Update: An opening week sales total of 91,000 powers Alabama Shakes’ “Sound & Color” to the #1 position on the Top Album Sales chart.
The weekly sales victory is a first for Alabama Shakes, which never went higher than #6 with predecessor “Boys & Girls.”
With Track Equivalent Albums (10 single sales = 1 album sale) and Streaming Equivalent Albums (1500 single streams = 1 album sale) included, “Sound & Color” boasted a first week consumption total of 96,000 units. That scores the album the #1 spot on Billboard’s revamped Billboard 200 chart.
The Billboard 200 top ten is as follows:
1) Alabama Shakes – Sound & Color – 96K total units (91K from pure sales)
2) Furious 7 – 62K total units
3) Yelawolf – Love Story – 58K total units (51K from pure sales)
4) Drake – If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late – 48K total units (28K from pure sales)
5) 50 Shades of Grey – 38K total units
6) Taylor Swift – 1989 – 36K total units
7) Sam Smith – In the Lonely Hour – 36K total units
8) Ed Sheeran – x – 32K total units
9) Sam Hunt – Montevallo – 32K total units
10) Meghan Trainor – Title – 30K total units
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Alabama Shakes’ “Sound & Color” will debut atop the Billboard Top Album Sales and Billboard 200 charts with comfortable separation from the rest of the pack.
According to Hits Daily Double, “Sound & Color” moved approximately 87,073 copies during its first week of release. Billboard’s more authoritative data will differ slightly, but it will not present a different outcome: the Alabama Shakes’ album was indeed last week’s best-seller-.
It also claims the greatest number of total consumption units. With Track Equivalent Album (10 single sales = 1 album sale) and Streaming Equivalent Album (1500 single streams = 1 album sale) added to the mix, “Sound & Color” boasts a first-week consumption total of approximately 92,697 units. That will earn the album the top spot on the revamped Billboard 200.
From a pure sales standpoint, other top weekly performers included Yelawolf’s “Love Story” (~55,360), Drake’s “If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late” (~25,645), Mana’s “Cama Incendiada” (~25,507), Reba’s “Love Somebody” (~23,915) and Taylor Swift’s “1989” (~23,534).
From a consumption standpoint, other top performers included “Furious 7” (~64,755), “Love Story” (~61,360), “If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late” (~47,226) and “50 Shades of Grey” (~39,295).