Virtually every single on the Billboard Hot 100 received a Christmas week sales boost. For songs by the two biggest female hip-hop stars, that boost fueled a leap past the 500,000 mark.
Nicki Minaj crosses the 500,000 mark courtesy “Only.” The song, which features Drake, Lil Wayne and Chris Brown, commanded approximately 131,000 paid downloads during the final sales week of 2014. The week’s 17th-best-seller, “Only” now boasts a cumulative total of 530,000.
While the artist herself has acknowledged that its run is basically over, Iggy Azalea’s “Beg for It (featuring MØ) enjoyed a big week. In addition to reaching a new peak of #27 on the Hot 100, it also saw its digital sales total cross the 500,000 mark. Number 22 on the Billboard Digital Songs chart, “Beg for It” moved 102,000 Christmas week copies to reach a cumulative total of 503,000.
It does not fit into the “biggest female hip-hop star” category, but duo Rae Sremmurd also saw a single cross the 500,000 mark this week. Number 18 on the Billboard Digital Songs chart, Rae Sremmurd’s “No Type” moved 114,000 Christmas week copies and reached a total of just over 500,000.