This week's Billboard 200 was topped by the Empire Soundtrack: Season 1, but it touches off an interesting battle between it and Madonna's Rebel Heart, which finished no. 2. The current Billboard metrics place Empire at no. 1 with 130,000 "equivalent" albums sold—a count that includes total single downloads and album streams as well. Madge's album only sold 121,000 "equivalent" albums but unofficial tracking of pure album sales—or what the Billboard 200 used to be based on—suggest that Rebel Heart actually sold more albums than Empire did as a whole.
What does that mean in the long run? History denied, for one thing. Madonna is one of only eight performers who have had at least eight no. 1 albums. Had Rebel Heart gone to the top of the chart (as it would have under the old metrics during 2014), it would have moved her out of no. 8 all time into a tie with The Rolling Stones and Garth Brooks, both who have nine no. 1s to their names.
Don't count Madonna out...she's sure to have another album in her before retirement. But this is still a blow to fans of album-centric music.
One more new set managed to crack 100,000 in equivalent sales this week, as Luke Bryan's annual spring break-themed album—this one titled Spring Break...Checkin' Out—sold 106,000 copies and took no. 3.
The rest of this week's Top 10 present a rehash of sorts of previous weeks. Fifty Shades of Grey may not be the dominant soundtrack anymore but it still pushed 72,000 copies and took the no. 4 spot. Taylor Swift did just enough to stay take no. 5 with 1989, which means the album has been in the Top 5 of the Billboard 200 for all 20 of its weeks on the chart.
It was close however. 1989 moved 62,000 equivalent copies and Sam Smith was right behind her with In The Lonely Hour, which moved 61,000 copies. Drake followed him at no. 7, having pushed another 58,000 copies of If You're Reading This It's Too Late.
Nos. 8 and 9 were rather Roman, respectively, as Ed Sheeran's x moved 53,000 copies and Maroon 5's V brought in 48,000 equivalent sales.
The last spot on the list belongs to Big Sean, whose Dark Sky Paradise seems to be fading out after three weeks on the chart. It moved 38,000 copies last week.
