Wale [Jimmy Fontaine | Atlantic Records Press]
Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly” will not score a third week atop the album sales chart.
The throne will instead fall to Wale’s “The Album About Nothing,” which is set for a comfortable victory in the weekly sales race.
According to Hits Daily Double, “Nothing” is on track for an opening week sales total in the 85-90,000 range. With Track Equivalent Album (10 single sales = 1 album sale) and Streaming Equivalent Album (1500 single streams = 1 album sale) data included, the album should register a first week consumption total of 90-95,000 units.
The two tallies will power “Nothing” to a victory on the Billboard Top Album Sales and Billboard 200 charts, respectively.
Easily enough for that #1 debut, the album’s sales total will nonetheless represent a far cry from that of Wale’s previous album. “The Gifted,” that release, moved 158,000 traditional copies in its first week.
Other notable performers this week: Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly” (~55-60K sales, 70-75K total units), Ludacris’ “Ludaversal” (~55-60K sales, 60-65K total units), Death Cab for Cutie’s “Kintsugi” (~45-50K sales, 50-55K units) and Darius Rucker’s “Southern Style” (~40-45K sales, 40-45K total units).