There hasn’t been an artist as dominant as Drake since the month of May kicked off, and it looks like he’ll continue his reign well into the month of June. Or, Summer ’16, as he predicted back in January.
Views, which debuted at #1 with over 1 million equivalent album units moved in its first week on the shelves after it dropped on April 29, is still the #1 album in the country. For the 6th consecutive week, the 6 God tops the Billboard 200 with about 135,000 units moved. For perspective, Beyoncé‘s Lemonade, an incredibly popular album that dropped just a week before Views, came in 2nd place this week with nearly half that number: 69,000.
Since there’s barely news to report on the Billboard 200, it’s worth taking a closer look at the Hot 100 this week, where there was considerable movement, despite Drizzy’s “One Dance” taking the top spot for the fourth straight week, and the fifth week overall. The 2nd and 3rd spots also didn’t change this week, as Desiigner‘s “Panda” and Justin Timberlake‘s “Can’t Stop The Feeling!” stood pat, but there are some pretty interesting things happening underneath that.
Calvin Harris‘ most recent collaboration with Rihanna, “This Is What You Came For,” has shot up to #7, after sneaking into the top 10 at #9 last week. Considering the song’s music video is still to come, it’s certainly got a shot at a top 5 peak, though breaking through the 1-2 “One Dance”-“Panda” punch might be difficult. Then again, this is Rihanna we’re talking about. The same Rihanna that ruled the Hot 100 for 9 straight weeks earlier this year. We wouldn’t put anything past her.
On that same note, replacing the Calvin Harris/Rihanna song at #9 this week is another Rihanna song, “Needed Me,” which fell just one spot this week. It’s truly amazing how often Rih has found herself at or around the top of the Hot 100 this year. It might be safe to say, statistically, this is is the best year of the Bajan star’s career.
DJ Khaled‘s new anthem, “For Free,” featuring Drake, made a big debut this week at #18, which is yet another milestone for Khaled, who has made hitting milestones a hobby during the first 6 months o this year. Not only is #18 the highest debut a DJ Khaled single has ever made, but it’s the highest any DJ Khaled single has charted, period. Debut week or not. Congrats to the locksmith. (Get it, major ke…nvm.)
Tired of reading about Rihanna? Tough luck. She’s got another prominent placement on this week’s chart, thanks to Mike Will Made-It‘s new Ransom 2 single, “Nothing Is Promised.” Rih Rih’s gully performance on the summer banger lands her a #75 debut, which is likely just a springboard, especially if we’re to get a video from the spicy collaboration.
