At 74-years-old, music legend Barbra Streisand continues to prove herself a force to be reckoned within the music industry.
Thanks to some high profile promotional spots and ticket/album bundling, as we reported here, the powerhouse diva’s latest album, ‘Encore,’ was set to block Britney Spears’ highly anticipated comeback album, ‘Glory,’ from the top spot. The prediction not only rang true, but also saw Babs collect a few other distinct honors along the way.
Billboard reports, with her latest #1 (the 11th chart-topper of her career), Streisand extends her reign of “most #1 albums of any female in Billboard history” (Madonna trails with 8). In addition, ‘Encore’ cements her previously achieved honor of being the only act – male or female – to nab a #1 album in the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s, ’00s, and ’10s. As if that’s not enough, the new project – which features appearances from Jamie Foxx, Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, and many more – has notched the highest first week sales tally of any album released this year (not to be mistaken with sales equivalence).
Tuck inside to see why that Barbra reign just won’t let up:
Nearly all of Encore’s first-week unit total was comprised of traditional album sales — 148,000. And of that figure, physical album sales (CDs and vinyl LPs) equated to 126,000 — the largest sales week for a physical album in 2016.
Further, Streisand surpasses her own record for the longest span between No. 1s on the Billboard 200. Encore arrives 51 years, 10 months and 17 days after her first No. 1, People, spent its initial week at No. 1 (Oct. 31, 1964).
![Chart Check [Billboard 200]: 'Tortured Poets' Makes Historic Return to #1 as Taylor Swift Wrapped Her Record-Breaking 'Eras Tour' with $2B in Ticket Sales](https://thatgrapejuice.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Taylor-Swift-thatgrapejuice-2024-ttpd-tortured-poets-billboard-200-no-1-eras-tour-2-billion-464x260.jpg "Chart Check [Billboard 200]: 'Tortured Poets' Makes Historic Return to #1 as Taylor Swift Wrapped Her Record-Breaking 'Eras Tour' with $2B in Ticket Sales.")
Unfortunately, Blonde doesn’t have any hits to keep it floating. Its sinking fast!
TGJ left out the key word “physical”. The biggest first week sellers (and I’m not including streams) if the year like Lemonade and/or Views dud not release a physical album for the first week so the pure sales were all digital.
how many albums has lemonade sold ww so far?
2,370,000 . it sole around 25k pure sales this week
Btw this is pure sales. I don’t count streams.
She’ll definitely be passing 2.4 million this coming week! ????
Yess at Anti’s longevity ! 33 weeks in the top 10 wow her most successful album yet as far as money she’s earned from the streaming and the most weeks in the top 10!
Waiting for basic lessors to come in trolling talking about pure sales when Rih is he highest streamed female artist of all time! And was given 25 million to give over a million free copies she definitely changed the game as far as streaming goes and the priority of having albums distributed exclusively through streaming sites only !
Streaming is the future folks artists are making way more from streaming then pure sales forsure!
Rihanna being some kind of streaming queen is a joke. If she can’t compel people to spend money on your WHOLE body of work (the album), then all that says is that people don’t take her that seriously. I’m not impressed that people “sample” Rihanna at the buffet, but aren’t riveted enough to ever buy the entire meal. The industry is only trying to make streaming a big deal because there are too many Rihanna’s out here now who few take seriously enough to bother with beyond streams. If the market wasn’t so depressed and depleted of substance and enthusiasm, Rihanna and others like her would have withered away years ago.
Hun stop being so ignorant I don’t think her album sales reflect her as being a singles artist and yes she is a streaming queen and making serious coin off those streams.
CHANGED THE GAME!!?? PLEASEE lol but stick to them streams cuz no ever buys her albums no way.. shes just a singles artist .. thats why she gave away albums cuz she knew it was bound to flop to mask it!
I Been said Rihanna a one hit wonder… She only sell singles
Queen of longevity!!
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(It doesn’t hold the largest first week physical sales this year. If im not mistaken its Views, Lemonade, and Blond.)
I was thinking the same thing…I believe Views had the highest sales week. Then there’s Lemonade and Blond after Views.
“Physical” is the key word. Views and Lemonade had 0 first week physical sales because the physical album was not released during the first week.
Atleast bey and rih are still in the top 10 they are the only mainstream international global black female pop stars that we have to depend on
Proud to see Anti and Lemonade still in the top 10 with real music …i think both Rih and Bey don’t make mainstream pop music no more …
Legend.
A True legend she don’t need gimmicks like Madonna’s washed up ass.
Not to take away from her success, She didn’t have to rely on Gimmicks, because she was forced on the masses for over 50 years as being some Greatness. It’s like hearing over and over “Church is on Sundays”, the younger people don’t really care so they will not debate it, but some of her contemporaries will dispute it.
Yay!!! Lemonade will remain in the Top 10 when next weeks chart is updated. She sold an additional 20,763 in pure sales this week. Thats 22% down from last week and with SPS 30,277 down 23% over all!!! She’s coming for double platinum in pure sales!
I really hope it can sold more than ST and sold as much as IASF, she’s currently had a total of 17.2 Million albums sold, she needs to get to 20 Million to beat AK, Xtina,Norah Jones. If she continues her multi-platinum sales, she can beat Janet Jackson in pure album sales by B12 (doesn’t include GH). And its not impossible to beat Britney and became one of the top selling female album seller.
I think they meant highest percentage of first week total coming from pure sales. Barbra is truly a legend.
Botney selling 13K second week, lmao.
??? I saw that hahahaha how sad!
Are u serious?!
Nice
Barbra sold as much as Ariana, Rihanna, Meghan and more than Selena, Demi and Britney?
We are already in September and that´s the only album (part from Beyonce and Drake) that has debuted with like 130k physical copies sold or so? Wow appalling state the music industry is in.
Anyway, where are the Rihanna fans who were so happy to see Anti a couple of positions above Lemonade a few weeks ago? Where are they now? It´s not like it meant anything a few weeks ago either cause if Lemonade has sold in a couple of weeks what Anti sold in months then being at whichever position is irrelevant in a particular year. But then of course most of them lack logic.
I don´t care about Beyonce but she has truly become one of the bigger album sellers these last few years (something she wasn´t throughout the 00s).