Travis Scott's "Utopia" is by far one of the most highly-anticipated hip-hop albums in years! Arriving last July 2023, "Utopia" is expected to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 charts.
Notably, "Utopia" was the first album that Scott has released since the acclaimed "Astroworld" album in 2018.
Travis Scott 'Utopia' Billboard 200 Debut
According to Hits Daily Double, Travis Scott's "Utopia" is projected to launch atop with 486,000 album-equivalent units, making it the third biggest opening week for an album in 2023, after Taylor Swift's "Speak Now (Taylor's Version)" and Morgan Wallen's "One Thing At A Time."
Notably, it is now the biggest opening week hip-hop album in 2023 as Lil Uzi Vert's "Pink Tape," only racked up 167,000 album units. However, it successfully trumped Wallen's "One Thing At A Time" which successfully stopped Young Thug's "Business Is Business" from debuting at No. 1.
Billboard reported that "Utopia" has already logged in 266.21 official US streams, five days since it was released, making it the second-biggest streaming week of 2023 so far. Physical album sales are also expected to draw huge sales for the album as there were 15 options that fans can choose from - containing a different piece of clothing with either a copy of the CD or vinyl LP.
READ ALSO: Lil Uzi Vert 'Pink Tape' Becomes First Rap Album of 2023 After Ending Morgan Wallen Streak
Post Malone 'Austin' Billboard 200 Debut
On the other hand, Post Malone's "Austin" is projected to launch at No. 2 this week too with 110,000 album equivalent units.
This was his second studio album that debuted at the second spot frame as Post Malone's "Twelve Carat Toothache" also launched last year on the same spot as Bad Bunny's record-breaking "Un Verano Sin Ti" bounced back to No. 1.
However, as of this writing, it seems like Billboard and Luminate are still experiencing another delay in the publication of the Billboard 200 charts weekly released on Sundays.
Billboard 200 Chart Delays
Last week, the announcement for the Billboard 200 and Billboard Hot 100 charts have been delayed.
Although the Hot 100 Charts Top 10 have been announced on Monday as planned, the Billboard 200 chart placements arrived on Thursday along with the other charts, making it a nail-biting moment for NewJeans' "Get Up" and the "Barbie" Soundtrack.
Leading with a 500-unit gap, "Get Up" successfully launched at No. 1, with "Barbie" coming in second.
READ ALSO: NewJeans Scores Billboard 200 #1 With 500 Unit-Gap Against 'Barbie'
