Chart Watch: 'Purple Rain' Continues to Reign
Prince and the Revolution’s Purple Rain re-enters the Billboard 200 at No. 4, thanks to the release of an expanded, deluxe edition. This is the third time the album has made the top five. It logged 30 weeks in the top five when it was first released in 1984. It spent three additional weeks in the top five following Prince’s death in April 2016.
Purple Rain was Prince’s first No. 1 album. It logged 24 consecutive weeks in the top spot in 1984-85 — against fierce competition. Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the U.S.A. was No. 2 for 21 of those 24 weeks. Purple Rain spawned four top 10 singles, more than any other Prince album. It became Prince’s first album to receive a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year.
This week’s chart ranking reflects combined sales of all editions of Purple Rain — standard, Deluxe and Deluxe Expanded. The Deluxe edition consists of two discs — a remaster of the original album and a bonus disc of previously unreleased songs. The Deluxe Expanded edition also includes two additional discs — a disc with all the single edits, maxi-single edits and B-sides from the Purple Rain era and a DVD with a concert from the Purple Rain tour.
Catalog albums are becoming increasingly important to the beleaguered music industry. Other catalog albums to return to the top five in the wake of the release of deluxe, expanded, or digitally remastered editions include the Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main St. (No. 2 in June 2010) and Sticky Fingers (No. 5 in June 2015), and the Beatles’ 1 (No. 4 in September 2011) and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (No. 3 last month).
Purple Rain bumps Sgt. Pepper‘s from the top spot on the catalog chart. This is the third week on top for Purple Rain. Purple Rain bumps Moana from the top spot on Top Soundtracks.
Top Songs
Justin Bieber is featured on the top two hits on the Hot 100 for the third week in a row. Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito” logs its eighth week at No. 1. DJ Khaled’s “I’m the One” (which also features Quavo, Chance the Rapper and Lil Wayne) holds at No. 2. This is the first time that Bieber has had the top two songs for three straight weeks. He held the top two spots for two straight weeks in February 2016 with his own hits “Sorry” and “Love Yourself.”
Bieber is the first artist to spend three straight weeks at Nos. 1 and 2 since Iggy Azalea did it for five weeks running in June and July 2014 with her own hit “Fancy” (featuring Charli XCX) and Ariana Grande’s “Problem” (on which she was featured). Bieber is the first male artist to achieve this feat since Pharrell Williams did it for five weeks running in June and July 2013 with Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” and Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky.” Williams had a featured credit on both hits.
Despacito” sold 136K digital copies this week, which puts it on top of the digital sales chart for the ninth week. “Despacito” is the second-best selling song of 2017 so far, behind only Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You.”
“Despacito” returns to the top spot on The Official U.K. Singles Chart. This is its seventh week on top.
DJ Khaled’s “Wild Thoughts” (featuring Rihanna and Bryson Tiller) jumps from No. 4 to No. 3 in its second week. Usually, songs that debut in the top five drop in their second week, as digital sales fall off and before radio airplay has a chance to really kick in. Billboard‘s Gary Trust reports that “Wild Thoughts” the first song to debut inside the top five and move up in its second week since Eminem’s “The Monster” (which also featured Rihanna). It debuted at No. 3 in November 2013 and moved up to No. 2 in its second week, on its way to No. 1.
Bruno Mars’s “That’s What I Like” dips from No. 3 to No. 4 in its 24th week. The song hit No. 1.
Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” holds at No. 5 in its 25rd week. The song logged 12 weeks at No. 1. It’s the first song in Hot 100 history to spend its first 25 weeks in the top five.
Imagine Dragons land their third top 10 hit as “Believer” jumps from No. 11 to No. 6 in its 21st week. The band’s previous top 10 hits are “Radioactive” (No. 3 in July 2013) and “Demons” (No. 6 in December 2013). All three records took their sweet time to reach the top 10. “Radioactive” cracked the top 10 in its 31st week. “Demons” made the top 10 in its 27th week. This reflects the fact that pop radio nowadays isn’t looking for rock hits to play, so it’s an uphill fight to get them played.
Kendrick Lamar’s “Humble.” dips from No. 6 to No. 7 in its 13th week. The song reached No. 1.
Post Malone’s “Congratulations” (featuring Quavo) holds at No. 8 in its 27th week.
Future’s “Mask Off” drops from No. 7 to No. 9 in its 19th week. The song peaked at No. 5.
