Lorde on Fallon | Andrew Lipovsky/NBC
Update: Billboard has made the news official: Lorde’s “Melodrama” debuts at #1 on this week’s Top Album Sales and Billboard 200 charts.
It tops the former thanks to what Billboard reports as 82K in pure US sales.
With TEA (track sales/10) and SEA (track streams/1500) included, “Melodrama” generated 109K in opening week consumption units. That is enough for #1 on the Billboard 200.
The race was far closer than expected; 2 Chainz’ “Pretty Girls Like Trap Music,” which debuts at #2 on the Billboard 200, generated 106K opening week units (57K from sales).
Kendrick Lamar’s “DAMN.” claims #3 on the Billboard 200 with 70K units, while Jason Isbell’s “The Nashville Sound” opens at #4 with 54K (541K from sales).
Nickelback’s “Feed The Machine” follows at #5; it generated 47K opening week units (43K from sales).
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The early projections were correct in saying that Lorde’s “Melodrama” would win the US album sales and consumption races.
They did not, however, sufficiently predict how well the album would perform.
According to BuzzAngleMusic and Hits Daily Double, “Melodrama” sold approximately ~82,344 pure US copies during the June 16-22 tracking week. With TEA (track sales/10) and SEA (track streams/1500) included, it generated ~110,580 in opening week consumption units.
Both figures markedly exceed expectations. Initial projections called for 65-70K in pure sales (upgraded to 68-73K at midweek) and 85-90K in total units (upgraded to 90-95K at midweek).
Due Sunday, Billboard’s more authoritative data will differ slightly from that reported by Hits. The discrepancies will not, however, change the overall outcome. The pure sales figure will earn “Melodrama” at #1 on the Billboard Top Album Sales chart, while the consumption figure will be enough for #1 on the Billboard 200.
The album will be Lorde’s first chart-topper in the US.
Top pure sales performers (per BuzzAngle/Hits):
Lorde – Melodrama (~82,344 pure US sales)
Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit – The Nashville Sound (~50,697)
2 Chainz – Pretty Girls Like Trap Music (~45,868)
Nickelback – Feed The Machine (~44,884)
Fleet Foxes – Crack-Up (~23,374)
Top consumption performers (per BuzzAngle/Hits):
Lorde – Melodrama (~110,580 total units)
2 Chainz – Pretty Girls Like Trap Music (~93,852)
Kendrick Lamar – DAMN. (~73,903)
Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit – The Nashville Sound (~53,291)
Nickelback – Feed The Machine (~47,773)