It’s the chart upset few would have foreseen.
After much adieu, the numbers are in and it’s official…Madonna has been beaten to the top spot by the season one soundtrack of FOX hit ‘Empire.’
Full story below…
Despite Madge selling more physical units of her 13th album ‘Rebel Heart’ (116,472 to ‘Empire’s 107,140), the newly added component of streaming helped lift the compilation to #1. Indeed, per Hits Daily Double, the Sales Plus Streaming (SPS) final figures were:
1. ‘Empire’ – 128,640
2. Madonna – 121,972
It’s the latter set of numbers which determine where a song lands on the Billboard 200 and, as viewable above, it’s not good news for the Material Girl.
Though still boasting a strong fan-base, it’s clear the diva’s supporters would rather see her on tour than stream her new music or videos online. And though such a setup will ultimately benefit her in the long-run (see: tour gross), it doesn’t help her on the chart front. After all, we’re now in an era where 1000 streams of a song now equate to 1 unit sold. Units which, as this episode proves, are vital.
Stay tuned as there is a very acute chance that there could be some movement when the official Billboard 200 is unveiled tomorrow. Although, as history has shown, only in exceptional cases have numbers changed.