Drake’s ‘More Life’ No. 1 for Third Week on Billboard 200; Kodak Black, Mastodon Debut in Top 10

There’s no stopping Drake at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, as More Life spends a third straight week atop the list. The set earned 136,000 equivalent album units in the week ending April 6, according to Nielsen Music. That sum is a decline of 40 percent compared to its second-week earnings: 226,000 units.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The new April 22, 2017-dated chart (where More Life is No. 1 for a third week) will be posted in full to Billboard’s websites on Tuesday, April 11.

More Life is the first album to spend its first three chart weeks at No. 1 since Drake’s own Views, back on June 4, 2016. (Views spent its first nine weeks at No. 1, following its debut atop the tally dated May 21. Views then later returned three more weeks in the penthouse from July 30-Aug. 13, and then one further frame at No. 1 on Oct. 8.)

More Life is still powered greatly by its streaming activity, as 111,000 of its units are SEA (equaling 167 million streams of songs from the album in the tracking week). The album also tallied 16,000 in traditional album sales, and 9,000 TEA units.

More Life continues to only be available for sale as a download, as its previously announced March 31 CD release was pushed back to an as-yet-unannounced date. A vinyl LP was also forthcoming, but a street date was never made public.

Ed Sheeran’s ÷ (Divide) holds at No. 2 for a third week in a row (following its first two frames at No. 1), as the album nets 80,000 units (down 19 percent).

Kodak Black arrives at No. 3 with his debut studio album, Painting Pictures. The hip-hop set launches with 71,000 units, mostly driven by 51,000 SEA units. (It also sold 15,000 in traditional album sales.) The set’s streams are powered by the album’s hit single “Tunnel Vision,” which was No. 2 on the Streaming Songs chart dated April 15.

Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic rises 6-4 on the new Billboard 200 with 48,000 units (down 2 percent). The live action Beauty and the Beast soundtrack slips 4-5 with 46,000 units (down 28 percent) and the Moana soundtrack rises 7-6 with 44,000 units (down 4 percent).

Rock band Mastodon scores its third top 10 album, as Emperor of Sand bows at No. 7 with 43,000 units (41,000 in traditional album sales). The group previously hit the top 10 with Once More ‘Round the Sun (No. 6 in 2014) and The Hunter (No. 10 in 2011).

Emperor of Sand is also the top-selling album of the week, and bows at No. 1 on the Top Album Sales chart.

Future’s self-titled album climbs one slot to No. 8 with 38,000 units (down 3 percent) and Migos’ Culture ascends 11-9 with 34,000 units (down 6 percent).

MercyMe rounds out the top 10, as the act’s new Lifer album debuts at No. 10 with 33,000 units (30,000 in traditional album sales). It’s the fourth top 10 effort for the group, following Welcome to the New (No. 4 in 2014), The Hurt & The Healer (No. 7, 2012) and The Generous Mr. Lovewell (No. 3, 2010).

Source: billboard.com