Plus: Gunna, Offset, Gary Clark Jr., Lil Pump and Kehlani all debut in the top 10.

Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born soundtrack returns to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for a fourth nonconsecutive week on top, as the set steps 3-1 with 128,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending Feb. 28 (up 152 percent), according to Nielsen Music.

The album got a big boost from publicity and promotion spurred by its parent film’s showcase on the Feb. 24 Academy Awards. The movie was nominated for eight awards, including best picture. A Star Is Born took home one award, for best original song, for “Shallow.” The tune was sung on the show by newly minted Oscar-winner Gaga (“Shallow’s” co-writer), alongside Cooper, in a warmly-received performance.

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 March 9-dated chart — where Star is back at No. 1 — will be posted in full on Billboard‘s websites on March 5.

Star bumps Ariana Grande’s Thank U, Next, which spent its first two weeks on the chart at No. 1, down to No. 2 with 116,000 units (down 23 percent).

On Feb. 26, industry forecasters expected that Thank U was going to spend a third week in charge with perhaps 110,000 to 115,000 units, while Star was going to post a big gain, but settle for the runner-up slot with around 100,000 units. So, what happened between then and Feb. 28, the final day of the tracking week that ultimately put A Star Is Born back at No. 1?

It’s likely that Amazon’s sale pricing of the digital album edition of the Star soundtrack pumped a late-in-the-week sales surge for the set. On Feb. 27, the album was priced at $3.99, and then on Feb. 28, it dropped to $2.99. (Lady Gaga tweeted about both sale prices to her 78 million followers, so awareness was high with her fans about the discount.)

Grande’s Thank U also got in on the discount action, as the set was sale priced at Amazon and via Grande’s official site for $3.99 — along with temporary price cuts on her merchandise/album bundles. Like Gaga, Grande also socialized sale pricing offers. (Thank U did not dip to $2.99, as Star did, as $3.49 is the minimum price for an album to chart during its first four weeks of release. The new chart reflects Thank U‘s third week of release.)

As it turns out, while Star’s overall units gain by 152 percent, the set’s album sales surge by 166 percent (to 76,000; up from 29,000). Further, its digital album sales rise by 353 percent (to 50,000; up from 11,000).

With a fourth week at No. 1, Star nets the most weeks atop the chart for any soundtrack since the companion set to the Disney animated film Frozen ruled for 13 nonconsecutive weeks in 2014. (Between Frozen and Star, Black Panther notched three weeks at No. 1.)

Star now has the most weeks at No. 1 for a live-action film soundtrack since Disney Channel’s TV movie High School Musical 2 saw its soundtrack claim four straight weeks at No. 1 in 2007. Going back even further, the last live-action theatrically released movie soundtrack (like Star’s) to score four weeks at No. 1 was Bad Boys IIin 2003.

Star spent its first three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 (charts dated Oct. 20-Nov. 3, 2018), and has yet to depart the weekly top 10 in its 21 weeks on the tally.

At No. 2 on the Billboard 200, Grande’s Thank U, Next is down one rung, and tallies 116,000 equivalent album units (down 23 percent), as noted above. It also fell 7 percent in album sales, to 19,000 (down from 20,000).

Rapper Gunna scores his highest charting album yet, as Drip or Drown 2 debuts at No. 3 with 90,000 equivalent album units (7,000 in album sales). He surpasses his previous chart high, Drip Harder, his collaborative set with Lil Baby. That debuted and peaked at No. 4 on the Oct. 20, 2018-dated list (starting with 130,000 units; of which 6,000 were in album sales).

Gunna’s Drip or Drown 2 is the first of five debuts in the top 10 — the most new entries to the top tier since the Oct. 20, 2018-dated tally, when six new arrivals graced the top 10. (Coincidentally, that was the same week both Drip Harder and A Star Is Born bowed in the top 10, as Nos. 4 and 1, respectively.)

Coming in at No. 4 on the new Billboard 200 is Offset with his debut solo effort, Father of 4. The album enters with 89,000 equivalent album units earned (of which nearly 7,000 were in album sales). Offset previously logged one earlier top 10 entry, which debuted and peaked at No. 4: Without Warning, a collaborative effort with Metro Boomin and 21 Savage. (Offset is also a member of the trio Migos, which has notched two top 10s, both of which entered at No. 1.)

Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody soundtrack rounds out the top five, as it dips 2-5 with 61,000 equivalent album units (up 10 percent). The album is also basking in the glow of the Academy Awards. Queen, with Adam Lambert, opened the show with a medley of “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions.” The film Bohemian Rhapsody was nominated for five Oscars, and won four — the most of any film this year — one best actor win for Rami Malek.

At No. 6, singer-songwriter Gary Clark Jr. achieves his third top 10 album with This Land. The set bows with 54,000 equivalent album units earned (of which 51,000 were in album sales, aided by a concert ticket/album sale redemption offer with the artist’s upcoming U.S. tour).

The debut parade continues at No. 7, as rapper Lil Pump claims his second top 10 effort, as Harverd Dropout bows with 48,000 equivalent album units (25,000 in album sales, boosted in part by an array of merchandise/album bundles). He previously visited the top 10 with a self-titled effort, which debuted and peaked at No. 3 with 46,000 units earned in its debut frame (Oct. 28, 2017-dated chart).

A Boogie Wit da Hoodie’s former No. 1 Hoodie SZN slips 6-8 with 37,000 units (down 5 percent).

Singer-songwriter Kehlani captures her second top 10 album, as While We Waitarrives at No. 9 with 34,000 equivalent album units (of which 6,000 were in album sales). While follows her one previous top 10, SweetSexySavage, which debuted and peaked at No. 3 on the Feb. 18, 2017-dated list (with 58,000 units earned in its opening frame).

Closing out the top 10 is Post Malone’s previous leader, beerbongs & bentleys, which falls 7-10 with 33,000 units (down 2 percent).

Source: billboard.com

Just two months into 2019, women in lead roles have already matched their total time on top in all of 2018.

Ariana Grande‘s “7 Rings” rules the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart for a fifth week.

Meanwhile, Cardi B and Bruno Marsblast onto the Hot 100 at No. 5 with “Please Me,” their second shared top 10. Their prior collab, “Finesse,” reached No. 3 last year.

Let’s run down the top 10 of the Hot 100, which blends all-genre U.S. streaming, radio airplay and digital sales data. All charts will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 26).

‘7 Rings’ No. 1 again: Grande’s “7 Rings” spends a fifth week atop the Hot 100, encompassing its entire run on the ranking. “Rings” leads the Streaming Songschart for a fifth frame, with 44.5 million U.S. streams, down 30 percent, in the week ending Feb. 21, according to Nielsen Music.

