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Travis Scott’s ‘Astroworld’ Returns to No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart, 6ix9ine’s ‘Dummy Boy’ Debuts at No. 2
Plus: Michael Bublé has two albums in the top five, “Love” and “Christmas.”
Travis Scott’s Astroworld album takes advantage of a sleepy chart week in the top 10 of the Billboard 200, as his former leader returns to the No. 1 slot for a third nonconsecutive week in charge.
The set earned 71,000 equivalent album units in the week ending Nov. 29 (up 60 percent), according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 31,000 were in album sales (up 816 percent).
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. Units are comprised of traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The new Dec. 8-dated chart — where Astroworld returns to No. 1 — will be posted in full on Billboard‘s websites on Tuesday, Dec. 4.
Astroworld, which spent its first two weeks at No. 1 (Aug. 18-25), has yet to depart the top 10 in its 17 weeks on the list. Its move to No. 1 on the new chart was prompted largely by Scott releasing more than two dozen merchandise/album bundles for Cyber Monday (Nov. 26) through his official website. Each of items — including a keychain, hats, T-shirts, hoodies and so forth – came bundled with a digital copy of the Astroworld album.
Astroworld sold 31,000 albums in the latest tracking week — up 816 percent. Of that sum, 29,000 were in download sales (up 4,285 percent).
Also aiding Astroworld’s gain: the Nov. 28 arrival of a new Skrillex remix of the set’s smash single “Sicko Mode,” which held at its No. 2 high on the most recently published Billboard Hot 100 chart (dated Dec. 1).
At No. 2 on the new Billboard 200, 6ix9ine’s Dummy Boy debuts from just three days of activity in the tracking week. The 13-track set was released on Tuesday, Nov. 27 and starts with 66,000 equivalent album units (of which 10,000 were in album sales).
The set was previously slated for release on Nov. 23, but was delayed due to 6ix9ine’s incarceration. On Nov. 18, 6ix9ine was arrested by ATF and Homeland Security agents on six counts of various racketeering, firearms, assault with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy murder charges. On Nov. 26, he pleaded not guilty to the charges and will face trial in September 2019.
Michael Bublé has a bountiful week on the Billboard 200, as he places two albums in the top five. His new studio set Love dips from No. 2 to No. 3 in its second week (58,000 units; down 48 percent) while his former No. 1 album Christmas, originally released in 2011, zooms from No. 20 to No. 5 (44,000 units; up 56 percent).
Bublé is just the second act in 2018 to chart two concurrent titles in the top five, following XXXTentacion, who logged a pair of albums in the region on the list dated July 7, following his death on June 18. On the July 7 chart, his former No. 1 album ?was No. 2, while his 17 album ranked at No. 5.
Christmas spent five weeks in a row at No. 1 on the Dec. 10, 2011 through Jan. 7, 2012-dated charts. The album has returned to the top 10 of the Billboard 200 every holiday season since its release. Christmas hadn’t ranked as high as it does this week since the Jan. 5, 2013 chart, when it also placed at No. 5.
Since December of 2016, only four acts have had two albums in the top five at the same time, as, in addition to Bublé and XXXTentacion this year, Future and Pentatonix also achieved the feat in that span.
Future did it twice (March 18 and 25, 2017) as a result of him releasing two new studio albums in back-to-back weeks, and both of them debuted at No. 1. His self-titled effort bowed atop the list dated March 11, 2017, while HNDRXX opened at No. 1 on March 18, 2017. On March 18, HDRNXX was No. 1, while Future was at No. 2. Then, on March 25, the Future album fell to No. 4, while HNDRXX dropped to No. 5.
Pentatonix also went two weeks in a row with two albums in the top five: Dec. 31, 2016 and Jan. 7, 2017. On the Dec. 31-dated list, the act’s then-new release A Pentatonix Christmas moved 3-2, while its 2014 holiday set That’s Christmas to Meclimbed 8-5. Then, on the Jan. 7-dated tally, A Pentatonix Christmas rose 2-1 (for its first of two weeks in charge), and That’s Christmas to Me held at No. 5.
Back in the top five of the new Billboard 200, Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born soundtrack stays steady at No. 4. The former No. 1 tallied 53,000 units (down 14 percent) in the latest tracking frame.
Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody soundtrack is also a non-mover, as it holds at No. 6 with a little more than 43,000 units (down 11 percent).
Pentatonix collects its ninth top 10 album, as its new 2018 release Christmas Is Here! rises 17-7 with 43,000 units (up 38 percent). Pentatonix’s nine top 10 albums have come in just over five years, as the vocal group logged their first top 10 with PTX: Vol. II on the Nov. 23, 2013-dated list when it peaked at No. 10.
Rounding out the new top 10 are Drake’s former No. 1 Scorpion (holding at No. 8 with 39,000 units; down 10 percent), previous chart-topper The Greatest Showman soundtrack (climbing 19-9 with 35,000 units; up 22 percent) and Lil Baby and Gunna’s Drip Harder (up 12-10 with 34,000 units; down 10 percent).
The Showman album rises thanks to SEA and TEA units earned by a deluxe edition of the set that includes the new tracks from The Greatest Showman: Reimagined compilation (which falls 3-31 in its second week).
Source: billboard.com