charts

Future’s “I Never Liked You” Continues Billboard 200 Streak

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Future’s ninth studio album, I Never Liked You, has remained on the US Billboard 200 chart for over a year. The project debuted atop the chart back in April 2022, earning 222,000 album-equivalent units in its first week. It became Future’s eighth US number-one and 15th top-10 album. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has since certified it platinum.

I Never Liked You is supported by guest features from Kanye West, Gunna, Young Thug, Drake, Tems, EST Gee, and Kodak Black. Future also dropped a deluxe version of the album with appearances by Babyface Ray, 42 Dugg, Lil Baby, Lil Durk, and Young Scooter.

Future At The 2023 Grammys

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 05: Future attends the 65th GRAMMY Awards on February 05, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

When news of the continued success of I Never Liked You was posted by Our Generation Music, fans expressed their feelings on the project. “One of the best albums to come out last year imo,” one fan commented. Another called out Future’s doubters, “And some folks said the album was trash? Lol. They were clearly wrong.” “Im still listening like it just came out, great album,” one more wrote.

After the release of the album, Future embarked on the Future and Friends: One Big Party Tour. For the shows, he showcased several high-profile artists including Lil Durk, Kodak Black, Jeezy, and more. In a statement provided to Billboard at the time, he described the tour as “life-changing.”

Future is currently still working on his tenth studio album. When asked about his goals for the upcoming project in November 2022, he told Billboard he wants to become a billionaire off of its success. “A lot of money,” he answered. “That’s a lot of damn money. My main focus right now is just to do something I never done. One thing I never done is make a billion dollars. I ain’t done that, so I’m focused on that.” Future has yet to provide concrete details on his next effort, but be on the lookout for more information this year.

Future’s “I Never Liked You” Lead Single

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The Weeknd Ties Michael Jackson’s “Billboard” Record

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The Weeknd has tied Michael Jackson’s Billboard record for having multiple No. 1 hits that stem from three separate albums. According to the outlet, Michael Jackson earned multiple No. 1 hits on his albums Off The Wall in 1979, Thriller in 1982, and Bad in 1987. The Weeknd has now achieved multiple No. 1 hits on 2015’s Beauty Behind The Madness, 2016’s Starboy, and 2020’s After Hours.

The Weeknd earned his seventh No. 1 on Monday after he and Ariana Grande’s duet “Die For You” jumped to the top of the Hot 100 chart. The song is featured on The Weeknd’s album, Starboy. The Weeknd reacted to achieving the feat on Instagram, Tuesday, sharing the news with a star emoji in the caption.

The Weeknd & Ariana Grande

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 27: (EDITORIAL USE ONLY) (EDITORS NOTE: This image has been retouched) (L-R) In this image released on May 27, The Weeknd and Ariana Grande perform onstage at the 2021 iHeartRadio Music Awards at The Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California, which was broadcast live on FOX on May 27, 2021. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)

The new feat is far from the first historic Billboard accomplishment The Weeknd has achieved. With the release of Dawn FM, he earned 24 songs on the Global 200 chart, six of them coming from the album. Those included “Sacrifice,” “Take My Breath,” “Gasoline,” “Out of Time,” as well as “Is There Someone Else?” and “How Do I Make You Love Me?.” It was the first time a male artist had ever done so. Kanye West and Drake have both come close, however, with 23 and 22, respectively. The Weeknd has also broken the all-time record for most monthly global listeners among all artists on Spotify.

The Weeknd was even compared to Michael Jackson by Timbaland in 2022, following the release of Dawn FM. “Yo… this album different y’all. This shit right here, this on some Thriller shit,” the iconic producer said at the time on social media. “Trust me when I tell you. And the way he dropped this shit, yo. Congrats, this shit is amazing.” The video went viral with people arguing both sides of the opinion.