“Rings” ranks at No. 3, after posting three weeks at No. 1, on Digital Song Sales(27,000 sold in the week ending Feb. 21) and pushes 9-6 on Radio Songs, up 16 percent to 71.3 million audience impressions in the week ending Feb. 24, as it claims the Hot 100’s top Airplay Gainer award for a fourth week.

“Rings” is the first song to spend its first five weeks on the Hot 100 at No. 1 since Drake’s “God’s Plan,” which ranked on top for its first 11 (covering its entire reign) in February-April 2018. “Rings” is the first song by a woman to lead for its first five weeks since Adele’s “Hello,” which placed at No. 1 for its first 10 frames (also encompassing its entire command) in November 2015-January 2016.

Lead women at No. 1 in 2019 = 2018: Women have now spent eight weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 on charts dated in 2019, all in lead roles, starting with the seventh and last week on top on for Grande’s prior No. 1, “Thank U, Next,” on the chart dated Jan. 5, followed by two weeks in charge for Halsey‘s “Without Me” and now five for “Rings.” Thus, as of the first chart dated in March, women in lead roles have matched last year’s total time atop the Hot 100, as women credited as leads tallied eight weeks at No. 1 in all of 2018 (including the first six weeks on top for “Next”; Camila Cabello and Cardi B also ruled for a week each as leads in 2018).

In 2017, women as lead acts spent six weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100, three each by Taylor Swift (“Look What You Made Me Do”) and Cardi B (“Bodak Yellow [Money Moves]”). The 2018 and 2017 totals trail that of 2016, when lead women ran up 16 weeks at No. 1, by Adele, Rihanna and Sia.

As previously reported, “Rings” parent LP Thank U, Next logs a second week at No. 1on the Billboard 200 albums chart.

Grande’s “Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored” falls 2-8 in its second week on the Hot 100. A week ago, as “7 Rings” and “Thank U, Next” sandwiched the song at Nos. 1 and 3, respectively, Grande became the first soloist to rank at Nos. 1, 2 and 3 simultaneously, and the second act overall, after The Beatles in 1964.

While “Girlfriend” dips 2-4 on Streaming Songs (31.9 million, down 46 percent) and 2-7 on Digital Song Sales (16,000, down 55 percent), it gains by 59 percent to 21.3 million in radio airplay audience.

Panic! at the Disco‘s “High Hopes” descends 8-9 on the Hot 100, after reaching No. 4. It leads Hot Rock Songs for a 17th week and Radio Songs for a 14th frame (109.1 million, down 1 percent), as it ties for the fifth-most time atop the radio ranking (which began in 1990):

Most weeks at No. 1 on Radio Songs
18, “Iris,” Goo Goo Dolls, 1998
16, “Girls Like You,” Maroon 5 feat. Cardi B, 2018
16, “We Belong Together,” Mariah Carey, 2005
16, “Don’t Speak,” No Doubt, 1996-97
14, “High Hopes,” Panic! at the Disco, 2018-19
14, “No One,” Alicia Keys, 2007-08
14, “Because You Loved Me,” Celine Dion, 1996

Rounding out the Hot 100’s top 10, Post Malone’s “Wow.” drops 9-10, after hitting No. 8.

Find out more Hot 100 news on Billboard.com this week, and, for all chart news, you can listen (and subscribe) to Billboard‘s Chart Beat Podcast and Pop Shop Podcast and follow @billboard and @billboardcharts. And again, be sure to visit Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 26), when all charts, including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh. The next issue of Billboard magazine is on sale Friday (March 1).

Halsey’s former two-week Hot 100 No. 1 “Without Me” rebounds 4-2. As reported earlier, Benny Blanco, Halsey and Khalid‘s “Eastside” (at No. 12 on the Hot 100 after reaching No. 9) completes a record 31-week ascent to No. 1 on Billboard‘s Pop Songs radio airplay chart, dethroning “Without Me” after four weeks on top.

Post Malone and Swae Lee‘s former one-week Hot 100 leader “Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse)” rises 5-3, while topping the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songsand Hot Rap Songs charts for an eighth week each.

Grande’s “Next” drops 3-4 on the Hot 100.

Cardi B and Bruno Mars surge onto the Hot 100 at No. 5 with “Please Me.” The stand-alone single (released on Atlantic Records, both artists’ home label) starts at No. 1 on Digital Song Sales with 51,000 sold. Cardi B collects her third No. 1 on the sales survey, while Mars adds his ninth.

The track bows at No. 10 on Streaming Songs with 27.9 million U.S. streams, marking Cardi B’s 11th top 10 and Mars’ eighth. On Radio Songs, it charges 33-22 (39 million in audience reach).

On the Hot 100, Cardi B notches her seventh top 10 and Mars earns his 16th. Their first charted hit together, “Finesse,” rose to No. 3 on the Hot 100 in January 2018. The pair joins other twosomes who aren’t official regular duos but who have also teamed up for multiple Hot 100 top 10s. Rihanna, for example, has shared three Hot 100 top 10s with Drake and a pair each with JAY-Z, Kanye West, Eminem and Calvin Harris. Drake, meanwhile, boasts five top 10s with Lil Wayne. Plus, Grande has combined for two top 10s with Nicki Minaj, while, going back to the 1980s, Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney tallied two together, each of which peaked in 1983: “The Girl Is Mine” (No. 2) and “Say Say Say” (No. 1 for six weeks, into 1984).

Marshmello and Bastille‘s “Happier” is steady at No. 6 on the Hot 100, after reaching a No. 2 high, as it leads Hot Dance/Electronic Songs for a 23rd week, while Travis Scott‘s former one-week Hot 100 No. 1 “Sicko Mode” holds at No. 7.

Source: billboard.com

Ariana Grande’s Thank U, Next spends a second week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, making it the first album by a solo woman to spend more than a single week at No. 1 in over a year. 

Thank U earned 151,000 equivalent album units in the week ending Feb. 21 (down 58 percent from its debut of 360,000 units), according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 20,000 were in album sales (down 82 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 March 2-dated chart (where Thank U holds at No. 1) will be posted in full on Billboard‘s websites on Feb. 26.

Thank U’s second week sum of 151,000 units is mostly comprised of SEA units: 124,000. That figure translates to 168.6 million on-demand audio streams for the album’s songs in its second week (down from 307 million in its debut frame, when it set the record for both an album by a woman and for a pop album). The 168.6 million streaming figure for Thank U’s second week easily makes it the most streamed album of this week, and also ranks it as the third-largest week for a woman ever (trailing its own debut frame, plus the first week of Cardi B’s Invasion of Privacy, with 202.6 million) and the second-biggest week ever for a pop album (after only Thank U’s debut week).

