsor Dios, scores the week’s Hot Shot Debut: “Cómo Chilla Ella,” with Sponsor Dios and Evlay, at No. 5.
Here’s Ysy A’s complete takeover:
No. 5, “Cómo Chilla Ella,” with Sponsor Dios & EvlayNo. 13, “A Por Todo,” with Sponsor Dios & OniriaNo. 14, “Cuánto Vale Hacer El Amor?” with Sponsor Dios & EvlayNo. 16, “Cuántos Términos?” with Sponsor Dios & BaxianNo. 24, “Relojes Reventados,” with Sponsor Dios & OniriaNo. 29, “Uoh Oh Oh,” with Sponsor Dios & BaxianNo. 31 “Un Piso Más,” with Sponsor Dios, Club Hats & KokiNo. 33, “Cuál?” with Sponsor Dios & Rucci VazquezNo. 36, “Pa Esta Soledad,” with Yesan & Sponsor DiosNo. 39, “Ser El Trap,” with Sponsor Dios & BaxianNo. 42, “Heridas Al Fuego,” Sponsor Dios & OniriaNo. 45, “Todo Pago,” Sponsor Dios & Halpe
Elsewhere, Bizarrap adds a 35th entry as his latest collab with Duki, “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 50,” debuts at No. 11. With the new arrival, he ties with Anuel AA, Ozuna and Rauw Alejandro for the third-most, trailing only Bad Bunny’s 53 entries and J Balvin’s 49. Duki, meanwhile, adds a 34th appearance to his account.
La K’onga takes the Greatest Gainer honors of the week thanks to “El Mismo Aire,” which ascends 97-81. Lali collects her 14th entry as “Motiveishon” starts at No. 83. Lastly, David Guetta and Bebe Rexha’s “I’m Good (Blue)” opens at No. 85.
Former rivals Nas and Jay-Z find themselves on equal footing in one regard on the all-genre Billboard 200 chart, as Nas’ King’s Disease III debuts at No. 10 on the chart dated Nov. 26. With the arrival, the Queens MC lands his 16th top 10, tying Jay-Z for the most among rappers in the chart’s history.
King’s Disease III opens with 29,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending Nov. 17, according to Luminate; 20,000 units of the starting sum derive from streams, equaling 26.5 million official on-demand streams of the album’s songs. Of the remaining units, 8,500 are in traditional album sales, with the outstanding balance owed to track-equivalent album units. (One unit equals the following levels of consumption: one album sale, 10 individual tracks sold from an album, or 3,750 ad-supported or 1,250 paid/subscription on-demand official audio and video streams for a song on the album.)
As the new album enters the list, here’s an updated leaderboard for the rappers with the most top 10 albums on the Billboard 200:
16, Jay-Z16, Nas15, Drake15, Future12, Eminem12, Lil Wayne12, YoungBoy Never Broke Again11, Jeezy11, Kanye West11, Snoop Dogg
Elsewhere, King’s Disease III begins at No. 4 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and at No. 3 on Top Rap Albums. On the former, it becomes Nas’ 18th top 10, the second-best sum among rappers there, behind Jay-Z’s 21.
King’s Disease III is the third installment of what has become an annual series from Nas. The first edition arrived in August 2020 and peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200. Its next iteration came 12 months later and improved on the original, starting at a No. 3 best on the Billboard 200. Between King’s Disease II and King’s Disease III, Nas released another album, Magic, which reached No. 27 this January.
Submit questions about Billboard charts, as well as general music musings, to askbb@billboard.com. Please include your first and last name, as well as your city, state and country, if outside the U.S.
Or, tweet @gthot20.
Let’s open the latest mailbag.
Hi Gary,
Bruce Springsteen debuts at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 chart this week with Only the Strong Survive, scoring his 22nd top 10 album. He has notched top 10s in each of the last six decades, from 1970s to the 2020s. How rare is that feat, and are there any other notable chart achievements of his that we can celebrate this week?
