Drake’s ‘Licensed Lover Boy’ Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart With Biggest Week for an Album in Over a Yr

Let’s seize a search at about a of the feats that Drake achieves with the debut of Licensed Lover Boy:

10th No. 1 Album: Drake is now one of handiest eight artists with a minimum of 10 No. 1 albums in the 65-yr history of the Billboard 200 chart. The Beatles own basically the most No. 1s, with 19. They’re followed by Jay-Z (14), Bruce Springsteen, Barbra Streisand (11 every), Drake, Eminem, Elvis Presley and Kanye West (10 every). Drake first topped the Billboard 200 dated July 3, 2010, with Thank Me Later.

Biggest Week for an Album in Over a Yr: With 613,000 similar album devices earned, Licensed Lover Boy logs the largest week for any album since Swift’s Folklore launched at No. 1 on the Aug. 8, 2020-dated chart with 846,000 devices. Licensed also with out disaster rankings 2021’s greatest week, blowing previous the earlier high, logged excellent per week earlier (Sept. 11 chart), when West’s Donda bowed at No. 1 with 309,000 devices.

Biggest Week for a Rap Album Since Drake’s Like ‘Scorpion’ Two Years Within the past: It’s rare for an album to post as ample per week as Licensed. So rare, that in the closing 5 years (going aid to September 2016), handiest albums by Drake and Swift own been as wide or bigger in a single week. Swift’s Recognition debuted with 1.24 million devices on the Dec. 2, 2017-dated chart, followed by Drake’s Scorpion (732,000; July 14, 2018) and Swift’s Lover (867,000; Sept. 7, 2019) and Folklore (846,000; Aug. 8, 2020). Thus, Drake’s Licensed Lover Boy snares the greatest week for an R&B/hip-hop album, a rap album, an album by a male artist, and any album by someone no longer named Taylor Swift since Drake’s earn Scorpion in 2018.

Blockbuster Streams: Licensed’s originate of 562,000 SEA devices equals a whopping 743.67 million on-save a query to streams of the album’s 21 tracks. Of that sum, audio on-save a query to streams comprise 714.83 million, while video on-save a query to streams comprise 28.84 million. Simplest one album has ever scored a elevated streaming week by on-save a query to audio streams: Drake’s Scorpion, with 745.92 million for its 25 tracks at some stage in its debut week. (When Scorpion launched, SEA devices handiest incorporated on-save a query to audio streams, no longer on-save a query to video. Video streams did no longer join the Billboard 200’s methodology till the Jan. 18, 2020-dated chart.)

Licensed Lover Boy modified into once no longer preceded by any pre-launch singles. Scorpion, nonetheless, modified into once led by a trio of hits on the all-genre Billboard Sizzling 100 songs chart: “God’s Conception,” “Good for What” (each No. 1s, leading the listing for 11 and eight weeks, respectively) and “I’m Upset.” (Scorpion in the finish housed seven Sizzling 100 top 10s, including one other No. 1: the 10-week leader “In My Emotions.”) At No. 2 on the unique Billboard 200, West’s Donda falls to No. 2 in its 2d week with 141,000 similar album devices earned (down 54%).

Iron Maiden earns its easiest charting album ever on the Billboard 200, as its most recent studio effort, Senjutsu, debuts at No. 3. The earlier onerous rock band beforehand peaked at No. 4 with its closing two studio releases: The E-book of Souls (in 2015) and The Final Frontier (2010). In total, Senjutsu is Iron Maiden’s 15th top 40-charting album (relationship to its first, The Choice of the Beast, in 1982), of which four own hit the highest 10.

Of Senjutsu’s 64,000 similar album devices earned, album gross sales comprise 61,000 (making it the highest-promoting album of the week), SEA devices comprise 3,000 (equaling 3.57 million on-save a query to streams of the situation’s 10 tracks) and TEA devices comprise a negligible sum.

Senjutsu logs the 2d-largest week of 2021 for a onerous rock album in each similar album devices earned and in gentle album gross sales. It trails handiest Foo Opponents’ Treatment at Heart of the evening, which debuted on the Feb. 20 chart with 70,000 devices (of which 64,000 had been in album gross sales). (Laborious rock albums are outlined as of us that own charted on Billboard’s Laborious Rock Albums chart.)

At No. 4 on the Billboard 200, Olivia Rodrigo’s former chart-topper Bitter falls one situation with 61,000 similar album devices earned (down 18%). Doja Cat’s Planet Her dips 4-5 (49,000 devices; down 7%), Morgan Wallen’s former No. 1 Unhealthy: The Double Album is a non-mover at No. 6 (40,000; down lower than 1%), Billie Eilish’s former leader Happier Than Ever will seemingly be actual at No. 7 (excellent over 39,000; down 1%) and The Child LAROI’s chart-topping F*ck Admire falls 5-8 (39,000; down 10%).

Imagine Dragons claim their fifth top 10 album on the Billboard 200 because the rock band’s most recent studio location, Mercury – Act 1, debuts at No. 9. The hassle launches with 31,000 similar album devices earned. Of that sum, album gross sales comprise 17,000; SEA devices comprise 13,000 (equaling 17.04 million on-save a query to streams of the situation’s tracks) and TEA devices comprise 1,000.

Rod Wave’s former No. 1 SoulFly closes out the unique top 10, dipping 8-10 with 30,000 similar album devices earned (down 21%).