Thank U also marks Grande’s first album to tally more than just a single week atop the list. Her three previous leaders all locked up one frame each at No. 1.

Plus, Thank U is first album by a solo woman to earn more than one week at the top in over a year, since Taylor Swift’s reputation tallied four nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 (its first three: Dec. 2-Dec. 16, 2017, and then Jan. 6, 2018). (In between reputation and Thank U, the A Star Is Born soundtrack, credited to both Lady Gagaand Bradley Cooper, spent three frames at No. 1.)

Meanwhile, since reputation was last No. 1 (from the Jan. 13, 2018 through March 2, 2019-dated charts), five albums by solo men have spent at least two weeks atop the list: A Boogie Wit da Hoodie’s Hoodie SZN(two weeks), 21 Savage’s I Am > I Was (two), Travis Scott’s Astroworld (three), Drake’s Scorpion (five) and Post Malone’s beerbongs & bentleys (three).

Perhaps more surprising, of the 43 No. 1s since reputation was last on top, only five were by solo women. Grande’s two No. 1s: Sweetener and Thank U, Next; Camila Cabello’s Camila, Cardi B’s Invasion of Privacy,and Carrie Underwood’s Cry Pretty. Twenty-four were by solo men, 11 were from groups (and all of those groups were comprised entirely of men) and three were soundtracks (The Greatest Showman, Black Panther, and Gaga and Cooper’s A Star Is Born).

At No. 2 on the new Billboard 200, the soundtrack to Bohemian Rhapsody hits a new peak, as it rises 3-2 with 56,000 units (up 17 percent) as it continues to bask in the glow of the film’s home video release on DVD and blu-ray on Feb. 12. The set beats its previous chart high of No. 3.

With Bohemian’s new chart peak, it’s now solely Queen’s second-highest charting effort, breaking out of a tie with the No. 3-peaking News of the World, from 1978. Ahead of Bohemian is Queen’s only No. 1, 1980’s The Game.

The A Star Is Born soundtrack slips 2-3, despite a 3 percent increase (to 51,000 units). The former No. 1 has yet to depart the top 10, encompassing its first 20 weeks on the chart.

Both Bohemian and Star are primed for further gains on next week’s chart in the wake of Sunday’s (Feb. 24) Academy Awards. The two films are both up for best picture and have five and eight total nominations, respectively. Plus, Queen is slated to open the Oscars broadcast with a performance, while Gaga and Cooper are scheduled to perform Star’s hit single “Shallow,” which is nominated for best original song.

At No. 4 on the Billboard 200, Florida Georgia Line’s Can’t Say I Ain’t Country starts at No. 4, giving the country duo its fourth top five effort. The set enters with 50,000 units (29,000 in album sales). The act’s last album, Dig Your Roots, entered at No. 2 on the Sept. 17, 2016-dated chart with 145,000 units.

Debuting at No. 5 on the new Billboard 200 is Drake’s 10-year-old So Far Gone mixtape. The set enters with 45,000 units (7,000 in album sales), garnering Drake his 10th total and consecutive top 10.

The mixtape, which was originally released for free in early 2009, but never commercially issued or distributed to streaming services until Feb. 15 of this year, made its commercial and streaming debut to celebrate Gone’s 10th anniversary.

While the full So Far Gone album never previously charted on Billboard’s charts (back in 2009, an album needed to be commercially released in order to chart), a distillation of the set did reach Billboard tallies that year. The So Far Gone EP was released later in 2009 as Drake’s first commercially released album (through Young Money/Cash Money/Republic Records). The EP combined five tracks from the full-length mixtape (including his first Billboard Hot 100 hit, the No. 2-peaking “Best I Ever Had”), along with two new cuts. The So Far Gone EP debuted and peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard 200 dated Oct. 3, 2009.

Closing out the new Billboard 200’s top 10 are a quintet of previous No. 1s. A Boogie Wit da Hoodie’s Hoodie SZN falls 4-6 (39,000 units; down 10 percent), Post Malone’s beerbongs dips 5-7 (34,000 units; down 14 percent), Travis Scott’s Astroworld drops 6-8 (33,000 units; down 12 percent), 21 Savage’s I Am > I Was descends 7-9 (32,000 units; down 12 percent) and Meek Mill’s Championships is steady at No. 10 (32,000 units; down 6 percent).

Source: billboard.com

‘7 Rings’ reigns for a fourth week, ‘Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored’ debuts at No. 2 and ‘Thank U, Next’ rebounds to No. 3.

Ariana Grande becomes the first artist to hold the Nos. 1, 2 and 3 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart simultaneously since The Beatles in 1964, as her new album Thank U, Next launches at No. 1 on the Billboard 200albums tally.

Grande’s “7 Rings” rules the Hot 100 (dated Feb. 23) for a fourth week, while “Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored” debuts at No. 2 and former seven-week leader “Thank U, Next” rebounds from No. 7 to No. 3. All three songs are from the Thank U, Next album, released on Republic Records.

Grande is just the second act in the Hot 100’s 60-year history to monopolize the top three in a week. The Beatles earned the honor for five weeks in March and April 1964, even claiming the entire top five on the April 4, 1964-dated chart.

Let’s run down the top 10 of the Hot 100, which blends all-genre U.S. streaming, radio airplay and digital sales data. All charts will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 20).

“7 Rings” No. 1 again: Grande’s “7 Rings” spends a fourth week atop the Hot 100, encompassing its entire run on the chart. “Rings” leads the Streaming Songs chart for a fourth frame, with 63.5 million U.S. streams, up 10 percent, in the week ending Feb. 14, according to Nielsen Music. On Radio Songs, “Rings” rises 10-9, up 23 percent to 61.7 million audience impressions in the week ending Feb. 17, good for the Hot 100’s top Airplay Gainer award for a third week.

“Break Up” bows at No. 2: New Thank U, Next single “Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored” blasts onto the Hot 100 at No. 2 (marking Grande’s 13th top 10). It launches at No. 2 on both Streaming Songs (59.2 million) and Digital Song Sales (36,000 sold), while drawing 13.4 million airplay impressions.

“Next” up, at No. 3: Meanwhile, the Thank U, Next title track and lead single rebounds 7-3 on the Hot 100, after spending seven weeks at No. 1, beginning with its Nov. 17 debut at the summit. It’s powered most heavily by its 36.8 million U.S. streams, up 52 percent, as it surges 14-5 on Streaming Songs and claims the Hot 100’s top Streaming Gainer nod.

Ariana meets The Beatles: Grande is only the second act in the Hot 100’s history to rank at Nos. 1, 2 and 3 simultaneously and the first in nearly 55 years. The Beatles achieved the feat for five weeks in 1964, that March 14, 21 and 28 and April 4 and 25; on April 4, 1964, the group claimed the entire top five.