Thanks,
Raditya Gunardisurya Jakarta, Indonesia
Hi Raditya,
Springsteen is one of only three artists with newly charting top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 in each of the last six decades, having joined James Taylor when the former’s Letter to You launched at its No. 2 best in 2020. Paul McCartney made the elite club a trio (including his work with Wings) in 2021.
The three Rock and Roll Hall of Famers’ Billboard 200 top 10 totals by decade:Paul McCartney: ’70s: 10 / ’80s: two / ’90s: one / ’00s: four / ’10s: three / ’20s: one (21 total)Bruce Springsteen: ’70s: two / ’80s: five / ’90s: three / ’00s: six / ’10s: four / ’20s: two (22 total)James Taylor: ’70s: six / ’80s: one / ’90s: one / ’00s: two / ’10s: two / ’20s: one (13 total)
Per the breakouts above, Springsteen, with the debut of the aptly titled Only the Strong Survive, becomes the only act to have earned multiple top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 in the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, ’00s, ’10s and ’20s.
Notably, Barbra Streisand, if she can notch a pair of top 10s in the ’20s, would surpass Springsteen’s streak (and potentially McCartney and Taylor’s, if they can each add a top 10 this decade) of multiple Billboard 200 top 10s in each of six decades, as she tallied more than one in each decade from the ’60s through the ’10s, having most recently reached the region in 2016. Here are Streisand’s decade-by-decade totals – with the fellow superstar, who boasts the most top 10s among soloists (34, second overall only to the Rolling Stones’ 37) having notched at least four top 10s in each of those decades: ’60s: nine / ’70s: seven / ’80s: six / ’90s: four / ’00s: four / ’10s: four.
Meanwhile, Springsteen’s latest chart feat – with Only the Strong Survive also new at No. 1 on Top Rock & Alternative Albums – accompanies that of another legend: Elton John, who crowns Adult Pop Airplay with “Hold Me Closer,” alongside Britney Spears. Similar to Springsteen’s new Billboard 200 accolade, the song itself traverses decades, as it reimagines the hook of John’s 1972 classic “Tiny Dancer” and the verses of his 1992 Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit “The One.” John also upped his career Billboard Boxscore touring total to a near-record level, thanks to his three shows Nov. 17, 19 and 20 at Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium.
Springsteen and John have long been linked on Billboard‘s surveys, even if they haven’t combined for any hits, dating to Springsteen’s first charted song. On the Hot 100 dated Sept. 20, 1975, Springsteen made his first appearance at No. 68 with “Born to Run.” One notch lower, John charted with an enduring single of his own: “Someone Saved My Life Tonight.”
Springsteen scored his first Hot 100 top 10, “Hungry Heart,” in December 1980, after John reached the tier that June with “Little Jeannie.” They also each earned top 10s in the same year in 1984-86, 1988 and 1994.
(As for their most-streamed songs in the U.S. to-date, according to Luminate, John’s “Rocket Man,” from 1972, has drawn 738 million official on-demand streams and Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark,” from 1984, 318.6 million.)
“He’s probably one of the nicest people in rock and roll I’ve ever met in my life,” John said of Springsteen in 1980 on the Australian TV show Countdown, helping introduce a performance of the latter’s “The River.” “One of the sweetest and sincerest people. At the moment in America, he’s the biggest cheese going and good luck to him, because someone that nice deserves it.”
Taylor Swift keeps her good times rolling on Australia’s charts, while Nickelback returns to national albums survey with Get Rollin’, the Canadian rockers’ first album in five years.
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Get Rollin’ starts at No. 3, for the Chad Kroeger-led band’s eighth top-five album, and the highest debut on the latest ARIA Chart, published Nov. 25.
Meanwhile, U.S. heavy metal band Disturbed returns to the national chart with Divisive, their new album. It’s new at No. 5.
There’s some good-natured jostling at the top of the albums survey, as Swift (Midnights) outplays bestie Ed Sheeran (equals) for the title.
