The Weeknd just got his 3rd consecutive #1 album on the Billboard Hot 200 Albums chart. The singer released a surprise project at the end of March called “My Dear Melancholy” and it debuted on top of the chart.
The album earned 169,000 equivalent album units for the week ending April 5. That number included 68,000 traditional album sales. That was the biggest debut week for an R&B album in over a year.
According to Billboard:
The six-song album appeared with little warning, following a cryptic Instagram post on March 27, which led to a confirmation of an album two days later. My Dear Melancholy follows The Weeknd’s two previous No. 1s: 2016’s Starboy and 2015’s Beauty Behind the Madness.
The album is the shortest album to hit #1 in almost 8 years. The first single “Call Out My Name” is the biggest song and will likely see a Billboard Top 10 debut as well.