“7 Rings,” “Break Up” and “Next” mark the first triple-up for an artist at Nos. 1, 2 and 3 on the Hot 100 since The Beatles held the same spots on April 25, 1964, with “Can’t Buy Me Love,” “Twist and Shout” and “Do You Want to Know a Secret,” respectively. (Thus, the last time the honor was earned, the No. 1 song was about how “I don’t care too much for money; money can’t buy me love”; “7 Rings” finds Grande declaring “retail therapy my new addiction.”)

Between The Beatles’ and Grande’s tri-umphs, Drake came closest to the feat, placing at Nos. 1, 2 and 4 on the Hot 100 dated July 14, 2018, with “Nice for What,” “Nonstop” and “God’s Plan,” respectively. The songs contributed to Drake’s record seven simultaneous Hot 100 top 10s, as his album Scorpion debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 the same week.

Pop’s resurgence: Meanwhile, Grande has been at the forefront of a turnaround for pop songs’ fortunes atop the Hot 100. On Sept. 22, 2018, Drake’s “In My Feelings” spent its 10th and final week at No. 1, wrapping a record 34-week streak of rap leaders (29 by Drake). Since then, pop songs have led for 20 of 22 weeks, thanks to Maroon 5‘s “Girls Like You,” featuring Cardi B (seven weeks at No. 1); Grande’s “Next” (seven); Halsey‘s “Without Me” (two); and Grande’s “7 Rings” (four).

In that 22-week span, two rap titles each spent a week at No. 1: Travis Scott‘s “Sicko Mode” and Post Malone and Swae Lee‘s “Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse).”

Women at No. 1 in 2019: Plus, women have now spent seven weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 on charts dated 2019, starting with the seventh and last week on top on for Grande’s “Next” on the chart dated Jan. 5 (followed by two weeks in charge for “Without Me” and four for “7 Rings”). Thus, as of late February, women in lead roles have almost matched last year’s total time atop the Hot 100, as women as credited leads tallied eight weeks at No. 1 in all of 2018 (including the first six weeks on top for “Next”; Camila Cabello and Cardi B also ruled for a week each as leads in 2018).

In 2017, women as lead acts spent six weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100, three each by Taylor Swift (“Look What You Made Me Do”) and Cardi B (“Bodak Yellow [Money Moves]”). The 2018 and 2017 sums pale in comparison to 2016, when lead women logged 16 weeks at No. 1, by Adele, Rihanna and Sia.

Rounding out the Hot 100’s top five, Halsey’s “Without Me” dips 3-4 and Post Malone and Swae Lee’s “Sunflower” slides 4-5, as the latter track tops the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts for a seventh week each.

Marshmello and Bastille‘s “Happier” falls to No. 6 on the Hot 100 from its No. 2 high, a week after surging following Marshmello’s groundbreaking set inside the Fortnite video game Feb. 2. The collaboration leads Hot Dance/Electronic Songs for a 22nd week.

Scott’s “Sicko Mode” slips 5-7 on the Hot 100 and Panic! at the Disco‘s “High Hopes” descends 6-8 after reaching No. 4. The latter song leads Hot Rock Songs for a 16th week and Radio Songs for a 13th frame (110.4 million, down 4 percent).

Capping the Hot 100’s top 10, Post Malone’s “Wow.” keeps at No. 9, after hitting No. 8, and Benny Blanco, Halsey and Khalid‘s “Eastside” returns to the region (11-10), after reaching No. 9.

Find out more Hot 100 news on Billboard.com this week, and, for all chart news, you can listen (and subscribe) to Billboard‘s Chart Beat Podcast and Pop Shop Podcast and follow @billboard and @billboardcharts. And again, be sure to visit Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 20), when all charts, including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh.

Source: billboard.com

Ariana Grande’s Thank U, Next storms in at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart with 360,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending Feb. 14, according to Nielsen Music. The set launches with the biggest week for a pop album in over a year and garners Grande her fourth No. 1 — and second in less than six months. Of Thank U, Next’s starting unit sum, 116,000 were in album sales.

Thank U, Next, released on Feb. 8 through Republic Records, is Grande’s fourth Billboard 200 No. 1. It also launches with the biggest streaming week ever for a pop album.

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 Feb. 23-dated chart (where Thank U, Next debuts at No. 1) will be posted in full on Billboard‘s websites on Wednesday, Feb. 20 (a day later than usual, owed to the U.S. Washington’s Birthday holiday, often referred to as Presidents’ Day, on Feb. 18).

Grande’s Fourth No. 1 Album: It follows Sweetener (which debuted atop the list dated Sept. 1, 2018), My Everything (Sept. 13, 2014) and Yours Truly (Sept. 21, 2013). Grande ties Taylor Swift for the second-most No. 1s among women this decade, trailing Lady Gaga, with five leaders since 2010.

Two No. 1s in Less Than Six Months: Thank U, Next opens at No. 1 less than six months after Grande last topped the chart, with Sweetener, on the Sept. 1, 2018-dated chart. That span of five months and 22 days is the shortest gap between new No. 1s on the Billboard 200 for a woman since 1974-75, when Olivia Newton-John waited just five months and three days between the first weeks at No. 1 for If You Love Me Let Me Know (Oct. 12, 1974) and Have You Never Been Mellow (March 15, 1975). Both titles spent one week at No. 1.

Grande’s accumulation of her two latest No. 1s is the fastest since K-pop group BTS notched its first two No. 1s in a little over three months just last year (Love Yourself: Tear on June 2, 2018 and Love Yourself: Answer on Sept. 8, 2018). In 2017, rapper Future nabbed an unprecedented pair of back-to-back new No. 1s in successive weeks (with his self-titled album March 11 and HNDRXX on March 18).

Biggest Week for a Pop Album in Over a Year: As Thank U, Next starts with 360,000 units, the set earns the biggest week for a pop album in over a year. The last pop set to tally a larger week was Swift’s Reputation, which began at No. 1 on the chart dated Dec. 2, 2017 with 1.24 million units earned. Thank U, Next also scores the biggest week for an album by a woman since reputation.

Thank U, Next has the largest week of any album since Oct. 13, 2018, when Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter V bowed at No. 1 with 480,000 units.

Largest Streaming Week for a Pop Album & Any Album by a Woman: Of Thank U, Next’s starting unit sum of 360,000 units, 228,000 are in SEA units. That latter sum translates to a whopping 307 million on-demand audio streams for the album’s songs during the tracking week. That’s a remarkable sum considering most-heavily-streamed albums are hip-hop sets. (Of the top 20 largest-streaming weeks ever for an album, Thank U, Next is the only non-hip-hop title.)