Sheeran, who will return to Australia for a national stadium tour next February and March, enjoyed a boost from the release last Friday of Pokémon “Scarlet” and “Violet,” on which he features, and his Full Circle concert documentary, which premiered Thursday night (Nov. 24) on free-to-Channel 9, straight after the 2022 ARIA Awards.
The uptick in Sheeran’s streams and sales from the Full Circle premiere should be reflected on next week’s chart.
Michael Jackson’s 1982 juggernaut Thriller returns to the chart, following the release of a 40th anniversary edition. Thriller hit No. 1 following its original release, and returns to the chart this week at No. 18. The album has sold more than 1.1 million copies in Australia, and is certified 18-times platinum.
Also, Irish singer and songwriter Dermot Kennedy cracks the top 40 with Sonder, his new album. Sonder, the leader on the midweek U.K. chart, is new at No. 37 in Australia.
Swift grabs another chart double, as the U.S. pop superstar retains her ARIA Singles Chart crown with “Anti-Hero,” the first track lifted from Midnights. “Anti-Hero” completes a fifth consecutive week at No. 1. Indeed, the single has led the chart every week since its release.
Finally, Meghan Trainor’s return to doo-wop with “Made You Look” continues to gather steam on the ARIA Chart, lifting 7-4, for a new peak, while Sydney singer and songwriter Dean Lewis climbs 22-14 with “How Do I Say Goodbye,” a new peak position.
Louis Armstrong’s new seasonal compilation album Louis Wishes You a Cool Yule debuts in in the top 10 across multiple Billboard charts (dated Nov. 26), including Top Holiday Albums.
Louis Wishes You a Cool Yule bows at No. 9 on Top Holiday Albums, and launches in the top 10 on Jazz Albums (No. 4), Traditional Jazz Albums (No. 4), Top Album Sales (No. 7), Top Current Album Sales (No. 6) and Vinyl Albums (No. 7). It also starts at No. 122 on the Billboard 200, becoming his highest charting album since Hello Dolly spent six weeks at No. 1 in 1964.
The new 11-track set is promoted as Armstrong’s “first-ever Christmas album,” though the late artist (who died in 1971) has previously released a number of holiday compilations alongside other acts that feature most of the album’s tracks (such as Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald’s Ella & Louis Christmas). Louis Wishes You a Cool Yule was released through streaming services and digital retailers on Oct. 28, and bowed on CD and vinyl on Nov. 11.
Notably, Louis Wishes You a Cool Yule includes a previously unreleased recording from Armstrong, “A Visit From St. Nicholas” (also known as “The Night Before Christmas”), recorded shortly before his death. It is his first newly released track in over 20 years.
Louis Wishes You a Cool Yule earned 9,500 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Nov. 17, according to Luminate. Of that sum, traditional album sales comprise 7,500 — Armstrong’s largest sales week for any album in over 20 years. He last had a larger sales week in February 2001, when the best-of compilation Ken Burns Jazz – The Definitive Louis Armstrong sold 8,000 copies (No. 142 on the Feb. 17, 2001-dated Top Album Sales chart).
Elsewhere on the Top Holiday Albums chart, Michael Bublé’s Christmas holds atop the list for a 38th nonconsecutive week. Familiar seasonal albums like Mariah Carey’s Merry Christmas (rising 3-2), Vince Guaraldi Trio’s A Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack (4-3), Nat King Cole’s The Christmas Song (5-4) and Pentatonix’s The Best of Pentatonix Christmas (6-5) round out the top five on the list.
The Top Holiday Albums chart ranks the 50 most popular seasonal albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units. Units comprise album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). Each units 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. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram. The seasonal Top Holiday Albums returned for another festive season with the Oct. 22-dated list and will continue as part of Billboard’s weekly chart menu until it dashes away in January 2023.
Jazz Albums, Traditional Jazz Albums and the Billboard 200 rank the week’s most popular overall jazz, traditional jazz, and albums across all genres, respectively, by equivalent album units. Top Album Sales, Top Current Album Sales and Vinyl Albums list the week’s top selling overall albums, current albums (not catalog, or older titles) and vinyl albums, respectively.
