billboard charts

SZA’s ‘SOS’ Is On Adele’s Heels After Its Ninth Week At No. 1 On The ‘Billboard’ 200 Chart

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SZA continues to surprise herself with the overwhelming success of SOS, her long-awaited sophomore album from December. It became her first-ever No. 1 on the Billboard 200 that month and has steadily broken records in the ensuing weeks.

Last month, SOS became the first album since Adele’s 30 (December 2021 to January 2022) to spend each of its first five weeks at No. 1. SZA began February by celebrating a seventh total week, citing that she, Adele and Taylor Swift are “the only female artists to have an album spend at least seven weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 this century.”

By February 12, SOS logged its eighth nonconsecutive week and became the first album to tally that mark since Swift’s Folklore, and now, SZA is on Adele’s heels for yet another historic feat.

Per Billboard on Sunday, February 19, SOS sits at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated February 25, for a ninth total week.

“The last set by a female artist to spend at least nine weeks at No. 1 was Adele’s 25, which ruled for 10 nonconsecutive weeks between Dec. 12, 2015, and March 12, 2016,” Billboard‘s Keith Caulfield noted.

He later added:

“In the last 10 years, only three albums by women have spent at least nine weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200: SOS, Adele’s 25 (10 in 2015-16) and Taylor Swift’s 1989 (11, 2014-15). The last R&B/hip-hop album with at least eight weeks atop the list was Drake’s Views, which [spent] 13 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 (May 21-Oct. 8, 2016). SOS has the most weeks at No. 1 for an R&B/hip-hop album by a woman, or an R&B album by a woman, since Mariah Carey’s self-titled debut spent 11 weeks, all consecutively, at No. 1 in 1991.”

SZA appeared as a presenter at the 2023 Grammys on February 5, and she’s likely to be there as a nominee next year.

“Last night was the first time I had a great time at an award show! (Prolly cause I ain’t have to do sh*t but cheer my friends on + announce ppl I Stan lmao),” SZA wrote on Instagram afterward. “My team also surprised me w a GANG OF PLATINUM and gold plaques for SOS [crying emoji] can’t believe the album is already eligible for double platinum. LOVE TO EVERYBODY THAT GOT ME HERE AND CONTINUES TO LIVE ME UP. I love you.”

After initial concerns that people wouldn’t like SOS, SZA has apparently settled into the rhythm of repetitive record-breaking. “Honestly I’m bored and could go for some aliens,” she tweeted last week. “Speaking for me only.”

In actuality, she’s preparing to take her blockbuster album on the road. Her SOS Tour is scheduled to begin tomorrow, February 21 in Columbus, Ohio. Omar Apollo will serve as her opener.

Omar Apollo is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

SZA’s ‘SOS’ Is No. 1 On The ‘Billboard’ 200 For The Seventh Week, Accomplishing Several Remarkable Feats

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SZA’s sophomore album SOS proves to be the gift that keeps on giving. Today (January 30), the album is No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated Februrary 4, for a seventh total week.

With this latest feat, SOS becomes the first R&B/hip-hop album by a woman to top the Billboard 200 for seven weeks, since Whitney Houston’s 1987 album, Whitney, which spent 11 weeks on top upon its release.

SOS has spent the most weeks at No. 1 for any album by a woman since 2020, the last being Taylor Swift’s Folklore. It has also spent the most consecutive weeks at No. 1 within the span of a year for any album across all genres since the soundtrack to Disney’s 2021 film, Encanto.

Upon receiving the news, SZA took to her Instagram story to express her gratitude in a spiritual manner.

“7 is yemayas number,” she said. “I’m so thankful to everyone and God thank you.”

On this week’s top 10 is Swift’s Midnights, which placed at No. 2, now having spent its first 14 weeks in the top two. Trippie Redd’s Mansion Musik makes its debut at No. 3, and country-rock star Hardy’s The Mockingbird & The Crow arrives at No. 4, and Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains is now sitting at No. 5.

Drake & 21 Savage’s Her Loss, which temporarily dethroned Swift’s Midnights upon its release last November, is now at No. 6, pushing Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti to No. 7. Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album has fallen to No. 8, and “Something In The Orange” singer Zach Bryan’s American Heartbreak album is now at No. 9. Lil Baby’s It’s Only Me, which became his third album to debut at No. 1 upon its release last year, is now sitting at No. 10.

Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

SZA Is No. 1 For A Sixth Week With ‘SOS,’ An R&B Feat That Hasn’t Happened In Nearly 20 Years

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On December 9, 2022, SZA released SOS, her latest album. Since it was chart-eligible, the LP has not known what it’s like to be anything but No. 1 on the Billboard 200. It debuted in the top spot of the chart, and that’s where it remains on the latest rank: Billboard announced today (January 23) that on the new chart dated January 28, SOS is No. 1 for a sixth total week.

That’s the most weeks at No. 1 on the chart among R&B and hip-hop albums since Drake’s Views logged 13 non-consecutive weeks in 2016. Narrow the scope to just R&B albums and SOS has the most chart-topping weeks since Usher’s Confessions was No. 1 for nine total weeks in 2004.

Furthermore, this is a notable moment for women artists. In the last decade plus, the only women with albums to spend at least six weeks at No. 1 are Adele, Taylor Swift, and now SZA. The last album by a woman besides those three to have at least six No. 1 weeks was Susan Boyle’s I Dreamed A Dream in 2009 and 2010. When it comes specifically to women in R&B, SOS has the most weeks at No. 1 since Mariah Carey’s Daydream, which had six non-consecutive weeks on top in late 1995 and early 1996.

SZA Has Had No. 1 Songs And Albums, But Her Debut Appearance Atop Another Chart ‘Means So F*cking Much’ To Her

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SZA had no idea what she was in for when she finally released SOS on December 9. Literally. “I never thought in a million years that people would like it,” she told Rolling Stone later in the month, around the time it became her first career No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. Single “Kill Bill” has also topped the Billboard Hot R&B Songs and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts.

Has anyone ever been so happy to have been so wrong?

This week marks the fifth consecutive week that SOS has reigned at No. 1. ” God is good. F*ck who disagree! Focus on yourself believe in yourself TRUST YOURSELF. GRATEFUL,” SZA wrote in an emoji-filled tweet. Previously, SOS hit “Kill Bill” gave SZA her first No. 1 on Billboard‘s Streaming Songs chart and second No. 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. But on Friday, January 13, SZA was relishing in hitting No. 1 on a different Billboard chart.

“I appreciate every milestone and accolade but THIS? As a writer [this] means so f*cking much to me. I aspire to be a better writer everyday thank you WOW,” she tweeted along with a screenshot of the news that she earned her first week at No. 1 on the Hot 100 Songwriters chart last week.

Per Billboard, the No. 1 spot was earned by SZA having 15 charting songs on the Hot 100 chart dated January 14. All of them are from the SOS track list, including “Kill Bill” (No. 3), “Shirt” (No. 23), “Nobody Gets Me” (No. 42), “Low” (No. 45), “Blind” (No. 51), and “Snooze” (No. 53).

SZA is scheduled to kick off her SOS Tour with Omar Apollo as the opener on February 21 in Columbus, Ohio. See all the dates here.

These Were 2022’s Most-Streamed Songs Across All Platforms

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Last year was full of great songs. Many acts returned with long-awaited new material, from hitmakers Beyonce and Blackpink to indie bands Alvvays and Big Thief. Records were broken by pop powerhouses such as Harry Styles with Harry’s House and Taylor Swift with Midnights.

Today, January 11, the Billboard Charts Twitter account shared the most-streamed songs across all platforms. Coming in at No. 1 is “Industry Baby” by Lil Nas X featuring Jack Harlow with 877.2 million streams. Following is Styles’ “As It Was” with 763.4 million. Then, there’s the Glass Animals hit “Heat Waves,” which was revived after being released in 2020, followed by “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” from the film Encanto.

At No. 5 is “Enemy” by Imagine Dragons and JID, followed by Justin Bieber and The Kid Laroi’s “Stay.” Kodak Black’s “Super Gremlin” is at No. 7. Future, Drake, and Tems take No. 8 with “Wait For U.” “Me Porto Bonito” by Bad Bunny and Chencho Corleone follow, and finally Bad Bunny takes the next spot as well with “Titi Me Pregunto.”