Thank U, Next easily sets the record for the largest streaming week for a pop album (beating the debut frame of Ed Sheeran’s ÷ [Divide] with 126.7 million on-demand audio streams for its songs; March 25, 2017) and the biggest streaming week for an album by a woman (surpassing the debut week of Cardi B’s Invasion of Privacy with 202.6 million; April 21, 2018).

Thank U, Next has the ninth-largest streaming week for an album overall, and the eighth-biggest debut week. Drake’s Scorpion remains the streaming record-holder among all albums, with 745.9 million on-demand audio streams registered for its songs in its debut week (July 14, 2018). (Scorpion actually has two of the top nine biggest weeks, as the album’s second-week streaming sum is the fourth-largest overall, with 391 million.).

At No. 2 on the new Billboard 200, Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Bornsoundtrack steps 5-2 with 49,000 units (up 31 percent). The set is basking in the glow of Gaga’s performance of the album’s “Shallow” on the Feb. 10 Grammy Awards, where the song also won a pair of trophies (including one presented during the CBS broadcast: best pop duo/group performance).

Another soundtrack, Bohemian Rhapsody, rebounds to its peak position on the Billboard 200, as it zooms from No. 11 to No. 3 with 48,000 units (up 84 percent). The album’s parent film of the same name was released on DVD and blu-ray on Feb. 12, thus stirring interest in the movie’s soundtrack with consumers. (The movie was already available on digital home video.)

A Boogie Wit da Hoodie’s Hoodie SZN falls to No. 4 on the new Billboard 200 after three nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 with 43,000 units (down 7 percent), Post Malone’s beerbongs & bentleys rises 6-5 with 39,000 units (up 10 percent), Travis Scott’s Astroworld descends 4-6 with 37,000 units (down 3 percent), 21 Savage’s I Am > I Was tumbles 2-7 with nearly 37,000 units (down 8 percent) and Drake’s Scorpion is steady at No. 8 with 35,000 units (up 4 percent).

Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour rides its pair of Grammy Award wins on Feb. 10 to a return to the top 10, as the set re-enters the chart straight in at No. 9 with 35,000 units (up 524 percent). Of that sum, 20,000 were in album sales — a gain of 735 percent.

Golden Hour won Grammy Awards for album of the year and best country album, while its songs “Butterflies” and “Space Cowboy” also took home trophies, for best country solo performance and best country song, respectively. Musgraves performed the album’s “Rainbow” on the Grammy Awards broadcast and also took part in an all-star tribute performance to Dolly Parton. (“Rainbow” is now being promoted as Musgraves latest single at country, adult pop and adult contemporary radio stations.) Golden Hour debuted and peaked at No. 4 last April.

Closing out the new top 10 on the Billboard 200 is Meek Mill’s Championships, which falls 7-10 with 34,000 units (down 2 percent).

Source: billboard.com

Marshmello’s “Happier,” with Bastille, blasts to a new high from No. 8.

Ariana Grande‘s “7 Rings” rules the Billboard Hot 100 for a third week, topping the tally dated Feb. 16, after debuting at No. 1 two weeks earlier. The song launched as Grande’s second Hot 100 No. 1, and second to start at the top spot, following “Thank U, Next,” which debuted atop the chart in November and led for seven total weeks.

Meanwhile, Marshmello and Bastille bound from No. 8 to a new No. 2 Hot 100 high with “Happier,” after Marshmello performed a trailblazing in-game concert inside Epic Games’ video game Fortnite Feb. 2.

Let’s run down the top 10 of the Hot 100, which blends all-genre U.S. streaming, radio airplay and digital sales data. All charts will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 12).

Grande’s “Rings,” released on Republic Records, spends a third week as both the week’s most-streamed and top-selling song, while continuing to soar in airplay.

“Rings” leads the Streaming Songs chart for a third frame, with 57.7 million U.S. streams, down 9 percent, in the week ending Feb. 7, according to Nielsen Music. It also tops the Digital Song Sales chart for a third week, with 42,000 downloads sold, up 7 percent, in the week ending Feb. 7.

On Radio Songs, “Rings” rockets 19-10, up 21 percent to 50.6 million audience impressions in the week ending Feb. 10, good for the Hot 100’s top Airplay Gainer award. The song reaches the Radio Songs top 10 in just its third week, marking the quickest climb to the region since Drake’s “In My Feelings” also needed only three frames in July-August. Grande ties her fastest ascent, as her “Problem,” featuring Iggy Azalea, hit the Radio Songs top 10 in its third week in 2014.

“Rings” is the radio follow-up to “Next,” and follows the track “Imagine,” which debuted and peaked at No. 24 on the Hot 100 (Dec. 29). All three songs, plus new radio single “Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored,” due on next week’s Hot 100 (dated Feb. 23), are from Grande’s new album, Thank U, Next, which is set for a No. 1 launch on next week’s Billboard 200 chart.

Marshmello and Bastille’s “Happier” vaults 8-2, hitting a new peak, on the Hot 100 after Marshmello’s Fortnite concert Feb. 2. The song had previously peaked at No. 3 on Nov. 10.

As previously reported, the DJ’s virtual set, the first of its kind in Fortnite and which mixed his tracks “Alone,” “Check This Out,” “Chasing Colors” (with Ookay and featuring Noah Cyrus), “Flashbacks,” “Everyday” (with Logic), “Fly” (featuring Leah Culver) and “Happier,” took place within the game’s Pleasant Park location. The full roughly 10-minute performance was uploaded to Marshmello’s official YouTube channel, along with other related clips, while he also released an extended mix of the set to Apple Music (while numerous gamers uploaded portions of the performance to their channels).

“We made history today!,” Fortnite fan Marshmello wrote on Twitter afterwards. “The first-ever live virtual concert inside of @fortnite with millions of people in attendance. So insane!”

Aided by the set and its online presence, “Happier” hikes 11-2 on Streaming Songs, up 120 percent to 51.8 million U.S. streams in the week ending Feb. 7, earning the Hot 100’s top Streaming Gainer prize. The collab had hit a previous No. 10 high on Streaming Songs in November (and a prior weekly best of 25.4 million streams, as reflected on the chart dated Feb. 2). On Digital Song Sales, it jumps 11-5 (22,000 sold, up 82 percent); it reached No. 2 on the chart on October. “Happier” holds at No. 4 on Radio Songs (89.3 million, down 4 percent) after leading the list for a week in November.

Marshmello and Bastille each earn a new career-best rank in the Hot 100 at No. 2, as “Happier” completes the longest trip to the top two (25 weeks) in over five years, since OneRepublic’s “Counting Stars” also reached No. 2 in its 25th frame (Jan. 18, 2014).

