On the Charts: Drake’s ‘Views’ Sees Platinum Opening Week
Rapper’s latest sets career-high first week sales, crushes streaming record
Drake’s new album ‘Views’ enjoyed ”“ by today’s standards ”“ a platinum-selling Number One debut week while crushing streaming records.
Drake’s new album Views enjoyed ”“ by today’s standards ”“ a platinum-selling Number One debut week as the rapper’s latest sold 1.04 million total copies while also setting a record for most streams in a week. Drake’s sixth consecutive chart-topping LP sold 852,000 traditional copies in its first week of availability, a career best for the rapper and the highest sales week of 2016, quickly surpassing the record set last week by Beyoncé’s Lemonade.
What pushed Views to over a million copies was the album’s incredible streaming numbers: In its first week of release, songs from Views were streamed over 245 million times, which crushed Justin Bieber and Purpose‘s previous record holder of 100 million one-week streams, Billboard reports. Under the Billboard 200’s new chart metrics, those 245 million streams translate into an additional 163,000 SEAs (stream equivalent albums), pushing Views to platinum status.
Drake previously topped the Billboard 200 with 2010’s Thank Me Later, 2012’s Take Care, 2013’s Nothing Was the Same, 2015’s If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late and his 2015 joint LP with Future What a Time to Be Alive.
Last week’s Number One, Beyoncé’s Lemonade, dipped to Number Two despite strong second-week sales of 321,000 total copies. Prince’s Purple Rain and The Very Best of Prince grabbed Number Three and Four while Rihanna’s Anti clung to Five for the second straight week.
Besides Views, two more new releases debuted within the Top 10: Rob Zombie’s Electric Warlock Acid Witch Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser sold 41,000 copies to bow in at Number Six while the Now 58 compilation scored Number Seven. Chris Stapleton’s Traveller (Number Eight), Bieber’s Purpose (Nine) and Adele’s 25 closed out the Top 10.
Next week, Drake will attempt to retain his Billboard 200 throne against new releases like Radiohead’s A Moon Shaped Pool and Keith Urban’s Ripcord.