The Weeknd’s Response

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SZA’s “SOS” Spends 10th Week At No.1 On Billboard 200

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SZA’s second studio album, SOS, has reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for the 10th non-consecutive week. Adele was the last female singer to do so with her 2015 album, 25. Before that, the last R&B album to spend its first seven weeks atop the chart was Whitney Houston’s Whitney.

SZA dropped the album back on December 9, 2022. It debuted immediately on the Billboard 200 with 318,000 equivalent album units sold. The album features appearances from Don Toliver, Phoebe Bridgers, Travis Scott, and the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard. Behind the scenes, she also worked with Babyface, Jeff Bhasker, Benny Blanco, Rodney Jerkins, DJ Dahi, Gabriel Hardeman, Ant Clemons, and Lizzo. It was promoted with by three singles, “Good Days”, “I Hate U”, and “Shirt.”

SZA At The Grammys

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 05: (FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY) SZA speaks onstage during the 65th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 05, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

The feat comes after SZA was named Billboard’s Woman Of The Year, earlier this month. “Right now, I just have extreme gratitude because I swear to God, I never thought I’d be No. 1 for even a week, let alone seven,” she said at the time.

“SZA is a force,” Terrence “Punch” Henderson told Billboard. “To go seven consecutive weeks at No. 1 is legendary. She’s a true generational artist, a cultural reset, if you will. For her album SOS to blend so many different genres together in a cohesive frame shows her genius and versatility. Then you have the voice, the words, the pain, the growth, the relapsing, the delivery, the stories, etc. … a true masterpiece.”

Fans of SOS will be able to catch SZA on tour throughout the spring as she recently embarked on The SOS Tour. She’ll be making stops in Washington, D.C., Boston, New York City, Atlanta, and more through the end of March. In total, SZA will be making 19 stops across the United States and Canada. Omar Apollo serves as the opener. “Last night was the first night of my very first arena tour ever,” she wrote on Instagram after her show in Columbus last week. “I don’t have words. But thank you. So much.”

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Ice Spice Enters Top 10 For 1st Time With PinkPantheress Collab

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Ice Spice has cracked the Billboard Global 200’s top 10 for the first time with her PinkPantheress collaboration, “Boy’s a Liar, Pt. 2.” For this week’s rankings, the track jumped from No. 15 to No. 4. The remix to PinkPantheress’ hit released on February 3. Fans streamed the song 60.1 million times from February 10-16. PinkPantheress released the original version of the track back in November. For Billboard charting purposes, both songs factor into one listing.

Ice Spice first found mainstream success with the popularity of her 2022 hit single, “Munch (Feelin’ U).” The track quickly took off after its release in August and led to the Bronx rapper getting a cosign from Drake. Ice Spice dropped her debut EP, Like..?, on January 20, 2023 through 10K Projects and Capitol Records. She did minimal promotion for the project, having only announced it hours prior.

Ice Spice In NYC

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 13:Ice Spice seen at Coach Fall 2023 Ready To Wear Fashion Show at Park Avenue Armory on February 13, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Raymond Hall/GC Images )

Ice Spice discussed the EP, which features “Bikini Bottom” and “Gangsta Boo” during an interview with Rap Caviar. Ice Spice revealed, “I’m excited for this new music I’m about to put out. I’m about to put out an EP. … ‘Bikini Bottom’ is on there, and then there’s some that people haven’t heard. It’s about to be a vibe. Visuals coming with it, too. Yeah, a bunch of content around it. It’s lit.”

More recently in an interview with Ebro Darden for Apple Music 1, Ice Spice discussed working with Beyoncé on her Ivy Park line with Adidas. “You know she’s smart and professional,” she shared. “She went through for me proper channels and she did everything right. I really was, she’s so real. She’s such a boss. It’s a honor that Beyoncé picked me to be part of this campaign and s**t, but I can’t say too much on it yet. So, it’s going to be out soon though.” The collection was released earlier this month. Revisit Ice Spice and PinkPantheress’ hit song “Boy’s a Liar, Pt. 2” below.

“Boy’s A Liar Pt. 2”

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