“Happier” concurrently leads Hot Dance/Electronic Songs for a 21st week (while “Alone” re-enters at No. 2, besting its prior No. 9 peak; on the Hot 100, “Alone” returns at No. 29, also a new high, after becoming Marshmello’s first Hot 100 entry in November 2016 and reaching No. 60 the following January).

Rounding out the Hot 100’s top five are three former No. 1s: Halsey‘s “Without Me” dips 2-3; Post Malone and Swae Lee‘s “Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse)” drops 3-4, as it tops the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts for a sixth week each; and Travis Scott‘s “Sicko Mode” is stationary at No. 5, while showing across-the-board gains after Scott performed the song as part of the Super Bowl LIII halftime show performance Feb. 3, headlined by Maroon 5 (see below). “Sicko” holds at No. 5 on Streaming Songs (41.7 million, up 5 percent) and No. 8 on Radio Songs (63 million, up less than 1 percent) and elevates 13-8 on Digital Song Sales (17,000, up 63 percent).

Panic! at the Disco‘s “High Hopes” rebounds 7-6 on the Hot 100 after reaching No. 4. The track paces Hot Rock Songs for a 15th week and Radio Songs for a 12th (115.1 million, down 2 percent).

Grande’s “Next” backtracks 6-7 on the Hot 100; J. Cole‘s “Middle Child” tumbles from its No. 4 peak to No. 8; and Post Malone’s “Wow.” keeps at No. 9 after reaching No. 8.

Helped by the band’s Super Bowl LIII halftime show performance Feb. 3, Maroon 5 holds at No. 10 on the Hot 100 with its former seven-week No. 1 “Girls Like You,” featuring Cardi B, as the song ties a longevity record: “Girls” logs a 33rd week in the top 10, matching the longest top 10 run in the chart’s 60-year history:

Most weeks in Hot 100’s top 10
33, “Girls Like You,” Maroon 5 feat. Cardi B, 2018-19
33, “Shape of You,” Ed Sheeran, 2017
32, “Closer,” The Chainsmokers feat. Halsey, 2016-17
32, “How Do I Live,” LeAnn Rimes, 1997-98
31, “Uptown Funk!,” Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars, 2014-15
30, “Smooth,” Santana feat, Rob Thomas, 1999-2000

“Girls” charges 22-6 on Digital Song Sales (19,000, up 123 percent, claiming top Sales Gainer honors on the Hot 100) and pushes 24-21 on Streaming Songs (20.5 million, up 13 percent), while keeping at No. 6 on Radio Songs (77.8 million, down 2 percent), which it led for 16 weeks.

Just beyond the Hot 100’s top 10, four songs enter the top 20 for the first time: 21 Savage’s “A Lot” leaps 26-12; alt-pop singer-songwriter Billie Eilish earns a new personal-best rank as “Bury a Friend,” from her debut LP, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (due March 29), flies 74-14 after its first full week of tracking; Khalid’s “Better” rises 23-18, as it leads Hot R&B Songs for a fifth week; and rap newcomer Blueface climbs 28-20 with his debut hit “Thotiana”).

Find out more Hot 100 news on Billboard.com this week, and, for all chart news, you can listen (and subscribe) to Billboard‘s Chart Beat Podcast and Pop Shop Podcast and follow @billboard and @billboardcharts. And again, be sure to visit Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 12), when all charts, including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh. The next issue of Billboard magazine is on sale Friday (Feb. 15).

Source: billboard.com

In a sleepy week on the Billboard 200 albums chart, rapper A Boogie Wit da Hoodie’s former No. 1, Hoodie SZN, reclaims the crown for a third nonconsecutive week. The set rises 3-1, and earned 47,000 equivalent album units in the week ending Feb. 7, according to Nielsen Music (down 1 percent).

The album previously led the list on charts dated Jan. 19 and Jan. 26.

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 Feb. 16-dated chart (where Hoodie SZN returns to No. 1) will be posted in full on Billboard‘s websites on Feb. 12.

Hoodie SZN’s chart fortunes are powered almost entirely by streaming activity. In the tracking week, of its total of 47,000 units, 45,000 were in SEA units, which equals 68.4 million on-demand audio streams for the album’s songs. The remaining overall units were from TEA units (about 1,000) and album sales (less than 1,000). The album once again trumps its own record for the smallest weekly album sales total for a No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 since the chart flipped from an album sales-only list to a multi-metric consumption ranking in December of 2014.

21 Savage’s I Am > I Was vaults 8-2 with 40,000 units (up 14 percent), likely owed, in part, to increased interest in the album generated by news of his arrest on Feb. 3 by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The former chart-topper spent two weeks atop the list in January.

Future’s Future Hndrxx Presents: The WIZRD slips 2-3 in its third week on the tally, earning just under 40,000 units (down 28 percent). Travis Scott’s Astroworld climbs 9-4 with 38,000 units (up 11 percent) and Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born soundtrack dips 4-5 with nearly 38,000 units (down 7 percent).

Post Malone’s beerbongs & bentleys is steady at No. 6 with 36,000 units (up less than 1 percent), Meek Mill’s Championships is also a non-mover at No. 7 with 35,000 units (down 3 percent); Drake’s Scorpion returns to the top 10, rising 11-8 with 34,000 units (up 3 percent); and the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse soundtrack steps 10-9 with 31,000 units (down 9 percent). 

Closing out the top 10 is Kodak Black’s Dying to Live, jumping back into the top tier with a 13-10 move, earning 26,000 units (down 5 percent).

Source: billboard.com

Cole reaches his highest career Hot 100 rank, rocketing 26-4.

Ariana Grande‘s “7 Rings” tops the Billboard Hot 100 for a second week, leading the list dated Feb. 9, after debuting at No. 1 a week earlier. The song launched as Grande’s second Hot 100 No. 1, and second to start at the summit, following “Thank U, Next,” which debuted atop the chart in November and led for seven total weeks.

Meanwhile, J. Cole collects a new career-best placement on the Hot 100, as his “Middle Child” soars from its No. 26 debut a week ago to No. 4, following its first full week of availability.

Let’s run down the top 10 of the Hot 100, which blends all-genre U.S. streaming, radio airplay and digital sales data. All charts will update on Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 5).

“Rings,” released on Republic Records, spends a second week as both the week’s most-streamed and top-selling song, despite second-week declines. Conversely, the song surges in airplay.

“Rings” rules the Streaming Songs chart for a second frame, with 63.2 million U.S. streams, down 26 percent, in the week ending Jan. 31, according to Nielsen Music. A week earlier, following the Jan. 18 premiere of the song and its official video, “Rings” drew 85.3 million, the second-biggest streaming week for a song by a female artist, after Grande’s own “Next” (93.8 million, Dec. 15).