It’s no surprise Bad Bunny takes up two spots on this list — “Spotify Wrapped” deemed him the world’s most-streamed artist of last year. Meanwhile, he also got a nod from Apple Music, who named him their 2022 Artist Of The Year.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Music Streaming Set A New Record By Crossing The Trillion-Play Threshold In 2022, With R&B And Hip-Hop At The Helm

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Musicians and industry professionals have a well-documented obsession with chart placement. However, now in the dawn of streaming, there’s a growing pressure to deliver in other analytical ways, including streaming numbers. With physical albums sales continuing to fall, artists like Billie Eilish, Drake, and Ed Sheeran have all dominated across streaming platforms.

Although, traditional music medium such as vinyls seeing a huge spike in popularity, with artist like Taylor Swift and Adele (much to the displeasure of independent artists) including it in their album rollouts, streaming remains in the top spot of music activity. In fact, according to Luminate, the entertainment and data insight company behind Billboard‘s chart tracking, “on-demand song streams (audio and video combined) increased 12.2% to 1.268 trillion,” marking “the first time that yearly U.S. on-demand audio streams surpassed 1 trillion.”

The report revealed that “29% of all on-demand audio streams in the U.S. in 2022 were R&B/hip-hop songs.” No further information was provided for what role other genres play in this milestone.

Digital streaming platforms have like Apple Music and Spotify have continued to introduced new features to increase users’ app usage. Last year, Apple Music introduced Apple Music Sing, which gives subscribers an elevated experience with their favorite songs through enhanced karaoke abilities. While, Spotify expanded their Spotify Wrapped data points to include mood breakdowns and personality points of users most popular songs.

The Weeknd’s Six-Year-Old Song ‘Die For You’ Has Cracked The Hot 100 Top 10 For The First Time Thanks In Part To TikTok

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Over the weekend, The Weeknd commemorated one year of Dawn FM with a video for “Is There Someone Else?.” Coupled with the video’s release was this tweet: “I wonder… Did you know you’re experiencing a new trilogy?” Before we walk with The Weeknd into an enticing future, there’s reason to revisit his past.

Billboard revealed its newest Hot 100 chart (dated January 14) today, January 9. It’s unsurprisingly that Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero” has returned to No. 1 for a seventh total week after debuting there in late October, but it is surprising to see The Weeknd’s 2016 Starboy hit “Die For You” at No. 8 — which is now his 16th top-10 single on the chart.

“The Weeknd’s ‘Die for You’ vaults 26 to 8 on the Hot 100, led by 67.3 million in airplay audience (up 3%) and 9.9 million streams (up 10%),” the publication additionally relayed. “The song hits the Hot 100’s top 10 over six years after its original release on The Weeknd’s album Starboy, sparked by interaction on TikTok (which does not presently contribute to Billboard‘s charts). That buzz helped lead to the song’s airplay promotion and prominence, as the track holds at its No. 4 Radio Songs high.”

The Weeknd owns six career No. 1 Hot 100 singles, including the record-breaking “Blinding Lights” and “Starboy” (the latter featuring Daft Punk). Fellow Starboy track “I Feel It Coming” (also featuring Daft Punk) peaked at No. 4 on the chart.

“Die For You” isn’t the only The Weeknd song in this week’s Hot 100 top 10, either. His collaborative track “Creepin’” with Metro Boomin and 21 Savage, off of Metro Boomin’s December No. 1 album Heroes & Villains, sits at No. 6. It peaked at No. 5 last month.

‘SOS’ Logged A Fourth-Straight No. 1 Week On The ‘Billboard’ 200 Chart And SZA Is Beside Herself

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Last week, SZA kept the SOS train rolling by dropping a different version of the album, including revamped singles “PSA” and “Open Arms.” She also cleared up the phantom rumor that she had beef with Taylor Swift, and ironically enough, SOS now has something in common with Swift’s Midnights: breaking records previously held by Adele.

