Update: A pure album sales total of 106,000 scores Shawn Mendes’ “Handwritten” the #1 position on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart.
The inclusion of Track Equivalent Album (10 single sales = 1 album sale) and Streaming Equivalent Album (1500 single streams = 1 album sale) data boosts the album’s overall first week consumption total to 119,000 units. That total gives “Handwritten” a comfortable edge on the revamped, consumption-oriented Billboard 200.
This week’s Billboard 200 Top 10
1) Shawn Mendes – Handwritten – 119K total units (106K from pure sales)
2) Furious 7 Soundtrack – 79K total units
3) Reba – Love Somebody – 62K total units
4) Tyler, The Creator – 58K total units (51K from pure sales)
5) Halestorm – Into the Wild Life – 56K total units (52K from pure sales)
6) 50 Shades of Grey Soundtrack – 43K total units
7) Taylor Swift – 1989 – 38K total units
8) Sam Smith – In the Lonely Hour – 37K total units
9) Ed Sheeran – x – 36K total units
10) Drake – If You’re Reading This it’s Too Late – 35K total units
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With a sales total nearly twice as great as that of the runner-up, Shawn Mendes’ “Handwritten” cruises to victory in the weekly race.
The teen artist’s debut album will land comfortably atop Billboard’s Top Album Sales Chart.
And while it did not receive a massive boost from Track Equivalent Albums (10 single sales = 1 album sale) and Streaming Equivalent Albums (1500 single streams = 1 album sale), its overall consumption total also stands at a considerable distance from the rest of the pack. The result will be a #1 debut on the Billboard 200.
According to Hits Daily Double, Mendes’ “Handwritten” moved ~108,573 pure album copies during its first week of release. Billboard’s more authoritative data may differ slightly, but it will not question the album’s #1 status.
Reba’s “Love Somebody,” the week’s next-best seller, moved approximately 56,661 copies during the tracking week. Tyler, the Creator’s “Cherry Bomb” follows on the strength of ~48,776, while Halestorm’s “Into the Wild Life” (~44,983) and the “Furious 7” soundtrack (~25,974). With a weekly pure sales total of ~23,898, Taylor Swift’s “1989” is also in the mix.
With TEA and SEA included, Mendes’ “Handwritten” debuts with a consumption total of ~117,365 units. That will easily give it the edge on the revamped Billboard 200.
Riding blockbuster interest in single “See You Again,” the “Furious 7” soundtrack grabs the #2 slot on the consumption metric. Its weekly unit total clocks in at ~76,838.
Reba’s album follows with ~59,344, while “Cherry Bomb” (~56,172) and “Into the Wild Life” (~45,562) look set to debut as Top 5 albums. The enduring “50 Shades of Grey” soundtrack is in the mix with ~43,865.
Barring a sizable disparity between the Hits and Billboard data, Taylor Swift’s “1989,” which Hits says follows with ~39,286, will miss the Billboard 200’s Top 5 for the first time.