Louis Tomlinson’s second solo album Faith in the Future debuts at No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales (dated Nov. 26), scoring the pop star his highest-charting set yet on the list, and best sales week (37,500 sold in the U.S. in the week ending Nov. 17, according to Luminate).
Explore
See latest videos, charts and news
See latest videos, charts and news
Faith in the Future also bows at No. 2 on Top Current Album Sales, Independent Albums and Vinyl Albums, No. 3 on Tastemaker Albums and No. 5 on the Billboard 200.
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 Current Album Sales lists the week’s best-selling current (not catalog, or older albums) albums by traditional album sales. Independent Albums reflects the week’s most popular albums, by units, released by independent record labels. 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.
Of Faith in the Future’s 37,500 sold, physical sales comprise 31,500 (with 16,500 on vinyl; 14,000 on CD and 1,000 on cassette) and digital album download sales comprise 6,000.
Faith’s first-week sales figure was bolstered by its availability across multiple collectible physical variants of the album. It was issued in 10 vinyl variants (including exclusive editions for Amazon and Barnes & Noble; as well as two indie retail-exclusive versions, one of which was signed), four CD variants (including a deluxe Zine/CD package, a Target-exclusive edition with two bonus tracks and a lenticular cover, and a signed Newbury Comics-exclusive CD) and three cassette tapes.
The set was preceded by the single “Bigger Than Me,” which became Tomlinson’s fourth solo hit on the Pop Airplay chart (outside his tenure in One Direction).
At No. 1 on Top Album Sales is Taylor Swift’s Midnights, which spends a fourth straight week atop the list (60,000 sold; down 36%).
Bruce Springsteen’s new covers set Only the Strong Survive enters at No. 3 on Top Album Sales with 37,000 sold. It’s the 17th top 10 for Springsteen since the list launched in 1991. The Beatles’ Revolver falls 3-4 with 10,000 sold (down 31%).
Nas’ King’s Disease III bows at No. 5 with a little more than 8,000 sold (his 16th top 10) and GloRilla’s Anyways, Life’s Great… starts at No. 6 with 8,000.
Louis Armstrong’s holiday compilation Louis Wishes You a Cool Yule rings in at No. 7 with 7,500 copies sold. It’s the legend’s first top 10 on the 31-year-old chart. The new 11-track set is promoted as Armstrong’s “first-ever Christmas album,” though the late artist (who died in 1971) has previously released a number of holiday compilations alongside other acts that feature most of the album’s tracks (such as Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald’s Ella & Louis Christmas). Notably, Louis Wishes You a Cool Yule includes a previously unreleased recording from Armstrong, “A Visit From St. Nicholas” (also known as “The Night Before Christmas”), recorded shortly before his death. It is his first newly released track in over 20 years.
Louis Wishes You a Cool Yule also debuts in the top 10 on Top Current Album Sales, Jazz Albums, Traditional Jazz Albums, Top Holiday Albums and Vinyl Albums. It also bows at No. 122 on the Billboard 200. (Jazz Albums, Traditional Jazz Albums and Top Holiday Albums rank the week’s most popular overall jazz, traditional jazz, and holiday albums, respectively, by equivalent album units.)
Rounding out the top 10 on the new Top Album Sales chart is Harry Styles’ former No. 1 Harry’s House (rising 11-8 with just over 7,000 sold; up 17%), Prince’s The Hits 2 (16-9 with 7,000; up 59%) and the Stranger Things: Season 4 soundtrack (4-10 with nearly 7,000 sold; down 51%).
In the week ending Nov. 17, there were 1.937 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 10.8% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 1.564 million (up 14.7%) and digital albums comprised 374,000 (down 3.1%).
There were 648,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Nov. 17 (up 2.7% week-over-week) and 903,000 vinyl albums sold (up 25.6%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 30.301 million (down 8.2% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 34.198 million (up 3.1%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 82.901 million (down 7.3% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 64.976 million (down 2.4%) and digital album sales total 17.955 million (down 21.6%).
