Music

Debuting at No. 1 with 222,000 equivalent album units in the week ending May 5, the Atlanta emcee's ninth studio album earns him his eighth No. 1 album on the chart.

• May 9, 2022

AceShowbiz - Future has once again established his name in the rap game. His latest album "I Never Liked You" has topped the Billboard 200 albums chart after it was released on April 29. It earned 222,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending May 5, according to Luminate, marking the year's largest week for any album.

While a strategic merchandise bundle assisted with the feat, the figure was mostly earned in earnest by streaming. Of the total sum, 214,000 were accrued from the 283.75 million on-demand official streams of the album's tracks. Meanwhile, album sales comprise 6,500 and TEA units comprise 1,500.

This is also Future's largest week for a solo album. His collaborative set with Drake, "What a Time to Be Alive", is the only one earning more with 375,000 units in 2015. "I Never Liked You" also earns the Atlanta spitter his 15th top 10 album on the Billboard 200. He previously topped the chart with "High Off Life" (2020), "Future Hndrxx Presents: The WIZRD" (2019), "HNDRXX" (2017), "Future" (2017), "Evol" (2016), "What a Time to Be Alive" (2015) and "DS2" (2015).

The first week sales of Future's ninth studio album surpassed the industry expectations. According to projections shared by HitsDailyDouble last week, the 16-track record was projected to earn 175,000 to 200,000 units in its first week, which would still easily mark the biggest debut of 2022 so far.

Following quite far behind Future's newest release is The Weeknd's "Dawn FM", which jumps from No. 35 to No. 2, thanks to the release of its vinyl LP, cassette and deluxe boxed sets on April 29. The album earned 57,000 equivalent album units (up 241%), of which album sales comprise 44,000 (up 2,282%), with SEA units comprising 13,000, or equaling 17.72 million on-demand official streams of the set's tracks, and TEA units comprising a negligible sum.

Morgan Wallen's former No. 1 "Dangerous: The Double Album" falls 2-3 with 50,000 equivalent album units (down only 3%). Another newcomer this week, Miranda Lambert's "Palomino" debuts at No. 4 with 36,000 equivalent album units, posting the highest-debut for a country album of this year. Of the album's 36,000 units earned, album sales comprise 24,000, SEA units comprise 11,000 (equaling 14.35 million on-demand official streams of the set's tracks) and TEA units comprise 1,000.

Olivia Rodrigo's "Sour" falls 4-5 (34,000 equivalent album units; down 6%), Lil Durk's "7220" descends 3-6 (33,000; down 15%) and the "Encanto" soundtrack dips 5-7 (32,000; down 7%). At No. 8 is NoCap's "Mr. Crawford" which marks his first top 10 effort with 29,000 equivalent album units earned. Drake's "Certified Lover Boy" falls 7-9 with 29,000 equivalent album units (down 4%) and Doja Cat's "Planet Her" rounds out the top 10 with nearly 29,000 (down 5%).

Top Ten of Billboard 200:

1. "I Never Liked You" - Future (222,000 units)
2. "Dawn FM" - The Weeknd" (57,000 units)
3. "Dangerous: The Double Album" - Morgan Wallen" (50,000 units)
4. "Palomino" - Miranda Lambert (36,000 units)
5. "Sour" - Olivia Rodrigo (34,000 units)
6. "7220" - Lil Durk (33,000 units)
7. "Encanto" Soundtrack - Various Artists (32,000 units)
8. "Mr. Crawford" - NoCap (29,000 units)
9. "Certified Lover Boy" - Drake (29,000 units)
10. "Planet Her" - Doja Cat (29,000 units)