SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE – MARCH 02: EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO BOOK COVERS Taylor Swift performs during … [+]
As time goes on, Taylor Swift continues to break records and best showings by some of the most successful musicians of all time. Every year, she passes legends and manages feats that no one before her has accomplished. This week, the singer-songwriter earns yet another spot in the history books as she tops a showing set by one of the greatest vocalists of all time.
Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department rules the Billboard 200 again this week. The title has now dominated the main albums ranking in the United States for the 12 frames it’s been present on the competitive tally.
With a dozen weeks spent at No. 1 since its debut in the top spot, The Tortured Poets Department now claims the record for the longest stretch of time spent on the Billboard 200’s throne from its opening—among projects only by women. Before this frame, no release by a female musician had launched at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and then held there for 12 turns.
Swift breaks her recently established tie with Whitney Houston, who used to hold this record on her own. The legendary singer’s self-titled Whitney started its time on the Billboard 200 at No. 1 back in 1987, and it went on to control the highest rung on the list for 11 consecutive frames. That held as a historic best showing for women for decades, until now.
The Tortured Poets Department moved another 163,000 equivalent units in its twelfth week of availability. That’s a huge sum–the kind that would normally be big enough for any title to hit No. 1, and it’s the sort of figure that most musicians aim for. The fact that Swift has snagged such a large number a dozen weeks into this campaign is astounding.
That 163,000 sum is actually up considerably from last week. Billboard reports that The Tortured Poets Department grew 43% in total consumption from one frame to the next. That uptick is attributed largely to sales, as Swift recently released slightly altered versions of the project, which spurred many die-hard fans to buy it – likely not for the first time.
Only two other albums in U.S. history have debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and then held there for at least 12 weeks. Morgan Wallen’s One Thing at a Time and Stevie Wonders’ Songs in the Key of Life both managed the feat, with the latter holding on for a lucky 13 stints atop the tally, begging with its launch.
The Tortured Poets Department may still be running the show, but it looks like it may finally be forced to step down in a few days. Eminem’s new album The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce) is off to a fantastic start, and it stands a great chance of bringing him back to the summit on the Billboard 200–and replacing Swift, after many have tried.
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