SOS sits atop the Billboard 200 chart dated January 14, its fourth-straight week at No. 1 since debuting there on December 19. According to Billboard, SZA’s sophomore offering is “the first album by a woman to spend its first four weeks at No. 1 in a year, since Adele’s 30 ruled for its first six weeks (December 4, 2021 through January 8, 2022-dated charts) and is the first album by a woman to have four consecutive weeks at No. 1 since 30‘s six week-run at No. 1.”

When Swift’s Midnights debuted at No. 1 in late October, it moved the most first-week equivalent album units since Adele’s 30 in 2015. (Midnights remains at No. 2 on this week’s chart.)

SOS is also the first R&B album by a woman to have four weeks at No. 1 since February of 2008, when Alicia Keys’ As I Am notched a fourth and final nonconsecutive week atop the list (Feb. 16, 2008),” Billboard additionally relayed. “More strikingly, SOS is the first R&B album by a woman to spend its first four weeks at No. 1 in nearly 30 years, since Janet Jackson’s Janet. ruled for its first six frames (June 5-July 10, 1993).”

The feat is not lost on SZA.

“I don’t have sh*t to say but thank you to God my ancestors my family my team and ALL OF YOU THAT RIDE FOR ME ! ESPECIALLY CAMP [tent emoji]!!” SZA captioned an Instagram post on Sunday, January 8. “Y’all my family too [white heart emoji] we have so much more to come.”

She also tweeted, “4 weeks at number one is INSANE. Thank you God and thank you everyone for riding for me.”

As for what’s still to come, SZA’s teased “Kill Bill” video should drop any day now. Her SOS Tour is slated to kick off on February 21 at the Jerome Schottenstein Center in Columbus, Ohio, with Omar Apollo serving as the opener.

SZA’s ‘SOS’ Claims A Third Week At No. 1 And Joins Beyoncé In The Record Books

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SZA is starting 2023 on top: SOS, her highly anticipated and highly successful sophomore album, dropped on December 9, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated December 24, and she hasn’t relinquished the position.

According to Billboard, SOS has logged its third consecutive week at No. 1 on the chart dated January 7, with 128,000 equivalent album US units earned during the week ending on December 29. The publication additionally relayed, “SOS is the first R&B album by a woman to spend three weeks at No. 1 since Beyoncé’s self-titled effort also spent its first three weeks atop the list in 2013. (R&B albums are defined as those that have hit Billboard’s Top R&B Albums chart.)”

Last week, SZA teased a video for “Kill Bill” to reward her fans for making the track her first career No. 1 on Billboard‘s Streaming Songs chart and second career Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart No. 1.

Elsewhere on this week’s Billboard 200 chart, Taylor Swift’s Midnights remains at No. 2 for a fourth-straight week. The album had previously spent five weeks at No. 1, including a record-breaking debut. Michael Bublé’s Christmas comes in at No. 3, with Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains (No. 4) and Nat King Cole’s The Christmas Song (No. 5) rounding out the top 5.

SZA Dropped Cheeky Swimsuit Photos To Celebrate ‘SOS’ Spending A Second Week At No. 1

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SZA has every reason to celebrate this holiday season. On top of appearing on Saturday Night Live, going viral with a parody track, and finally releasing her long-awaited sophomore album SOS, December keeps proving fruitful for the “Nobody Gets Me” singer. Yesterday, it was revealed that SOS topped the Billboard 200 for a second week.

It appears SZA spent the holiday in Hawaii. To commemorate her latest feat, she shared some pictures of herself on location, wearing a swimsuit that left little to the imagination. In the post’s caption, SZA appeared to reference a post celebrating the first week the album went No. 1 that had since been deleted. However, she was still in good spirits for the second consecutive week.

“Lol instagram randomly deleted my post last week .. but APPARENTLY ITS STILL TRUE THIS WEEK,” she said. “number 1 two weeks in a row .. God is incredible. I won’t repeat it all but thank you everybody for supporting me and speaking power n love into me. It’s 9:43 in Hawaii. I couldn’t ask for anything more. Life is beautiful and what it should be.”

Also in the post were other notable accomplishments, like the fact that SOS is the first album by a Black woman artist since Beyoncé’s 2013 self-titled surprise album two spend its first two weeks at No. 1. There is also a stat in there that notes that SZA and Taylor Swift are the only women artists to have at least 20 songs charting simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100.

Check out the celebratory post above.