“Rings” also tops the Digital Song Sales chart for a second week, with 39,000 downloads sold, down 59 percent, in the week ending Jan. 31.

On Radio Songs, “Rings” roars 39-19, up 53 percent to 41.9 million audience impressions in the week ending Feb. 3. On the Pop Songs airplay chart, “Rings” reaches the top 10 (21-10) in just its third week, marking the fastest flight to the tier since Taylor Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do” did so in its record-tying second frame in September 2017. Grande tops her previous quickest climb to the Pop Songs top 10: five weeks each for “Problem,” featuring Iggy Azalea, in 2014 and “Next” in November-December.

“Rings” is the radio follow-up to “Next,” and follows the track “Imagine,” which debuted and peaked at No. 24 on the Hot 100 (Dec. 29). All three songs are from Grande’s forthcoming album, Thank U, Next, the follow-up to Sweetener, which bowed as her third Billboard 200 No. 1 in September.

Ooh, “child”: Cole’s new hit becomes the highest-charting single in the Hot 100’s 60-year history with the word “middle” in its title. It passes two No. 5-peaking songs titled “The Middle”: by Jimmy Eat World (2002) and Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey (2018).

Plus, Cole’s “Child” is the eighth song to reach the Hot 100’s top five with “child” (or a variation of the word) in its title. Three hit No. 1: “Love Child” by Diana Ross & The Supremes (1968); “Hot Child in the City” by Nick Gilder (1978); and “Sweet Child O’ Mine” by Guns N’ Roses (1988). The other such top five hits: the double-sided single “Superstar”/”Bless the Beasts and Children” by the Carpenters (No. 2, 1971); “When the Children Cry” by White Lion (which reached its No. 3 high exactly 30 years ago today, on Feb. 4, 1989); “Mother and Child Reunion” by Paul Simon (No. 4, 1972); and the double-sided “Scream”/”Childhood” by Michael and Janet Jackson (No. 5, 1995).

Rounding out the newest Hot 100’s top five, Travis Scott‘s “Sicko Mode” is steady at No. 5 after spending one week at No. 1. Grande’s “Next” falls 4-6 and Panic! at the Disco‘s “High Hopes” dips 6-7 after reaching No. 4. “Hopes” tops Hot Rock Songsfor a 14th week and Radio Songs for an 11th frame (117.9 million, down 4 percent).

Marshmello and Bastille‘s “Happier” retreats 7-8 on the Hot 100, after hitting No. 3, as it leads Hot Dance/Electronic Songs for a 20th week, becoming the sixth song to reach the milestone since the latter list launched in January 2013; Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey’s “The Middle” leads with 33 weeks at No. 1 last year.

“Rings” is the radio follow-up to “Next,” and follows the track “Imagine,” which debuted and peaked at No. 24 on the Hot 100 (Dec. 29). All three songs are from Grande’s forthcoming album, Thank U, Next, the follow-up to Sweetener, which bowed as her third Billboard 200 No. 1 in September.

(Now with six Super Bowl wins, could “7 Rings” serve as the New England Patriots’ motivational song next season? Actually, “Thank U, Next,” could too.)

Halsey‘s “Without Me” keeps at No. 2 on the Hot 100 after tallying two weeks on top and Post Malone and Swae Lee‘s “Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse)” holds at No. 3 after a week at the summit, as it leads the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts for a fifth week each.

J. Cole vaults 26-4 on the Hot 100 with “Middle Child,” notching a new career-best rank. Following its Jan. 23 release, the track blasts 17-2 on Streaming Songs (54.4 million) and 12-5 on Digital Song Sales (24,000). It also drew 8.4 million in radio reach in the tracking week.

In the song, Cole shouts-out other prominent rappers, including 21 Savage, JAY-Z and Kodak Black.

Highlights for the ascent of “Child” include:

Cole’s best Hot 100 rank: Cole tallies his highest-charting, and fifth total, Hot 100 top 10, as well as his first top five hit. He first reached the top 10 when “Deja Vu” debuted and peaked at No. 7 on Dec. 31, 2016, and added his next three all on May 5, 2018, when “ATM,” “Kevin’s Heart” and “KOD” debuted (and peaked) at Nos. 6, 8 and 10, respectively, as his most recent album, KOD, opened as his fifth Billboard 200 No. 1.

That week, Cole set a Hot 100 record, becoming the first artist to debut as many as three songs in the top 10 simultaneously. Drake eclipsed the mark two months later, when he launched four songs from his album Scorpion in the top 10.

Ooh, “child”: Cole’s new hit becomes the highest-charting single in the Hot 100’s 60-year history with the word “middle” in its title. It passes two No. 5-peaking songs titled “The Middle”: by Jimmy Eat World (2002) and Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey (2018).

Plus, Cole’s “Child” is the eighth song to reach the Hot 100’s top five with “child” (or a variation of the word) in its title. Three hit No. 1: “Love Child” by Diana Ross & The Supremes (1968); “Hot Child in the City” by Nick Gilder (1978); and “Sweet Child O’ Mine” by Guns N’ Roses (1988). The other such top five hits: the double-sided single “Superstar”/”Bless the Beasts and Children” by the Carpenters (No. 2, 1971); “When the Children Cry” by White Lion (which reached its No. 3 high exactly 30 years ago today, on Feb. 4, 1989); “Mother and Child Reunion” by Paul Simon (No. 4, 1972); and the double-sided “Scream”/”Childhood” by Michael and Janet Jackson (No. 5, 1995).

Rounding out the newest Hot 100’s top five, Travis Scott‘s “Sicko Mode” is steady at No. 5 after spending one week at No. 1. Grande’s “Next” falls 4-6 and Panic! at the Disco‘s “High Hopes” dips 6-7 after reaching No. 4. “Hopes” tops Hot Rock Songsfor a 14th week and Radio Songs for an 11th frame (117.9 million, down 4 percent).

Marshmello and Bastille‘s “Happier” retreats 7-8 on the Hot 100, after hitting No. 3, as it leads Hot Dance/Electronic Songs for a 20th week, becoming the sixth song to reach the milestone since the latter list launched in January 2013; Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey’s “The Middle” leads with 33 weeks at No. 1 last year.

