Since October 7, Justin Bieber has released a new song every Monday. And just as regimented as the release schedule is the fact that the song quickly shoots to the top of the iTunes Single Sales chart.
While competitive releases from artists like Lady Gaga have prevented some of these “Music Mondays” songs from hitting number one, all ascended comfortably into the top five.
The sales numbers behind those chart jumps, however, have declined each week.
According to Billboard, “Heartbreaker,” Bieber’s first “Music Mondays” track, moved 182,000 downloads in its first week. Since them, the trajectory has been as follows: 127,000 for “All That Matters,” 111,000 for “Hold Tight,” 94,000 for “Recovery” and 86,000 for “Bad Day.” Data for “All Bad” is not yet available.
The downward trajectory is neither surprising nor especially damning. While “Heartbreaker” launched to immense fan fare, the novelty over “Music Mondays” has certainly worn off since last month’s launch.
Since none of the songs is considered an official single, due for long-term promotion or expected to be included on a future album, expectations are not significant enough to render any of the releases a flop.
Still, by trending down so notably, sales for the “Music Mondays” releases prove that the core of fans willing to buy anything Bieber releases is not as large as “Heartbreaker” suggested.