“Something Just Like This” by The Chainsmokers and Coldplay dips from No. 9 to No. 10 in its 19th week. The song peaked at No. 3. This is the 61st consecutive week that The Chainsmokers have had one or more songs in the top 10. Only Katy Perry has had more continuous weeks in the top 10—69 in 2010-11.
“Stay” by Zedd & Alessia Cara drops out of the top 10 this week.
Sam Hunt’s “Body Like A Back Road” tops Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart for the 21st week. That puts it in a four-way tie for the longest run at No. 1 by a solo artist in the chart’s 73-year history. It’s now equal to Eddy Arnold’s “I’ll Hold You in My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms)” (1947-48), Hank Snow’s “I’m Moving On” (1950) and Webb Pierce’s “In the Jailhouse Now” (1955).
The country chart dates back to January 1944 when it was called Most Played Juke Box Folk Records. There was a parenthetical explanation on that first chart of what it was meant to encompass: “Hillbillies, Spirituals, Cowboy Songs, Etc.”
“Body like a Back Road” is just three weeks away from tying Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise” for the longest run at No. 1 in the chart’s history. “Cruise” spent 24 weeks on top in 2012-13. Both songs became crossover smashes. “Body…” has climbed as high as No. 6 on the Hot 100. A remix of “Cruise” featuring Nelly reached No. 4 in July 2013.
Top Albums
DJ Khaled lands his second No. 1 album in a row as Grateful enters The Billboard 200 in the top spot. It follows last year’s Major Key. DJ Khaled is the fifth artist to land both a No. 1 album and a No. 1 single on the Hot 100 in 2017. He follows the Weeknd, Migos, Ed Sheeran and Kendrick Lamar. (Note that four of the five are R&B or hip-hop, a sign of the times.)
Imagine Dragons’ Evolve debuts at No. 2. It’s the band’s third studio album. All have debuted in the top two. Night Visions debuted and peaked at No. 2 in September 2012. (It was blocked from the top spot by Matchbox Twenty’s North, which didn’t have nearly as much long-term impact). Smoke + Mirrors debuted at No. 1 in March 2015.
Evolve outsold Grateful in traditional album sales by a more than two-to-one margin, but narrowly lost out on The Billboard 200 when digital track sales and streaming were factored in.
Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN. holds at No. 3 in its 11th week. The album spent its first three weeks at No. 1.
2 Chainz’s Pretty Girls Like Trap Music drops from No. 2 to No. 5 in its second week.
311 lands its 10th top 10 album as Mosaic debuts at No. 6. This is the group’s ninth consecutive studio album to crack the top 10.
Ed Sheeran’s ÷ holds at No. 7 in its 17th week. It spent its first two weeks at No. 1. Sheeran’s album returns to No. 1 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart. This is its 12th week at No. 1. It’s just one week shy of matching Sheeran’s previous album, x, which spent 13 weeks on top.
Drake’s More Life drops from No. 6 to No. 8 in its 15th week. It spent its first three weeks on top.
Bruno Mars’s 24K Magic inches up from No. 10 to No. 9 in its 32nd week. The album has yet to fall out of the top 10. It logged four weeks at No. 2.
The Moana soundtrack rebounds from No. 15 to No. 10 in its 32nd week. The album peaked at No. 2.
Lorde’s Melodrama becomes the fifth album in the past seven weeks to fall from No. 1 out of the top 10 in its second week. It follows albums by Logic, Linkin Park, Bryson Tiller and Katy Perry.
Four other albums drop out of the top 10 this week—Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit’s The Nashville Sound, Nickelback’s Feed the Machine, Young Thug’s BEAUTIFUL THUGGER GIRLS and Fleet Foxes’ Crack-Up.
Radiohead’s OK Computer OKNOTOK 1997 2017 debuts just outside the top 10. The album was released to mark the 20th anniversary of OK Computer. That album peaked at No. 21, the band’s highest ranking to that point. It brought Radiohead its first Grammy nom for Album of the Year. The reissue includes a remastered version of the original album, plus eight B-sides and three previously unreleased tracks.
Metallica’s Hardwired…to Self-Destruct tops the 1 million mark in traditional album sales this week. The album entered The Billboard 200 at No. 1 in December, topping Bruno Mars’s 24K Magic, which opened at No. 2 the same week.
Coming Attractions: Look for Calvin Harris to lands his second top five album in a row next week with Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1.