Post Malone’s “Wow.” descends to No. 9 from its No. 8 Hot 100 high, and Super Bowl LIII halftime show performers Maroon 5 slip 9-10 with their former seven-week No. 1 “Girls Like You,” featuring Cardi B. “Girls” logs a 32nd week in the top 10, tying for the second-longest top 10 run in the chart’s archives:

Most weeks in Hot 100’s top 10
33, “Shape of You,” Ed Sheeran, 2017
32, “Girls Like You,” Maroon 5 feat. Cardi B, 2018-19
32, “Closer,” The Chainsmokers feat. Halsey, 2016-17
32, “How Do I Live,” LeAnn Rimes, 1997-98

The spotlight of Maroon 5’s performance at the Super Bowl should spark gains for “Girls” in the current streaming and sales tracking week (Feb. 1-7), further helping its chances to tie Sheeran’s record 33-week stay in the Hot 100’s top 10 with “Shape of You” in 2017.

Find out more Hot 100 news on Billboard.com this week, and, for all chart news, you can listen (and subscribe) to Billboard‘s Chart Beat Podcast and Pop Shop Podcast and follow @billboard and @billboardcharts. And again, be sure to visit Billboard.com tomorrow (Feb. 5), when all charts, including the Hot 100 in its entirety, will refresh. The next issue of Billboard magazine is on sale Friday (Feb. 8).

Source: billboard.com

Plus: Weezer’s ‘Teal Album’ vaults 47-5.

After a nearly 20-year wait, Backstreet Boys are back on top of the Billboard 200 chart. The group debuts at No. 1 on the list with its new studio album DNA, marking the vocal quintet’s third No. 1, and first leader since Black & Blue spent two weeks at No. 1 in December of 2000.

DNA was released on the Boys’ label K-BAHN, via RCA Records, on Jan. 25. The set earned 234,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Feb. 1, according to Nielsen Music, with album sales comprising 227,000 of that sum. DNAis also the top-selling album of the week.

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 Feb. 9-dated chart — where DNA debuts at No. 1 — will be posted in full on Billboard‘s websites on Feb. 5.

Boys & a Beatle: Backstreet Boys last led the Billboard 200 way back on Dec. 16, 2000, when Black & Blue spent its second and final week in charge. Now, 18 years and nearly two months later, the group is back at No. 1. That’s the longest gap between No. 1 albums for an act since last year, when Paul McCartney returned to the top after 36 years. His Egypt Station set bowed at No. 1 on the chart dated Sept. 22, 2018 — 36 years, 3 months and 10 days after Tug of War last led the list (June 12, 1982).

Longest Gap Between No. 1s for a Group Since 2010: In terms of the longest wait between No. 1s for a group, Backstreet Boys’ gap between leaders is the biggest since 2010. That year, on the Feb. 27-dated list, Sade (led by vocalist Sade Adu) returned to No. 1 after more than 24 years. That week, the band’s Soldier of Loveopened atop the list — the act’s first week at No. 1 since Promise spent its second and final week in charge on Feb. 22, 1986.

10 Top 10 Albums: DNA also marks Backstreet Boys’ 10th top 10 album — the entirety of the act’s charting efforts. Their first top 10 came with their self-titled U.S. debut, which bowed at No. 29 on the list dated Aug. 30, 1997, and eventually peaked at No. 4 on Jan. 31, 1998. The group previously led the list with Millennium(10 weeks at No. 1 in 1999) and Black & Blue. The last group to hit the top 10 with each of their its first 10 charting albums was Led Zeppelin, between 1969 and 1982.

Biggest Week for a Pop Album in Nearly a Year: DNA’s opening sum of 234,000 units earned is the biggest week for a pop album since Justin Timberlake’s Man of the Woods bowed at No. 1 on the Feb. 18, 2018-dated list with 293,000 units. DNAhas the largest week among all albums, regardless of genre, since Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter V launched at No. 1 on Oct. 13, 2018 with 480,000 units.

Backstreet Boys’ Largest Sales Week Since 2005: Of DNA’s total unit start of 234,000 units, album sales comprise the bulk of that sum: 227,000. That’s the biggest sales week for any Backstreet Boys album since the July 2, 2005-dated chart, when Never Gone arrived at No. 3 with 291,000 copies sold.

DNA also has the largest sales week, overall, for any album since Carrie Underwood’s Cry Pretty sold 251,000 copies in its premiere week (list dated Sept. 29, 2018). DNA’s opening sales is the biggest for a pop album since Timberlake’s Man of the Woods sold 242,000 in its first frame.

DNA’s sizable sales are powered strongly by those generated from a concert ticket/album sale redemption offer with the act’s upcoming U.S. arena tour. The trek starts July 12 in Washington D.C., and is slated to play over 30 dates.

DNA was preceded by the single “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” which reached No. 18 on the Pop Songs airplay chart last August. It marked the group’s first top 20 hit on the tally since 2005’s “Incomplete” peaked at No. 8. The Grammy Award-nominated track also reached No. 9 on the Adult Pop Songs airplay chart — the group’s first top 10 ever on the chart.

DNA’s new single, “Chances,” holds at No. 19, its peak, on the newest Adult Pop Songs airplay chart (dated Feb. 2).

Back on the new Billboard 200, Future’s Future Hndrxx Presents: The WIZRD falls a spot to No. 2 in its second week, with 56,000 equivalent album units earned (down 56 percent). A Boogie Wit da Hoodie’s Hoodie SZN is steady at No. 3 with 47,000 units (down 4 percent) and Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Bornsoundtrack climbs 8-4 with 40,000 units (up 15 percent).

Weezer’s new all-covers self-titled release, dubbed the Teal Album, vaults 47-5 with 39,000 units (up 184 percent) after its first full week of chart tracking activity. It’s the ninth top 10 for the band. The surprise-released 10-song set boasts such covers as Weezer’s hit redux of Toto’s “Africa,” as well as its take on TLC’s “No Scrubs.” While the set’s rise was powered by album sales (27,000), it still racked up a decent streaming number. The set generated 10,000 in SEA units, which translates to 12.5 million on-demand audio streams for its tracks. (That’s more than Billboard 200’s No. 1 album of the week, Backstreet Boys’ DNA, which tallied 5,000 SEA units, equaling 6.6 million streams of its 12 songs.)

The Teal Album debuted at No. 47 on the Feb. 2-dated chart, after only one day of activity, as it dropped without warning on Jan. 24, the final day of that chart’s tracking week.

Rounding out the top 10 of the new Billboard 200: Post Malone’s beerbongs & bentleys shifts 7-6 with 36,000 units (up 1 percent), Meek Mill’s Championships falls 6-7 with nearly 36,000 units (down 2 percent), 21 Savage’s I Am > I Was descends 5-8 with 35,000 units (down 6 percent), Travis Scott’s Astroworld moves 10-9 with 34,000 units (up less than 1 percent) and the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Versesoundtrack declines 4-10 with nearly 34,000 units (down 13 percent).

Source: billboard.com