August Alsina [Def Jam]
While its total significantly trails that of predecessor “Testimony,” August Alsina’s “This Thing Called Life” did narrowly top opening week sales projections.
According to Nielsen Music, Alsina’s sophomore album sold 36,056 US copies during the December 11-17 tracking period.
Initial industry projections called for a bow in the 30-35,000 range.
Interestingly, those projections also called for “TTCL” to rank as the week’s best-selling new release. It ends up as the week’s #3 performer among new albums; Cam’s “Untamed” (37,346) and R. Kelly’s “Buffet” (36,353) posted slightly better totals.
Among all albums, “TTCL” was the week’s thirteenth-best-seller in the US.
Released in 2014, the aforementioned “Testimony” debuted with 67,000 first week sales.