Taylor Swift’s ‘Reputation’ Spends Third Week at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart

Taylor Swift’s Reputation album notches a third week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, making it the first set to rack up three weeks atop the list since Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN. in May. Reputation earned 147,000 equivalent album units (down 43 percent) in the week ending Nov. 30, according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 131,000 were in traditional album sales (down 43 percent).

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 Dec. 16-dated chart (where Reputation holds at No. 1) will be posted in full on Billboard‘s websites on Tuesday (Dec. 5).

Only four albums have spent three or more weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in 2017: Reputation, DAMN., Drake’s More Life and The Weeknd’s Starboy. DAMN. and More Life both spent three weeks atop the list, while Starboy claimed four frames at No. 1 in 2017, following one week at No. 1 in 2016, when it debuted at No. 1 (Dec. 27, 2016-dated list). Remarkably, the last album by a woman to earn at least three weeks at No. 1 was Adele’s 25, which clocked 10 nonconsecutive weeks in the penthouse between its chart-topping debut on Dec. 12, 2015 and its final week at No. 1 on March 12, 2016.

After two weeks where the Reputation album was not available in full through streaming services (only its four pre-release tracks could be played), the entire set was made available to all streamers on Dec. 1. The album should see a spike in streaming activity on next week’s chart (covering the streaming, and sales, tracking week ending Dec. 7).

Meanwhile, back on this week’s new chart, Pentatonix’s former No. 1, A Pentatonix Christmas, surges from No. 5 to No. 2 with 70,000 units (up 47 percent), of which 56,000 were in album sales (up 41 percent). The set (which topped the Jan. 7 and Jan. 14, 2017-dated Billboard 200 following its 2016 release) rises following the Nov. 27 premiere of the group’s NBC special A Very Pentatonix Christmas and sale pricing and promotion in the iTunes Store (where the album was marked down to $6.99).

Sam Smith’s former leader, The Thrill of It All, holds steady at No. 3 with 62,000 units (up 6 percent), with 36,000 of that sum in pure album sales (up 10 percent).

Garth Brooks’ box set, The Anthology: Part I, The First Five Years, is a non-mover at No. 4 in its second chart week, with 57,000 equivalent album units (up 7 percent, all in traditional album sales). The box set, which is only available on CD, rises following sale pricing timed to the Black Friday shopping holiday on Nov. 24.

Ed Sheeran’s ÷ (Divide) jumps 9-5 with 42,000 units (up 3 percent), Post Malone’s Stoney skips 10-6 with a little over 37,000 units (down 5 percent), P!nk’s Beautiful Trauma slips one rung to No. 7 with 37,000 units (down 16 percent) and Lil Uzi Vert‘s Luv Is Rage 2 is stationary at No. 8 with 35,000 units (down 15 percent).

Michael Bublé’s former No. 1, Christmas, returns to the Billboard 200’s top 10, as vaults from No. 23 to No. 9 with 34,000 units (up 61 percent), with 17,000 in traditional album sales (up 52 percent). The holiday favorite topped the Billboard 200 for five consecutive weeks in December of 2011 (its release year) and January of 2012. It has since revisited the top 10 every year during the holiday season, from Christmastime in 2012 through this year.

Closing out the top 10 is the region’s only debuting title: rappers Fabolous and Jadakiss’ collaborative album Friday on Elm Street. The set starts at No. 10 with 33,000 units (18,000 in traditional album sales). The effort grants Fabolous his sixth top 10 set (and first since the No. 1 Loso’s Way in 2009) and Jadakiss his fifth. The latter last visited the top 10 with the No. 4-peaking Top 5 Dead or Alive in 2015.

Source: billboard.com